Friday 7th November 2014
Sat
against the radiator in my bedroom earlier this evening reading Harmonica by Geoff
Hattersley. Today I’ve been busy with admin for new and existing courses. Keying
in work and doing some preliminary prep for a publishing project. The room is
cold again. But I’ve had pizza and hot orange, so it’s not too bad. I’m sick
of writing about work and I’m too tired to work. Farthest I’ve been is the shop
on Derby Drive
for a few supplies. Tomorrow I’ll try to get card for a booklet. And tinned
produce at Barry’s Bargain Store – lentil soup you can slice with a knife, cheap
cakes and biscuits. Hope TV Smith’s book comes tomorrow. Keen to see his prose
style. 11.00pm.
Saturday 8th November 2014
Sunday 9th November 2014
Bit of work this morning. Searching online for card stock. Me and Jen had
chicken jalfezi for lunch and watched Adams Family Values; an episode of
Columbo starring Billy Connolly; then the first ever Lewis. Home by half ten
and a bit of online research. I want to write, not just be an
administrator/facilitator all week. 11.47pm.
Monday 10th November 2014
Full-on
prep. Worked on Chris Harland’s poetry pamphlet this morning then lesson plan
copy-ups, sorted handouts, keyed in student texts this evening. Flagged up a
nice little Albert Huffstickler video on Facebook from a memorial group and was pleased to see his brilliant poem “I
Write” on that page as well. Since commenting on it earlier a few of the NE
poets have given it a like. “I Write” had me in tears the first time I read it
in Jay Woodman’s magazine Rustic Rub back in the late nineties. I was lucky
enough to correspond with ‘Huff’, albeit very briefly, and accept some of his
poems for my humble little “Moodswing” pocket broadsheet. I ordered a Huff book
off Amazon tonight. Tales of the Emergency Sandwich: Punk Rock
Tour Diaries: Volume Three by TV Smith arrived today. Very readable exploits of
a fifty-something bloke touring with a band and solo in often adverse conditions.
Great book. 10.42 pm.
Tuesday 11th November 2014
Good
day. New people in for taster session this morning. Lots of fun at Newton
Aycliffe doing A2Z poems and making mini booklets. This evening’s New College
Course went okay but we started late coz people weren’t able to get in sooner
due to heavy traffic. Found out Jarboe is playing London next year - Friday 13th February at a
small venue in Dalston. I might go, might not. Never seen her for nearly ten
years. Would like to be there. Must get some sleep. Bit of a headache. 10.47pm.
Wednesday 12th November 2014
Nice
to have the afternoon off for a change. Mid November day, walking across Milburngate Bridge in my hoodie and joggers, no
bloody satchel weighing me down. Sessions were good today. Little fiction
workshop this morning and another crack at the Sestina with the evening group.
Chris okayed the card for his pamphlet. Good to read David Gaffney today. Ace
to see Lyndsay McClaren longboard vid and watch Danny McAskell ride the
Cuillen Ridge on his mountain bike. Heart in mouth stuff. 11.10 pm.
Thursday 13th November 2014
Today’s
session went very well. A repeat of yesterday’s impromptu lesson plan:
monologue vs third person narrative and creating scenes of conflict from spiky
dialogue. Read more Gaffney and talked about Simon Green’s memoir. A really
enjoyable end to the workshopping week. This afternoon and evening I’ve been a
bit fixated on chapbooks – or pamphlets, as we tend to call them. Lots of lovely
handmade stuff on Etsy and Pinterest. And via a Guardian article I came across
Blackheath Books. I’d seen some books by them before but hadn’t registered that they
are the publishers of lavish limited edition titles by Tim Wells, writing by Jah Wobble
(ex Public Image Limited) and Billy Childish. I ordered a hardback chapbook by
Adelle Stripe. Then went to Tesco for the everyday brands – if only their 120 gsm
paper at £3.75 for 250 sheets had been in cream my day would have been perfect.
But still pretty good. 11.28 pm.
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