Thought for the Day

“I opened a book and in I strode. Now nobody can find me. I've left my chair, my house, my road, My town and my world behind me."

~ Julia Donaldson

Thought for the Day

"But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew, upon a thought produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions think."

~ Lord Byron

Thought for the Day

"If you aren't in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?"

~ T. S. Eliot, British poet

Thought for the Day

"There's no money in poetry, but then there's no poetry in money either."

~ Robert Graves, British poet

Thought for the Day

"Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can't, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it."

~ Robert Frost, American poet

Thought for the Day

"To be a poet is a condition, not a profession."

~ Robert Frost

Happy World Poetry Day!

There once was a girl, name of Dorothy,
Who challenged the Wizard’s authority.
Reunited at last
With three friends from her past,
She made besting Great Oz her priority.

The Wicked Wizard of Oz - pre-order your copy now!

Are you ready to return to Oz?

Thought for the Day

"The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt."

~ Sylvia Plath (1932-63)

Thought for the Day

"The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do not say."

~ G K Chesterton

Thought for the Day

"A poet must never make a statement simply because it is sounds poetically exciting; he must also believe it to be true."

~ W.H. Auden (1907-73)

National Poetry Day 2016

In honour of National Poetry Day...

Seamus Heaney: "I saw a frog." 
Ted Hughes: "I saw a frog and it was dead."
Edgar Allen Poe: "I saw a frog and she was dead." 
Sylvia Plath: "I saw a frog and I am dead." 
Samuel Beckett: "I saw a frog and it was God." 
Siegfried Sassoon: "I've seen Hell and it's a frog." 
Spike Milligan: "Nig nag nog, I saw a frog." 
William Shakespeare: "Verily I saw a frog." 
T.S. Eliot: "Do I dare to see a frog?" 
Samuel Taylor Coleridge: "I hallucinated a frog." 
Lord Byron: "I'm p****d as a newt!"

Shakespeare Sunday: Shall I compare thee to an Elder Thing?

Last Shakespeare Sunday, I previewed the last of the 15 stories that appear in Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu. But it's not only short stories that are to be found within this rather wonderful cover...

Shakespeare wasn’t only a playwright, he was a poet as well, most famous for his 154 sonnets, and so Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu also features two Lovecraftian-themed sonnets. 

First there's Nimue Brown’s What Dreams May Come, and then there's Danie Ware’s The Green-Ey’d Monster. Both form a fitting tribute to the Bard of Stratford whilst at the same time honouring Lovecraft’s literary legacy.

Don't forget, the official book launch of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu will be taking place at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in London on Saturday 13th August between 1 and 2pm, and you can register your interest here.

The Kickstarter's halfway through, so what are you going to do?

JABBERWACKY

‘Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

“Now back the Kickstarter, my son!

The wondrous books, the cards, the dice!

Beware of missing out, and shun

Mere trifles – don’t think twice!”

He took his credit card in hand:

Long time the right reward he sought –

So rested he, on Tweedledee,

“An eBook’s fine,” he thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came!

“You want a hardback,” quoth the beast,

“The art’s done by Kev Crossley.

And while you’re there, I do declare,

A signed one’s not too costly.”

One two! One two! And through and through

The frantic mouse went click-‘n’-clack!

He used his smarts – picked Queen of Hearts –

And went galumphing back.

“And hast thou backed the Kickstarter?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

Oh frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”

He chortled in his joy.

‘Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble on the knoll.

Now go pledge your support in droves,

And help us reach our goal.

By Jonathan Green, after Lewis Carroll

Sharkpunk Saturday - The Shark, by Lord Alfred Douglas

The Shark

Lord Alfred Douglas

A treacherous monster is the Shark 
He never makes the least remark.

And when he sees you on the sand, 
He doesn’t seem to want to land.

He watches you take off your clothes, 
And not the least excitement shows.

His eyes do not grow bright or roll, 
He has astonishing self-control.

He waits till you are quite undressed, 
And seems to take no interest.

And when towards the sea you leap, 
He looks as if he were asleep.

But when you once get in his range, 
His whole demeanour seems to change.

He throws his body right about, 
And his true character comes out.

It’s no use crying or appealing, 


He seems to lose all decent feeling.

After this warning you will wish 
To keep clear of this treacherous fish.

His back is black, his stomach white, 
He has a very dangerous bite.

When The Boot Was On The Other Foot

When The Boot Was On The Other Foot

A poem to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo on 18th June 1815

In 1815, the French said 'Adieu!' 

When Wellington showed them just what he could do. 

The Iron Duke's boots 

Met Napoleon's glutes, 

And old Boney met his Waterloo.

(c) Jonathan Green, 2015

Better get used to the idea, bud.

A Surfeit of Peaches

A Surfeit of Peaches

Or

Too Much of a Good Thing Can Be A Bad Thing

A poem to commemorate the 800^th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta on 15^th June 1215

King John was a rogue and a tartar.

(He murdered his poor nephew Arthur.)

At fair Runnymede,

His Barons decreed,

He agree to the terms of their charter.

But for Lackland things soon got much worse.

(Some said he was under a curse.)

Legend has it a monk

Off’t a cup, which when drunk,

Made him call for the aid of a nurse.

Was it dysentery? Poison? Malaise?

(‘Twas at Newark John ended his days.)

A surfeit of peaches,

So History teaches,

Caused his death, due to gluttonous ways.

(c) Jonathan Green, 2015

Thought for the Day

"I hoard books. They are people who do not leave."

~ Anne Sexton, American Poet

Where there's a Will there's a... poem?

In honour of Mr William Shakespeare's possible birthday and probably death-day, here's a poem what I wrote...

There once was a playwright called Will, 

Who wrote with a goose feather quill. 

He spent all his days

Writing poems and plays,

And some are considered quite brill.

(c) Jonathan Green, 2015

Thought for the Day

National Poetry Day - Fish Supper

Fish Supper (the abridged version) by Jonathan Green

I don't like fish of any sort,
No matter how or where they're caught...
So no matter how you vary 'em,
I'll not eat an aquarium.

To find out more about National Poetry Day, and this year's theme of 'Water, water everywhere', follow this link.

The Fish Supper's Revenge

by Tony Hough

From the Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook Bloodbones, by Jonathan Green