Looking out of the window this morning to the shop across the road known as Pleasant Stores, formerly Ron’s of legendary fame, I inhaled the heady perfume from a large vase of lilies and hyacinths that is permeating the house whilst the coffee beans that I buy across the road were being ground in the kitchen mixing their even more seductive aroma into the exceedingly pleasant atmosphere that is Lewes, UK.
The coffee ready, it’s time to put down some thoughts blog-style here on my daily exercise in lumbering up to the main writing of the day – currently a set of poems and the apparently unending task of carrying on with my new novel which is much more vivid in my mind these days than my last one now that it’s waiting at the publishers to try its chances out there with you guys in the great wide world.
Sometimes, writing can be a lonely business – just me, the coffee and the lilies and hyacinths – but the morning after the latest meeting of the poetry group that I run here in Lewes, First Wednesday Writers, I realize that I am part of a community of writers here in East Sussex’ picturesque county town. As the name implies, we meet once a month to read or to listen to poetry, mostly new work by the poets, both experienced and novices, themselves. Others come along just to listen. It is held in Pleasant Stores, just across the road there, and pleasant is the perfect adjective to describe the event.
We sit in the main body of the stores, round tables with refreshments if wanted, reading and listening. It’s as simple as that. I host the event in the interests of chaos prevention but there are no stars here, no “featured” poets just writers who enjoy the company of other writers and who want to share their work. So no rules, no committees and no celebrity status and it seems to work.
If you want to join us next time, please do. If you have a collection published, bring some copies to sell, and read a few poems from it too. If you’ve just started writing or you’re hoping to start one day, this might be the place to find inspiration. It is a civilized democracy.
I hope to see some of you next time.