How Pedestrian – Ryan Reads a Poem

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Katherine Leyton runs How Pedestrian — a fine video-poetry blog. It really is unique, colourful, interesting and full of good poems. Normally, she asks people on the street, airport, grocery store to take a moment and read a poem for the camera. There are some brilliant readers and some not-so-great ones but it is a totally cool experiment and there are some very good poems and themes on there. If you explore you’ll find Haiku on High Finance, World-Cup Poems and a great bunch of videos featuring “Dante in Sicily“. Yep — it is groovy and I was glad Leyton asked me to read one of my own. So, check me out but also explore the rest of the site. It is really good. And really free. And I’m really happy to be on the site. Go on — lose a few minutes with poetry.

Here’s one more: Stephen Dunn on a Tractor

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At The Golden Hour a few months ago Mr. Rodge Glass (Editor, Prize-Winning Biographer, Novelist, Musician and general kind of “allright dude“) mentioned he was editing a collection of New Scottish Fiction. I said I wish I wrote fiction so I could be in the book amongst the other amazing writers he’d lined up  (listed below — check it — they are the real deal). I was jealous. I wanted to be in an anthology of New Scottish Fiction. I wanted to be in because it sounded too good. Not only are the authors all top-shelf but the book is not political in the sense that it doesn’t seek to define Scottish-ness. The anthology is a representation of The Now. The people who are living and creating in this country at This Moment. I liked that notion. It seemed to cut through a lot of the Talk Talk Talk surrounding Scottish Publishing. Anyway, Mr. Rodge said I could try my hand at a poem to kind of open or maybe even close the book. I thought about doors and Scotland and what it means to be a writer. I watched Arrested Development. I read comic books. I went to Berlin. I sent Mr. Rodge the poem. Mr. Rodge liked the poem. Mr. Rodge put it in his book of New Scottish Fiction. So, how about that — I’ve got a poem in a book of New Scottish Fiction amongst names so fine you can lose a day just going through their websites.Trust me: Buy the Book.

OR

Have a look at the other great people involved below. Then go Buy the Book.

And Come to an Open Door Gig at the Book Fest’s Spiegeltent!

Monday, 30 August, 9pm – Edinburgh International Book Festival, Spiegeltent — FREE

The Year Of Open Doors: Music Night

There will be poems from me & The Alan Bissett

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Music from Burnt Island & Adrian Crowley

My poem is in The Year of Open Doors — a very excellent collection of new Scottish Fiction. It is quality. It features great new stories from people like:

Alan Bissett

Sophie Cooke

Kirstin Innes

Kapka Kassabova

Anneliese Mackintosh

Kevin MacNeil

Duncan McLean

Aidan Moffat

Suhayl Saadi

Tawona Sithole

&

Ryan Van Winkle (That’s ME!)

Check Out Cargo Publishing’s Website for News, Contests, Videos and all things Open Doorsy — See you at the Gig!

And here is Mr. Rodge explaining what he was doing.

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SPL Podcasts You May Have Missed

I’ve not updated you all on the last 6 podcasts or so not because I forgot, not because I think you don’t care, not because they aren’t any good — but because I was away from work for a while. So, here’s a list of the fine fine programmes you missed. Special thanks to Colin Fraser and Peggy Hughes of ANON for keeping these going and for doing some interviews for me. If anyone is curious about these and doesn’t know where to start — I highly recommend the amazing Kei Miller who has to stunning collections of poetry and a great novel under his belt. He is a beautiful man. It is a luxury to have him in your ears, I assure you. What are you waiting for? Catch up now!

	Kevin MacNeil Poet, playwright, bicyclist and novelist Kevin MacNeil chats to Ryan about why he’s glad he started off life as a poet, the challenges of performance and why he describes himself as a “writer” rather than a “poet turned novelist…
	Gerry Cambridge Ryan and Gerry Cambridge talk about how the Dark Horse magazine got started, whether it is possible to say what an editor is looking for in a magazine and muse the general state of literary magazine culture in the UK and the US…
	Kei Miller SPL poet of month for July, Kei Miller, reads from his new book A Light Song of Light at last month’s West Port Book Festival…
	West Port Book Festival SPL and West Port Book Festival’s Peggy looks back at the poetry of last year’s fest, and forward to what’s coming this year…
	Chase Twichell Ryan chats to Chase Twichell about ecological views, the intricacies of the poetry publishing world in the US and what it’s like to release a collected works…
	Rab Wilson Mining, Pablo Neruda, Scots poetry, Arabic translation and more with Rab Wilson and Ryan…

Where Did That Decade Go?

