Poetry 2024

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In 2024 I decided to give my poetry a bit more love. Maybe not love, attention.

In September I went on a Arvon retreat with the wonderful poets and artists Fiona Benson and Sophie Herxheimer.

This was a good move. First of all great to just be in the countryside for 6 days and do nothing but write and talk about poetry. It was a small intake (6 of us) so we got to know each other pretty well. There was a range of experiences in the group from the almost none to the very experienced but looking for some new energy.

The workshop sessions were great, a lot of shifting gears from one thing to another, all of scribbling away on our laps then reading if we felt like it. Afternoons for writing and feedback then evening meals and a guest poet, or reading our work.

And I got hooked on the art of collage zine poetry which can be seen on my insta: https://www.instagram.com/allenoleary and a few down below.

After that I submitted a poem that I refined on the course to the Forest Poets Annual Comp and was commended. This was nice as I had been attending their open mike evenings all year and had just started going to their monthly workshops too. The judging was blind, honest.

And a final small thing for the year I had 'Man must move' accepted for publication next year in an online found poetry mag called Unlost.