This year on “The Wombwell Rainbow”:

A massive thankyou to all the artworkers and poets and writers who agreed to be interviewed, graciously allowed me to read review pdfs of their books, allowed me to feature their works of art.

60 Interviews https://thewombwellrainbow.com/page/7/?s=%22Wombwell+Rainbow+interviews%22+2020

18 Book Interviews https://thewombwellrainbow.com/?s=%22book+interviews%22+2020

3 Month long Special Ekphrastic Challenges https://thewombwellrainbow.com/page/7/?s=%22special+ekphrastic+challenge%22

7 Natural World Artwork and Writing Challenges https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/11/09/an-ongoing-list-of-my-natural-world-artwork-and-poetry-challenge-links/

4 Mental Health Awareness artwork and writing challenges

https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/12/23/alrightpal-mental-health-and-suicide-prevention-artwork-and-writing-challenge-have-you-made-artworks-about-mental-health-have-you-written-published-unpublished-about-mental-health-in-these-days-o/

https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/10/10/internationalmentalhealthday-worldmentalhealth-day-poetry-and-artwork-challenge-have-you-written-unpublished-published-work-about-mental-health-yours-or-someone-elses-have-you-made-artworks-about/

https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/10/06/worldmentalhealthday-poetry-and-artwork-challenge-have-you-written-unpublished-published-work-about-mental-health-yours-or-someone-elses-have-you-made-artworks-about-it-please-submit-by-dm-or-sen/

https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/12/09/nationalgriefawarenessweek-2-8-dec-have-you-artworks-about-grief-have-you-written-about-grief-please-dm-me-or-send-a-message-to-my-wordpress-blog-all-submissions-will-be-posted-i-apologise-for/

I apologise for all the “me” and “my” in the following:

Ian McMillan for not only inviting me to read out three of my Virus Till poems nationally in his The Verb on BBC Radio 3, but also inviting me to compose an advent sonnet which he introduced and read out on youtube as part of his role as “Poet In Lockdown” for Hear My Voice Barnsley and Barnsley Museums.

Damien Donnelly for inviting me to read for his stunning podcast “Eat The Storms”

Matthew MC Smith for helping to edit my poems and publishing me in volume one of his “Deep Time” books, and the Winter edition 2020 and also, being one of the brilliant guest poets at the local Mexborough Read To Write group.

IceFloe Press for publishing a long poem and two shorter poems of mine https://icefloepress.net/2020/10/07/two-poems-by-paul-brookes-with-a-visual-poem-by-robert-frede-kenter/

Renee for inviting me to be a contributing writer at Literati Magazine.

Glynn Young for consistently retweeting my posts, and his special article on me and my work., and publishing my poems on his “Faith, Fiction And Friends”. I am indebted.

Billy Mills for reviewing “Stubborn Sod” and “Port Of Souls” my collaborations with Dutch artist Marcel Herms.

Jessica Drake-Thomas for reviewing “Stubborn Sod” https://this-week-i-read.com/2020/04/03/this-week-i-read-paul-brookes-stubborn-sod/

Carrie Ann Golden for interviewing me on her wonderful website https://awriteradolescentmuse.wordpress.com/2020/06/16/author-interview-paul-brookes/

Neal Zetter for retweeting my posts

Mark Antony Owen for including me in wave two of his audio and visual project https://thewombwellrainbow.com/2020/05/01/i-cannot-recommend-more-highly-the-wonderful-site-that-mark-antony-owen-a-cracking-poet-in-his-own-right-has-created-in-iamb-i-am-very-fortunate-to-appear-in-wave-two-of-his-project-in-the/

Colin Bancroft for including me in his essential Poet’s Directory.

Z.D.Dicks, Marc Woodward, Gaynor Kane, Sarah Wimbush for being brilliant guest poets at the local Mexborough Read To Write Group.

Ali Jones for consistently supporting my creative work.

Visual Verse for featuring my poems https://visualverse.org/writers/paul-brookes/

All the best wishes to all of you and a happy creative New Year in which you stay safe and prosper.

Starting earlier than stated

“Talking about mental health doesn’t have to be scary; it’s simply our emotional, psychological and social wellbeing. It’s really important to understand and manage it as it affects how we think, feel and act.

