Speeding Towards Something Special

Monday 6th February 2017

Bastard cold. Not happy about that, obviously. But hopefully won’t stop me doing workshops tomorrow. Chuffed to have full prep done by five this afternoon, then watched a bit of the KLF 'burn a million quid' documentary. First saw this in the mid nineties. Anyway, good evening of just chipping away at my 2016 prose book, listening to Toyah tracks and trying not to sniff and wipe too much. Off to bed soon. 10.54 pm.

Tuesday 7th February 2017

Resorted to the Beechams cold and flu remedy. Don’t know if they work or just being out at work and not thinking about my snotty beak has made the day easier to bear. Still in two minds about going to Cambian Appletree tomorrow. Really don’t want to take the lurgy to a hospital. Think I’ll ring first thing in the morning. If I don’t go then I won’t be at Jen’s in the evening. Session at Waddy was good. Some great fiction ideas from the exercises that Clair Whitefield showed writers at Scratch Tyne last month. Read more of the KLF book then did my college session. A really good night. Started to feel snotty on the bus home. Read a bit more. Mince pasty for supper. A couple of biscuits. Went online but not much happening. Yeah, I’m not sure about tomorrow. Might sit that one out, to be honest. 10.30 pm.

Wednesday 8th February 2017

Earliest I’ve been out the house for a workshop in ages. Left home at 20 to nine. Workshop wasn’t until two. Was in Waddy by ten. Copied up some fragments and timed a mini-set for an open mic I’d like to do tomorrow night. I’ll have a big explorer ticket, why not get the full mileage. Cambian today was very good. A couple of people didn’t last the full session, but we got through some character exercises and questions to expand fictional possibilities. Met up with Jenni after being in the library an hour reading the KLF book. Matt Miller’s show ‘Rob Hobson Needs to Talk’ was brilliant – funny, poignant, well acted. Bus back to Consett, then a flick through music magazines in Tesco. Home to check out Bill Drummond books. 11.43 pm.

Thursday 9th February 2017

Bit of a lie in. still made it to Waddy by twelve. Photocopied some new drafts for Kink Ink open mic. Did some prep on the bus over to Newton Aycliffe. This is Just to Say and other apology poems formed the bulk of the session, then Triolet and Cinquain. Tweaked some words for tonight. About a dozen people at King Ink. Exactly what I wanted. An intimate huddle of people trying out new stuff. Reuben Blue was there, Barrie West, Chris and Tara Hodgson, Hester Dowling and others whose names are unknown to me. Chuffed to go out and try some tweaked marathon stuff. Pretty much just close reading of handwritten pieces. One was too similar to This is Not a Prose Poem so I’ll ditch it, the other three with some work might have legs. Gig was only an hour. Good to be back home and on the couch by half ten. 10.40 pm.

Friday 10th February 2017

At home all day. Timing bookmaking exercises for the big EDAN workshop. Took longer than I thought. Good to use the new needles and book-specific thread. Made a couple of hardbacks. Had the heating on for the first few hours, but mainly just working away. Tried some fake suede and more precision stitching. Be good to see how these go down a week on Sunday. Still a bit snotty, pleased I don’t have much to do tomorrow. Haven’t had the big computer on since Monday. Didn’t finish work till half nine this evening. Jenni rang. She had a good night out in Sunderland at a play about Oscar Wilde. I’ll be in bed before eleven tonight. Be good to read a perzine before lights out. 10.22 pm.

Saturday 11th February 2017

Always good to see what comes out of the book press. Really pleased with the second hardback. Then into town to get food and a bunch more supplies for the workshop in Seaham – bulldog clips, fabric, sponges, etc. Ordered a copy of ‘45’ by Bill Drummond. Checked emails. Rotten weather – slushy in Consett, rain on Tyneside. Tried to get a copy of the Music of Chance by Paul Auster in Newcastle as my copy seems to have vanished but nowhere had it. Bought a little present for Jenni and had a look about. We had lots of laughs watching Shaun Ryder of the Happy Mondays host a programme about UFOs in Yorkshire. Bad camera angles, stilted narration. Utterly ridiculous alien graphics. You’d think it was a piss-take, but apparently not. If Shaun saw UFOs in the seventies, fuck knows what he saw in the drug-fuelled nineties. Mushroom pie and onion rings for supper and a couple of episodes of Open All Hours. 11.17 pm.

Sunday 12th February 2017

Lay in bed till ten. Watched the Sunday Politics then went to Tesco with Jenni. Brutal weather. Jenni made us a lush dinner – mixed veg. I had steak pie and Jenni had veggie sausages. We watched ‘Withnail and I’ this afternoon. Jen’s fourth time. Must be my tenth at least. The dialogue is so quotable. ‘We’ve gone on holiday by mistake.’ – ‘Those are the sort of windows faces look in at.’ –‘Monty, you terrible cunt!’. Brilliant film. Ate cherry pie and custard. Watched Dance, Dance Dance final on TV. Read a bit of Reckless Chants 23 by Jessie Lyn McMains on the bus back to Consett. Surfed the android tablet on the couch. 11.03 pm.

