My debut poem at Coffee House Writers is up today … please click on the link below and visit my poem at Coffee House Writers … and let me know what you think of my new venture ..
Silence and Shyness – Coffee House Writers
Ivor Steven (c) July 2021
Author: ivor20
G'day, and welcome to my blog site. My name is Ivor Steven, I live in Geelong, Australia. I'm an ex-industrial chemist, and a retired plumber, and a former Carer of my wife(Carole), for 30 years, who suffered from severe MS. I Write poetry about those personal thoughts, throughout and beyond my life as a Carer.
I've been blogging for over 2 years, and writing poems for 19 years. Of course a lot of my poems are about my favourite subject Carole, but since I've been blogging my writings have become quite varied, humourous, mystical, observational, and even a few monster/horror poems.
Promote Yourself Mondays, July 12, 2021
Dear readers and followers, here’s a great opportunity for your writings to be read by other writers, and also to find and meet other writers. You are very welcome to participate, come along and visit our writer friendly site…..by clicking on the link at the bottom of this article >>
View Original Post…
Welcome toPromote Yourself Monday. All Go Dog Go Cafe community members are invited to postonelink to one specific piece of their writing (600 words or less please!) they have published on their blog, Facebook page, or Instagram feed into the comments section below.
If you post a link, be sure to read some of the other great writing people have linked to.
The Anthropocene Hymnal: Publication Date announced!
Save the date! The Anthropocene Hymnal is expected to release on July 24th, 2021. The Anthropocene Hymnal is an upcoming anthology about the different impacts of climate crisis and the global pandemic as written through the perspective of many different poets and writers (including myself). Ingrid Wilson is the author and editor behind this anthology. The cover art is by Kerfe Roig.
Purchasing Options
The paperback will be available through Amazon initially (with the possibility of expanded distribution at a later date). The Kindle e-book will be available from Amazon, but I will also be selling my own version of the e-book right here on this site. Payment for downloads purchased in this way will be via donation to WWF.
I am not allowed to market the anthology as a charity book as I have no official affiliation with WWF, but I will be donating all of the royalties I receive to them. I have set up a fundraising page, so you can track donations and see just how The Anthropocene Hymnal is raising money to help the planet whilst raising awareness of the existential issues we face.
Please stay tuned for updates on fundraising, sales outlets and contributors, which I will publish in the run-up to the launch date of 24 July.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to, or shown an interest in, this project. I very much look forward to bringing it to fruition!
Ingrid
Ivor Steven .. July 2021
Throwback Friday, The Rear of Night, by Ivor Steven
Again, I couldn’t get the ‘Go Dog Go Cafe’ site to reblog my post, so, I have copied and pasted my article here …
This morning in Geelong it’s a cold and thick foggy start to the day, and appropriately I have found this piece from exactly 2 years ago
The Rear of Night
My foggy morning, is an inky dye
The heavy mist, has kidnapped my sky
Sabotaging my light, the sun disappeared in front of my eyes
And the rear of night, has been left with no respite
There is no start, nor end to my blurry sight
Breathing in moist air, I gasp, where is the moon?
Has my gloomy forecast, unraveled too soon?
Is this sunless day, the beginning of doom?
Ivor Steven (c) July 2019
Promote Yourself Mondays, July 5, 2021
Dear readers and followers, here’s a great opportunity for your writings to be read by other writers, and also to find and meet other writers. You are very welcome to participate, come along and visit our writer friendly site…..by clicking on the link at the bottom of this article >>
View Original Post…
Welcome toPromote Yourself Monday. All Go Dog Go Cafe community members are invited to postonelink to one specific piece of their writing (600 words or less please!) they have published on their blog, Facebook page, or Instagram feed into the comments section below.
If you post a link, be sure to read some of the other great writing people have linked to.
Promote Yourself Monday, June 28, 2021
Dear readers and followers, here’s a great opportunity for your writings to be read by other writers, and also to find and meet other writers. You are very welcome to participate, come along and visit our writer friendly site…..by clicking on the link at the bottom of this article >>
View Original Post…
Welcome to Promote Yourself Monday. All Go Dog Go Cafe community members are invited to post one link to one specific piece of their writing (600 words or less please!) they have published on their blog, Facebook page, or Instagram feed into the comments section below.
