James Graham

Another poem on a historical theme. Again I hope the history comes across. I know there isn�t much in the way of fine poetic lines, it�s rather prosaic, but I hope the overall impression is of something genuinely poetic. As always, feel free to criticise, or ask questions. 

Whether you liked them or not, you�ve had Hypatia of Alexandria and the Peasants� Revolt. Now another poem on a historical theme. I hope it�s at least clear. It�s a long way from perfect, though, and I welcome your criticisms and suggestions. James.  

There's a very serious, true story behind this poem. See below. (I've added a 'companion' poem, which tries to make a point of sorts.) 

Any faults or inconsistencies in this revision - just let me know. 

All very tentative. First of the two poems only. 

For this week's challenge. Title and first line from Anna Akhmatova - see forum thread. 

Sorry, not a new poem; inspiration failed. Previously published in EDP. But I thought I would give it another airing. It's a little like 'The Last Goodbye', a traumatic childhood experience. 

Version 2. Partly dismantled and rebuilt. Still maybe not in proper working order. 

For this week's music challenge. 

This is an oddity. Not a great poem, for sure. Let me know what you make of it. 

For this week's challenge. Mingus was a jazz bass-player. The last three lines are adapted from Alice Walker, so not original. 

For this week's challenge. 

For Challenge 268 

Non-fiction again. Tell me if this is clearly argued, or if it loses you at any point. Or any faults of clarity or style. I haven't commented in IC for a while, but I will be sure to give as well as take. 

Option 1. Phrase from 'The force that through the green fuse...' 

2-6-2 words. Some cheating - hyphenate two words and count them as one! 

A sort of autumn poem. 

This first appeared eight years ago in the now defunct Journalism Group. It's been revised and updated. 

A reworking of a poem I wrote many years ago. You don�t want to see the original! Sorry it�s so grim, though the very last word may counteract that a little. As far as I know it�s a true incident. One of many. 

The word 'pawn' is out. This way, readers will be puzzled at first but (I hope) find that the ending is the solution. 

Spring's nearly over, but here's a Spring poem. 

Lewis Carroll's wonderful 'Jabberwocky' gave me a notion to write a nonsense poem. Not in the same league, but a bit of fun. 

A pair of poems now. Some surprising facts about the Kaiser - it's all true! 

Pull no punches on this, please. Is it overstated - does it simply go too far - as a whole or in some parts? Is too much crammed into it? Anything that would be better left out? Is there a clear line of argument? 

All comments welcome. This book made me angry, and I wonder if that comes across too much in the review. Also if you spot any inconsistencies, or anything that's not clear, let me know. 

I've posted two versions, a shorter and a longer one. Extra lines are in bold. Comparisons welcome! (The Castles in the Air poem is now in the forum thread.) 

See below. 

I know the topic of this article may not be common knowledge. It's up to me to make the point clearly. Let me know if you think it suceeds or not. Don't hold back. 

Another historical subject. I hope the poem gives a clear picture without needing too much background. This is a first draft, so criticise! 

Something to hopefully get the group off the ground. I suppose it would fit some kind of Travel category. 

Well, I was quite chuffed with Dave's latest poem. And it has given me an idea. If poetry is like dining, it can be like one of my other favourite pastimes too - gardening. 

Trying to write a climate change poem. Failed so far. This is an old one which might, with a squeeze, just fit the subject. 

Poets have been mysteriously silent about jigsaw puzzles. 

A revision of sorts. Lines 4-6 omitted, the closing passage changed quite a bit: readers are now the jury. 

I'm really not sure whether this poem succeeds. I won't give any explanations yet, but wait and see if it works for you.  

Two versions: one eccentric, the other very eccentric. 

A sort of modern apostrophe. Couldn't think of anyone living that beats this guy! 

Some curiosities here, especially in the second part. 

This was written about 150 years ago, when I was young. But it's seasonal, so I thought I'd post it. 

Tried to make initial words form a sentence too. Came out as three short sentences. I'm sure this is 'dictated by the form'. 

Thought it was time to post something a little less heavy. 

Another little bit of nonsense. 

This is so lightweight it could float away on the breeze. Let me know what you make of it anyway. 

The second �voyagers� poem is here, but it became a sandwich filling between two halves of the first poem. I hope it�s not too unappetising. 

This is the first poem of a series. There's probably a 'to be continued' air about it. Another two are under construction. 

See below...way down below...below the footnotes, even. 

This is in my 2007 collection. Just below the poem I've done a very blatant promotion, aimed at new members. All comments welcome, including critical ones. 

Sorry to have been AWOL from this group. I haven't written an article in a coon's age, but this one just wouldn't go away. 

A bit of light satire. I'm grateful to The Guardian for the idea. 

Written about 20 years ago, when I still had to get up and go to work! 

A new poem, inspired by recent bedtime reading... 

A new version of a poem I wrote several years ago. 

Something I wrote about a year ago, and revised a little recently. I'm not sure how much interest there will be in it - it's rather heavy and very, very radical. 

I wondered if it was possible to write a poem about the global financial crisis. This was all I could manage. 

From my recent visit to Jersey. I wanted to put the whole story into the poem , not into footnotes or explanations. Is it clear? Do you get the whole picture? 

This is based on a recent Amnesty International case. It's very much a draft, no revision. 

A sort of praise poem - which seemed to want to be written in the style of Walt Whitman. 

First new poem for four months. It developed, in an odd sort of way, from stopping someone to ask directions in Paris last summer. 

This is a long piece, longer than I intended, and rather a sober one because of the topic. I hope there's enough in it to sustain interest. 

I wrote this in 1976, after a walk on the cliffs in Islay. The title is poetic licence - the sun was setting at about eleven o'clock. 

Another winter poem. Remember snow? 

Only my second attempt at a travel article - not sure how interesting this one might be. 

I feel ashamed posting this as I haven't been active in the group for quite a while. Poetry Group 1 is almost a full time job! I shall try to mend my ways and spend some time here. 

This is an old one, written when I could still cycle a few miles! 

Just back from a few days in Yorkshire. This piece is very raw - written in the last hour or so. 

This has been on the go for a year or so, and may still need sorting. But I'll give it an airing. 

This is new (just finished today). It's a bit of a new departure for me; what do you make of it? 

This was first 'published' when I read it to a local poetry group. It got a few laughs. 'Kailyard' refers to a variety of Scottish dialect poetry, usually very homely ('couthie') and sentimental. 

The second Orkney poem. I'm trying here to write about the vast time-gap between us and the neolithic people - and how that gap seems, sometimes and in some places, suddenly to close. 

For my next trick, I shall detach the closing lines from one poem, tweak them slightly, and attach them seamlessly (?) to another. Nothing up my sleeve. 

Another 'juxtaposition'. Does it work? Is it valid as a political statement? 

I'd like to see what the group thinks of this anti-war poem written in the last few days.