January | 2015 | Perth Words... exploring possibilities.

I love fantasy. I love reading it, I love watching it, and most of all, I love writing it. There’s something so incredibly liberating about letting your mind run wild with infinite possibilities. Because, really, the only thing that limits the creation of fantasy is our own imaginations.

But how, exactly, does someone create a “real” fantasy world? Because by definition, fantasy means something that is impossible or improbable. So how on earth can it be “real”?

*Shrugs* Beats me! But let’s see if we can flesh out some possibilities.

First up, even though it’s fantasy, there still have to be limits. Otherwise the fantasy just becomes chaos. And nobody likes chaos—it’s gritty and difficult to read. You get lost and caught up in the nuances. It’s better to refine the scope of the fantasy than it is to have no rules in place. A good example for this is…

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Bookshops

Posted in Books, COMMUNITY, Ireland, McAlpine Bell Publishing, Perth City, Poetry, WA Writers, Writers, tagged BoffinsBookShop, books, Bookshops, Elizabeth'sBookshop, FrancesMacaulayForde, MillStBookshopCaffe, POEM:TheBoffin, poems, poetry, SalmonBookshop, SalmonPoetry, writers on January 17, 2015| 3 Comments »

For lovers of books, bookshops will always entice.

I’ve mentioned my favorite bookshop, nestled in Ennistymon, County Clare, Ireland is also a Literary Centre, run by Jessie Lendennie, publisher of Salmon Press. A meeting place for those in the poetry scene in Ireland where Jessie is both necessary and influential.

Across the oceans, here on the Cafe Strip in Fremantle, Elizabeth’s Bookshop has long been a place to fall into soft couches with a favorite tome and lose yourself for a while.

MillPointCaffeBookshop in South Perth serves coffee and is a favorite haunt for a writer friend who literally immerses himself in words, while he creates.

While Boffins Bookshop in Williams Street in Perth City specialize…

The Boffin

Bookshops are like lovers,

they numb in black & white

then seduce you with colour,

titillate and tempt your soul

until you finally let go,

find the courage to close

the book ~ pages which leave

you gasping The breath of air

on your face feels like a slap.

Finalist “Inner City Life” Literary Competition 2004.

@FrancesMForde #FrancesMacForde #Bookshops #POEM:TheBoffin #SalmonBookshop #SalmonPoetry #Elizabeth’sBookshop #MillStBookshopCaffe #BoffinsBookShop #Writers #Poetry #Poems #Books

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African Hands

Posted in 1968 Notebook, Africa, Art as the Spark, Poetry, Writing, tagged Africa, ArtAsTheSpark, ARTIST:RosaNiehaus, FrancesMacaulayForde, POEM:AfricanHands, poetry, ThesePrayingHands on January 16, 2015| Leave a Comment »

African Hands

I saw a picture the other day

of two hands clasped in prayer.

The story they told was the truth

about an old man from his youth.

The lines of worry were all there

with the happiness, love and despair.

With the death he had seen

of the friends that had been…

Showing the scars of war,

all the fights from before.

When he looks at his hands, does he see

how his future’s going to be?

A struggle before he dies?–

We should all have eternal lives!

He knows death must be near,

I wonder if he has any fear?

Frances Macaulay Forde @ 1973

The painting proudly on show in our lounge in Kitwe, Zambia, for many years.

@FrancesMForde #FrancesMacForde #POEM:AfricanHands #poetry #ArtAsTheSpark #Africa

#ARTIST:RosaNiehaus #ThesePrayingHands #1968Notebook

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Moving in…

Posted in Ireland, Love, Poetry, Writing, tagged FrancesMacaulayForde, POEM:MovingIn, poetry, SketchingInIreland on January 14, 2015| 1 Comment »

Moving In

“The teaspoons go

in the first section

of the drying rack

and don’t get put away.”

Like whores with their

sex on display, they’re

used often so

why keep getting them out?

@FrancesMForde #FrancesMacForde #SketchingInIreland #POEM:MovingIn

#poems #Ireland #poetry #writing

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Its Official! Thandi’s a Mum!

Posted in Writing on January 14, 2015| Leave a Comment »

You may have read my previous blog with my poem:’Thandi’.

Fight for Rhinos

From Kariega Game Reserve: This morning at 8:50am Thandi gave birth to a calf! The birth was witnessed by two Kariega rangers and shortly afterwards; wildlife veterinarian Dr William Fowlds observed the mother and her calf from a distance. He confirmed that both are doing well. More details and photos to come in the days ahead 🙂