[in]complete #3: The Chapbook Void [and how to fill it]

We are here today with a Thing that did not exist last week...

The last time I tried to make my own chapbooks, I did not have a plan. This time around, there was more of a plan and less stressing, but it was still a lot of work, and the lessons learnt will be taken forward, refined and augmented. If we're being honest, this is a 'Prototype' exercise that my mates have effectively financed for my own mental health to take a personal creation project forward. THANK YOU.

There's also a second part to this, which involves the 31 poems that I wrote in The January Writing Hours LAST year, which ended up as a Substack gift for my paying subscribers. I used that manuscript as a test exercise to send to a local printers, who have now produced a lovely pamphlet of my work as a souvenir. Again, it was a prototype exercise but I am amazed at how well it has turned out.

This opens a whole new space for me to explore. There are only three copies of the first chapbook print run left for sale, while the extras have been sent for objective criticism. I had hoped to make things a bit more unique even than this, but that will be the next part of the process. There was also a massive lightbulb moment over progress, which we will be implementing for the Sandwich Project which apparently begins next week. Where did the time go?

After that, everything has suddenly become possible, if I can organise the time and space available to me effectively. Today also culminates with a poem that has redefined a lot of things since it refused to leave my brain at the tail end of last year. As a result, this will be one of those days when you get two posts as a result, because let's face it, 'formal' publication is becoming a bit of a rarity.

Let's hope that alters as time goes on.

PS: I'm appearing in an Open Mic online at the beginning of May. If you're interested in seeing me read (and some other people as well), here's the link:

Unwhispered Legacy - The Launch

Celebrate the launch of Unwhispered Legacy in the comfort of your home and hear some of the exceptional poems read live.

Eventbrite