"I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead; I lift my lids and all is born again. (I think I made you up inside my head).
The stars go waltzing out in the blue and red, and arbitrary blackness gallops in: I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead."
The crowd bursts into rapturous applause with whoops and whistles, despite it only being the first two stanzas. The floor then passes to opposite side of the ring where a tall black man, with glasses and a large afro steps forward to announce that he only came here today to drink milk and bust some Keats, before dropping an empty bottle of nesquik on the floor. Another smaller gentleman to his right then points out that this is littering. What ensues for the next few minutes is a series of apologies with the former sorry for littering and the latter sorry for interrupting. Somewhere near the back of this series of apologies are two gentlemen stood watching the increasing silly set of apologies unfold. One older with a big bushy beard, the other younger also in a sleeveless T-shirt with his 'guns' folded across his chest. "This street poetry is a serious business isn't it?" comments Boff, "They're not kidding Boff, if you mess up your Maya Angelou out here you're a dead man" replies Simon.
Hail then fellows! calls Boff, today we're waxing lyrical with an experienced wordsmith of the craft, street poet, gastronomical genius and general ruffian, my guest today is IsimonFiction. "Hi guys" says Simon, "I'm not really a ruffian Boff, I just take language seriously, I'm pretty easy going really" continues Simon. "What about that time I got there and their mixed up?" replies Boff, to which Simon just shoots Boff a look folding his arms a little more tightly across his chest, before bursting out laughing. "I can't believe you brought that up again". *Boff blushes* "well yes, indeed, I'm not proud about it. Anyway, lets leave these poets to their bidding and find somewhere a little more comfortable to do our interview." "You mean the pub?" says Simon, "I do" replies Boff.
A few minutes later safely ensconced around a pub table, with a pint in hand the interview can begin, meanwhile outside a scuffle has broken out when one poet had claimed Carol Ann Duffy was a rubbish choice for poet laureate.
Okay, so, lets begin. I think a good ice breaker would be to ask what does a typical day entail for a street poet like yourself?
Well Boff, the discipline of street poetry is a tough one to break into. You have your classically trained poets, breaking out Byron & Shelley all over the place. You then have your more contemporary, John-Cooper-Clark-inspired punk rock poets, and then your modern more-like-rap poets. All of these people pushing and shoving to make a name for themselves on the street. So I tend to start the day with a few verses of e.e.cummings to get the imagination fired, a couple of stanzas of Larkin, and maybe some early New Jersey rap to keep me sharp. Once I've warmed up, I tend to let my mind open, my third eye stare, and my mojo filter do it's thing, while trying to martial my thoughts into something hard, cold, and worthy of the street.
OMG I think I've seen some of your work, was "M Kahn is bent" one of yours? it's on a bridge in old Kentish Town. *Simon laughs*, "That might be street both, but its not poetry, and I'm certainly not the author!!". "Oh Okay" says Boff, before continuing, I also wanted to ask you what are your inspirations? are you a people watcher like me? or do you draw from the absurdity of the human condition?
Absurdity of the human condition"? That's a great line, Boff, are you sure you don't have a bit of poetic blood in you? I might have to nick that.... anyway... the ol' "where does your inspiration come from" question. It's a very difficult one to answer. I have an extremely fertile imagination. I mean, we're talking, freshly turned, just after a rain storm, perfect PH balance farmer's soil kind of fertile. But I do also draw inspiration from those around me. It can be a scene I see play out on the street, something I read, or even just a sentence or a word I hear when I'm out and about. People watching is fascinating, isn't it? But at times, when I'm laying there, staring at the ceiling trying to sleep, something will fire from the depths of the
imagination, and I will just have to write about what I see play out in the dark. That is ALL me. From romance & love, to abstraction & other-worldly lands, to serial killers and death. It all comes from within.
Indeed and what about your process, do you have a methodology for how you go about writing? You do fiction as well as poetry is that right?
Well, I'm not your traditional sort of writer. I don't have a 'writing space', or a set time of the day or night I set aside for writing. I can be hit by inspiration at any time of the day or night, and so I always have to be ready to get something down. Modern technology is a great medium for this. I am never without my phone, and so it's a second or two to open my note-taking app. and then the words can be got out of my head and onto the page... well, screen. I've even taken to carrying a small notepad around with me when out and about - because sometimes, some words feel better written with pen and ink than screen. As for the fiction - yes, I have dabbled. I actually started with fiction, way-back-when. There was more of a balance between fiction & poetry. But over the years, as my street poet stylings became more and more prevalent, the fiction took a back seat. I like 'flash' fiction - short, perfectly formed pieces of fiction that can be read in a few minutes. But I also do observational pieces, and very recently turned my hand to a kind of 'fable' story, for children.
