Category Archives: PortfolioPrint

Shipyard Writers Competition win

Poetry, PortfolioPrint

I’m delighted to win second prize in Yellow House Publishing’s Shipyard Writers competition.

The poem appears in New Isles Press journal issue 3.

First prize was won by David Butler for his short story, ‘White Spirits’ and third prize by Lucia Kenny for her poem, ‘Building Walls’. Read more here

My poem is in Ulster-Scots with an English translation and is prompted by the 9th-century Irish poem, ‘Int en bec’, known in English as ‘The Blackbird of Loch Lene’ and the paraphrase of it in Ulster-Scots by John Erskine. I was intrigued to see the Irish rendered into contemporary Ulster-Scots and that got me thinking about some themes that last across the centuries and about the way meaning swims between languages.

I’ve written previously about this Irish poem here and I’ve used its wonderful Irish metre, ‘snámh súad’, which the late Ciaran Carson rendered as ‘poetic floating’, in the ENVOI of my poem in The Interpreter’s House #88.

There is an event in Belfast’s Eastside Arts Festival on 25th July https://www.glistrr.com/events/e/belfast-literary-summer-yard-sessions-2024-3507-7

‘Following last year’s festival success, the Thomas Carnduff Appreciation Society offers its second literary Summer Yard Session. This year’s theme is Borders, Boundaries and Barriers.’

‘The session features a panel of renowned authors, chaired by Dr. Connal Parr and featuring Rosemary Jenkinson, Wendy Erskine, Tony Black, Heather Currie and Eddie Currie, with Stephen Knox as MC. Together they will celebrate the rich literature and language traditions of Northern Ireland and across our shared Isles.’

Belfast Launch of Washing Windows IV- Irish Women Write Poetry

Poetry, PortfolioPrint

A stimulating evening at the Irish Secretariat, Belfast to launch Washing Women IV – Irish Women Write Poetry, Arlen House’s latest anthology.

A packed room heard 30 poets read their poem from this book which shot to number 2 in the Nielsen Non-fiction ratings as soon as it was published.

Washing Windows IV: Irish Women Write Poetry
with Csilla Toldy

My sonnet, DO Unto Others is mentioned in co-editor Nuala O’Connor’s introduction in which she asserts the truth-telling mission of poetry:

“The poets in this volume are fearless in this project … These are poems where … one courageous, newly-enlightened poet – Angela Graham – proclaims: ‘I am my Gorgon. I must turn to meet my stare …'”

Continue reading Belfast Launch of Washing Windows IV- Irish Women Write Poetry →

AGM of Glens and Dalriada U3A

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I was delighted to be invited as guest speaker to outline my work as a writer of short stories and poetry . The audience in Ballycastle’s Sheskburn Hall was very welcoming and I appreciated the opportunity to offer my books for sale afterwards. A sell-out!

It was Patrick O’Donnell’s last session as Chairman and as his final official duty in that role he presented me with a generous token of thanks.

He thanked the new chairman, Mark Gavin for his success in securing major sponsorship from the Awards For All programme which is funding an expansion of services for this thriving U3A branch.

Poems for Wales PENCymru 10th anniversary

Blog, Online, Poetry, Portfolio, PortfolioPrint

During Wales in London Week, around St David’s Day, there’s a celebration of the significant contribution to London of Welsh culture. On February 29th WalesPENCymru held a poetry reading and music event at The Poetry Society’s Poetry Cafe to mark the organisation’s thenth anniversary. The theme was ‘Wales as a Multilingual Country’.

The Wales branch of PEN is one of the largest in terms of membership. It is affiliated to PEN International.

PEN promotes literature and defends freedom of expression. It campaigns on behalf of writers around the world who are persecuted, imprisoned, harassed and attacked for what they have written. It has committees representing writers in prison, translation and linguistic rights, women writers and a peace committee.

