My guest for the GG Column is Laurie Wilkinson who collects monies from the sale of his poetry books for his chosen charity
“ Help for Heroes.”
I have lived in Eastbourne Sussex for over five years now, and it has been a very successful, enterprising and thoroughly enjoyable experience for me. Apart from having six books of my poetry published in just over four of those years, I have made many friends and really feel a welcomed part of the community. I also like to think I have gone some way to putting something back into this community as well.
Now I can see that is quite an involved opening paragraph, and there is a need for me to enlarge on it, with some explanation. Make yourself comfortable then.
I arrived in Eastbourne in 2013 from Kent, where I had lived many years after bucking the trend and moving “south of the river” from my native east London. I had two ideas at the time, one to take up yoga again, which I did for a couple of years before changing it for the gym that I still attend now.
More fundamentally as it has turned out, I wanted to find a small group of people to share poems as I had begun to write again. Initially I couldn’t find such a group, but I have now, fortuitously found a writers group who complimented me on my poetry, introduced me to a “long term member” with a publishing company. We made an agreement, and I now have six books published by My Voice Publishing! I have also written over 450 poems in five years, so it must surely be the Sussex air helping?
As my career was psychiatry I have taken on the aka “The Psychy Poet” which has served me very well and expansively in my now four and a half “published years”, and all else that has blossomed from it.
Perhaps I should add that in April 2014 when my first book came out, I had the idea that if I sold a few books I could donate to a charity. My son was serving in Afghanistan with the army’s Intelligence Corps at the time, so the excellent forces charity Help for Heroes came to mind. I still donate to and fundraise for them now in all my “Poetry World” activities! I’m happy and relieved to say my son is now out of the army and has good health in both body and mind, unlike many others less fortunate, and he is doing well on “civilian street”.
Help for Heroes is an excellent charity that cares for our wounded from all armed services and organisations, providing treatment, nursing care, rehabilitation, counselling and dealing with neurological disorders amongst many other forms of support.
So what are my “Poetry World” activities then? Manifold is the answer to that, as I have been on many radio stations, including BBC Sussex and Surrey, town and local radio stations, larger and smaller, and even had two of my poems read out on national radio that broadcasts internationally too. I have featured in videos, papers, including national, and had six poems that reached country wide finals published in Forward Poetry books.
As part of fund raising for Help for Heroes I write commissioned personal poems for people, hold raffles, do poetry presentations and also sell my books and the charity items on my stall in various locations and events. For over three years I have written a monthly article with relevant themed poems in it for The Sussex Newspaper Online and currently sister paper Bonjour Limousin, after it replaced Bonjour France.
My poetry writing style is very down to earth, and in everyday language describing our world and all aspects that affect our lives, which is encapsulated in my four sections of romance, humour, reflection and tragedy subjects. These appear in all of my six published books. My poems have also been described as “parable like stories”, philosophical an even poetry for the pub.
So all of that has happened in my five years in the Sussex air where I have also been involved in various local charity initiatives, sometimes writing a poem to promote local groups as well. Quite recently I was pleased to be able to contribute to raise money for a defibrillator and training and soon to collect for another one as well. My previous five books are on sale in many shops, pubs, cafes and halls in the area.
To conclude then, my new and sixth book, enticingly titled “Poet Reveals All” (in your world) is now out and I have a unique “Book Signing” and poetry reading at The Old Court House Pevensey on December 15th It will be nice to see you there!
