Category: Poetry

2017 – A Year in Review

A long short summary of 2017.

Another year over, and what a year it’s been. It’s had ups and downs and tears and laughter and clichés and bad metaphors. It has been a year.

But I have never felt as successful as I have coming out of this year. This year, I did so many things I didn’t expect me to do ever.

I won not one but two poetry slams, I performed music on stage for the first time since 2013, I managed to write 100 Poems in 100 Days (I still don’t know how I managed that).

I had my first ever stand-up comedy gig (it was terrifying, it was amazing), I got to perform alongside one of my poetry idols and busted some more comedy and broke my roleplaying game cherry with The Comedy Roleplaying Hour at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.

I had my first paid feature poetry gig, I wrote, produced and performed my first ever full-length poetry show at the Edinburgh Horror Festival, and became part of the team that run the Edinburgh Horror Festival.

I had my first ever compere gig, started a new cabaret band/duo, and started work on a new live poetry event with a good friend of mine which is due to debut early next year. And finally, to top it all off, I was named Stage Time Promotions ‘Best Poetry/Spoken Word Act of 2017.’

Across music, comedy and poetry (and hosting) I’ve performed 36 times this year. That’s insane. That’s 36 more performances than I expected to do in my life. There’s so many people in my life that I need to thank. This has been unexpected. For the first time in 25 years, I feel proud of myself.

It’s not been without its battles. Mental health, homelessness, nerves, losing friends, drifting away from people. No life is 100% perfect.

But this year came pretty damn close.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of you, the people who’ve read the poems, the people who have listened to/watched me perform. The people who have let me perform (Inky Fingers’ wonderboys, Freddie and Ross, the beautiful Lloyd and Matt behind The God Damn Debut Slam, my good friend Ross who I produce the Freakeasy Showcase with, the Edinburgh Horror Festival, and the organisers of From The Horse’s Mouth).

My sound operator, Graham, and poster designer, Ash from We All Have Fears.

To all my friends who have supported me and listened to my surrealist ramblings while trying to write something. To all my friends who have been there on any level. My friends online and on the earth. There are so many of you. I can’t thank you enough.

And finally, thank you, dear readers. You don’t know me, and yet you’ve taken the time to stick around and read this. You’ve read the blogs, you’ve read the poems. You’re amazing. And I love that you’ve been hanging around, commenting when you can. Liking, sharing, communicating, supporting. Thank you.

Bring on 2018 and the next adventure!

‘We All Have Fears’ – Done!

So, this past year I feel I’ve managed to go from strength to strength. This is due to the following things:

  1. I’ve managed to get out and make new friends and rebuild some old friendships.
  2. I’ve started to build momentum on the Scottish spoken word scene. People recognise or have heard of me now, and that’s weird.
  3. I’ve got a small, fantastic fan base that just keeps to be building.
  4. I’ve had my first paid poetry gigs. Hot damn, people actually want to book me and pay me for this stuff.

And finally, on top of this, I mnaged to write, direct and perform my first, full length solo poetry show. And it was received well. I’ve had constructive feedback and know how to work on it. I reckon it may end up hitting up the Edinburgh Fringe next year.

I’d like to thank everyone who had helped, my friends Ross, Isla, Heli and Oliver, Theresa, Dave, David, Gemma, Ricky and everyone else who came to the show or helped or listened to me rant or kept me sane with cups of tea, my sound guy, Graham, and my graphic designer, Ash.

A huge thanks goes to Edinburgh Horror Festival for opportunity to debut this show.

A hundred thank yous go out to the Amanda F*cking Palmer Official Page group for helping with the research for the show.

Further thanks go out to Stage Time Productions for their review of the show (that you can read here!)

And finally, thank you to all of you. You who have been reading and commenting away. Thank you for your support and dedication.

Upcoming Show: We All Have Fears!

So I’ve been quiet on here for the last little while, but it’s all been for a good reason, I swear!

It’s because I’ve been working on my first ever full-length, solo show, which debuts at the Edinburgh Horror Festival this Friday!  Banshee Labyrinth at 6.00pm!

I’m scared and excited for this!  A mix of some old and new material all neatly packaged in a strange little box.  I have no idea how well this is going to go, but I’ll definitely be keeping you all posted!  Who knows, I might even create a nice little book from this, or post up a video or poem or two!

#MentalHealthAwarenessDay

Today is World Mental Health Day. I could take the time to talk about my struggles but that wouldn’t help anything or change the following:

One in four people will experience a diagnosable mental health problems at some point in their life.

615 million people suffer from anxiety and depression.

Sometimes, it’s not easy to know how to be there for someone struggling with mental health. It’s not the same for everyone. But you shouldn’t let that stop you from helping someone.

❤

“What Can I Do To Make The Situation Better?”

Text, call,
Pick up the phone,
Be there however you can.

Make sure they’re safe
Ask a question,
Take a breath.

Move the pills,
Move the drink,
Move the knives.

Keep 999 on speed dial
Distract,
React,

Be appropriate,
Cool them down,
Keep them warm.

Let them be human,
Let them breathe,
Let them cry,

Remember this isn’t about you.
Hold them close, give them space,
Give them what they need that makes them feel safe.

Remind them someone is always there.
If you can’t be present, be a presence.
Let them know they’re never alone.

Craig A. Black

#PoeticAnswers 100 – Why?

I don’t really know why
I do what or do or why
I put myself through this
One hundred day quest
To write poetry.

