Rewrite What You Know
Shh! A tale of library based vengeance…
The Richly Evocative Meaningless Reading Awards 2025
In the spirit of pointless, subjective artistic judgements, here’s the roundup you’ve all been waiting for. Including the MOST BRILLIANTLY DESCRIBED MESS OF A BOOK FILLED, ASHTRAY CHOKED BEDROOM AWARD.
Talking Walking: Podcast interview
Back in March, I was interviewed by Andrew Stuck for the Talking Walking Podcast. Here it is, along with a cheering birdsong chorus.
An audience with angst: trying on techniques
Experimenting with poetic forms – here I have a go at a Villanelle – possibly the least ‘me’ form of all.
A Love Poem to Libraries
A love letter to libraries, in the form of a poem. ‘Library Stamps’ by Matt Gilbert
Unamerican
There’s a new poem below. I don’t tend to like explaining poems, but I do appreciate a bit of context. Like many others I suspect, not least in the USA itself, I feel profoundly shaken by recent events there. When I was six, I discovered Charlie Brown cartoons, encouraged by an American exchange student assistant…
The meaning of ‘Meh’
The meaning of ‘meh’ or the beautiful mystery of subjectivity.
Ghosts exorcised by art, books & memory, plus unexpected delis. Four recent poems.
Four new poems – October 2024.
Can you ever know if a poem’s finished?
Writing poetry can be a strange and frustrating exercise. Sometimes lines, or even entire poems arrive like a kind of gift from the subconscious and you must record them on whatever comes to hand. Occasionally you might get one that feels complete from the off. Though in my experience this is rare. Even dreamlike poems,…
Will You Look At That, In the Museum of Vojvodina, A hollow in the hills and Off season: Four new poems
Four recently written poems, first shared via Blackbough Poetry’s Top Tweet Tuesday. A stunning fungi covered stump, golden Roman helmets, an attack on an iconic tree and a small French town in autumn.
The poem’s the puzzle, or ‘I couldn’t not keep looking’
A very thoughtful, considered review of my poetry collection ‘Street Sailing’ in Briefly Write. Click the link to read it on their site. ‘In ‘Street Sailing’, Matt Gilbert looks anew upon familiar streetscapes. His reader can’t not keep looking’ ‘Street Sailing’ is a puzzle with many readings and many answers. Matt Gilbert is a skilful setter,…
Street Sailing – my debut poetry book is now out.
My debut poetry book ‘Street Sailing’ is now out in the wild. Cover art by Ben Pearce. Published by Black Bough Poetry.
The week before midwinter & Space Station Dahlia
A short poetry post, to end my blogging year with. Two short imagist poems recently shared via @toptweettuesday on Twitter. Alongside a wintry Crystal Palace Park, replete with Penge Nessy. I had planned a reading year in review, but am frantically trying to finish Middlemarch, so that’ll become post one of 2023. In the meantime,…
Goldfinched, Hiram Maxim’s Grave & In the shelter of the shallows – three recent poems
Three poems recently shared on Top Tweet Tuesday. A goldfinch appears to change everything, the rattles from a mischief of magpies, perhaps, turn ominous and upstream in a city crowd.
Make it till you make it
A quick word about Imposter Syndrome.
The trouble with those posters & Blue Fruit
Two rants in poetic form, inspired by Liz Truss, her party and their supporters…
Pebbles on the shore, Awake and Love on the breeze?
Another trio of poems recently shared via Black Bough poetry’s TopTweetTuesday.
This time, playing with and exploring the search for that elusive ‘perfect’ pebble, using ‘banshee’ as a verb and the seemingly absurd notion of fighting butterflies (for an extra bit of fun, try singing the first line of ‘Love on the breeze’ to the tune of The Cure’s ‘Inbetween Days’.
Urban rewilding & Everyday object
“Those woods on the ridge,
through the window,
if watched from a certain angle,
will roll over the roads,
untamed the suburbs,
reclaim the shape
of old maps…”
Nukhak, Unearthed, The Nature Present
Three recent poems: Nuthak, Unearthed and The Nature Present.
Landmarking, Only crow and Galactic wood
Three short poems, recently shared on twitter through @toptweettuesday – Black Bough Poetry’s imagist focused poetry platform. Two birds, two sky-holes and a tiny galaxy of flies and light.
Richly Evocative 