Journal

Have you got a favourite book? Not necessarily the topic, although that's important too, but the actual physical object. A book that you thought, "Yes, this is exactly how a book should be." Perhaps you even have a small collection of books that are differently perfect. (Please share pictures with me if you are in this lucky situation!) There were a few books we used as inspiration for the chapbook I'm putting together now. The first was Notes on Printing and Publishing Literary Books by Andrew Steeves. The second, A Daibo Coffee Manual, was more of an affirmation that we...

The pollen record of Dartmoor is captured in three distinct formats in our new collection, On the record. I've had my head in scientific papers for several months researching this work. The project started with a mild feeling of uneasiness reading a popular book about land use and forests in the UK. The book suggested that Dartmoor had always been forested, which didn't match my understanding. A little scratching, a little sniffing (and a lot of support from friendly scientists) and I found nearly a dozen research papers on the pollen record of Dartmoor that had been conveniently ignored. Our latest...

With a vague memory of a holly bush, I set out into a snow covered moorland. From the village, I walked along the track until the first bridge where I left the track to follow the head of the Meavy River. The ground was unfrozen beneath my feet. Sliding down the hill parts of the way, I peeked into the arched bridge before continuing alongside the gully. The track, well worn by dog walkers and hikers, leads easily to the main road with only one large puddle to navigate. Across the road, past a few cars that were abandoned overnight...

Walking south down the track, and a little past South Hessary, I once again missed seeing a small bird take off from a patch of wet ground. I’ve been trying to identify it for months. I always seem to be looking away when it’s on the ground or just taking off, and by the time it’s caught my eye, it is both too far away, and headed in the wrong direction for me to clearly see what it is. Today, a single bird flew off, uttering “pew”, a short pause, and then a second “pew”. My walks on Dartmoor take...