#tinylife Parent. Worshipper. Carrion

Following on from last week’s introduction to Parent. Worshipper. Carrion. this week’s blog is about the wider themes of the pamphlet. I write in the domestic sphere, so expect lots of laundry references! Nature also inspires and informs my work. Something you may not have seen from me before is the inclusion of religion and church-going. Lastly, as a person who has recently embraced the title of ‘fat,’ I write a lot about bodies, especially the invisibility of older cis women’s bodies.

There is no point in telling you the pamphlet is an easy read, or full of positivity. There are glimpses of light in a landscape of brutality and pain. I am nervous about putting so much of myself out into the world, but I’m proud of these poems and hope readers can find something they recognise within them.

#atinylife pamphlet

Folk who follow me on Facebook will know I’m publishing a pamphlet of poetry this year. It’s something I’ve been working towards for a long time, so I was delighted when algia press took on my work. I thought I would take the opportunity to tell you a little bit about the poems here.

The pamphlet is called Parent. Worshipper. Carrion. It’s made up of previously published and/or award-winning poetry, and some newer work. I didn’t know this until recently, but pamphlets are supposed to follow a loose theme or narrative arc – the ‘story’ of this pamphlet begins with my parenting journey, moves through my child coming out as non-binary, the trauma of our community’s response, and ends with reference to our recent house move. So, super cheery stuff!

There is more to it though. I will continue next week.

#atinylife Happy2021?

Happy New Year?

It was a couple of weeks before the end of last year when I listened to a podcast which said the whole ‘seeing the back of 2020’ thing was a false premise.

I mean, of course, we all knew that. But did we really know that?

For us here in the UK, January 2021 so far is remarkably similar to March 2020. Schools are closed again, and as much as I love my precious babies, I am not a natural home-schooler.

So it’s self-care again, back to the basics. I realised if I’m not waking a kid up to catch an early bus, I can have my precious 6am-7am hour back. I’m writing this in a silent house full of sleeping people (and cat). Sometimes I need rest. Sometimes I need work. Both are fulfilling, and necessary.