under another sun

Lorraine out to her personal trainer this morning, and then seeing Penny. I spent some of the morning, writing my new horror story, which is going fairly well, if slowly. I enjoyed allowing the story, which hasn't a name yet but features a rabbit suit,  to fall thought a new trapdoor of psychological disturbance.  I am still coughing like a docker and feeling a bit run down, and fancying a sleep most afternoons. Had a nice chat with Mum, who had decided to take herself off to The Waggon for lunch.  Heavy rain today. Went out for a walk, having been indoors, and a huge thundery cloud arrived as I got to the sea, but I made it back before a drenching. In the evening Lorraine and I crept off to The Crypt to see Janet Sutherland reading. It is a gorgeous venue for reading poetry. Nice to chat to Antony Mair who was there. Janet read from the new book she is starting, and the work seemed very good. Alex Josephy read with her. Her work wasn't for me, though I liked her and she ...

No work. Bliss. Up and breakfast with Lorraine, and she went off to walk and talk with Penny and other ex-headteacher friends I spent a happy couple of hours finalising my reading for tonight's Needlewriters. (Success happens when preparation meets opportunity, I reminded myself). A lunchtime walk, and the luxury of a nap this afternoon. Quite nervous, and bleating nervously to Lorraine once or twice. Pleased Robin and I were reading together which somehow made it feel better.  I'd not seen the rooms upstairs at the John Harvey Tavern so crowded. I counted about 45 people. All my favourite poet friends there, SJB, Charlotte, Janet, Stephen Bone, Antony Mair and Jeremy. Plus there was a delegation from Seaford, Adele, Patrick, Andrew and Kate. Then, greatly to my surprise, old Warwick University pals, Will Leith and Callum Murray appeared, who I first met when I was 19, and then sat in the front row. As I was being introduced by James Ellis, who did a great job all night, I some...

A chat with Sam today, talking about how he is feeling a good deal better these days and is looking forward to moving back with Jade at the end of the Summer. We are really pleased for him.   Exceedingly hot.Lorraine drove us off to Robin and Nick's garden party this afternoon. Very elegant, with two young folks serving Prosecco and alcohol free Nosecco to assorted poets and musicians. Robin and Nick have an enormous shared garden, the size of a small park. Robin was wearing a dress Lorraine almost wore, plus the same Panama hat as mine she bought from Mad Hatters too.  People sippingo in the shade. I enjoyed catching up with Janet, Jeremy, Antony and Stephen. Lorraine particularly chatting to Stephen lots. He lives in Newhaven which is the next little town along from Seaford.  Drove home with the air conditioning on in the car. Watched a bit of the Tory leadership debate, and watched the tumbleweed blowing through the voids where the ideas should have been. Spoke to Tobs...

Made good progress on a poem first thing, and then did some final recording with Robin for the season finale of Planet Poetry. We will be back in late September. We have done 17 episodes in all, which isn't bad. Robin a bit stressed about her party this weekend, but otherwise cheery. I spent a fair amount of time editing afterwards. Received a copy of Finished Creatures magazine, edited by Jan Heritage, with my Mezquita de Córdoba poem in it, I wrote after falling in love with the interior of the Mosque there . Pals like Antony, Tess, Charlotte, SJB and Louise all in it, so I was pleased to be part of the club. My poem, as is SJB's is printed sideways, so as not to interfere with the line length, which is nice. It arrived in a beautiful envelope with a bookmark placed in it on the page of my poem, which struck me as a very Japanese style attention to detail. Went for a long walk, and was phoned by Valérie while I was by the side of the hill fort, briefing me on a job to be sta...

Working on poetry again this morning. I have a clear idea now on a full collection, and I just have to assemble, edit and write new material to fill in the gaps. I have a name for it too, 'One Day Forever' which helps. The difficult matter, of course, is making sure the poems in it aren't useless and sucky.   Then swallowed my frogs such as chasing the plumber and altering my linked in entry to reflect new biz etc. Talked to Anton, just before going out for a walk, and he persuaded me to download Prisoners of Geography , a book about geopolitics by Tim Marshall. Sauntered about for a bit up the hill for a short walk listening to how geography shapes politics and nations. Came home cooked a large vegetable chilli ready early as Lorraine had a Governors meeting tonight in my office. She arrived home looking pale and tired, but seemed a bit better after a quick sleep on the sofa. In the evening I had yet another thumb through John McCullough's books and worked out what I a...

