What a privilege to be asked by a friend to help them launch their poetry collection. But what a nerve-racking thing it is to read someone else’s work in
public, with the poet (and his family) listening attentively!
Regular readers of my blog will know that I always write with spoken
word and performance of poetry in the forefront of my mind. How poems sound out loud is crucial to how I create
them. I’d go so far as to say all poetry should be out loud, that’s when it
really comes alive.
So being asked to read someone else’s work out in public, while they
are there listening is a huge privilege – but it does make for shaky knees!
The Rockhoppers poetry performance group participated in the launch of and why we
were all going, the debut poetry collection from Dominic Williams last
night (July 20th).
Myself and my three Rockhopper colleagues (left to right in the photo -- Maggie
Harris, Mel Perry, Annie Butler and me) were honoured to be asked to take part
and we each read a few of Dominic’s fabulous poems as well as some of our own.
It was a fantastic night for spoken word, brilliantly compered by Sion Tomos Owen, and held in the friendly surroundings
of Octavo’s café-bar and bookshop in Cardiff Bay.
and why we were all going is the first publication from Three-Throated
Press, the new poetry imprint from publisher Iconau (Ferryside, Carmarthenshire).
It’s a beautifully produced casebound (hardback) pamphlet containing a
collection of poetry that comes from the heart and affects the emotions, but also
appeals to the intellect. I’ve put a selection of comments from other writers about
this new work below.
And do look out for the next launch from this imprint coming soon: Rum Dark
Nights by Mel Perry (yes, she’s one of my Rockhopper colleagues).
Info on Iconau and Three Throated Press, plus how to order books:
More on the Rockhoppers:
The Rockhoppers on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEJynA8R1Lo&feature=youtu.be
Praise for and why we were all going:
"Dominic Williams is the madman on the train who asks the great questions, 'is the quill mightier than the thorn', 'why do the clouds drift in confusion?' He takes us from the bawdy Atlantic, from soft clouds in Ireland to the Viking vowels of Scandinavia, but always rooted in the depths of the Welsh soul… Such sensitive feelings expressed in poetry are to be welcomed and cherished. Such feelings can oftentimes only be given voice in poetry… In these pages there is much and plenty to ponder.” – Kevin Connelly.
“Evocative and playful, burrowing deep into the mysterious liaison
that exists so profoundly between people and place.” -- Rachel Trezise.
“Not only is this the work of a
Bard, it is a paean to life, to loss and to the burgeoning awareness of one’s
own mortality. The book takes the reader on a rattling railway journey of a
life, in all its hues, from a random encounter with a drunken madman to a man
coming to realisation about his place in the Universe.” – Michelle Dooley
Mahon.
“Williams understands that writing is not only an intellectual
pursuit; it comes from and appeals to not just the head but also the guts and
the muscles and the lungs and the gonads and the blood. In other words, he gets
it.” -- Niall Griffiths.