That sounds exciting, I like a bit of the observational myself, the comings and goings of the Common, you know it all goes on round here. hahah it's a weird world. I also wanted to ask you who your literary heroes are and why? are there any good reads we should be checking out?
Two of my favourite writers are Douglas Coupland, and William Gibson. I can heartily recommend not only their novels, but their observational writings and essays too. But my guilty secret, for the love of language and the beauty and romance of the written word, I will always turn to the bard, William Shakespeare.
That EE Cummings has left a mark on you my friend. LOL! ..and what about social media? has it had an impact on what you do? has it changed your world?
You know Boff, I have SUCH a love / hate relationship with social media. And I know you do too. Some days it's great, there are a lot of funny & interesting people out there and social media gives you a channel to them. And I of course met the love of my life on a certain brand of social media *smiles*. But sometimes... the hate, the pettiness, the unending banality... it's all too much.
I am thankful, though, that it gives me a way to get my work read. Yes, I leave pieces on walls and scattered around our urban environment, I am, after all, a street poet. But to be able to reach out, and place some of my imagery into the heads of people sitting hundreds, sometimes thousands, of miles away - well, that's a gift. And the instant publication of words... it's powerful. I can think of an image, conjure and form it in my mind, get it down onto a page, and get it read within minutes. That's pretty amazing.
That's awesome my friend. Okay, aside from writing, I wanted to explore a little more of the man, writing is not your only passion, can you tell us what else you've been getting up to lately?
As not too many people know, I am an olympic-level lazy bastard. Luxuriating on a sofa, with soft cheeses and fine wines, like a 16th century French duke, is my idea of a good time. But I also cook, and love to cook, for myself, or for my (air quotes) significant other. Being the age I am, I no longer have the physical prowess nor the energy levels to take part in sport any more, as I used to do. So rather than fight a losing battle, the tide of age and growing body mass that comes with a sedentary lifestyle, I choose to embrace it by cooking and eating good food. This, along with beautiful language, is one of my great passions.
Well, we all got to eat, why not enjoy the process! and what's the strangest situation you've found yourself in so far this year?
I also understand you're dating a reformed pirate. How's that working out? has she taught you any of her secret handshakes?
You're correct, of course. My (air quotes) significant other has a very murky and dangerous past, but I like to think we've reformed each other in so many ways.
As you know, being sworn into the secret ways of the pirate tradition is not something done lightly. In fact, it took a long time for me to even be allowed to speak to some of her... less salubrious friends. But I'm pleased to say she convinced her old cohorts I am to be trusted. And in return, I've escorted her along the byways and highways of the street poet landscape, where she has made herself most at home. We are soul mates, as though we have lived a past life together.
Ah, Our dear Helly is quite the woman isn't she. I can imagine when her friends and yours get together it must be an interesting concoction? do you have any amusing stories you can share with us?
You know, when our social circle mixes, it's a little like oil & water. It makes pretty patterns, but add the wrong ingredient and it can blow up in your face! Whereas my peer group is more street poet / labourer / dragged up by the bootstraps working class folk, my (air quotes) significant other and her crowd are more arty, middle class, well spoken and well brought up - but with that soupçon of danger that comes from roaming and owning the high seas.
We've had many a night of debauchery & wild times, but more often than not things end up in either a mass love in, or a fist fight. It can be quite an eye opener, watching a 9-stone-wet-through street poet being pounded by a strapping, galleon-in-full-gale heavy-breasted reformed pirate across a pub table. And I mean 'pounding' in both senses of the word!
Now, I would pay to see that! ...and what does the future hold for you young man? what are your plans for world domination? what can we expect to see coming your way soon?
As always with me, Boff, it's about the words. The language. The art of the street poet. I love doing what I do, but the only slight downside is that being 'street', the scene is a bit underground, and so my work doesn't reach the audience I'd like it to. Although my day job pays the bills, I would love to make a living from doing what I love. But, with the flood of new poets and writers that can use the internet as their publishing tool, it's very hard to be noticed as a talented poet.
So for now, I'll keep slamming those stanzas, launching those lines, parading those paragraphs to the people who read my work.
Ha! Well, I would plump for "testiculating" - the act that a man does when he's very hot, and wearing loose underwear, so has to unstick his knackers from the inside of this thigh. Testiculating.
hahaha and with that our interview and our entire series is at an end. It's been a magical journey and what better way to end it in the bosom of a grizzy street poet, flipping lyrical with the vernacular and steady flow of alcoholic beverages.
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