The Problem with Poetry

 Poetry has a problem. The problem is how it is taught in schools. Poetry has been part of the English Literature curriculum at GCSE (and if you are as old as me, O levels) for a very long time.

Now I'd been the first to say that children should be exposed to poetry; of course they should. Whether that's the classics, or contemporary poetry or the fun of something like Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes. Song lyrics are poetry. Rap is poetry. It is everywhere.

However poetry is like a painting, a sculpture or even a finely crafted joke. It stands and falls on how it makes you feel, how you react to it. Does it make your brain think, or does it make your heart feel an emotion? Do the words stir something in your soul? Poetry that you like will always do this.

But the way it is taught sucks all of this away. Poems are stripped down to phrases, every word studied, poked, prodded and pored over. Why did the poet choose one word over another? What is the metaphor here? Yes on an academic level that's interesting, but it sterilises the words. Just as explaining a joke removes the humour, dissecting a poem results in a lifeless corpse.

I understand that this is on the curriculum and needs to be taught, but is this focus on detail doing poetry a service? Who can honestly say they enjoyed poetry in English Literature? I know I didn't and neither did my children. Perhaps taking a step back, throwing a wide range of good poetry (and less focus on the worthy but hardly uplifting War Poets) at the class, and just getting them to write about how it made them feel, rather then telling them how they should feel?

The worst thing about this, the very worst thing, is that this leaves young people thinking they dislike - no, hate - poetry. I thought that until I started to discover poetry myself, and instead of studying it under a microscope I taught myself anew to just let the words do their work on my brain, heart and soul and not worry exactly how the poet has done it. Yes like anything not all poetry is for all people, but there is something out there to be found. Something that will stir emotions or thoughts in you.

If I have any advice for people who have been put off poetry by learning it at school, it is to get out there and discover poetry for yourself, and just let it live inside you for the time it takes to read.

Guest Blog Post - D. Ellis Overttun

Hosting a guest post on my humble blog isn't something I have ever done before, but when the author D. Ellis Overttun asked if I would mind posting something about his Terra Nova novels I jumped at the chance. As he will explain below, I read his first novel, Universe: Awakening and although it was a little rough around the edges the story and themes were gripping and extremely thought provoking, with several layers of interpretation.

We got to talking and I suggested ways in which the novel could be improved and tightened up. He decided to act on my advice and the revised edition together with its sequel are now not only brilliant and well-written stories, but examples of how a science fiction setting can be used to highlight cultural, philosophical and political issues.

What follows should whet your appetite for the depth and ambition of the series. There is the prologue for the first book and some commentary by the author and also a discussion of the front cover picture. What follows is the synopsis for the first book and then a series of links to other excepts, reviews and and discussions.

Enough from me. Over to David

Universe: Awakening Prologue Background, Commentary and Excerpt

I met Phil shortly after I published the original version of Universe. He was one of the first reviewers to follow me back when I used to be on Twitter. More importantly, he was the first person (other than my wife, Natasha) to both encourage and challenge my writing. He pointed out that I tended toward tell rather than show. I knew it was there. It was one of the things I really liked about my writing. However, he was trying to tell me something more. That something didn’t dawn on me until I was well into writing the second book in the series. Once that happened, I looked back on my first work and said, “Ugh.” What followed was a major rewrite, not of plot and characters but narrative. I substituted as much “show” for “tell” as possible. In the process, I also discovered there was nuance to the relationships between and among the characters that had not been fully explored. The result was the Redux Edition.


“Prologue” is an addition to the storyline. In doing these WWIT guest posts, I thought it apropos that I ask Phil to post this one, the beginning of the book, the beginning of the series. My thanks to the person that made me think WWIT.


The great thing about a prologue is that there is no set-up to the narrative required. The only thing I have to do before we start is present the pic Natasha created.

