I've had a busy time of it over the last few months and poetry has been put very much on the back-burner. But thankfully my busy time has come to an end and much needed poetry-time is on the cards. I've been reading a bit of Ted Hughes over the last week and pleasantly rediscovering the genius of his early collections.

Now that I've finished this season's work at Inveraray Castle, I may do a series of Inveraray themed poems - I've just finished drafting a poem about Inveraray Bridge.

Also just checked my proofs for a poem coming out in an anthology of Scottish poems - Scotia Extremis - edited by Brian Johnstone and Andy Jackson, it will be published next month by Luath Press. It really is a great collection of poems in the anthology, I'm delighted to be a part of it.

I've put together my reading set for the celebration of W.S Graham event in Greenock next weekend which I'm so looking forward to. I plan on reading a mix of some of my poems about the local landscape and the Clyde, and Graham's poems and a couple of selections from his ever-brilliant letters.