• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Chandler's Ford Today

  • Home
  • About
    • About Chandler’s Ford
    • Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research
  • Blog
    • Blogging Tips
  • Event
    • Upcoming Events
  • Community
    • Groups
    • Churches
    • Schools
    • GP Surgeries
    • Leisure
    • Library
    • Charities
      • Eastleigh Basics Bank
      • Cat & Kitten Rescue in Chandler’s Ford
    • Fair Trade
      • Traidcraft stalls in Chandler’s Ford
    • Chandler’s Ford Parish Council
  • Contact
    • Subscribe
  • Site Policies
  • Site Archive
    • Site Archive 2018
    • Site Archive 2017
    • Site Archive 2016
    • Site Archive 2015
You are here: Home / Arts / The Poetic Life: Interview with Sandra Gordon, Part 1

The Poetic Life: Interview with Sandra Gordon, Part 1

July 15, 2016 By Allison Symes Leave a Comment

Sandra Gordon, near neighbour and local poet, has recently performed some of her poetry at the New Forest Folk Festival as part of the Lines and Squares Poets.

She has also received the exciting news her work will be published in The North magazine in July.

Performance Poetry at New Forest Festival - image kindly supplied by Graham Quick
Performance Poetry at New Forest Festival – image kindly supplied by Graham Quick

The North is an established poetry magazine and being accepted for publication here is a huge achievement. I also think standing up on stage in front of hundreds of people and performing poetry is a brave thing to do! And she has written poetry for Chandler’s Ford Today too, which will resonate with most dog owners…

Sandra Gordon’s Poem: In The Garden

I like poetry. I love listening to Roger McGough on Radio 4’s Poetry Please. I have a soft spot for nonsense verse and limericks (which will probably make serious poets wince but I argue it is a good way into poetry overall. I also adore listening to John Hegley and Pam Ayres whose poem Nobody Loves a Fairy When She’s Forty resonates with my fairy tale writing!).

Hard at work - image kindly supplied by Sandra Gordon
Hard at work – image kindly supplied by Sandra Gordon

I have occasionally written poetry and my Not the Way to Go (my take on the Wizard of Oz story) is published online at Scriggler. com (an American based website encouraging the showcasing of work).

But I could not write poetry all the time. There is a discipline to it, which does not come naturally to me. I find it far easier to blog and write fiction where I don’t have to worry about whether to rhyme or not, have I got my metre right, have I used the right format for this particular work and so on.

With short story writing, you are either writing a standard story (word counts of about 1500, sometimes up to 5000) or flash fiction (word counts usually under 750 words and often lower). But those are the rules and that’s it. (Presentation formats of 12 point Times New Roman/Arial, double line spacing etc are standard whatever kind of short story you write).

Poetry is about images in the mind. Short stories, while conjuring up images, are about a moment of change in a character’s life. And some of our most famous images in fiction come from poetry.

Poetry conjures up images and war poetry some of the most famous of all - image via Pixabay
Poetry conjures up images and war poetry some of the most famous of all – image via Pixabay
Another famous poetic image - image via Pixabay
Another famous poetic image – image via Pixabay

There are more rules to poetry. There are more formats to poetry. Then there’s the decision to stick to “traditional” poetry or whether to write free verse). So I thought with her recent good news, it would be a great opportunity to ask Sandra a few questions and to shed some light on what the writing life is like as a poet.

1. Why write poetry? What drew you to this rather than prose?

Well, prose drew me to poetry. Like many, I’ve always thought I could write a book. So in 2011, I enrolled to do a Creative Writing Course with the Open University. I’d already completed a degree with them so knew I’d be getting quality material to study.

When studying the poetry section I became hooked. At that time I didn’t know exactly what poetry was or how to write it but I fell in love with reading it and trying to write it. I couldn’t get enough. A huge help for me was reading the trilogy of Bloodaxe books, Staying Alive, Being Alive and Being Human, edited by Neil Astley.

The Green Corner - image from Sandra Gordon
The Green Corner – image from Sandra Gordon

2. Who is your favourite classic poet and why?

Now there’s a question. I’m still learning and this answer could be different in six months time. But for now I could say a favourite classic poet is Walt Whitman…or Robert Frost, though not sure he’s classified as Classic just yet. It’s so difficult to choose an absolute favourite.

Allison:  I’ve included two further links for Walt Whitman and Robert Frost here as both help readers to explore their poetry further.  The second one for Robert Frost has “poem hunter” as part of the title, which in itself is a great image!

What no writer, poet or prose, can be without, the notepad for ideas - image via Pixabay
What no writer, poet or prose, can be without, the notepad for ideas – image via Pixabay. N.B. One great thing about the notebook and pen? No batteries needed!

3. Who is your favourite modern poet and why?

Modern poets are wonderful to explore. There are so many. Choosing a favourite modern poet is difficult too. I love Elizabeth Bishop, (not quite classic or absolute modern) John Burnside, Gillian Clarke, Abigail Parry. I’ll stop there. The list could go on.

Allison: I’ve included a link to one of Elizabeth Bishop’s poems, Filling Station. The images conjured up by this are great. Hope you enjoy it. I did. Discovering the Poetry Foundation website (which I’ve linked to on most of the names above) has been a revelation. I highly recommend investigating it. Each poet has a biography and from their page you can read some of their work.  I really enjoyed this.

Sandra on Stage at the New Forest Festival - image kindly supplied through Sandra.
Sandra on Stage at the New Forest Festival – image kindly supplied through Sandra.