Theia strikes Terra

Creation from destruction

Our Selene is born

Birth of Selene | Natasha Evelyn Overttun

* * * * *

Darkness, silence and cold. That is what defined this world. It had been that way since the beginning. But now for the first time, a small gray dot appeared in the distance. After a time, it expanded. Perhaps, it was a gateway to another place. No matter. The grayness transformed into a milky-white cloud. It coalesced into a room, an examination room with a conference table. Seated along one side were three grim-faced individuals clad in pale-yellow hooded robes. A young man stood before them. Beside him was a large three-dimensional hologram of a moonslowly orbiting a planet.


“As has long been observed, our moon is slowly moving away from us. Since we know that orbital angular momentum must be conserved, if I wind back the clock…”

The moon reversed its course. Its orbit began to increase in speed as it moved closer and closer to the planet.


“Yes, yes. We are all familiar with this concept,” one of the seated individuals said impatiently.


“The interesting thing is,” the young man continued seemingly unfazed, “the equations that govern this momentum.”


“Equations that we are also well-acquainted with,” another one of the seated individuals said.


“Display equations,” the young man called out, ignoring the comment.


A set of equations appeared highlighted in front of the orbital hologram.


“There comes a point where the angular momentum of the system becomes undefined.”

“Yes, yes. As the radius between the two bodies approaches zero. What is your point?” the third seated individual asked in a very irritated voice.


“It is undefined because it is outside the frame of reference,” the young man continued.


He waved his hand and the equations disappeared. At the same time, the moon struck the planet with a glancing blow and then a much larger object began to move away.


“Stop,” the young man called out.


There was no reference indicating direction. However, it looked like an impending impact of a large celestial body.


“We know from all the research done to date that our moon was created by a planetoid impact.”


“Again, what is your point?”


“This is the frame of reference that is outside the frame of reference of the equations. The equations cannot tell us what it is but it tells us that it exists. Now, if I take that concept and apply it to the universe…”


He waved his hand in front of the hologram. It disappeared and another hologram appeared of stars and galaxies moving away from each other.


“Stop. Reverse.”


The celestial bodies began to move closer to one another.

“We encounter this same problem in our study of the beginning of the universe. There comes a point where the math becomes undefined.”


“So, what are you saying?”


“There is a frame of reference that exists which is outside of our universe.”

* * * * *

The young man exited the examination room. A young woman and another young man were waiting for him. Her blue eyes focused intensely on the doorway. The other young man looked as though he was hoping for the best but expecting the worst.


“So, brother. How did it go?”


“I got a three,” he answered dejectedly.


“Well,” the other young man replied, “at least they let you finish your presentation.”


“And a three,” the young woman said, “that’s pretty good for such a radical concept. I’m proud of you!”


“Me too,” the other young man said, although with much less conviction.


“Those fools!” the young man exclaimed. “One day…one day, they will see I am right.”

“Dinner, my treat,” the young woman said patting him on the shoulder.


“You two have fun. I have other plans.”


“Another night of womanizing, drinking and brawling?” the young man asked.


“Well you know me,” the other young man said with a grin.


Then, he suddenly turned serious.


“Look over there,” he said in a low voice.


Their attention turned to the approach of six men.


“Well, what do we have here?” one of the six called out. “Hello, Ali.”


“Ali” was an extremely derogatory term for “Alidyr”, a race of people who were part of the servile class. The young woman’s face turned angry.


“For once, I would like to beat the shit out of those bastards,” she said under her breath.


She had suffered taunts like this ever since her elementary education.

“Maybe you can,” the young man said in a low voice.

“Really?” the other young man responded with a smile.


They had always been outnumbered. Not only had the odds always been against them but there were strict social protocols against physical confrontations.


“We have finished our final exams brother. Our graduations are irrevocable and…”


“Our ‘friends’ over there from the Faculty of Arts would never admit to losing to someone like me,” the young woman added.


“Shall we?” the young man asked.


“We shall!” the other young man said with a smile. “You know brother. If I realized that getting a three would do this to you, I would have been more willing to help you with your research!”

* * * * *

The first half of “Prologue” was inspired by a 2007 episode of the History Channel series, The Universe entitled “The Moon”. There was a part that described the research on tides done by George Darwin, son of his more famous father, Charles. The junior Darwin used his observations to wind back the clock but, at some point, he had to stop because the denominator in his equations was approaching zero and it became undefined. What does that mean? To me, as a layman, it means there was a scenario that existed outside of the one currently being described, one that cannot be derived from the existing mathematical statement(s).


