Skeleton Architecture

This poem was inspired by the sad death of David Bowie at the turn of the year. He will be missed. It's a villanelle, because I like working on complicated poems. My favourite song of Bowie's is Letter to Hermione (it's mentioned in the poem). It inspired me to write a graphic novel when I was a teenager. I have no idea where it went, and, given my drawing skills, that is a good thing for everyone. My favourite villanelle is Mad Girl's Love Song by Sylvia Plath . This is not a patch on that, but practice makes perfect. This poem has been selected for inclusion in Forward Poetry's anthology 'Inspirational Idols', coming out this Autumn. You read it first, here. Gone. You were, I thought, a light that would not go. Outside I look up but cannot see he'en. There came a time we couldn't help but know. You hid your scars and went on with the show. You kept on dancing right up to the end. You were, I thought, a light that would not go. We all ...

Yesterday I had some time off being a Mum and travelled into Glasgow to see Robin Hobb talking at Waterstones.  It was lovely to be able to go where I wanted, when I wanted, and to spend a good quantity of time reading (one of her books). I must admit, I don't get on terribly well with Hobb's books.  The names of the characters annoy me (although that's my problem - they are completely in keeping with her world), and I don't like the magicy element (again, that's my problem - magic is, after all, to be expected in fantasy).  But the thing that really annoys me is that the central character has a familiar in the form of a wolf.  This of course happens in George RR Martin's books too, and I have no problems with the direwolves, but Hobb's Nighteyes (what a name) is much more doggy than the direwolves, and that's probably why it annoys me.  I cannot be doing with dogs. All that said, I love the way Hobb shows you people's characters, and how they ...