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Sean Williams
 

Glitter & Dust reading

posted on 7 Sep 2014 at 9:23 pm

Another excellent Brisbane Writers’ Festival comes to an end. It’s been a busy one! Many excellent panels, so many wonderful people. Memory Makes Us was an incredible experience. It would be fair to say that I am knackered.

Accordingly, and rather self-centredly, I read a short poem at the closing ceremony meditating on my conflicted feelings about working from home. Also, the impression some people have of we arty types. Also, the delicious decadence of such events.

One of the non-festival things I had to do while I was here was finish an edit of the third Twinmaker book, which involved remixing some Keats (as is my wont), specifically his poem “Fancy”. It seemed fitting to remix it again. So:


 

“Fancy, a Villanelle” or “Fancy a Villanelle?”

Never let the Fancy roam
blushing through the mist and dew:
Pleasure ever is at home.

Free, their golden clasps undone,
Summer’s joys are spoilt, abused.
Never let the Fancy roam.

Ere the Winged Fancy roam,
so the Night doth meet the Noon:
Measure ever is at home

Ripe, unfettered, “in the zone”,
autumn’s red-lipp’d fruitage ooze:
Never let the Fancy roam.

As the bee-hive’s casting swarm,
Like the ploughboy’s well-worn shoes:
Leisure never is at home.

Always hurry and alarm
When sweet Fancy slip their noose.
Never let the Fancy roam.
Treasure ever is at home.


 

Photo taken at the Brisbane GOMA. Unexpectedly, these turned out not to be teleporters.

GOMA teleporters

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