FRESHERS ISSUE 2023 SCAN Lancaster University

26 C R E A T I V E W R I T I N G
SCANLU SCANLancaster scan.lancastersu.co.uk
Fresher’s Writing
Competition
Our story isn’t the same as in
fairytales
POETRY
No prince charmings, no damsels-in-distress
WINNER
although I do sing badly in the shower, I guess,
and I ask you to trap my spiders in a glass.
Comments from the Editor
Our story isn’t the same as in fairytales
juxtaposes the dreaminess of fiction
with mundane domesticity to create an
unexpected romantic prospect.
The consistent rhyme in the first two stanzas
is broken by the last, breaking the illusion of a
picturesque relationship.
Thomas’ use of imagery is what particularly
drew me to this poem, as he highlights the
beauty of everyday occurrences with a
partner.
It’s a beautiful, quiet piece and a worthy
winner.
No magic spellbooks, no hoarded golden plates,
except for your Spotify playlist, the one I hate
that I’m growing to love, like you, or tolerate.
The art for this piece is originial artwork from
one of our Screen Editors, Amy Brook.
To see more of Amy’s artwork, you can follow
her Instagram @pidgequill
Our story isn’t the same as in fairytales.
There’s just you, me, and the shitty single bed
with the loose spring that keeps us up all night,
but I’m grateful, because when it digs our ribs
I can feel your heart beating against mine.
by Thomas Bailey
Writing Poetry During the
Drought of a Writing Block
Maria Hill
ARTS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
During the summer term, I was
suffering from a word-numbing
poetry block, so I reached out to my
friend Liam Bates for advice on how
to overcome it.
Liam Bates is this year’s winner of the
Northern Writers Awards for Poetry.
He’s had collections of poetry published,
and is an extremely gifted poet, and so
what he told me came as a surprise:
It’s okay to have periods
of time where you find it
difficult – or sometimes
even impossible – to
write. He knows award
winning writers who
have poetry blocks for
months then come back
and write more award
winning poetry.
A way I like to look at it is that your
brain is thirsty, and wants to drink in
everything from the most haunting
wines of Shirely Jackson to the bitter
bears of Philip Larkin, before pissing
out a wonderful stream of poetry and/
or prose.
So, in the wise words
of Stephen King, when
you’re not writing, then
read novels, and when
you’re not reading
novels, read about
writing.
Of course, Stephen King is very intense
and is currently not at university, so
don’t forget to have amplies of free time
and fun, but especially studying a BA
in Creative Writing it’s important not
to forget this – your time table will be
sparse and have only a handful of hours
of in-person teaching, but do not be
fooled.
Teachers expect you to
be reading and writing
to make up for the thin
timetable. Not only is
how much you read
reflected in the growth
of your writing skills, but
it is prominent when you
come to your reflective
essay.
I still haven’t entirely come out of my
poetry block apart from the occasional,
but I know that, when you love words,
words will always find you again.
If you balance pushing
through a writing block
by writing anything even
if you think it’s awful (we
learn the most from our
failures after all, and how
can we fail or succeed
if we remain stagnant?),
with being kind to
yourself by taking time
out to read and become
inspired again, you can
get over any poetry
block.