People have taken to asking me, “What do I get when I hire a poet to assist with an elegant soiree I am planning?” It is a good question, and as with all good questions there is not one single answer. Really you have to have to first answer the question, “What do I want.” … More All part of the service.
It is at this point I wish to bring before you a good friend of mine, one Tamas Berfett. Tamas is a man of many parts, a successful merchant, a minor poet of modest competence willing to accept criticism, a husband and father of a brood of doubtless delightful children. He is also a … More A charitable gesture
I’ve mentioned Sarl Onwater before. He was a good man, a lover of literature and the arts and a true friend to all who are fated to follow their muse to the exclusion of all lesser drives. Hence when he sent me a message wondering if I would be so kind as to attend upon … More Great art and the smell of stale vomit
It was only by chance that I was present at the Ball when the daughters of the House Senton were introduced to society. House Senton is a family of the old aristocracy, they were here before Port Naain was built, and they do things differently, please themselves, and largely care little about what the city … More ‘That Dress’
I’m not sure whether I have ever mentioned Wilony Sneel when recounting these anecdotes concerning my past? Wilony deserves to be called the leading portrait painter of her generation, and she specialised almost entirely in paintings of other women. Because of her skill and reputation for excellence women flocked to be painted by her, but … More Hot water and syrup of figs
Many of my colleagues are prone to being a touch sanctimonious. “We are Artists”, they say, contriving somehow to give the word artists a capital ‘A’ and hinting that it should be written in italic as well. Me, I just write poetry and endeavour to make a living so doing. I remember one evening I … More The Daughters of Joy
Tallis Steelyard 