Monday 13th February 2017

Freezing cold today. Triple-layered top, two pairs of joggers, three pairs of socks. Hands and wrists are numb, but I got my work done. Black Static magazine arrived this morning from TTA Press. Looking forward to reading some slipstream / horror stories. Checked out some Steve Sneyd poems online. He used to get in all the small press mags. I’m getting a bit frustrated with not having more time for my own stuff. Seems to be just admin, workshop prep and chasing my tail. Quality not quantity. We shall see. Big pork steak dinner today. Listened to lots of Alison Moyet tracks. She’s ace. 11.17 pm.

Tuesday 14th February 2017

Bit of a headache coming on as I roll towards half eleven. Got back at ten and ended up putting in a bit more work. Session at Waddy was productive. Started to write a bit of fiction, but doubt I’ll finish it. Evening class went well, came away feeling adrenalized. Poetry isn’t to everyone’s tastes, for sure, but I think I sold it okay. Good to show Triolet, Cinquain and free verse tonight. Think they were inspired. Good to hear from Jenni. She was chuffed with gifts. Sheila was in touch tonight. She’s going to start work on my book soon. Six weeks till publication. Still needs tweaks. Good to read some of the Black Static magazine. Chicken and mushroom bake with beans for supper. Oh yeah! 11.30 pm.

Wednesday 15th February 2017

Good day, but a bit tired after the high of last night. Tried to read a story from Black Static, can’t remember name of author, but started to fall asleep. Copied up pieces of poetry and prose at Waddy. Then at Cambian Appletree: absurd words, freewrite, apology letters, Rondelet. Read more Black Static on bus to Newcastle. Bought heavy paper stock for bookmaking workshop in Seaham with East Durham Artists Network. Met up with Jenni for carvery at the Goose. She gave me some lush little presents – notebooks, sweets, massive ‘Peggy Parp’ goth-black clothes peg, air guitar video and lush Moonpig ‘Love Hearts’ card with Jen’s little ‘bigly’ poem printed inside. Telling Tales was cancelled due to no staff at venue. Went to The George pub with some of the writers instead. Bus home. 11.25 pm.

Thursday 16th February 2017

Mint night at The Stanza. Good to catch guests I’ve never seen full sets from before. Great music from house band Renata and Trev. Wide ranging open mic, Enjoyed Ken Creen’s French knock-knock jokes. Harry Gallagher’s Beach Boys (Water boarding) poem and Mandy Maxwell’s politically charged performance poetry. Steve Lancaster also did a short, angry, political poem. A woman who hadn’t read in public for twenty years did a great relationship piece. Mark Smith, Ross Punton, Judi Sutherland all read – and quite a number of people I’m unfamiliar with. I liked Tom C’s hiphop/rap influenced set, talked to him about skateboards afterwards. Ian Waugh was there with Adrian Smallwood. Good to see Sarah Hammersley for the first time in ages. Sue Miller told us about her dystopian novel ‘20/20: They Didn’t See It Coming’ and read extracts. Sandy Alex Davidson reminded me a little bit of John Hegley, although somewhat harsher – character pieces on race and sex and a singsong to finish. R.M. Francis closed the night with readings from his Black Light Engine Room pamphlet and a sequence of employment-hassle character poems from his Lapwing Press collection – confident and engaging. Nice one. Great venue, well programmed event.

I found a shard of text in a 2010/11 notebook this morning and have been working it up all day. Bits of alliteration, some internal rhymes – but it’s probably just prose. Three and a half minutes at present. But chuffed to open mic it. Think I’m starting to get my mojo back. Be great to get a full set of new poems together…

Now on the Metro back to Newcastle. Cutting it fine but should be back in time to catch the 45 to Consett. Have a bit of a headache again so I’m hoping to get some sleep on the bus… Oh, and the big news – thanks to ex-warehouse workmate Lee Browell for heads up – is that Einsturzende Neubauten are playing at The Boiler Room in Newcastle in May. Saw them twenty years ago at The Astoria in London. The day after Princess Diana’s funeral. The city was a nightmare. The gig was superb. This Metro is hoofing it. Just as well. 10.55 pm.

Friday 17th February 2017

Really tired. Didn’t get to bed till two coz I was checking a few manuscript tweaks for Laughter to Slit Glass then ordered a Neubauten ticket. Got the Poetry Jam event page up and 95% of the bookmaking workshop stuff sorted for Sunday. Guests for Poetry Jam booked up till May. Been listening to Alison Moyet, Neubauten and The Brian May Band, whilst firing emails off to people about the book. It’s pretty much good to go back to Sheila and on to Gerry Cambridge for layout, but Jenni wants to cast an eye over it first. Chuffed with the way things are going. Will need to focus on ‘Laughter…’ for a good while before getting back to DIY publications. 11.26 pm.