Mike O’Brien
@zoomburst.substack.com
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Sixty odd years old. Running the Sixty Odd Press and a proud member of the Promote Indie Lit network zoomburst.substack.com sixtyoddpoets.substack.com promoteindielit.com
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I have taken to writing reviews. Here are my thoughts on #poetry collections from Ian Parks, Matthew Paul and Rotherham Flux. (With a poem from each.)
What I've Been Reading
Three recently published poetry collections which are well worth spending some time with.
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I thought that they were Buster’s kids.
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Hahaha. I Jove this one. Really human. You have captured a lot in that brief exchange.
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this has a powerful intimacy - focusing on a tiny imperfection that only someone very close would notice
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that's decided me. Thanks!
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I like archaic - as long as its not overdone. It puts things in more of a timeless context. Im just toying with whether to uses "glasses" or "spectacles" in mine.
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Thanks for your faith - I doubt I could do anything better than yours though.
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thats a really clever poem. And opening it with "forgive me" is a masterstroke.
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Excellent. I shall put my damned gloves on and venture forth into the autumn sunlight.
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The opening line is a winner and Knucklefat nose is a superb image,
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that is a classic john, from the first line to the last. I lived it from both sides.
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really nice, but quite heartbreaking.
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Ooooh, nice. I have never knowingly seen a madrigal before At first I thought that this was a villanelle. I'll be exploring further. I love the way you have used contemporary images in this style of poem.
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Thank you - that is a really interesting point. One that I shall mull over. Rules are useful when you are creating, but yes - you should always be aware of the possibility of breaking them.
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Was #GeorgeFormby a poet? I have always found #poetry in his gormless, saucy songs, and perhaps he influences my work more than I would like to admit. When I was trying out different poetic forms, he was a real source of inspiration.
49. With My Little Rondo Doublé in my Hand
...being another of my attempts to write a poem in a forme fixe, and how a cheeky Lancashire comedian of yore came to my rescue when things weren’t turning out quite right.
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I didn’t realise that penguins were emblematic Christmas card birds.
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#HollieMcNish came to read #poetry at Rotherham Grimm and Co a few weeks back. See if you can spot me (and maybe yourself) in this video from Flux Spread the Word.
Spread the Word Poetry Project Montage - Flux Rotherham
YouTube video by FLUX Rotherham
youtu.be
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Charlotte Holm is a much published prizewinning poet and artist from South Yorkshire.
38. Charlotte Holm
Nature inspired poet/archaeologist
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From this day on I shall endeavour to keep my purse properly plethoric.
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It does help to clarify one's thoughts. I try and avoid being too much of a political poet, but sometimes it just has to be done.