BBC Radio playing our song!

The fabulous Stevan Bennett who produces Gary Crowley's London Calling radio show has chosen Scarlet Starling's song, 'Beckons' to play tonight between 7:30-8pm!!

Catch it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p001d7z2

If you want to get an early listen of these or other songs check out the band page: www.reverbnation.com/scarletstarlings

Feeling a frisson of pure joy plus the sun has come out. A good day!

Naked poets...is there any excuse?

Max Wallis by Annabel Williams

Yes, if it's for charity.
Actually I quite like this idea by Victoria Bennett of Wild Woman Press. As a bid to raise awareness for Type 1 diabetes, a disease her three-year-old son Django has been diagnosed with, she and her team have put together a calendar of naked male poets by female photographers such as Naomi Woddis (an excellent poet herself), Annabel Williams and others. Apart from the er...tastefully shot nudes, there are poems by the likes of Wendy Cope, Pascale Petit, Eva Salzman, Penelope Shuttle and many more.


A great present for any poetry loving lady (or man, depending on their inclinations!) and its for a good cause as well.                                                                                                                                                                 

http://www.wildwomenpress.com/Wild_Women_Press/Calendar_Project.html

 

Image by Annabel Williams of poet Ian MacMillan for 'The Naked Muse' calendar, Wild Woman Press.

Doodles, disassociation and the art of looking

I used to have a notebook where I'd scribble notes, poems and collect interesting pictures. Now that I'm almost constantly 'plugged in' to my I-phone, the doodles have turned into Hipstamatic photos, and notes and poetry has an instransient quality to it as they are created on the notepad. Much as I love the tech, I recently started feeling the need to start drawing again, so I bought a little notebook to take with me for my more old skool efforts.

As I try to combat the new I-Phone related disassociation syndrome (whereby my every waking moment has to be spent texting, reading, listening to music, researching...sometimes all at once) I've been doodling my friends while out at the pub. Trying to capture some kind of likeness meant I had to really look at the person I was talking to which was a weirdly intimate process.

My favourite

The idea came from the website I'm building at the moment (probably up next week) where I made an image using doodles and examples of handwriting from people like Henry Miller, Allan Ginsberg, Jorge Luis Borges, Kafka, Nabokov, Plath, Shelley and more.

Here they are, as well as the finished image.

Henry Miller

Jorge Luis Borges

Franz Kafka

Vladimir Nabokov

 Sylvia Plath

Allan Ginsberg


The final image:

Great article on revising and rewriting on by MJ Hyland

MJ Hyland on revising and rewriting:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/oct/23/how-to-write-fiction-mj-hyland

Great article dispensing with the myth that good writing springs fully formed from the fevered imaginings of the er..untamed...er...see what I mean?

Revision: Every good writer is a good editor.

I should know, I've given myself the leeway of the past few months to focus on two novels that I'm writing. Initially I thought I was hot stuff because it only took me about 6 months to 'write' my novel 'Blodeuwife' (based on a celtic myth). It has since taken me almost a year to edit the first 10 chapters!

Admittedly, I have been working on a great many other, smaller, projects. Plus most of the work has been done in the past months in which I've actively blocked out time to write, but still.

Sometimes its comforting to know that even great artists have to sweat a bit!

Doing the tourist thing

Little Xmas carol for yu-all!

He he he. Yu-all. Geddit? Okay moving on.

I wrote this little xmas number with the idea that it would as though you heard the door ringing and a choir of frozen carollers began to sing this little ditty...
Merry christmas to everyone...

(offers of eggnog - once I find out what that is - eagerly accepted).

 http://soundcloud.com/scarletstarlings/throughout-the-night-18-12

Throughout the night

Throughout the night
And every year
You take your watch
till day returns
And when it does 
You take your leave
Just one more lifetimes 
worth of cheer

What drives you on?
What keeps you there ?
Is your will strong as mine or more?
Or is it love which stings the heart
Or blasts it through another year

You have your brothers
Your sisters too 
Your children sing 
Your friends are true
The sky is wide 
The stars are clear
And Christmas comes
Another year


What drives you on?
What keeps you there ?
Is your will as strong as mine or more?
Or is it love which stings the heart
Or blasts it through another year

The angels hide
If such there be
In the hidden places 
you hold dear 
And gold and jewels 
Are not so rare 
As those who live to 
Love again 

In endless watches you stand before
And day breaks lighting up your face
And who am I to count the waves
Which break unending on the shore?

Though you may falter
And lose your step
Cold winds may come to drive you back
You'll draw your love around 
Your back
like a warm wool lined coat

As for your sorrows 
May they be few
And many your joys 
No cares plague you 
The road you travel 
Is Soft and smooth
And your companion I'll be.

Fab free album from alt country band The Civil Wars

I've become a little bit addicted to this alt country duo and their ridiculously sweet duets. Far be it from me to share an opinion with Taylor Swift, but you have to be pretty jaded to dislike them.
They're giving away a free live album so you can decide for yourself. A nice little pre-xmas gift
The Civil Wars - Live at Eddie's Attic

Here's a video to show you what I mean.