Words of the month: Skull, Ghost, Twitch

The Veil Blinks by SM Jenkin

Photo:Pixabay (creative commons)

The veil blinks,

is noticed to twitch, 

once, from the other side

as children dance from

door to door,

cheap plastic caressing

their faces; 

skulls, green drowned

faces melting into innocent

necks. Tonight, it’s 

dad’s turn

and he is glad there have been

no sexy vampires, yet.

It was their game, 

once.

And he watches from the gate,

as some other man’s child wobbles 

past in a dirty white duvet,

scissored holes for eyes.

And he chances a brief look

at his watch, feeling the 

hour hand spinning 

like a helicopter,

lifting his hand.

Until the veil twitches

shut again, for another year.

And he didn’t think of her

once.

Inspired by Lisa Vigor’s Inspirational words of the month, Oct 2017  #Ghost #Twitch #Skull as posted by Lisa on youtube here

Inspirational Nights - Let's play!

Join Lisa Vigour at the one and only interactive open mic night in Medway. Come to perform or to appreciate the silken words and notes woven onstage for your pleasure.

Can't think of anything to say or to play? Pick one of the prompts on a peg and get going, you may surprise yourself...

Inspirational Nights Rochester, Kent

Mics and PA are provided. There is a piano at the venue you'll be welcome to play. If you want to play another instrument please bring it. All performers at this event get a free drink...

The next Inspirational Night will be at the Northern Seaman on 18 May 2017, from 8.30pm onwards. The Northern Seaman is at 378 Rochester Highstreet, ME1 1DJ Rochester, Medway.

Inspirational Nights are held on the third Thursday of every month. It's a lovely relaxed atmosphere. Come and play.

Confluence Medway - looking for submissions

Confluence, where the Delta meets The World

Do you have poetry, short plays or short stories that you would like to share?  A new online writing magazine from the fabulous team at Wordsmithery is looking for contributions. They will publish four times a year (August, October, February and May)

The team are looking for submissions from "the Delta and beyond" - within a shout of "the river"

The topic for Issue one is "memento fluvium" or "remember the river". Be as free with this as you wish - the deadline is midnight on 15 July 2016

More details on how to submit work can be found here confluence medway - submissions

Londonium 2016 - Mindful Writing

boxes blinking bright in
hoarded sunlight, corralled by
black cabs,
diverted the famous grey
flows of metamorphic concrete

layered down.
the Romans river anchored
offshore, the sign of the skyscraper
follows the length of the
high Thames

London

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Mindful writing is the practice of capturing a moment in writing, described by Satya Robyn as a small stone. Satya describes a small stone as a "short piece of writing that precisely captures a fully-engaged moment".

I think the practice is a terrific way of learning to pay attention. A great description of how to do this very simple exercise can be found here.

Picture sourced from Morguefile

An assemblance of judicious heretics…

The Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know are coming to Medway... and it is a work in progress

Image credit Doctor_Bob

As part of the Rochester literature festival, the ME4Writers are curating an intriguing exhibition, and they would like to invite you to take part. Are you interested?

The assemblance of judicious heretics is an open access collaborative project. The idea is to encourage artists of all styles to send in work to complement a series of writing pieces on the theme of Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know.

The exhibition will be displayed in Rochester during September and October. If you would like to know more, please see the details on the ME4Writers blog here. You don't have to be based in Medway, you can send in work as long as you can deliver the art to Rochester. 

Good luck!
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Image source: Morgue file.com

Final Mindful Writing 31 - Grandparents

In their wedding best

they stand for the photo,

before the brown brickwork

of some wall. They are quite

dwarfed by the photo frame,

pear, peach, apple

pomegranate twined and full.

I close my eyes like my grandfather

in photographs; beneath the

dust I see my grandmother's eyes

shut, too.

My grandparents
Image credit: SM Jenkin

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This is the final part of the small stones writing challenge

The art of paying attention

Mindful Writing 30 - Burned Diaries

My mother has walked in

from her garden;

the arms of the tulips on her

cardigan writhe like

black flames against a

pink sunset. Her eyes water,

but there is no more smoke,

no soot; her hands are clean.

Image credit: Emmi P

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge

The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 29 - lightbulb moment

A cough, the delicate staccato

of the best man at a wedding

tipping the side of a wineglass

with a fork.

The flash catches me unaware,

my hand on the

switch. It is still

dark.

Picture credit: M Connors

This is part of the small stones writing challenge

The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 28 - Ginger

The sunshine of your

smile has singed your

beautiful beard quite

ginger;

the sparks in the

middle of a fire.

Warming, not burning.

(I hope)

Picture credit: hotblack

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 27 - Bills

Bills and bank statements,

artfully arranged and

rearranged on

my beige floor.

Again.

Piled up, jagged edges ready to

vomit onto the soft

pile; I size them

up, and shudder.

Picture credit : M Connors

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 26 - Boxty

In the warm kitchen, below the incomplete 

bottle of red wine from last week 

(on the side), I watch my hands grating potato

onto the pine effect chopping board;

soft white slivers falling randomly onto

blue and white teacloth, crisp and fresh

from the laundry;

Boxty that my mother will

not eat

Picture Credit: Jer_Jones

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 25 - Chalk Banks

Everyone is alone in the dark;

the 43 seconds in the tunnel between

 Gillingham to Chatham turn my lying watch-

face blank. Blinking away the glare from the

chalk faced banks; the light dims sharply.

I see the wire mesh holding the crumbling

chalk banks, slowly submerged by  

lush spring growth.

Ivy has buried the lone grey signal box,

slowly spreads towards the  

patchwork platforms.

Picture Credit: Jusben

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 24 - Tree Island

Walking past the car park; the

smell of fresh-hewn wood.

Three oblong islands, each decked

with two bare blank trees, separate the

bays from the men

Picture credit: Alvimann

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 23 - Chatham station, Island

At Chatham station,
beneath the leaking pipe on
platform 11, a moss-soft green world
blooms and flourishes;
encircled by the rainwater moat.

Picture credit: r_brevity

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 22 - Banana smile

Morning tea;

the upturned smile of a

banana, softening to brown

baby mush.

Shortbread it is, then.

Picture credit: Doctor_bob

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 21 - anticipation

the train is a jackhammer, vibrating with such
force it almost
lifts from the ground.
The moment passes; the engine
whines as it leaves
Gillingham. Such sweet sorrow.

Picture credit ronnieb

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention
Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 20 - Laundry

The odd shape of soft

lemon wool,

bulky above sleek

layers of acrylic;

black interspersed with

tempered blue.

Picture credit: Alvimann

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 19 - Duvet Day

early rays of

sunlight as

pale as the moon,

cool as the air on my

nose;

warm duvet covering

my lips.

 

Photo credit: Seamann

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 18 - They fit

canvas bag pressing sharply

on my right shoulder

blade,

soiled pink buggy jammed

into backside, baby shrieks

drumming inside my skull,

but this; the boot.

Chocolate brown, zip

up the side,

and soft leather pressing against

naked calf. A perfect fit.

Photo credit: Muyral

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/

Mindful Writing 17 - Yellow brick road

a river of fire,
leading down from the
dormant grey
chimney; the windy snakeskin glare
reflecting the sun in scar
tissue. left from internet cables
replaced years ago;
fringed in water. shimmering
blinding gold

until the moment the dew heavy clouds
draw in: the new patchwork tarmac, red and black,
Adder sharp, grows to replace the glare;
I find my keys

Photo credit: K Connors

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This is part of the small stones writing challenge
The art of paying attention

Image source: http://www.morguefile.com/