A glance at WalesPENCymru’s website shows the range of events and campaigns that run throughout the year http://walespencymru.org/ They are all designed to support the freedom to speak of writers and journalists worldwide and also in Wales and the UK.

I was invited to read my poem, ‘Colony’ which is about what happens to language in the process of colonisation and I wrote a new poem for the event, ‘Wales/Cymru’.

At the London event we listened to the National Poet of Wales, Hanan Issa (below). And to Wales PEN Cymru’s president, the renowned Welsh poet, Menna Elfyn.

The Turkish writer Mehmet Ali Alabora spoke about living in Wales and the importance of the Welsh language.

The Kurdish musician, Ali Zeynel (below) played and sang in his minority language and then gave us the Welsh folksong, ‘Dacw ‘nghariad i lawr yn y berllan’.

photos and video by Dominic Williams of https://write4word.org/write4word

Watch the event on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsioNQ3TddM

In my collection, Sanctuary https://www.serenbooks.com/book/sanctuary-there-must-be-somewhere/ I have a poem written for Letter With Wings, an Irish PEN campaign for the release of the unjustly imprisoned jounalist, Nedim Turfent. Thankfully he was released in Novemeber 2022, after 6 years in prison.

Guest-editor Arts section Fortnight magazine

Blog, Editor, Portfolio, PortfolioPrint, Prose, Radio

It has been a great pleasure to guest-edit the Arts section of issue 492 of Fortnight.

The politics, social affairs and arts magazine launched in Northern Ireland in 1970. Throughout the Troubles and beyond it was an essential forum for discussion and evaluation. Fortnight re-launched in 2020.

Out today, 15th January.

Subscribe
The cost of four copies during the year will be £25 (UK) and £35 (EU & World)
Please send your payment direct to the Fortnight Publications account at the
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You must also send details of your postal address to [email protected]

To order a copy
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Order direct from https://noalibis.com/ £7 click and collect or £7 plus postage; or 4 issues per year to Fortnight Publications, Ulster Bank Belfast City 1; 98-00-60; 13078431/ BIC:ULSB GB2B; IBAN: GB15 ULSB 9800 6013 0784 31 fortnight50th@gmail

Poem in ‘Yarns’

Poetry, Portfolio, PortfolioPrint

The third edition of Ulster Scots anthology, ‘Yarns’ includes my poem

THA GOOLDEN WHUN

Ulstèr fowk ir like tha whun,

thoarny wi’oot an goold wi’in;

prood tae be thrawn, naw taen in

bi chancers’ flum;

tha fit yince plantit, nat fer muivin

whutiver come.

But wha wi whun wud be acquent

shud aye be minefu tae tak tent

nat tae be deggert ower an rent

bi stab an birsie;

an ‘stainch’ is ‘dour’ less it be blent

wi safnin mercie.

Thoarny tha whin – an tha wile rose

that in tha yin Ulstèr hedgera growes.

Tha whun’s a wal – an yit tha rose

is mairch an boondrie;

houls tha line in lichtsome claes

gainst al an soondrie

Hard tae be saft though we intend it.

‘Gin bein gommed we’r well defendit.

Still, whun an rose, baith bricht, baith scentit,

cud stan fur this:

Alloo oor goold an dinnae stint it

– less jag, mair kiss.

This is the third anthology, published by the Ulster Scots Community Network, November 2023. It’s a showcase of new poetry and prose, including from some writers publishing in Ulster Scots for the first time.

Childermas – The Coventry Carol

Online, Poetry, Portfolio, PortfolioPrint
The Coventry Carol – a poem by Angela Graham

*The medieval Coventry Carol refers to the Slaughter of the Innocents, the killing of all male infants in Bethlehem ordered by King Herod to eradicate ‘the infant king’ the Wise Men had told him had been born. It is commemorated on 28th December every year and has long been known in England as ‘Childermas’. My poem is published in Amethyst Review for this date 2023.

The illustration header is part of the marble inlaid floor of Siena Cathedral depicting the Slaughter (c. 1481).