I imagined this undefined scenario looked like the giant impact hypothesis or Theia impact which postulates that the creation of our moon was the result of a collision between Earth and a celestial object called “Theia” named after the Titan who gave birth to the moon goddess Selena. You can now see the connection to Natasha’s pic.


More than that, this part gives you a taste of the setting for the story to follow. The method of presentation is light-years beyond anything you would see at the Worldwide Developers Conference. Voice-activated holograms have replaced remote control devices, large screens and PowerPoint. This is Earth far off in the future. Right?


While this may be a futuristic wonderworld, some things never change. People are judged, not by the content of their character, but by what makes them different. We have all suffered “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” to quote Shakespeare. When it happened to me as a child, I wanted to crack heads. Most times, I would refrain because my mother always told me, “The pen is mightier than the sword.” But, children are relentless and everything has limits. On those occasions, I reached that Popeye moment: “That’s all I can takes and I can’t takes no more.” Then, I would wade in regardless of numbers with an attitude reminiscent of Saw Gerrera, “One fighter with a sharp stick and nothing left to lose can take the day.” (Yes, I have a temper.) My exploit would eventually reach my mother. I remember once replying to her admonition (I am paraphrasing), “Yeah, only if the guy with the pen stabs the guy with the sword.”


This attitude is reflected in the closing lines of the prologue where those who hide behind propriety are about to be taken to task by a small but intrepid group seeking payback.

In closing, I have to give credit to @Trevornoah (I’m a huge fan) for some of the dialogue in the second part of “Prologue”:


“So, brother. How did it go?”


“I got a three,” he answered dejectedly.


“Well,” the other young man replied, “at least they let you finish your presentation.”


“And a three,” the young woman said, “that’s pretty good for such a radical concept. I’m proud of you!”

It was inspired by his discussion of Bafana Bafana.

The cover ties in two of the science themes in the book. It is meant to give the reader a sense that awakening has something to do with genetics since the double helix is easily identifiable as DNA. The woman seeming to emerge from the strand in a burst of light is a visual rendering of awakening. The sphere in the background is not a planet. It is a universe surrounded by what the reader will discover is the volume. The green patches represent the encroachment of an alien energy known as the “ether” foretelling the end of existence.

TERRA NOVA 1 – UNIVERSE (REDUX EDITION)AWAKENINGSYNOPSIS

The year — 526,780. A probe is deployed from ISV Intrepid at the outer edge of the universe. It is the last of a complement of twelve that is part of the Deep Exploration of Uncharted Space or DEUS. Its mission: collect data on the redshift of light and spatial distortions. Time horizon: 1,000 years.

Before ISV Intrepid can return to base, something goes wrong. There is an accident. The ship is later salvaged but its pilot is missing, its copilot in a coma.

The probes collect their data with uneventful regularity.

Fast-forward to 526,880. A sole-surviving probe still sits in the darkness at the outer edge of the universe. Now, unseen to the naked eye, the space around the probe begins to stretch and distend. Then, the probe disappears, engulfed by an energy of unknown origin and unknown composition. However, it manages to transmit one final message.

CD3C has monitored the disappearance of each probe over the last three years. While the interpretation of the data remains a mystery, speculation is that something has invaded the universe and is moving a superluminal velocity. Its effects could be manifested in as little as the next thousand years. To the Celesti, this is one lifetime.

What can be done?

The one person who might be able to solve this problem is the copilot of ISV Intrepid. He has been lying in stasis suffering from mental trauma. He has been this way for the past century, the longest recorded case in medical history. His unchanging condition has been a convenient solution to stall any inquiry into the accident that put him there.

This threat changes everything. Now, he is needed.

Is it possible to unlock his mind?

The task falls to Auberon, a career nobody inhabiting the lower level of the hierarchy of the Ministry of Science. Can something be awakened in him to allow someone ordinary do something extraordinary?