A good day for me -- just a couple of bits of admin and a quick query from mes amis in Paris. Otherwise much of the day was a pause -- a caesura if I am being pretentious and why not? --  where I could think about about poetry for I have the bones of a new collection. It's the hope that kills you. This followed by an untroubled afternoon walk listening to Klara and the Sun . I also attended a zoom reading by my Antony Mair at lunchtime, with Paul Terence Carney and Nancy Hynes. Robin in the zoom crowd. I like Antony and his poems very much and they are full of his own experience and very accomplished. I enjoyed some of Paul's work too. I was unfortunately in the wrong headspace for Nancy. Zoom readings are good because they are so easy to attend, but it is not like attending a real reading.  Spoke to Anton today. Lorraine home early (for her) from school, and I called Mum, and then we had our usual reward of a Friday night curry and a couple of beers, followed by a watch of T...

Various bits of admin and preparing for the meeting with Robin this afternoon. Otherwise the US election seems in the balance, with the Blue Wave not really happening. The fact is that there are millions of Americans happy to vote for this maniac.   Beth came around in the afternoon after working at L's school for a bath and to visit for the last time before lockdown 2. Had toasties and a chat... She and James are planning to move in together for the new year.  Jumped on a train for the 14 mins ride to Lewes. The train very sparsely populated and the windows open. Watched with something like admiration as a bloke of about 50 who got on just after me, and sat a couple of rows away, had a big bag of beers and chugged two of them by the time we arrived at Lewes.  Met Robin outside the station, and we walked to two pubs, and sat in a pub garden but the ambient noise was too great, and then we sat on a big upstairs terrace of a pub called The Rights of Man. We were the only pe...

Worked on my Waiting Rooms project, and set up an appointment with the marketing department at a local private hospital where there is an installation in the waiting room by Brian Eno. Texts from Keith, who I will meet up with soon. Have to get into London and start schmoozing again soon. Bit the bullet and signed up to continue my stained glass studies again. Also got in touch with the doctor's about swollen glands, I have to wait two weeks for an appointment. Meanwhile the swollen glands seem to be subsiding a bit.   A note from Antony Mair, who will use a quote from me on the jacket of his new book. Below here is a photo of me by the miniature train we rode on for Pat's birthday, the photo taken by Beth. Gives you an idea of how wee the train was. I also went for a walk in the afternoon, attempting to get fitter. Not cold, but ominous looking weather... View towards the sea, and a view towards Brighton's football stadium. Loving having Lorraine at home, an...

To London today, walked to Brighton Station, because due to the new timetable implementation services from Preston Park have been ruined. There is a facebook protest group and so on, and local outrage and Caroline Lucas our MP getting involved etc. Off to see Sophie up in Highgate. She is heartbroken, but having to keep everything together, and still managing her business. It is very hard. Christof was there too, but he didn't feel like socialising. Sophie prepared a bit of lunch, and then we walked in the woods behind her house for some time, sitting on a park bench drinking takeaway coffee from the cafe, where one of Electra's friend's Bliss was working. Now a young woman of about twenty, I met Bliss once before when she was a child, and I remember one of her parents bellowing up the stairs for Bliss, which always makes me laugh when I think about it.  Long chats with Sophie, there is not much to be done really, other than listen and talk and show your support. So...

Donned the hair shirt, and embarked on a big mind map to assess where I am with my writing, and work out a few next steps. This involved casting a cold eye on all my activities. And it wasn't a pretty sight. The children's novel has been completely ignored or rejected by over a dozen agents, so it may be unpublishable dross or my approach is all wrong. I need to find out. I have a single poem in the publishing pipeline (and today received confirmation that my collection had got nowhere in the poetry business competition) no plays, no music (the Centaur project seems to be at a halt), no stories accepted, no big ideas, and now no freelance. To the gym, which helped a good deal. And walking through the park and literally smelling the roses. And an invitation from Antony to go to his book launch later in the month Bestiary, and Other Animals , which should be fun, and a note from Catherine to meet up soon. Heard that Jade had not got the Oxford job she'd interviewed for. ...

Finally sent off the manuscript Sin Cycle to the Poetry Business Competition, which is the preeminent poetry pamphlet competition. Good to send this off, if only that it frees me up to do other things. Like other poems. Off in the evening to Eastbourne. Walked down to London Road, where I met Sarah Barnsley and Marion Tracey on the train. Chugged off to Eastbourne talking about poems, and found the venue where Robin Houghton and Stephen Bone were about to launch their new pamphlets, 'All the relevant gods,' by Robin, and 'Plainsong' by Stephen. Robin worrying about the positioning of fairy lights when I arrived. Chose this moment to nip into a burger restaurant, where I had a chicken burger and left half of my fries, and we met Antony Mair and a pal. Sarah Barnsley and Antony were giving supporting readings and did really well. Several poetry pals in the audience including Charlotte, and Jeremy Page and Catherine Smith. Readings really good, everyone read well and ...