If you post a link, be sure to read some of the other great writing people have linked to.
My poem, Horses for Courses, is up at ‘Spillwords”
Please visit my poem at ‘Spillwords’, via this link >
https://spillwords.com/horses-for-courses/ , and give me a ❤ ..
HORSES FOR COURSES
written by: Ivor Steven
@ivors20
there is something about the freedom of horses
beyond green pastures and steeple courses
there is something about the purity of life’s sources
from the snowy mountains down the river courses
there is something about the madness of wartime choices
beyond bloodstained lands of the killing forces
there is something about death’s silent voices
riding in wooden coffins down the hearses brief courses
Ivor Steven
Ivor Steven was formerly an Industrial Chemist, then a Plumber, and has been writing poetry for 19 years. His book “Tullawalla” was recently published. He has had numerous poems published in anthologies, and on-line magazines. He is an active member of the Geelong Writers Inc.(Australia), and is a team member/barista with the on-line magazine “Go Dog Go Cafe” (America)
Warrior (a Senryu)
My ‘Senryu’ today was written as a response/comment, to Donna’s poem she posted this morning. Her emotional words touched me deeply ..
>> Not A Love Poem | DJ Ranch
Warrior
a warrior girl
gives her life another twirl
survives in her world
Here is Glen Hansard’s song “Don’t Settle”, that I selected to match the emotions behind my ‘Senryu’, sing along with his superb lyrics below
Ivor Steven (c) June 2021
“Don’t Settle”
When you climbed the hill of vision
As above so it was below
Through the apathy and derision
Each step ascending you took alone
And when they pin you in the corner
Pay no heed to their droning on
‘Cause you’re not going back where you don’t belong
Well you rose up through the ranks now
And you worked hard for your luck
You’ve only got yourself to thank now
You and everybody else in the book
And there are hidden hands to guide you
Other forces now at play
But you’ve got to learn to get out of their way
Oh, don’t settle
Oh, not yet
Oh, don’t settle
For less
May your song ring true and bright now
And be honed by your own hand
As the day gives way to night now
May it echo through the land
And when they turn your words against you
Try to grind you to the ground
Let them know that they might beat you
But they’ll never turn you round
Oh, don’t settle
Oh, not yet
Oh, don’t settle
For less
Well you sought no one’s allegiance
You were cowed by no one’s hand
You outgrew your antecedents
Worked your own corner of the land
And when they set their sights upon you
Come to mine the seam you struck
May you bid them well and wish them luck
Oh, don’t settle
Oh, not yet
Oh, don’t settle
And don’t forget what Liam Clancy said
No envy, no anger, no cruelty, no regrets
No jealousy, no rancour, no confusion; don’t forget
No enemy, no anger, no incredulity; show respect
No envy, no anger, no judgement on no one; lest you forget
Lest you forget what they did to you
Come on, rise off your knees, you’re not beaten yet
No envy, no anger, no judgement on no one; lest you forget
And you’re not going back where you don’t fit
Promote Yourself Monday, June 21, 2021
Dear readers and followers, here’s a great opportunity for your writings to be read by other writers, and also to find and meet other writers. You are very welcome to participate, come along and visit our writer friendly site…..by clicking on the link at the bottom of this article >>
View Original Post…
Welcome to Promote Yourself Monday. All Go Dog Go Cafe community members are invited to post one link to one specific piece of their writing (600 words or less please!) they have published on their blog, Facebook page, or Instagram feed into the comments section below.
If you post a link, be sure to read some of the other great writing people have linked to.
Raining Oceans of Tears
Raining Oceans of Tears
They can send a machine to Mars
But cannot repair a blade of grass
In nature’s backyard
And billions of tears spill into the oceans
Creating a cascading Tsunami of love
Gradually rolling in from a blue horizon
Is this the beginning of the next great flood from above?
The words that are left unsaid
Cannot be misread
Ivor Steven (c) June 2021
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 