Rachael Clyne - Write On

  Here's wishing you a plentiful poetic harvest on National Poetry Day. I'm very delighted to feature in this excellent podcast with a reading and an interview around identity and diversity issues. Many other poets also share their work and range of experiences. Definitely worth listening to.                                               https://spotifyanchor-web.app. link/e/TWBozBF4DDb .

Here's my new article about dealing with rejection for poets. It's on the Seren Blog site today: Dealing With Rejection and Disappointment Disappointment seems such a casual word for something that can haunt us.  It is not like missing a party; disappointment can leave scars that hamper motivation and confidence and turn to destructive envy.  Perhaps parents disappointed us, or we were told we were a constant disappointment by a parent or teacher, a painful label to overcome. It’s both interesting and useful to observe the process. I did this recently after devoting a year to putting together a collection and it was turned down several times. First came the sinking feeling that usually plugs into a history of previous publishing rejections. In my case, it went right back to an acting career inevitably fraught with rejection and disappointment, the last of which pretty much ended my career. I watched my ego dance about, trying to settle. Having received encouragement and gained

It's been a while since my book was launched in Teignmouth and Wells, both of which were joyous occasions. The Teignmouth event ended up with everyone celebrating themselves by dancing to music from a playlist specially designed for the occasion. Since then I was hit with a string of health issues, including a virus with high fever and the most dramatic viral rash.  This book represents the culmination of a lifetime of creativity, through acting, art and writing. My past, especially the showbiz bit, had amazing moments, but was often frustrating and dogged by some major disappointments. The therapist in me says, I suppose the illness could have been a releasing of past stuff. We store difficult psychological stuff in our unconscious and in our bodies.  Even good news can be a source of stress, as it changes our perception of ourselves.  I was intensely ill for a few days and have taken it slowly to convalesce. After all I'm in my seventies and my body needs all the help it can

  Here's a selection of Klezmer melodies, followed by a list of  'Feel Good About Yourself'  songs, to singalong and dance to. I hope you enjoy it. A special thanks to Hannah Linden for putting it all together for me, including some special requests. https://open.spotify.com/ playlist/ 554AABb3bMh7BSrQk3XAY3?si= 2f3e1886d1de498e

After a nailbiting delay at the printers, the books finally arrived today just in time before I set off for tomorrow's launch in Teignmouth. Delighted to have them in my hands. 

It's an obvious thought, but those of us who struggle with low self-esteem often spend our energy trying to be someone different and deeming ourselves unacceptable. We think we have to be perfect before we're allowed to feel good about ourselves. It takes daily effort to maintain low self-esteem, peppering our thoughts with punishing put-downs, convinced we'll never amount to anything. This pattern is debilitating, all consuming and permeates all attempts to enjoy life.  We now live in an era of either/or, rather than both/and. We are being pitted against each other instead of encouraging us to be kind in our differences. The truth is, we will never be someone else and have to settle for being good enough as we are. This revelatory thought came one wet Monday morning, as I stood in my kitchen. The words began to burrow into my mental software and create a slow, but steady system change over years. I had to practice compassion towards my warty parts and learn to question and