Michael Spindler

Biography

I was brought up in N Wales and then went to Cambridge and Lancaster universities. I was an academic working in various universities abroad (Fez, Kuwait, UWA, Perth) before coming back to a university in the UK. I retired three years ago and now devote myself to writing, not only poetry, but also fiction and non-fiction. My latest books are Chicago: Phoenix from the Ashes, a history of the city, and a novel, Gatsby: My Story, a sequel to The Great Gatsby written from Gatsby's viewpoint. While I was in Perth I was active in the performance poetry scene there and now I have the time I would like to connect with performance poetry here.

Samples

SPEED Speed, spee-ee-eed, Push the right foot down, watch the rev counter soar, shift into fifth, the seat kicks against your spine, the speedo climbs. With the air's wild roar comes the rush, the adrenaline, amphetamine rush, as the single white line on the horizon splits, spreads apart like thighs, long bandage strips that strain toward you, for a moment hold back, and then whip by the side window yanked into the night. And that is all there is: ahead, the swathe of main-beam light; behind, the dark, the past, burnt tyre-tread. Then, everything recedes, a desert silence falls. With profound calm you breathe deeply and smile, uncluttered at last. You are a clean flame burning, simple, intense and true. Up ahead the colours - red amber and blue are so pretty, those hot reds, flashing ambers, blurting blues, they are so --

All poems are copyright of the originating author. Permission must be obtained before using or performing others' poems.