Frequently asked questions

Why free?

 

I have alluded to this question briefly in the About section. Just to reiterate that I have never had to rely on money obtained from poetry to earn a living. Which is just as well, really.

 

I do get fed up with being monetised. Whatever you click on, you seem to be faced with a long advert and your data collected for marketing purposes. However, even today, there are free images, video clips, and sound effects available on websites, free packages to construct and edit videos, and free website building resources, without whom this website and my YouTube channel would not be possible. Please see Acknowledgements for a full list of the resources I have used. It is in this same spirit of sharing that I am making my own work freely available.

 

Why not use a conventional publisher?

 

I have weakened on occasion. I recently sent a sample of poems with an offer of all eight books to a selected publisher. In retrospect, had they accepted, it would have involved an uncomfortable loss of control for me.

 

Technology has moved on remarkably in recent years allowing artists of all forms to make a more direct communication with an audience.  This has been coupled with a revolution in the formats in which material can be delivered. Perhaps most importantly, the speed at which you can work and self-publish far outpaces how fast a conventional publishing house can go. For example, a publisher’s list can be full for three years with existing authors.

 

In summary, this approach suits my personal aims and objectives better. I can also make the material free and link it directly with other media.

 

Why wait to publish eight books at once?

 

When I had completed a first book, I wanted to complete a further two books at that time to provide a ‘hinterland’.  This increased surreptitiously until I had backed up eight books over my writing career.

 

However, the principal reason is that I didn’t want to be distracted in any way. There is an attrition to being in the public arena. Success, good reviews, bad reviews, attempting to please readers or critics, must inevitably affect a writer. I wanted the books to be created in the same environment with no such alteration over time (see Strange, Unexpected Poem in Becoming Mortal). A benefit has been the amount of material deleted along the way which I would otherwise have published. Material I would now consider to be of insufficient quality.

 

There is little in the way of personal details on the site. Why?

 

For my part, I find it better to read poetry ‘clean’ without being distracted by personal details. I am aware on other sites there are pictures of poets gazing thoughtfully into the distance, as well as a list of wonderful reviews and triumphs in various poetry contests. The text invariably in the third person. I never believe reviews. Particularly, self-selected ones.  And I can’t list poetry competition successes because I’ve never entered one.

 

What influences do you have?

 

I favour contemporary poets over historical poets purely because of our commonality of experience. Unfortunately, I have a very analytical eye. When I read a poem, I often start to dissect it, rather than just appreciating it. In general, I enjoy individual poems without necessarily liking the whole spectrum of a poet’s output.

 

I have been influenced by poetry workshops and courses. A note of caution here. You will be told all sorts of things by way of advice. You need a filter. Don’t take on board suggestions uncritically, even from the great and good. They are probably neither.

 

Regarding writing groups, it’s also very easy to subconsciously start writing to gain other people’s approval. Happened to me. Tread your own path.  Sermon over.

 

What is the permitted use of the material?

 

This is covered in Terms of use. Basically, download and read what you want. If you were also able to direct people to this site, that would be great but is not a necessity.

 

Why are you looking guilty?

 

Although this section is called ‘Frequently asked questions’, I feel a responsibility to declare no-one has ever asked me any of these questions. Perhaps I have asked them of myself. There, I feel a little better now. But not much.