WORDS
I do tend to rattle on…
The Slow Burn
28 February 2018
Lengthened, ill-defined shadows overlapped like hazy Venn diagrams and the world took on a dim, dusk-blue iridescence that tugged at his tangled viscera.
My goal with The Slow Burn was to explore the idea that a seemingly innocuous, everyday event, can have far reaching implications on the psyche of a maturing boy (or girl). The protagonist’s perceptions…
MoreKeep The Fire Alight
7 October 2015
Bare skin on plastic, a collage of ether dreams, now crystallised.
A 500-word short story I entered for the September CultOfMe competition – I didn’t win. I know, scandal.
The brief was to write 500-words or less inspired by the accompanying image. I really enjoyed writing it, and…
MoreSnowmen
4 September 2015
Rationed voices croak: Not today, I’m saving that tin of something.
Every city, a constellation of sufferers,
As if some artist in the sky
Flicked a paint-soaked brush across the map marking each spot damned.
Down every alley and up and through every high rise
The sound of stomachs…
A Human Crisis
3 September 2015
People. That’s all they are, they are not migrants, they are fellow human beings.
The Jungle in Calais, the island of Kos, the border of Macedonia and Greece – these are all points at which refugees have converged, seeking a better life. Yet our (UK) government’s rhetoric remains…
MoreA European Tragedy
13 July 2015
They are so committed to their ideology that even human suffering at its hands cannot sway them. In fact, deep down, they welcome it.
I’ve been following the Greek crisis in the last few weeks with an almost religious fervour and If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the EU (ahem, Germany) is committed to austerity. To…
MoreShantaram by Gregory David Roberts – Book review
14 May 2015
I can proudly say that its pages are now tattered through turning as opposed to through some kind of industrial accident.
This novel has been around a while; originally published in 2001 it has since sold over 4 million copies. This is a wildly successful book. I should have heard of it, but I hadn’t….
MoreAn Open Letter to Snap-Happy Gig-Goers
12 February 2015
Not every gig is worthy of remembrance
Dear Gig-goer,
Does you smartphone burn a hole in your pocket? Do you itch to snap a quick shot of your favourite artist as they jump, sing, shout and scream on stage? Maybe you prefer…
MoreBoy in Blue
7 October 2014
A short (and unusually) rhyming poem about a little feeling, a sense memory, connecting to the past…
Remember, and in doing so, be transported. But you should know: there’s no way back.
One brief moment was all it took,
Unburdened abandon in this brown boy’s look.
He and his friend crossing the road,
First left then right and over they go.
A skip in their step on this…
Spoiler
20 June 2014
He was a monstrous black giraffe of death. In a cape.
This story was inspired by Game of Thrones (the TV series). Specifically, a Facebook “friend” thought that spoiling revelations in the show was a just bit of fun, rather than the deadly serious matter…
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