While writing poetry is a solitary sport, poets often want to get together.
While writing poetry is a solitary sport, poets often want to get together.
Poetry is alive and well in Whangārei, one of them is Vaughan Gunson and here he introduces us to some of the poets, their poems and tells us how their book Take Flight came about.
Poets in Whangārei? There are some. More than you might think.
Out of sight, these romantic souls practice their craft, then share with the world however they can. Perhaps on social media or live at poetry readings.
It's an art form that's far from dying. People keep turning to poetry to express themselves in new and also familiar ways.
It was amazing to us that we had found other people in Whangārei serious about writing poetry.
The conversation at our regular get-togethers never stayed on poetry. And rarely in one evening did anyone read more than one of their poems to the group.
It soon became clear that each of us was quite different in our poetic sensibilities. This was a good thing.
Building on our enthusiasm and wonder at our existence as a group of poets, we started producing a broadsheet of poems to share around the local cafés, art galleries and bookshops. It was called Take Flight.
That was a number of years ago now. People moved, as they do, shifted their priorities, got busy with other things in their life.
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The poetry, however, kept getting written. That's why we decided to publish a book. A kind of best of. Fifteen poems by each of us.
It's a collection of wonderful diversity and, I think, quality.
In our dreams, we can imagine the collection putting Whangārei on New Zealand's literary map.
A more modest and realistic goal would be for some local people interested in poetry to purchase a copy. Or check it out from the library.
Knowing a little about the writers behind the poems is always a plus. So here's a few things about my fellow Take Flighters.
Michelle Elvy was born in North Carolina. She arrived by sailboat in Northland in 2008. She's an editor-at-large, with countless projects under her belt and new ones on the go.
Flash fiction is one of her things. She likes a poem or small fiction to feel like a mere suggestion of a world. After sailing to distant places after leaving Whangārei, Michelle is now adjusting to shore life in Dunedin.
Arthur Fairley will be well known to many, being a local defence lawyer and keen rugby fan. He thinks poetry is language on its best behaviour, on its tiptoes if you like.
The fluidity of Arthur's poems may have something to do with the fact he never touches a computer. He has numerous school exercise books filled with handwritten poems.
Jac Jenkins is a star. Winning the takahē poetry competition in this country and being published in the American Journal of Poetry are no small achievements.
For her, sound is a critical element. She wants her poems to be puzzling and elusive, so the reader is driven to re-read more than once. Jac now lives in the Hokianga.
Piet Nieuwland is a one-person poetry ambassador who has organised countless poetry events across Northland. He's currently one of the editors of the local poetry journal Fast Fibres.
He's been published widely in this country and overseas for 40 years. An ex-DOC worker, his poems brim with references to the unique flora and fauna of Aotearoa. The land in Piet's poems is often present like a companion lover.
Martin Porter was born in Jersey, a small island off the coast of Normandy. After living in Whangārei for a few years, he's now living in the UK, bemoaning Boris Johnson's handling of Covid. Martin's poems reflect an interest in movement through space and time, culture and life.
Aaron Robertson lives in Hikurangi. He works as a French-to-English translator. Unsurprisingly, he's influenced by French poetry. For Aaron, the sound of a poem is most important.
He strives for a balance between the ear and comprehension. Not afraid of ambiguity and complexity, his poems demand multiple readings to reveal themselves.
If you would like a copy of Take Flight, you can purchase from The Piggery Bookshop in Whangārei and the Book Inn in Kamo. Or you can buy on Trade Me.