Universe: Awakening answers this question. In the process, it explores the world of the Celesti, a highly evolved humanoid species with advanced technology, physiology and a unique way of procreation. It blends science and political intrigue to reveal the interplay of storyline and character development that forms the staging ground for the Terra Nova Series.

Book Review: God's Rough Drafts by Rob Scott

Set around 100 years from now, this book considers a future where body part transplantation has become widespread, routine and big business. Big business for the pharmaceutical firms, those that can afford to pay for it and also for anyone who can make money by donating their good eyes or hands.

And so society has divided into those who change body parts at a whim, and those who provide them. The gap between the 'haves' and the 'have nots' becomes even wider and even more literal. But a few, a very very tiny few, discover that if they have just the right combination of parts then something happens, some sort of synchronicity, and they gain some sort of new ability.

Fallon is one such special person who finds her world turned upside down when she is framed for a crime and sent to a juvenile prison. Escaping with new found friends Danny and Emma, they soon find that being pursued by the law is the least of their problems.

This novel covers a lot of ground. At its heart is a thrilling chase but around this Scott has woven threads of social commentary, friendship, self-discovery and the dangers of treating people as commodities. These are characters you will care about as they struggle to overcome every obstacle and make some disturbing discoveries along the way. The vision of the future that is painted is all too real and possible but not one that seems very palatable, except to the people at the very top.

One last notable feature is that each chapter starts with a character narrating and filling in some of the gaps. This exposition is wonderfully self-aware, tongue in cheek and fourth wall breaking. I found it was perfectly juxtaposed to the main narrative.

This is a really good book. Dark, charming, forboding, sharp, witty and suspenseful in equal measure. Is it a must read? It most certainly is

World Book Day

Today is World Book Day, a day that is designed to encourage children to read and be enthusiastic books. Obviously this is very much something to be applauded, as increased literacy and appreciation of books can only be a positive.

However.

As with most things these days, commercialism has taken over. Now the focus is on buying a costume (handily provided by all the supermarkets) for the day and dressing up, with the actual books only mentioned in passing. I would guess that the majority of children who have dressed up have no idea who they are supposed to be or what books they are from.

Not only that but money has been spent on a costume that will probably only be worn once. When this started, we made the costumes. I remember making an Ace of Diamonds (from Alice's Adventures In Wonderland) from a pillowcase, cardboard for stiffening and a red marker pen. Now they are expected to be bought. Wouldn't it be much better to spend that money on a book instead?

These days it isn't so much World Book Day as World Dress Up Day. So although the idea and intention is a good one, it has become subverted and is rapidly losing its meaning, much like Halloween over the years.

So when our youngest participates we will send her to school with her favourite book, not an outfit. Because today is about books.

Phil's Law

What I term rather immodestly as Phil's Law goes something like this:

When you see a single book, in a bookshop or a library, that is from a series it is usually the second one from that series. It is almost never the first one

On first glance this seems pretty obvious. If there is more than one book in a series then the likelihood of seeing any one book is in ratio the number of books in the series. So a trilogy has a 33% per cent chance of each book being seen.

But my experience is that there's about a 60% chance of seeing the second book, 25% the third and 15% the first. Which just seems strange. And the chance of finding more than one book (especially from trilogies) seems out of proportion too, with a single book being much more likely. If a bookshop stocks books from a series would it not make sense to at least have the first one for people who want to start there?

There are rare exceptions here. Series that I found the first book of first include The Innasmorn Saga by Adrian Cole, Low Town by Daniel Polansky and The Pilgrims by Will Elliott (all fine series by the way).

Sometimes the book is a higher one in the series; I read The Lord of the Rings 'backwards' when I first read it; Return of the King then The Two Towers then The Fellowship of the Ring. I sometimes wonder if this has had a subtle effect on the way I perceive that series.

Amazon's Review Policy

With its position of huge market dominance in the book industry, for both traditional publishers but even more so for the thriving independent and self publishing authors out there, Amazon can be the making or breaking of a book.