Ten years ago, on August 4th, some friends told me A Thing was having an opening party. Some friends of friends were involved. You could bring your own booze. There would be music. Art. We were jammed into a tiny postage-size stamped cafe. I fell asleep on the pavement outside. Somewhere, there is photographic evidence of this. Anyway, it has been a long and legendary ten years and The Forest has planned many a Celebratory Event for those involved and those who have come to dance. So, first, let’s have a look at some of the festival highlights!

Remember:

10 years old birthday party. Featherface, Baptism tank, Granny flats, more bands than is possible to name. The insanity of this project is a closely guarded secret.

Some events where you will find Ryan reading or performing in some manner. Please come.

Wednesday 4th August, 6:00pm  – Free
Blackwell, 53-62 South Bridge Edinburgh

Join us to celebrate the launch of the latest volume of New Scottish Writing. My poem is in there. Buy the book.

Download the FREE CD HERE

A unique chance to hear a fantastic international line-up of Salt poets at the Free Fringe – Simon Barraclough, Julia Bird, Isobel Dixon, Mark Granier, Rob A. Mackenzie. Andrew Philip, Eleanor Rees, and Ryan Van Winkle.

Saturday 4 September, Stornoway Book Festival, 21.00 – Free

The Golden Hour returns to Stornoway to make magic in the lovely An Lantair venue. Here’s who is performing:

Words:

Ryan Van Winkle – Short poems, long stories

Kei Miller – poet, novelist, award-winner. Really, you love him already and you don’t even know.

Listen to him on the SPL Poetry Podcast!

Music:

Hailey Beavis – an angelic voice, but devilish on six strings.

Foxgang –  punked-up reggae and pop and Fox Gang stap your dancing wellies on!

Many months ago the lovely David O’Doherty and I sat down at a hotel on the Royal Mile. He bought me coffee and we talked about comedy, jazz and poetry and some other stuff like his fantastical book “100 Facts About Pandas“. David will be comedy-a-fying at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival from 4 – 30 August at The Pleasance Courtyard. You can get tix here. Listen to our podcast and then go see him make funny. Enjoy! And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast, it is free!!!!

David O’Doherty

Author and comedian David O’Doherty, past winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award, chinwags with Ryan about jazz, literature, comedy, the pressures of working in the creative industries, good stand-up, his favourite poetry and much else. Including comedy excerpts from David’s new CD, “Let’s David O’Doherty”.

Presented by Ryan Van Winkle. Produced by Colin Fraser. Music by Ewen Maclean. Email us: splpodcast@gmail.com

Twitter: @byleaveswelive & @anonpoetry.

Or subscribe without iTunes (RSS)

Listen now…

Or download as MP3.

About David O’Doherty

David O’Doherty is from Dublin and is a stand up comedian, playwright, author, musician and actor. His stand-up has won two awards at the Edinburgh Fringe – Best Newcomer first of all and the Edinburgh Comedy Award (then named the if.comedy award) in 2008 for his show Let’s Comedy. He has been nominated twice more for his work at the festival.

O’Doherty has also written a children’s book, composed two plays and released two comedy CDs, the first of which Giggle Me Timbers (Jokes Ahoy) was recorded at his home in front of 35 people. O’Doherty’s second more recent CD release called Let’s David O’Doherty was recorded in Whelans of Dublin and released in December 2009. Snippets of it are featured on this podcast, by kind permission of David.

• More about David on his website
• David on YouTube
  

Here is a picture of 100 Facts About Pandas

And a bit about txt messaging that many of us will understand too well

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New Writing Scotland 2010 Launch at Blackwells

I’m pleased to say that my poem, Ode to a Rain from Death Row made it into the latest edition of New Writing Scotland edited by Alan Bissett and Carl MacDougall.

Come to the Event or Buy the Book

Wednesday 4th August, 6:00pm
Blackwell, 53-62 South Bridge Edinburgh

Join us to celebrate the launch of the latest volume of New Scottish Writing. New Writing Scotland is the principal forum for poetry and short fiction in Scotland today. Every year it publishes the very best from both emerging and established writers, and lists many of the country’s leading literary lights among its past (and present) contributors.

Edited by Alan Bissett and Carl MacDougall, Stone Going Home Again is the latest collection of excellent contemporary writing, drawn from a wide cross-section of Scottish culture and society.

There will be readings from a number of contributors to the volume such as Patricia Ace, Dorothy Alexander, Graham Fulton, Tracey S. Rosenberg, Gerda Stevenson and Ryan Van Winkle on the night.

This is a FREE event but a ticket is required. Tickets are available from the front desk at Blackwell. For more information please contact Ann Landmann on 0131 622 8206 or events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk.

Our Latest Podcast is Zoo-style journey through poetry via the songs of Jed Milroy and words of Kipling and Yeates. Please, do not adjust your dials, this is Real Poetry Radio — coming at ya!

