Hello all! A quick post today to share a new poetry video. It's a (hot and humid) nostalgia trip: a well-worn poem of mine based on my summers of farm work as a teen. Almost all of it is true (I nearly crashed a John Deere learning to drive), but some aspects are fictionalised (the … Continue reading New poem: “Farm Hand”
I'm so excited to share a brand new project! Today we at I Am Loud released the first episode of Loud Poets: Happy Hour, our new poetry podcast. Bex Sherwood is producing the show and I'm hosting, plus Kevin Mclean and Mark Gallie are along for the ride taking part in the challenges. What is … Continue reading Launching Loud Poets: Happy Hour!
Ever since I moved to the UK and begin performing and researching spoken word poetry, one of my favourite podcasts has been the Lunar Poetry Podcast. Founded in 2014 by David Turner, the LPP features conversations with and performances from a wide range of UK-based poets, focusing on creative practice and various issues in the … Continue reading Lunar Poetry Podcast Feature
Hello all! A quick post to share some long-anticipated news: after five years I've finally graduated from the University of Strathclyde with my doctorate! As I've shared on this blog before, my PhD focused on authenticity in contemporary UK spoken word poetry. Specifically, I examined the ways in which poets may project authenticity (honesty, originality, … Continue reading PhDone!
Hi all! Quick post today sharing a new poem I wrote and performed earlier this year. As the Loud Poets sixth birthday show (!!) fell on Valentine’s Day, I decided to surprise my partner with this piece. It’s entitled “Holding” and was filmed live at the Scottish Storytelling Centre on 14th Feb. 2020. Enjoy!
Tyrone Lewis is hands down one of the hardest working people in the U.K. spoken word scene. For over a decade he's not only written and performed his own brilliant poetry, but also tirelessly supported others by running events including Boomerang Club and by filming events, poems, interviews, and documentaries through Process Productions. So many … Continue reading Interview with Process Productions
I may be an outlier here, but one of my favourite parts of working with poetry is editing. It's always been the aspect of my own writing process that I relish the most, and I love working with other writers to edit their work in preparation for publication. I particularly enjoy puzzling out how to … Continue reading Editing Carly Brown’s ‘Anastasia, Look in the Mirror’
Hello all! Quick post today: I wanted to share with you the latest episode of the I Am Loud Productions Loudcast. These are weekly video and audio podcasts which showcase spoken word poems and feature in-depth conversations about various facets of spoken word craft. For this week's episode I sat down with Kevin Mclean to … Continue reading New Loudcast Episode: Criticising Spoken Word
Hello all! Hope you're coping OK through this stressful time. Tomorrow (Saturday, 2nd May) evening I'm delighted to be performing in Quarantine Cabaret! This is a fantastic initiative showcasing Scottish musicians, poets, and comedians through live-streamed online gigs. They're streaming over Instagram Live every Saturday evening at 7:30pm GMT. Tomorrow I'll be performing some brand-new … Continue reading Live-streamed Gig Tomorrow! & #NaPoWriMo Loudcasts
Hey there folks, How are you doing? The world is pretty scary right now. I hope that you and your loved ones are safe and healthy in this surreal, worrisome time. I'm so grateful right now for the healthcare workers and emergency services working flat-out to get us through this crisis. It seems strange and … Continue reading Getting Through This Together
Katie Ailes 