My mate Mat

21st June 2017, a sweltering day in London, was a significant date for me in two respects. The number one reason was that it was the launch of my first full collection, The Knives of Villalejo, at the LRB bookshop. But the second reason is that at the same event I met my mate Mat Riches for the first time.

On that back of that reading (and a fair few pints after the event itself!), we exchanged a couple of poems by email, gave each other feedback, found the feedback useful, realised we also had a fair bit in common apart from poetry, and began a WhatsApp chat that must now have thousands of messages in its archive. It soon stretched well beyond poetry to the key issues of dodgy craft beer, dodgy football teams, dodgy knees and dodgy tastes in shirts.

In fact, I’d argue that every poet needs a mate like Mat, and I feel hugely fortunate to have found him. He’s seen all the poems in Whatever You Do, Just Don’t at multiple stages in their development, and has given me feedback on every single one, from first draft to reassembly after Nell’s ritual dismembering of words, lines and stanza of numerous poems that we had thought finished. Just as I have for him, of course. His development as a poet has been massive over these six years, and his forthcoming pamphlet, Collecting the Data, will be a terrific calling card.

Mat and I are very different poets, but I’d suggest the key to our successful mutual support is that we never attempt to get the other to write in our aesthetic or voice. Instead, we strive to understand, respect and sometimes push each other gently towards a stretching of our self-imposed limits.

Perhaps the only bad thing is that we now can’t ethically bring ourselves to review our respective books. However, that won’t stop me telling you on multiple occasions over the coming months just why his pamphlet is ace. That’s what friends are for, you might think. And yes, you’d be right. Though it really is ace

Oh, and we ended up organising Rogue Strands readings as a tag team (he’s Big Daddy and I’m Giant Haystacks), and will soon launch our new books together (my second full collection, Whatever You Do, Just Don’t, and his first pamphlet, Collecting the Data). There’s a beautiful symmetry to this process, as our meeting at my first launch has contributed in no small way to the existence of our new books, which we’ll now celebrate together.

We’d be absolutely delighted if you could join us to share the occasion at the Devereux Pub in London on 7^th November alongside three top-notch guest poets (Hilary Menos, Maria Taylor and Eleanor Livngstone), plus the shining presence of the two terrific publishers themselves, Helena Nelson and Sheila Wakefield. See you there…???!!!

What's in a title? How and why we decided on Whatever You Do, Just Don't...

A few years back, Nell from HappenStance sent me feedback on a poem. She told me “I like it, Matthew, but the title’s dead.” That phrase has stuck with me ever since. What did she mean? Well, the implicit conclusion is that the title wasn’t contributing anything extra, not drawing the reader in, not adding an extra layer, not coming alive. It was simply there as a placeholder, as if for internal use only.

And I was very much reminded of this exchange when we went through the process of deciding on a title for my second full collection. My initial suggestions were perfectly neat, summarising key themes or bringing them together, but Nell rejected them all, one by one, explaining once again that they weren’t bringing anything to the party.

She then came back to me with a list of potential alternatives. One of them leapt out at me. The one that she might not have expected me to embrace, the one that threw caution to the wind but worked perfectly: Whatever you Do, Just Don’t.

I was recalling her advice from years ago when we made the decision. This title is memorable, and that’s a good start, though it’s not enough on its own. From my perspective, the most important quality is that it intrigues and ushers you in, making you wonder exactly what you’re being told not to do. And in terms of getting to grips with the book, the implicit question is significant. Otherwise, this title could simply be seen as a gimmick.

So…what does Whatever You Do, Just Don’t actually refer to? Well, if you want to find out the answer, the best way is to get hold of a copy via this link to the HappenStance webshop…!!!

i.m. Tobias Hill (1970-2023)

Back in the 1990s, when I was starting out on the poetry scene, Tobias Hill had just emerged as a stellar figure. I recall being more than slightly jealous and envious of  his good looks, flowing locks of hair, major prizes and subsequent contract with OUP.

And then there were the terrific poems. His writing was extremely visual, packed with startling images and turns of phrase, while his poems about life in Japan really hit home, especially as I myself was newly arrived in Spain at the time.

Over the years, he moved on. From OUP to Salt and Faber on the demise of the former’s poetry list. And from poetry to prose, like so many others, forging a successful career for himself as a novelist.

However, I was especially reminded of his poetry a couple of years before the pandemic hit, when I acquired several volumes from Peggy Chapman-Andrews’ private library. Chapman-Andrews had been the long-serving secretary of the Bridport Prize, which Tobias Hill won in his early years. In fact, that triumph pretty much set him on his way.

Anyway, back to those volumes. Among them was a copy of his first short collection of poetry from a long-vanished small publisher. And tucked inside was hand-written correspondence from Tobias Hill to Peggy Chapman-Andrews, reacting to news of his win. The young poet’s excitement shone from every word!

Today’s belated announcement of his death in August follows on from several years of little news about Hill since a stroke in 2014. I’ve been keeping an eye out for news about him over the last few years, putting him name into Twitter searches every now and then in the vain hope of finding he might be writing again. Nevertheless, all I encountered were fewer and fewer references to his work.

Yet again, I’m reminded of the ephemeral nature of poetic fame. Tobias Hill was a significant poet less than twenty years ago, a point of reference for many readers of the genre. In 2023, his work seems to have faded from view. Here’s hoping the grim news of his death might at least remind people of his excellent poetry…

What are you writing about...?!

A few weeks ago on Twitter, I posted a short tweet that seemed to strike a chord if the shares and likes were anything to go by. In the afore-mentioned tweet, I suggested that I sometimes think I’m writing about one thing, only to discover, on rereading the poem months later, that my subconscious was writing about something completely different.

The tweet in question was implicitly referring to my poems about football in Whatever You Do, Just Don’t, my forthcoming second full collection from HappenStance Press. These poems are grouped together in the book as a section titled ‘Starting Eleven’, subtitled ‘Aldershot F.C. Footballers of the 1980s’. When first showing them to my editor, Helena Nelson, I was sceptical as to whether she’d like them, as she’s a self-declared football atheist. So I was stunned when she really enjoyed them!

On reflection, I feel this is because the poems aren’t really about football at all. Football is just a setting and a point of departure for the real issues that they tackle. In ‘Starting Eleven’, I’m exploring the classical themes of triumph and failure via the small-town heroes of my childhood, while also reflecting on 1980s masculinity, on how it was to be a boy or a man in that period in suburban England.

In summary, I hope you’re not put off Whatever You Do, Just Don’t just because you don’t relish watching people chase after a round ball! Apart from only comprising one single section of the book, they’re actually football poems for football atheists, poems that might seem about one thing but end up being about something altogether different…

London launch for Whatever You Do, Just Don't

London launch of ‘Whatever You Do, Just Don’t’, jointly with Mat Riches, who’ll also be launching his pamphlet, ‘Collecting the Data’, Tuesday 7^th November at The Devereux pub (7p.m. to 10p.m.). Free entry!

This is a HappenStance/Red Squirrel event with a rare chance to meet both publishers in person (Sheila Wakefield and Helena Nelson), plus readings from three exceptional guest poets: Maria Taylor, Hilary Menos and Eleanor Livingstone.

Whatever You Do, Just Don't

My second full collection, ‘Whatever You Do, Just Don’t’, is now available for pre-order from HappenStance Press. Please do support Nell’s terrific work by purchasing a copy via this link.