Up early with a scratchy throat and reading a slightly alarming email from mum about Panamanian adventures. Toby feeling unwell on arrival and went to hospital and had a drip and given some pills, but has been discharged. Later I learned from a facebook post that they had also met Margaret Atwood in the airport. I meanwhile spent the first few hours of the day working on the Shakespeare poem for this . Then off to the gym for one of my trademarked mild mannered workouts and home again for a miso soup lunch. Then I bused to Hove where I spent a three hours with Helen. She looked very well after her cancer treatment last year, and it was great to catch up with her. She had new music to play me on our Centaur project. Really good stuff, a fully orchestrated first twenty minutes of the opening to the opera, she played me on Sibelius . I'm really sensing and organic core to it now. And then some gorgeous bits including an aria on the piano. Bus badness, meant I had to walk half the ...

Spent some of the day getting my poetical ducks aligned before the Telltale poets and friends reading in Lewes tonight, which was a success despite a derailment at Brighton station during the day which made travel really hard along the south coast. Robin and I swapping emails and I phoned Robin to tell her about the travel chaos.  One of the readers dropped out at the last minute, but luckily Siegfried was coming, so we got him to do a reading. Lorraine drove over. Beth came too having been working in Eastbourne. Beth enjoyed herself mingling with poets, and I was really touched that she came. She also took photos which was excellent. Found Robin already there and Lorraine Robin and I shuffled the room around for a bit, and I drank a pint of Harveys and ate some chips in preparation. For me it was an opportunity to meet more poets such as Martin Malone editor of Interpreter's House, really likeable man and a really good reader. Helen Fletcher had come all the way from Carlisle,...

Up with the sparrows applying Graceful Green coloured paint. Basically grey with suggestion of green. It does however look elegant, next to white. Grown up is what it is. Then broke off at lunchtime as Beth arrived with Gary in a van, full of her London stuff. This rapidly disgorged, and we'd congratulated each other, on Gary's marriage and our house purchase, Gary drove off and Beth's stuff on the floor in her room. Lorraine working from home this afternoon, so all was cheery, despite this  review of The Nightwork . I understand there are a couple of other reviews forthcoming which may be a bit more favourable. But I'd rather get an indifferent review than none at all. In a very good mood, to The Nelson where I read some of poems in the Stanza Bonanza meeting. A very cheery evening, with lots of good poetry read. I tried a new poem primarily written to be performed callled A poet walks into a bar , which went down quite well, as well as a couple of others from The ...

Seeking tranquility today and to get myself in the right frame of mind for The Nightwork pamphlet launch this evening. After running through what I had intended to read, I felt the Kenny pipes rasping somewhat as my throat has been sore for a few days. I drank loads of water, however, and this seemed to do the trick and it was much improved by the evening, and Beth suggested emergency remedies of steam baths etc. if it got serious. Like the literary Titan I am, I spent my afternoon waiting for a small roofer, who arrived late and sporting many tattoos of boxers and a humorous hinge in the crease of his arm. Making a meal of the work, he clambered about on the roof and hammered at the lead flashing and did other apparently helpful things 'for nothing'. These he described in tiresome detail. He relieved me of a decent chunk of cash, but did not receive the tip he also requested. Worse, he garbled and looked at his son when he was talking to me so I could only undersand part of...

In practical mode organising a drains person to do some drain work, admin, returned spare keys to the Twitten, and dragged things around the house in a futile attempt to sort through the detritus from my loft, and the entire van load of stuff that we brought back from Kent. To the gym at lunchtime. The psychological and health bonus from being released from the stress of selling my house is vast. I felt springy and unburdened. A fast shop in Sainsbury's after work, home to eat fish and veggies, before Lorraine went off to sing, and I went to The Lord Nelson where the Brighton Stanza Poets Anthology 2013 was launched. Packed room, and ten readers. Chatted briefly with Antony and Robin Houghton, and Andie Davidson who had produced the book. Plus two pleasant women I think were called Angie and Gay who were fans of a performance poet called Sue, with a man who had just got married to a Cuban. I lost no time in telling them I had just got married too. I made off as the evening was ...

Not really in the mood for writing about marketing today. I decided it was too hot for it and I felt inappropriately holidayish. Instead reworked a poem based on the workshop last night. Also heard from Antony Mair, the writer I enjoyed meeting yesterday inviting me to contribute to their anthology. Contacted completely randomly by Celia, who is currently staying in Icart Road Guernsey, and who lives in Brighton some of the year. She'd seen one of my photos of a strange door to nowhere on Icart Road and asked me about it. A quick exchange of emails. I told her about proposing to Lorraine on Icart Point just a few weeks ago. Then a summons from my amigos in Tavistock Square to take a handover briefing from First Matie tomorrow: good news as the doubloons are sorely needed.  After Lorraine got home, we walked up the hill to sit outside the Open House pub to meet Matt and his oldest pal Ruth down from Scotland for a few days basking in the sun and reading books outside caf...