4. What do you think the role of poetry is?

Oh now, there’s a question. Poetry appears at important times doesn’t it? Difficult times, happy times. Funerals. Being in love. When you feel desperately sad. Poetry can be very powerful. Poetry makes you think. Poetry can make you face a truth whether you want to or not. A good poem should stop you in your tracks, beg you to read it again and again, read it out loud and each time you read it you see or hear something new.

Allison: I think the war poets are a great example of this. See the link, which gives a wealth of information including brief biographies on the major war poets plus samples of their work. I also include a link to the page about Rupert Brooke. It is difficult not to be moved by The Soldier.

Rupert Brooke (1887 – 1915)

5. Tough question I know but name your three favourite poems. Have deliberately limited to three! Why pick these?

That is very difficult. And again, this could be different in a few months time.

(a) Miracle on St. David’s Day by Gillian Clarke
(b) One art by Elizabeth Bishop
(c) The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry

Poets stand, stare and then write down - image via Pixabay
Poets stand, stare and then write down – image via Pixabay

6. I know you’ve become a huge fan of ladies’ golf and indeed play yourself. Do you find being on the golf course helps with your writing in that it gives you thinking time say? I find swimming helps clear my mind and then makes me start thinking about what I am writing, what I’ll be doing next and so on and find this immensely helpful.

I have to try not to think about poetry on the golf course. Golf needs 100% focus.

Chilworth Golf Club where Sandra will be Lady Captain in 2017
Chilworth Golf Club where Sandra will be Lady Captain in 2017 – image kindly supplied by Sandra Gordon

If a poem tries to appear, the golf goes downhill big time. I can remember clearly when I told myself both don’t mix. It was on the 17th green and I needed to make the putt. Two crows were on the edge of the green bashing the ground with their thick, bone like beaks. Their beaks looked like swords and I started to compose a poem there and then…I missed that putt!

Allison: Many thanks, Sandra, for sharing your poetry life with us. Part 2 of my interview with Sandra will appear next week where she shares tips for aspiring poets and her thoughts on the importance of editing. Now that’s something every writer will identify with!

Related Posts:

Interview: Jacci Gooding – The Writing Life

Interview Kate Day: Chocolate Muffin Publishing

The Magic of Words: David Bowie and Alan Rickman

Further Adventures of a Fantasy Author

From Dancer to Writer: Felicity Fair Thompson

What’s Your Story? Gill James

Read interviews with Chandler’s Ford writer Allison Symes: Part 1 and Part 2.

Read blog posts by Allison Symes published on Chandler’s Ford Today.

Never miss out on another blog post. Subscribe here:

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google
  • Email

Related posts:

The Poetic Life: Sharing the Muse - Sandra Gordon Interview Part 2The Poetic Life: Sharing the Muse – Sandra Gordon Interview: Jacci Gooding – Adventures in Self Publishing Interview: Jacci Gooding – The Writing Life Barbara Large New Creative Writing Classes ImageBarbara Large: NEW Creative Writing Classes in Chandler’s Ford What Makes a Good Writing Conference?
Tags: arts and crafts, creative writing, inspiration, interview, poetry, writers

About Allison Symes

I'm a published flash fiction and short story writer, as well as a blogger. My fiction work has appeared in anthologies from Cafelit and Bridge House Publishing.

My first flash fiction collection, From Light to Dark and Back Again, was published by Chapeltown Books in 2017.

My follow-up, Tripping the Flash Fantastic, was published by Chapeltown Books in 2020.

I adore the works of many authors but my favourites are Jane Austen, P.G. Wodehouse and Terry Pratchett.

I like to describe my fiction as fairytales with bite.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Search

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Chandler's Ford Today blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Archives

Top Posts & Pages

999, 111, 101, 112? Emergency Numbers You Must Know
A walk in a park
84 Charing Cross Road
101 Things to Put into Room 101
Home
101 Things to Put into Room 101 - Part 7 - The Final Leg
My Passion For Woodwork
Hidden Hampshire - Woodland Walks: Jermyns Lane
Lockdown Afternoon Tea
Montgomery Of Alamein School In Winchester: Astonishing Historical Pictures Revealed

Categories

Tags

arts and crafts books Chandler's Ford Chandler's Ford Today Chandler’s Ford community charity Christianity Christmas church community creative writing culture Eastleigh Eastleigh Borough Council education entertainment event family fundraising gardening good neighbours Hiltingbury Hiltingbury Road history hobby how-to interview Joan Adamson Joan Adelaide Goater local businesses local interest memory Methodist Church music nature news reading religion review social storytelling theatre travel Winchester Road writing

Recent Comments

  • Mike Sedgwick on A walk in a park
  • Allison Symes on A walk in a park
  • Allison Symes on Launches in Lockdown – Part 1
  • Mike Sedgwick on Launches in Lockdown – Part 1
  • Allison Symes on Richard Hardie, Authors Reach, and Lockdown
  • David Lamb on Richard Hardie, Authors Reach, and Lockdown

Regular Writers and Contributors

Janet Williams Allison Symes Mike Sedgwick Rick Goater Doug Clews chippy minton Martin Napier Roger White Andy Vining Gopi Chandroth Nicola Slade Wellie Roger Clark Ray Fishman Hazel Bateman SO53 News

Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

Do You Remember The Hutments? By Nick John

Do You Remember The Hutments? By Nick John

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

History of Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) Hursley Park by Dave Key

History of Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) Hursley Park by Dave Key

Reviews of local performances and places

Reviews of local performances and places

Copyright © 2021 Chandler's Ford Today. WordPress. Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.