There’s walls, and then there’s WALLS
On my new album, “Ticket to Mars”, the fourth track is “The Great Wall”. Cōdae · The Great Wall TheContinue Reading
Category: Discussion of lyrics
Creative Process Discussion of genre Discussion of lyrics Discussion of media getting published music
Think on thy soul, for once
The header, “Think on thy soul, for once”, refers to the line by “Othello” to “Desdemona” in William Shakespeare’s play,Continue Reading
Poems about cats – What is it with poets and cats?
The Internet is full of blogs and Reddits and substacks and vlogs and IG feeds of people with their cats,Continue Reading
So THAT’S why it tickles your toes!
I found out long ago, that because of the way your brain processes visual information, for instance what you read,Continue Reading
Ancient texts Backstories Creative Process Discussion of lyrics Discussion of poetry Historical texts
The skills and talents of the nobility – Hype or reality?
Last week there was a mean little news snippet in the UK media about Sarah Ferguson – Sarah, Duchess ofContinue Reading
Simply This: Words of Praise and a Melody to Match
Psalm 139 is serious, deep and grave in tone, as befits a plea to God. When King David wrote it,Continue Reading
Ancient texts Backstories Creative Process Discussion of lyrics Discussion of poetry Historical texts
Getting to Grips with Transcendent Verses from a Dark and Dangerous Time
One tends to apply your own ideas and values – and judgment – to just about everything you hear andContinue Reading
One Sentence, One Puzzle from Medieval Times
When I wrote the lyrics for my song, “Havn”, I was getting rid of an earworm that had been hauntingContinue Reading
What happens when you poke around in ancient documents…gods and heroes!
“`Curiouser and curiouser!’ cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speakContinue Reading
For once, something truly meaningful
I have been feeling very down lately, quite discouraged, because I am in the process of being retrained. I cannotContinue Reading
What happens when you mix up languages in lyrics? Check out PSY, SUGA, and Adriano Celentano
PSY released his album PSY 9th on April 29, 2022, and I got the album immediately, because I like PSY.Continue Reading
Art Creative Process Discussion of lyrics Historical Nonfiction music Music Criticism Music History musicians review of biography
What is your unguilty pleasure? – ENYA, by Chilly Gonzales
Musician Chilly Gonzales (born Jason Charles Beck) hates bananas. I’m not that fond of bananas myself. It’s that sticky, doughyContinue Reading
All the little angels…
There’s a thing that really good authors do – and I don’t know what’s the word for it – theyContinue Reading
Horrible lyrics and pitiful prose
My guilty pleasure is reading bad writing and then making savage but unspoken criticisms of it. It’s easy to lambastContinue Reading
Listen to this – Feel it
I am a fan of Nick Cave, and subscribe to his Red Hand Files communiques in which he answers questionsContinue Reading
“Nothing comes from nothing.”
Pondering creativity When you have read and reviewed many books, as I have done, you eventually realize that even theContinue Reading
Nick Cave explains his departure from fictitious narrative songwriting
Nick Cave has become a writer of note in addition to being a celebrated musician, lyricist and composer. His blog,Continue Reading
Absolutely excellent – Going Medieval on Pop Music
One of the books I’m reading now is William Shakespeare’s Get Thee…Back to the Future, by Ian Doescher, which isContinue Reading
The surprising results of using a machine text generator
Writers could encounter two problems specific to their profession: One is finding the right line or the right word, andContinue Reading
A case for the quiet voice – The writing of Nick Cave
In a world filled with loud, angry voices, there’s something to be said for the quiet, thoughtful voice. Nick Cave,Continue Reading
A Source for the Perfect Rhyme? Sorry, there’s no easy solution
Rhyming is devilishly difficult. It’s a serious head-scratcher, as people who write poems, lyrics and rap well know. If youContinue Reading
Authors to watch Discussion of lyrics Discussion of poetry Discussion of writing style Humor Humour kunstlerromane Poetry Review of modern fiction Review of new book Review of new novel Review of poetry collection
A novel about a poet that’s filled with delightful poetry – Diary of a Somebody, by Brian Bilston
Comment from Brian Bilston: Brian Bilston “What a lovely review. Thank you so much. I’m delighted you enjoyed it – andContinue Reading
Poetry that mixes mother tongues – and my poem about my Grandma
It is very hard to make two different languages rhyme. This struck me again when I was researching the phoneticContinue Reading
Why I hate and love poetry
The fatal problem with poetry: poems Poetry is everywhere. Just when you think poetry is dead, there is rap. IContinue Reading
Comic books Current events Discussion of author’s portfolio Discussion of lyrics Review of classical fiction
Happy birthday William Shakespeare – 450 years on
It’s the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, who is traditionally believed to have been born today, 23Continue Reading
SEVEN CIRCUMSTANCES 