And even though
Some of it wasn’t my best,
I can say I put
Myself to the test
And passed and
A hundred poems can
Attest to that.

But you see,
This was something
I never thought I could do,
And when I said
“I write poetry”
I felt I had to prove
Something to myself
And to others because

I didn’t get a BA or Honours
In English or Literature
Or something relevant to this.
I worked my way from the bottom,
Primitively stringing as many
Words together as possible and
Aiming for the stars but
Preparing to miss.

But on the way down
I found some catharsis.
And a million different
Ways to play with words.
I found my life’s
Meaning and definition
In a thesaurus and dictionary
And found my voice
Through trial and error.

And now I can say
The things I want to say
The things I need to say
The things I didn’t know how to say
The things I didn’t know I wanted to say
In a way that let’s my
Incoherent and bipolar mind
Sound somewhat like it’s sane.

You and I have both found
Ourselves asking why I
Chose to go down this path.
I’ve asked myself this question
A hundred times in
A hundred ways and
I’ve arrived at
A hundred different answers
That twist and bend and
Find their way back to
This place.

This place where
I’ve not found myself but
I know I’m getting warmer.
This place where
I know I’m going to keep looking.
I know I’m around here somewhere.

#PoeticAnswers 99 – Are You Sure We Exist?

I think that I think I exist.
If thinking equals being,
Then I think that I exist.
But it’s not a conscious
Decision to will myself
Into this existence
And this is evident by
The persistent indecision
That I find myself facing
On a daily basis.

Because I’ve lived
My life thinking
“I think, therefore I am”
But I find I am in
A constant battle of
Positive versus negative
And logic dictates
I wouldn’t wish it
Upon myself so
Who did?

How would I know
If this wasn’t just
Some kind of crazy,
Inconsistent coma dream
From one too many
Car crashes, causing
Flashes of different lives
To flash across my eyes
In a systematic series of
Fortunate and unfortunate events.

Maybe this isn’t even me,
Maybe I’m someone else’s
Fantasy or hallucination,
A nighttime thought creation
Or process of dissociation,
A cultivation and culmination
And overall manifestation
Of stress and frustration
Or a figment of a
Perfect stranger’s imagination.

But at the risk of waxing existential,
I don’t think we’ve considered
The absolute potential of
Being part of an extraterrestrial
Game of The Sims.
Being trapped at the whims
And mercies of martians
Or deities who let us
Virtually have no control
In our lives.

Question from Justine F. from Facebook

#PoeticAnswers 98 – What Would You Do If You Couldn’t Fail?

I wish I could say
I would take the time to
Do something sensible, like

Resit that maths exam
Or ask you out or
Wish for peace,

But the gravity and
The bitter reality
Is this:

I would stop trying,
I would stop learning,
I would stop being me.

I would become bored,
I would become complacent,
I would become a failure to myself.

I would probably become depressed,
I would probably stop caring,
I would probably kill myself.

Question from Michael Clark from Facebook

#PoeticAnswers 97 – Can You Write A Poem In Another Language?

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Translation:

Humans are not computer data.
We are not simple codes,
Boiling down into ones and zeros.
If anything, we are hexadecimal.
Many sides, many shapes
Multifaceted.
But this is still not enough.
If we are told we can be
Anything we want to be.
But only if it fits in
The molds of our peers and predecessors.
Humans are not computer data,
We are flesh,
We are water,
We are fluid
We are new
We are change
We are living.
We are not ones and zeros.
We are not computer data.

Today’s question comes from fellow poet, John Simpson. Check him out!

#PoeticAnswers 96 – How Do You Say “I Love You”?

Sometimes.”I love you”
Isn’t something I can say.
Sometimes it’s just an
Outstretched hand in an awkward silence
Or a look of admiration in a moment of pride.

I say “I love you” in
Early morning cups of coffee and
Unexpectedly ironed bedclothes.
In unsolicited text messages and
Midnight instant messenger conversations
And emails of kittens at work.

I say “I love you” in
Long walks in the sunset
And sacrificed jackets in the rain.
In shared tears and
Inappropriate laughter at
Inappropriate jokes.

But most of all,
I say “I love you” with meaning
And without speaking.
By showing you my hands
As I gesture “I love you”
In a language that
Only we understand.

Question from Sarah P. from Facebook

#PoeticAnswers 95 – When Did You Realise How Good You Are?

It’s was never exactly obvious,
It was more like the longest
Dawning of the day, except
It wasn’t a twenty-four hour
Turn-around time for it to
Come around, it was more like
Several years of night skies and
Never shining out of the darkness.
Feeling a sort of substandard
That could only be applauded
By best friends and parents.

But since starting to write
And stage these poems,
I’ve seen real people,
Rooms of strangers
Clinging onto every word,
I’ve heard them laugh,
I’ve hugged them when they’ve cried,
I have had statements from people stating
That they can relate to
The work that I’m making.
Even though it’s not anything
Particularly groundbreaking,
The fact that it can actually
Mean something to someone.

This never happened overnight,
I never expected any of this,
I never expected to find this bliss
Or happiness in performing
Poetry.
I never imagined feeling
Good about myself or
Having other people
Appreciate and listen.
It doesn’t feel real,
It doesn’t feel every day,
But in this moment of
Existential realisation,
I’ve come to realise:
I’m pretty fantastic.

Question from Megan C. from Facebook