I love poetry pamphlets. They're like little gems of a poet's work and slip into a handbag or into a pocket in the car. I'm working on one of my own but have been advised that, like poems, I can only send to one publisher at a time. I sent my first effort into a pamphlet competition in December and the results were only announced in July. I find this too long to have work tied up. If only pamphlets were like novels and we could send them out to 20 different publishers at the same time. At the rate of one pamphlet every 7 months I'll be dead before I get one accepted. I think I have enough poems to put together two different pamphlets so at least I can have two looking for a home at the same time. With my organisational skills I could get into an almighty muddle.
This lovely package of books arrived in Sintra the other day. It was my prize from the Poetry Society for Suvaco do Cristo. I've been reading The Print Museum by Heidi Williamson and have read it twice so far as the poems are beautiful and clever. I think one of the joys of getting a parcel of books that you haven't ordered is that you get the chance to read books that maybe you would never have chosen. I am now thrilled to have discovered Heidi Williamson. I already have Jo Bell's wonderful book Kith so will give this new copy to a poetry pal. The other two books are waiting for me in the pile by my bed!
