Spotlight On Writers
Aaron Marchant
- Where, do you hail from?
‘The wrong side of the tracks’ in Buckinghamshire, UK about thirty miles west of London.
- What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?
The Chiltern hills are the essence of home to me. They are not dramatic or ostentatious, but gentle folds in the landscape.
Beech tree woodland clings to each hill, and in spring these woods are carpeted in bluebells.
Secret pathways known only to deer, badger and myself, criss-cross the land with buzzards and Red Kites circling above the canopy.
Remote villages of brick and flint cottages, nestle into the chalk valleys.
These are places I’ve known since childhood and always return to.
The expression ‘Run to the hills’ is apt for me, as that is exactly what I do in times of trouble or concern.
- What turns you on creatively?
I have written on many subjects from philosophy to politics, but I always return to poetry and verse.
As a child, I remember hearing Keats’ ‘La belle dame sans merci’ read by the late Sir Michael Hordern and being transfixed by its stunning imagery.
Later, the subtle conversational style of Sir John Betjeman’s verse, that accentuates the extraordinary in the mundane was a great inspiration.
For myself, I have found that the muse cannot be cajoled, but she can be encouraged to pay us a visit if we allow her the room to create.
Many times, I have sat down to write with a particular idea in mind, and found that it moves in an entirely different direction than anticipated, yet still somehow says precisely what I had intended. That’s the alchemy of colluding with the muse.
- What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?
‘Petrichor’ is definitely a word that lends itself to poetry. It refers to the unique scent that is experienced when the first rains arrive after a drought.
I have yet to use it in a verse myself, but watch this space!
- What is your pet peeve?
With the arrival of the internet age, the differences in UK/US spelling are a continuous frustration. Many ‘Apps’, programmes and websites admonish my UK spelling with that annoying squiggly red line! I am however, putting this frustration to good use by writing a light verse on this very subject.
- What defines Aaron Marchant?
In a word ‘Freedom’. I’m very self-contained, and prefer to make spontaneous decisions on the day, rather than having dates circled on the calendar.
‘How can we arrange to meet for a drink next week, when neither of us know if we’ll be thirsty?’
- We Two - April 18, 2024
- Improper Proposal - January 23, 2024
- Old Friends - August 7, 2019
