Day 261: Performance Poetry

So last night I went to an event in Bath called 'words.' There were loads of people cramped into a tiny little coffee bar with a little microphone in the corner (to be honest, it probably wasn't needed by hey ho).

All in all, I had a pretty good night. I enjoyed listening to all these creative people and admiring how they'd managed their thoughts into a poem or two.

What struck me was how different their deliverance was. Some people read from their notebooks, mumbling or reading too fast, but others had memorised their poems. The difference was amazing. The ones who spoke without words in front of them were so much more confident. They added emphasise and feelings, moving their hands, arms or even their entire body to the rhythm of their words, like they were using all of themselves to share their poem with me.

It's funny really. You'd think the people who had books in front of them would be more confident. You can't forget them if they're right there in front of you. But actually, knowing your words means you don't have to concentrate on reading, but on saying. Isn't that what performance poetry is all about?

Just to give you a flavour of performance poetry, check out Anna Freedman at a poetry slam in Vancouver, Canada:

207: Creative New Year's Resolutions

The question comes up every year; what is your New Year's resolution? To be honest, I hate this question. I can never think of anything I could keep up. I should really say things like, 'well, I'll write every day' or, 'I'll call my family more often.' But from past experience I know these just won't be kept up (rubbish I know). I really need another one on top of these ones.

So this year, I am going to set myself a creative New Year's resolution. Maybe I'll set myself a knitting challenge, like knit something for each member of my family by next Christmas. Or I could make a photo album of my year with my new camera! Or volunteer with a creative charity. Finishing my novel would be a really good one...

Let's do it together! I'll have a creative New Year's resolution if you have one too. Get your thinking caps on people. What creative skill do you have? How could you use it this year?

Write it down, stick it on your wall and get it in motion!

Day 158: Mick Rock's rock stars!

Check out this video on the BBC website. It's a slideshow of all the work by Mick Rock, the legendary rock photographer. (I recon his name called him to that job!) He says he didn't set out to be a photographer by profession, but his fascination of all those rock stars came out in the photos and that was it, job done!

Isn't it interesting how many people get a career out of what started out as a hobbie, specially creative ones. What's your hobbie? What inspires you to be creative? I recon most creative people are just doing what they love and couldn't be any other way!

Use what you got and change the world with it. That's what all the people in Mick Rock's photos did through their music. It looks like Mick Rock had a pretty good crack at it too. He's got a new book out full, of his creative work.

What will you do...?

Day 139: Audrey Niffenegger's graphic novel

The other night I was lucky enough to see Audrey Niffenegger, who wrote The Time Traveler’s Wife. It’s one of my favourite books and she even signed it for me (so cool!)

One of the things I love about her is how imaginative her stories are. Her newest book is actually a graphic novel called, The Night Book Mobile.

It’s about a women who goes onto a book mobile (which is a mobile library) in the middle of the night. The thing about this book mobile is all the books are ones she’s read. Even books she never finished are in there, accept they’re not complete. Only the pages she actually read are in the book. The rest of the book is blank pages.

This (of course) got me thinking...what would my book mobile be like? I’ve read loads of books, magazines, newspapers, plays, kids books...and not finished some of them. They’ll be books in there I don’t even remember reading, books I'm ashamed to have read, books I'm proud to have read...but my collection wouldn’t be very big. I’m pretty new to all this writing, reading stuff, but its growing all the time, which is exciting.

What would yours be like...?

What if there was one for all the music you listened to, or the art you’d seen...?

Audrey Niffenegger is a practising artist too. She said, ‘Writing is just a hobby. A side project.’ Isn’t that amazing? She’s one of my favourite writers and it’s her hobby! It’s great to think what we could achieve with our hobbies and interests outside what we have to do. Maybe you have to go to school, college or work, but is that it? Well, if Audrey Niffenegger is anything to go by, then no way!

What’s your thing, your hobby, the creative activity you love? Whatever it is, stick at it and maybe one day (after a lot of hard work) you can be as successful as Audrey Niffenegger.

Here’s to hopin’!