Now that the nights are growing longer, you have much more daylight on your hands. A good, substantial volume like Irish Pages is just what you need!

It’s quite appealing, don’t you think? The muckle name in the middle is no surprise, and I love the way that “now” is tucked in the C of “Mac”, but I had no idea that “like” would be quite so prominent. I’ll have to trawl the text again …

I didn’t know Gavin well, but I can say with certainty that The North End of the Possible would not be the book it is without the support and encouragement that he gave. For one thing, he made sure that Creative Scotland funded Kristin Linklater’s voice workshop at Cove Park, which was crucial for me in breaking open the voice of that book.

Cove Park is where I met Gavin, on the first night of Kristin’s workshop, and I will never forget the enthusiasm he expressed for The Ambulance Box. I was also at the start of my writer’s bursary, and, when I met up with him a month or two later, he was obviously gratified to hear how the Cove Park experience had led to a greater confidence in the writing I was doing. That encouragement, I think, is part of what eventually led me to be able to write the poem “Unquiet Time” from the new book, which is my longest original poem.

It saddens me that Gavin didn’t see The North End of the Possible, but I am very pleased to see that a new annual fellowship has been created in his memory. It is a most fitting way to remember a man who did many times over for other writers what he did for me and more.

Can’t wait for this gig. I read at the Lit & Phil as part of a fundraiser for the library with Rob A Mackenzie and several Red Squirrel Press poets in 2010. It’s a wonderful venue in a great city buzzing with literary activity and talent, and a great opportunity for me to read extensively from the collection.

The event has been organised by Sheree Mack, the Lit & Phil’s writer in residence, who has worked with Alastair Cook (here is Al’s stunning collodion portrait of her; and here is the filmpoem they have made for the Absent Voices project). I’m thoroughly looking forward to meeting her, to seeing some Newcastle/Northumberland friends and to meeting new folk!

For nearly a year, as well as doing my teaching job, I’ve also been doing some work with an organisation called Women Supporting Women.  WSW is a not-for-profit community organisation that provides resources and services to vulnerable women and girls in Edinburgh.

We’ve been doing this AMAZING project with a small group of women from Pilton, Edinburgh’s “most deprived” suburb (apparently).  They’ve been reading poems, creating responses, and they’re now in the process of learning how to make short films about their experiences.  They’ve learned SO MUCH in the past few months — at the start, none of them had ever read a poem, been to a library, or used a film camera.  Now they’re writing poems of their own, and their films are going to be screened in cinemas across Scotland!  It’s inspirational stuff.

Basically, the project is now coming to an end (sad face), and we want to produce some kind of physical THING that the women can keep, to remember all the hard work they’ve done.  We decided to make a book, as this will also allow members of the public to see what we’ve been up to, and maybe run similar projects in their own communities.

BUT, to make the book, we need sponsors: http://www.sponsume.com/project/making-it-home-project-help-us-build-book

We need as many people as possible to look at that link, in the hope that they’ll donate a bit of money to our cause.  If you can (only if you can!) and want to (only if you want to!) donate, then depending on the amount you may well get a little reward— see the link for more details!

A big thank you in advance to all of you for even so much as clicking that link — you rock.

This sounds like an extremely worthwhile project, and one that demonstrates a little of how deep an impact and importance the arts have in life and society, well beyond bald monetary considerations. There is less than a week left to sponsor the project, so I urge you to go and click.

I returned home on Sunday from the retreat tired and not exhausted but enriched. It felt like a significant weekend in ways that are hard to articulate but, as with my time at Greenbelt the year before last, it quietly reinforced the sense that this work of poetry is, for me, also a spiritual act of service. It also seems to be unlocking deeper engagement with, and contribution to, the life of the Northumbria Community through my literary knowledge and talents in exciting ways (of which more in due course). For that, I’m profoundly grateful.

Then, of course, there was the wonderful review in The List. Here’s a photo — I’m still pinching myself. The print version is slightly cut down from the web one, but I could hardly have asked for a better boost. The received wisdom is that it’s harder to get coverage for a second collection than a first, but this review means that coverage of The North End of the Possible is already ahead of that for The Ambulance Box: print reviews of the latter didn’t emerge until a couple of months after publication and none were in a magazine with such a broad readership.

The review could also not have been better timed, because The North End of the Possible arrived in the distributor’s warehouse on Thursday and, therefore, is now available to buy! I haven’t yet seen a copy myself, but it won’t be too long before I hold one in my hands. If the review made me grin from ear to ear, the arrival of the shiny new book will have me grinning from ear to ear and back again.

And, to boot, the sun is shining again today …

I’m particularly pleased that the reviewer, Colin Begg, says, “Humour and invention are mainstays of Philip’s work”. Those aspects were overlooked a bit in the reviews of The Ambulance Box, although that was also perhaps understandable. They are more to evident in the new collection and it’s gratifying to see that recognised from the start.

The book should be available in the next week or so. The launch, of course, takes place on Saturday 4 May. Watch this space for details and for news of other reviews and events.