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Sarah James/Leavesley

@sarahleavesley.bsky.social

1.2K followers 850 following 51 posts

Prize-winning poet, fiction writer, journalist and photographer. Author of 9 poetry titles, 2 novellas & a poetry-play. More at http://sarah-james.co.uk. Also, editor at V. Press, award-winning poetry & flash fiction. (Profile pic by Gary Carr.)

sarah-james.co.uk.

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · Mar 4

Delighted to share this news about my Flaming June inspired poem! Big thanks to the judges & @preraphaelitesociety.bsky.social & congratulations to all the winners. 🎉🎉🎉 My poem continues the Pre-Raphaelite theme of my collection Darling Blue, out with @indigodreamspub.bsky.social later this year.

Pre-Raphaelite Society @preraphaelitesoc.bsky.social · Mar 3

Poetry winners 2024-

First: Sarah James, ‘Let sleeping peaches lie’

Second: Rachel Curzon, ‘Winter in Dinan’

Third: Nicola Warwick, ‘What of the end, Pandora’

Poet-in-Residence commendation: HLR, ‘I take all of my lovers to Highgate Cemetery’

Chair commendation: Nicola Warwick, ‘Briar Rose’

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 2h

Lots of news -- including Substack and editor news, and a round-up of this year's V. Press Prize for Poetry, reviews, new releases, events and coming soon...
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com
@laurabesley.bsky.social
@sarahleavesley.bsky.social

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 1d

“here I am a drop of amber
hung from linked silver

itself a drop of sap […]”
from Rust Canyon by Lauren Mason
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/rust-canyo...
#poetry #books #eco #nature

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 2d

V. v. delighted to see Nikki Robson’s The Price of Happiness reviewed in The Poetry Review. Reviewer Godelieve de Bree picks up on her “attuned sense of the symbolic” and the pamphlet’s “discerning grip on implication”.
poetrysociety.org.uk/publications...
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/the-price-...

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 3d

“Call toward the haloed slit
where in-falling walls almost touch, where sky plays a trick,
tips itself vertical; there is no up or down, just
a whisper, hushing itself”
from Rust Canyon by Lauren Mason
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/rust-canyo...

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 4d

One thing we all need but most of us can't get enough of _______

moresarah.substack.com/p/what-and-w...

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Black Nore Review @blacknorereview.bsky.social · 10d

A delicate moment of intimacy in Sarah James/Leavesley's poem today. @sarahleavesley.bsky.social‬

Sarah James/Leavesley – “A scent of pine”

A scent of pine You stroke my hair and the movement of air through my lungs and body becomes one with peace. Not sleep. That may follow, but right now, no need or wish to lose a single moment of this. The weather in your chest is blue skies and sunshine. Rainforest too, lush with leaves, feathers and birdsong. Your arteries…

blacknorereview.wordpress.com

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 11d

Questions (and answers!) about Darling Blue, plus other news, reviews, poetryfilm... & trying to make things look pretty!

Darling Blue: ‘Pose’ a question & Other News

This blogpost starts with a quick FAQ for my new poetry collection Darling Blue (Indigo Dreams, Oct 2025), which is now available to pre-order from Indigo Dreams. The questions are based on things people have asked me while I was writing it.

www.sarah-james.co.uk

Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 11d

Questions (and answers!) about Darling Blue, plus other news, reviews, poetryfilm... & trying to make things look pretty!

Darling Blue: ‘Pose’ a question & Other News

www.sarah-james.co.uk

Reposted by Sarah James/Leavesley

V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 14d

Celebrating 10 Years of Publications -- 2023 -- titles, prizes & more!!!
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 18d

Shades of blue…infinitely more interesting than those in grey: a Substack about Darling Blue, an animated poem, a question & inspirational prompt!

Shades of Blue

infinitely more interesting than those in grey...

moresarah.substack.com

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 19d

“[...] His poems are burning votive candles to sacred spaces and experiences while wearing the vestments of humanity; the body, attention, parenthood. [...]”
Roy McFarlane on Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html/

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 20d

V. Press is v v delighted to share the publication of Palmer by R.M. Francis – a chapbook of poetry that is very wandering and very wondering!
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com
#poetry #books #reading

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 20d

Now in stock & available to pre-order – Rust Canyon by Lauren Mason – a poetry chapbook that is very ecological and very unflinching!
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/rust-canyo...
#poetry #writing #art #words #poetrycommunity #life #inspiration #writerscommunity #creativewriting #poets #writers #books

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 22d

“We might not raze like young lovers now
but the pulse, oh lord, the pulse
enthuses.”
From Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html

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𝒊𝒂𝒎𝒃 ~ 𝒑𝒐𝒆𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒅 @iambapoet.com · 24d

Autumn again. Trees put on their prettiest frocks, then get more naked day by day. Everything now is poetry – and it comes in waves. Leave the chilly air outside. Light a fire, make hot chocolate. Let senses and soul dive beneath @iambapoet.com's newest wave.

www.iambapoet.com/wave/23

poets | wave 23 | iamb ~ poetry seen and heard

Read 45 poems from 15 emerging and established poets – and hear their authors read them too. Welcome to wave 23 of iamb.

www.iambapoet.com

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 23d

Thanks, Jean -- life's been a bit all over the shop lately, tbh, so glad it's not obvious how much is held together with blue tack and crossed fingers. x

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · 25d

A hectic but lovely week – new Substack ‘reedlike: whispering through wind & water’ at https://moresarah.substack.com/ & pre-orders open at https://indigodreamspublishing.com/sarah-james for my new collection Darling Blue!!! DM or email me for reviews, readings, book swaps etc.

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 26d

“I started to pray the day that grey cankered
ultrasound came back still and quiet.”
From Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 27d

“deep in man,
the love of thin places. To touch
its stones is prayer, is momentary
[…]”
From Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html

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sophiakramerart @sophiakramerart.bsky.social · 28d

Remember, no matter your situation or age, you have the chance to create the life you want. Make a list of where you want to be. Break each down into steps of how to get there. Complete one step at a time. Set a time of completion. Remember that time can adjust. You have to just keep going! ❤️

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Jodi @jcfineartphoto.bsky.social · 28d

#Photography #SmallTownPhotography #MeanderingInSmallTowns

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The Broken Spine @thebrokenspine.co.uk · Sep 9

Writing for #PoemsAbout #Candlelight?
Let the shadows speak. Let the wax run.
Post this Friday.
Tag your poem + tag us:
@alanparry83.bsky.social
@brokenspinearts.bsky.social
Read. Repost. Reply.
Gothic doesn’t mean dead. It means burning slow.
Prompts: shorturl.at/oEXAM

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · 29d

“[…] Personal yet ambitious in its spiritual reach, this poetry captivates the reader with its close attention to detail and language. […] a compelling poetic experience.”
Sally Read on Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html

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V. Press @vpresslit.bsky.social · Sep 7

“Reflecting on my rot:
the urge to shift stones to bread.
Instead, I light wicks,
watching flame flicker on dust
settling down to cold, pale tiles.”
From Palmer by R.M. Francis
vpresspoetry.blogspot.com/p/palmer.html

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Sarah James/Leavesley @sarahleavesley.bsky.social · Sep 7

A free new post on my Substack -- reedlike whispering through water & wind — a poetryfilm, experimental poem & prompt!
substack.com/@moresarah
Please take a look and consider subscribing. Thank you!

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