Top 10 of 2018

Amazingly, I'm still going. If you'd asked me in January 2013 whether I'd complete the year, I'm not sure I'd have thought it possible. Five years of poetry down, and I'm starting to get ok at the whole thing.

I like to take a period at the end of each year to actually think about if I'm still producing things I enjoy, and still pushing myself in new directions. Here are ten poems I enjoyed writing this year.

Is life a race, or a dance?
One of the real benefits of writing is that it allows me to take any phrase or idea I hear, and try to re-frame it in a way which makes it fundamentally my own. I loved the idea when I heard it, and sitting down and crafting out a poem (in an atypical structure for myself) really helped solidify the idea in my head. This was one of the poems which really made me feel it was possible (if not easy) for me to write in a way other than that which comes naturally to me.

Vulnerable
In an age of polish and social media, we try to present ourselves as perfect individuals. We talk about all the good things we're doing, and hide the imperfections. "Vulnerable" follows on from my old poem Monsters (still one of my favourites), but doesn't try to hide behind a layer of metaphor and humour. I performed this one on my Facebook, and it seems to have connected with a number of others who feel the same way as I.

Leaky Shield
Following on from "Vulnerable", this was me being inspired to write my usual hopeful poetry, but this time from the perspective of one more flawed. While it's not been something I've avoided in the past, actively embracing the flaws while still retaining a message of hope felt much more honest to me. An approach I'd really like to develop further in future.

Dear Lord, Thank You, Amen
One of my real focuses this year was to write a bit more poetry inspired by my religion - it's a fairly core part of my philosophy after all. This also happened to be my favourite spoken word piece of the year, which makes it a lot sweeter. Being able to get this freedom with my writing and removing one of my oddest blocks should help me be open in future, and I'll be very happy to produce more poems like this one.

Visualising Eternity
A simple sweet poem, which tries to take a big and complex topic (infinity), and explain why the existence of infinity shouldn't put you off trying things, not matter how intimidating it feels. While this was written off the back of a religious discussion I was having (to which I still think it applies), I do think it applies to other settings too, and I don't think it looses anything for the applicability.

Take a second, and take notice
While this poem may be a little bit meta (the actual act of me writing was me following the advice), I feel this was a good poem to write. Often we need excuses to be thankful for things. One of the nice things about this blog is I can just write such things if the mood inspires me. I got a fair amount of positive reaction for this one, so it seems a lot of people agree with me on this.

The Compass and The Instructor
Following on from the aim of my second year, I really feel I've come on in my ability to write multiple different approaches on the same theme. I liked both of these poems, but I actually think together they make a better, more coherent piece. Not something I've done a lot of, but something I'd like to try more.

In a war
It may not seem like it, given how individual writing a poetry blog is, but I love when my work intertwines with others. Sometimes it is through collaboration, other times it's through retelling someone's story. This was one of the rare chances to do the latter. As much as I enjoy creativity and creation from scratch, this type of inspiration is very powerful to me and I chance I always relish - especially for what it can mean to the person I write for.

Grandma
Often, if I'm taking a long trip, I will print off some of my poems and try to edit them slightly. Do a bit of rewriting, cut out a line or two, etc. etc. This is one of the first times I've rewritten a poem thematically, to create something I see as completely new. I had performed the core part of the poem to my Grandma and I wanted to preserve that - it signified an experience we had been through, when I performed it to her. However, changing the rhyme scheme to add context at the beginning and end helped frame the poem well. It mirrors "In a War" well. If I want to be able to learn to tell other people's stories, then there can be no higher purpose for that skill than remembering those close to me. Rest in Peace, Grandma.

To write an epic
Often, I'm forced to sit and reflect on why I write. I wonder if I should put more effort into promoting my work, and try to reach the biggest audience possible. Even though I think people enjoy what I write (or at least they pretend to), I'm under no illusions as to the luck and effort required to push my work to the next stage. So I am instead learning to find the joy in the small things, and in the personal level poetry allows me to interact. I chat to a lot of artists who get annoyed at performing to small crowds. If I take a step back, I am amazed anyone at all would take time to read what I've written, let alone take something from it. If you create something, take pleasure in each person that enjoys it. It's something I need to remind myself to be grateful of, and a theme I will likely write to again.

Thank you, whether you've read one piece of mine or all of them. These poems contain many hours of my life and many aspects of my personality and philosophies. And a few stories of course. I hope you are able to take these fragments of my imagination, and use it to inspire something in yourself.