It’s a myth that talking about suicide is a bad idea as it will give somebody the idea to do it. In reality, people at crisis point often feel as though they don’t want to burden people with their problems, so they don’t discuss it. Asking somebody a simple question to check they’re alright offers support from friends and family, and an opportunity for early referrals for specialist help.” from https://www.barnsley.gov.uk/services/health-and-wellbeing/healthy-living/alright-pal-mental-health-and-suicide-prevention/

Photo by Paul Brookes (remembering a close relative who was also a keen sailor who took his own life)

Sorry, Mate…#poetry

-Poem and comment by Ingrid (https://experimentsinfiction.com/2020/11/26/sorry-mate-poetry/)

Morning, Just Like Any Other

I have just awakened.
My mind hangs
somewhere between
life and death;
lost and lingers
in a purgatory
of consciousness.

That I dreamed,
I’m certain.
Sweet or bitter,
uncertain.

I have just awakened.
For the moment
I have forgotten
the name
of my insanity,
along with the pills
I take
to mitigate it.

-Karlo Sevilla

To Be, or Not to Be Medicated

To burst unfettered in the manic way,
The talking mouth that cannot stop to rest,
Are you to say I should not be this way,
My fast brain bursting full of better, best?

I sing, I write, I make—but can these be
If creativity is dulled inside of me?
If sentience devolves to reticence,
To fit the current psychopharma sense,
How can I make the songs I sing so deeply
Or make the heart that hears it cry so sweetly?

I burn with heat as my pen works the page.
How can a dullard bring the sage words of a sage?
If neurons fire, then why misfire mine?
My flame will burn right out, without a rhyme!

You seek to keep the highs and lows at bay.
You wish to even out the peaks and pits:
But how can trees wave branches in the air
If they become attenuated bits?

My burst is lost! I love to burst!
I love to bear a child in a poem!
I love to work twelve hours at a thrust
To give in words a newly-labored tome!
I love to touch! I love to feel!
I love the sounds and hues of silk and steel!
If diamonds and rust escape the censoree,
Why do you seek to take it all from me?

“Ah yes, but see, you are complex:
Your mind is broke and needs a kind of fix.
We cannot have you run abouting—
Living, breathing, singing, shouting—
And thinking toomuchtoomuch, too—
So this is why these meds are good for you!”

Ah yes, I know!
The points on a momentary snowflake sparkle so!
And yet, if you were to smooth it smoothingly,
What shape would then the perfect snowflake be?

In fairness, I do go low to the abyss.
This pit is not when twirling my skirts
But rather when I’d render splits
Into my skin until it hurts.

I can make tombs of closets or my bed.
For sleeping hard and long can make you dead.
(But to a point) because I wake again.
‘Tis true this ebb can flow out in the end.

Ah, to straddle polar poles and not to sway!

Healers of neuron makers and transmitters,
Give me back my brain’s peculiar fritters!
Pharma, grant no side-affected me,
And Psyche will dance in manic reverie!

-Theresa Rodriquez

Bios And Links

-Theresa Rodriguez

is the author of three books of poetry, including Sonnets, a collection of sixty-five sonnets (Shanti Arts, 2020). You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter @thesonnetqueen. Her website is www.bardsinger.com.

-Karlo Sevilla,

from Quezon City, Philippines, is the author of the full-length poetry collection, “Metro Manila Mammal” (Some Publishing, 2018), and the chapbook, “You” (Origami Poems Project, 2017). Recognized among the Best of Kitaab 2018 and twice nominated for the Best of the Net, his poems appear or are forthcoming in Philippines Graphic, Small Orange, DIAGRAM, Black Bough Poetry, Eclectica, Radius, Matter, Word Doodles Lit Mag, Thimble, Months To Years, 3 Moon Magazine, and elsewhere.

Listento the laughter,chocolate-chased giggling andbageled love feasts. Sweet echoes thatlinger in light,flickering flames,as stars glow from afarwith ghost motes that dust our beings,always. A double cinquain for Colleen’s Tanka Tuesday. Colleen asked us to write about holiday traditions. Our family holidays always revolve around food and include lots of laughter. My mom had the best […]

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