Metrophobia. Fear of poetry. In the first few classes, I thought it was one of those set-piece jokes like teachers repairing the fabric of the school with leftover dining hall dinners. But then I realised they were serious. Creative writers with a fear of poetry. Who knew? I don’t understand enough about it to be […]
Middle-aged couple in marriage crisis
Brad and Angie have split up. Who saw that coming? I’m so sad for the kids. How would you let someone like him go? If they can’t make it – with cheekbones like theirs – what chance have us porridge-faced mortals got? Alternatively, middle-aged woman seeks divorce and custody of their six children. They have […]
How much is more than I can chew?
It started last week – my MLitt in creative writing at the University of Glasgow. And in the manner that very much I imagine it will continue. There I was convinced I didn’t need to be there until noon when I thought I’d better check. 10am. That’s when I need to be there – in […]
It started as an ordinary afternoon
It was the middle of a very slow afternoon when she lined up the pens with the top of her keyboard and pushed back from the desk. Traffic flowed by the eight-storey glass and chrome office building. Lorries, bike couriers and pedestrians moving on, not stopping. Inside colleagues murmured, typed and sneaked glances at the […]
17/365 My city walk
I pass this way on one of my favourite regular walks. Once a fortnight, I hand the kids over to The Panther and walk away. Fast. As I march across the city, my head fills with plot twists, story ideas and the general thrilling possibilities that come from making things up. On a sharp frosty night, Glasgow […]