http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/apr/30/poet-laureate-carol-ann-duffy

Not long now. Although Simon Armitage would have been a good choice too. Seeing both read their work in June and July. Winning all round.

The Sun Writing Group

Today marks the birth of a new writing group in Lancaster; The Sun Writing Group, meeting @ The Sun Hotel, first Monday of every month at 6pm.

The new group will be a forum for discussing ideas for new writing, getting feedback on ideas and work, an opportunity to ponder writing and it's academic roots and branches... All sorts of things.

The group will be informal and social with no pressure to meet deadlines or produce work-on-demand.

Laura will be creating online space for members to dump interesting writing, links, info for others to see and read at anytime and prior to each new meeting. In the meantime, I have to create a logo...

Something a little film noir

I took this photo and played about a bit. Now i want to use it as a writing prompt. A bit of poetry noir perhaps. Something to mull over tonight in Carnforth.

Some people are doing this to nice effect. See for example this Noir poem, called Noir by George Szirtes. Like me he is fond of the story-telling form of terza rima. The questions at the end are a really intriguing way to end and add to the mystery of true noir.

To add to book list:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/apr/27/kazuo-ishiguro-interview-books

Looking forward to this collection

What I wish I had known

I like to write urgent lists on my phone. I might text 'remember to get muffins', 'chuck socks' and 'take meter reading again' and then save it to Drafts.

I have been wondering what personal item to take for a photo next week. I pondered. I stared out the window. I considered a matchbox car. A photo of the ventilation system in Engineering. The wheels of my swivel chair. Then epiphany, I wrote this urgent note in my phone and saved to Drafts;

'Dig out ammonite'

As if it were that easy.

Those gem-like people

Despite being aware of the deadline for the last three months, I have just rushed a competition entry to the post office 30 mins before deadline. The knice lady at the magazine said the envelope just had to have today's date stamped on it and they would accept my entry. Then the lovely man in the PO sorted out my envelope while I breathlessly counted out the pennies for postage. Due to my oversized envelope I didn't have enough cash but he kindly sent it for me anyway and wished me luck with my entry.

Three months I have anxiously twitched and twittered over whether to send an entry. Bouncing from one crisis of confidence to the next. Pointless. Don't mind how I do now, just nice to get some exercise and bump into some good spirit.

Indicator is on and I am being let in

First three poems accepted for publication by Flax: Reclamation, Bay Rock and Square Metres for Acreage. These will all appear in Flax 018 which launches on 17th June 2009. Please visit again to read these at a later date. I will provide the link to the as yet unnamed publication.

About growing up at different times of your life, sometimes when you should have grown up already, sometimes when you are growing up for the second or third time.