SNAKESKIN

is a  poetry webzine which this month has a Poetry Book Fair, promoting the books of some of its regular contributors. My book "Rise" is featured as is Alison Brackenbury's excellent book "Then". (Short titles are in!). Also books by poets whom I don't know but who look well worth following up.

It's a very happy, user-friendly site, showcasing easy to read shorter poems and occasionally having a special edition of really short poems. George Simmers who runs the site seems a very affable person - I've never met him except through e-mail and he's so approachable that should you feel like taking the plunge and submitting, well, go ahead! There's an interesting upcoming edition called 'poetry comics', closing date Dec 1st.  I'll have to go back to the website in a moment to follow the links and find out what they are exactly.  (If it involves any kind of graphic work I'm sunk!)

Whenever I contribute to this webzine I think of time spent in Malaysia in 1996 and an encounter in the Batu caves outside KL with a reticulated python, a huge mottled brown and white snake that could easily squeeze the life out of me. The caves are a Hindu temple and are always swarming with Hindu visitors. The triple flight of steps that leads to the caves is always crowded with people. My daughter and I were leaving the caves, descending these steps, myself gazing about me as I usually do, attention not quite on what I'm doing when I thought "How odd, the staircase in front of me is nearly empty, that's nice." Then I looked and saw why: an enormous python was looping its way up the staircase I was on, heading towards me at considerable speed. I have never leapt a bannister so fast in my life! Everyone else had done so long before me - I only just avoided a close encounter with the creature. Wonder what would have happened if...?

All of that is a by-the-by of course. There's no danger lurking  in the Snakeskin poetry site, however, only a warm welcome.

Lastly this is my third post this week - I am so astonished!