Submerged

I really didn’t think I’d want to so soon, but having submerged myself in poetry somewhat over the last few days, I have written a little myself today.  Not sure yet what I think of it, will leave it to simmer a while.  Meanwhile I took out some old pieces to read and found it all a little disappointing.  The upside of this is that feeling that way didn’t come as a surprise – I think it is a perfectly normal reaction for most writers – especially those who are still learning their craft.

I’ve also been reading some of the books I’ve bought but not found time to read yet – Anon Five and Hugo Williams’ West End.  From the first, Anon Five, I really enjoyed Humdinger by John Whitworth – it actually made me squeal with delight!  Also Clumsy by Cat Dickson – a poet who seems to have done quite a lot but doesn’t have a presence I can find on the web.  As for the Hugo Williams book, I’m enjoying it, but am struggling a little as it is the first of his I’ve read, but the tenth collection he’s published.  I think I will get his Collected Poems and read that before re-visiting West End.

Also on the menu yesterday and today was attending some Yale Modern Poetry lectures online, which were really enjoyable.  So far, I’ve completed the Introduction and the Robert Frost sections of the course.  Although I’ve read most of the poets covered here to some extent, I haven’t studied them (or this period of literature) before, so plan to work my way through all the lectures.