Jed Milroy

In a slight change to our usual programme, we include a simulcast from WSPL Radio: Real Poetry Radio featuring their presenter Ryan “the Wolf” van Winkle interviewing Scottish folk music sensation Jed Milroy. Jed has recently become involved with creating memorable tracks from classic and modern poetry and we include three of his excellent poetry tracks – ‘An Irish Airman Foresees His Death’, inspired by the Yeats’ poem, ‘Love Never Dies’ inspired by the poem by Portobello poet Don Huggins and ‘The Storm Cone’ from the poem by Rudyard Kipling. Presented by Ryan “the Wolf” van Winkle. Produced by Colin “Copter” Fraser. Twitter: @byleaveswelive & @anonpoetry. Mail: splpodcast@gmail.com

Or subscribe without iTunes (RSS)

Listen now…

Or download as MP3.

First published 28 May, 2010

About Jed Milroy

Jed is a rambling roving musician. Sometime guitarist for Psychadelic Popsters the Aliens. Manic Banjo Player for The Homecoming String Band. His own songs are fingerpicked acoustic guitar rants and sweet melodies about wild places and people.

About Ryan ‘the Wolf’ Van Winkle

The Wolf presents his Morning Zoo on the WSPL: Real Poetry Radio weekdays, covering traffic, weather, news, poetry, music, musical poetry and poems for plums.

About Colin ‘the Copter’ Fraser

Colin “Copter” Fraser is an award winning poetry traffic pilot having successfully reported on the infamous Eliot-Pound pile-up of ’21 and the Bukowski trials.

Sally Evans

Ryan chats to poet, editor, publisher and beekeeper Sally Evans about her work with magazine Poetry Scotland, the exciting poetry festival in Callander which Sally organises and we get a chance to hear a few poems from Sally herself.

Presented by Ryan van Winkle. Produced by Colin Fraser. Music by Ewen Maclean. Twitter: @byleaveswelive & @anonpoetry. Mail: splpodcast@gmail.com

Or subscribe without iTunes (RSS)Listen now…

Humberto Ak’abal

In a special podcast from the Ullapool Book Festival, we have the great pleasure to include a reading from celebrated Guatemalan Maya Indian poet Humberto Ak’abal together with his Scots translator James Robertson and English translator Rosemary Burnett. Their new book Drum of Stone is now out from Kettillonia.

Presented by Ryan van Winkle. Produced by Colin Fraser. Music by Ewen Maclean. Twitter: @byleaveswelive & @anonpoetry. Mail: splpodcast@gmail.com

Or subscribe without iTunes (RSS)

Listen now…

Or download as MP3.

About Humberto Ak’abal

Humberto Ak’abal was born in 1952 in Momostenango, Totonicapán, Guatemala.

He left school at twelve to work with his father weaving the heavy woollen blankets for which Momostenango is famous. He is the foremost Maya K’iche’ poet, and has been recognised with awards such as the Quezal de Oro APG in 1993 from the Guatemalan Journalists’ Association, an honorary degree from the University of San Carlos, Guatemala, the Blaise Cendrars International Poetry Prize in 1997, the UNESCO ‘Song of America’ Prize in 1998, and the Pier Paolo Pasolini Poetry Prize in 2004.

He was decorated by the French Ministry of Culture with the order of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in 2005. In 1994, he refused to accept Guatemala’s highest literary award, the Miguel Angel Asturias Prize, because it is named after a writer whose work Ak’abal considers to have encouraged discrimination against the Mayan people.

About James Robertson

James Robertson was born in 1958 and grew up in Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire. A poet, editor, novelist and publisher, he is an active and prolific writer, enjoying stints at Hugh MacDiarmid ‘s cottage, Brownsbank, near Biggar, Lanarkshire, and as the first Writer-in-Residence at the Scottish Parliament.

He set up Kettillonia, a small pamphlet press in 1999, and is general editor of Itchy Coo, the successful Scots children’s book imprint at Black and White.

His novel Joseph Knight won the Saltire Society Book of the Year in 2003 and the Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year award.

James Robertson lives in Angus; his novel, The Testament of Gideon Mack, was published by Hamish Hamilton in June 2006. He has also translated Roald Dahl’s classic novel The Fantastic Mr Fox as The Sleekit Mr Tod. His forthcoming novel is And the Land Lay Still (Hamish Hamilton, August 2010), which takes its title from an Edwin Morgan poem. He has also recently been appointed Writer-in-Residence for the Creative Writing course at Edinburgh Napier University.

• Kettillonia website

About Rosemary Burnett

Rosemary Burnett, who made the English translations of Ak’abal’s poems in Drum of Stone, studied Spanish at university, and subsequently went on to become Scottish Programme Director of Amnesty International. She has lived and worked in Guatemala amongst the Mayan people.