Central to this is the Amazon review system. Read a book and liked it? Rate it highly on Amazon and sales will increase. Rate it poorly and there will be a negative impact. Reviews are everything when buying books online, and until recently Amazon had a decent platform for doing this.

I review books all the time - lots of books, both ones I'm currently reading and ones I've read over the years. All freely and in my spare time because I enjoy books, promoting reading and supporting authors. And I post all of these reviews to as many places as I can - Goodreads is the primary resource but I copy the text out to Amazon UK, Amazon US, Waterstones, Kobo and Barnes and Noble sites (provided they carry the books). Spreading the word is the best way to boost book sales. My review ranking is pretty good and I have a lot of 'helpful' upvotes on my reviews.

But now things have changed. I live in the UK and so all of my transactions are naturally through the UK Amazon site, both for convenience and also because if I try to buy through the US site it encourages me to use the UK one. But now Amazon have decided that in order to post reviews to the US site, I need to have spent $50 on the US site in the last 12 months. But I can't because I'm in the UK.

So despite the fact that I can post my reviews quite happily in the UK, and I definitely spend more than $50 a year with Amazon as a company (as a Prime subscriber and other purchases), I can't post reviews to the US site any more. So that means that my opinion as a normal reader of a book isn't being seen by potential purchasers, which hurts both Amazon and of course the authors and publishers themselves.

So why have Amazon done this? I suspect there was some aspect of trying to curb fake reviews - either positive ones for poor products or damaging ones for those of a rival - and this approach no doubt won approval pretty quickly because there was also the added bonus of getting people to spend a little more.

However, it seems to me that this has done nothing to address that and indeed has probably made it worse. Sure you'll reduce the number of frivolous or spam reviews, but as the reviews are moderated anyway that's never been a big problem. But the biggest culprits of fake reviews is business, not individuals, and for most business $50 in order to post a few fake reviews to boost their sales (or remove sales from their competitors) would be money well spent. So they will still keep posting them.

Meanwhile the voices that really count, the average consumer, have now been reduced. Those who don't routinely buy from Amazon are now discarded, their opinion clearly worthless to Amazon when in fact their opinion is the one that counts the most. And for people like me who live in a different country and are just trying to help by posting honest reviews it hurts most of all because there's nothing we can do about it. Is my opinion to be discarded simply because I don't live in the US? That's protectionism to a whole new and unacceptable level.

So what Amazon has done is made their reviews less trustworthy at a stroke whilst also damaging their core business of books and publishing at the same time. Congratulations Amazon.

Why not count purchases made from Amazon as a whole? Why not look at people's review record to see if they are fake or not? Why not? Because Amazon don't care.

New Kobo Woes

After being reduced to one shared eReader in the household (a Kobo as it happens) after the getting-on-a-bit 5 button Kindle finally gave up, I invested in a Kindle Touch and Kobo Touch so we are back to full strength with 3 in the house.

The Kindle Touch was fine, no problem at all. The Kobo, because it was starting from factory settings, insisted on putting the latest firmware update on.

Apart from changing the front screen and some other bits of the interface (which I know a lot of people don't like but honestly as long as I can read books on it I don't care about it trying to sell me content every time I go to the home screen) one change caused me a bit of frustration. It may hit you so here is the problem, what has caused it, and how to get around it.

The problem manifests itself when trying to read a book. All the books show in the library, with front covers, sizes, everything looks normal. But when you open the book it is just blank - and the Kobo marks it as 100% read, as if the book is empty even though it clearly isn't.

The cause of this is that the default font for books has changed from Georgia to 'Publisher's Chosen Font'. This means that if your eBook doesn't specify a font (and my experience is that very very few do) the Kobo essentially displays it with no font, therefore no words appear. The whole book fits on one page so therefore it's 100% read.

Reportedly Kobo are working on a fix for this. But in the meantime the books can be recovered by setting the font for each book back to Georgia. With the blank page up, go to the settings menu (tap at the bottom of the screen on my version), select the character/font settings (the two As) and change the font to Georgia (or indeed any other one in the list of your choosing). The content will now appear and book will be as if the update had never happened.