Weekly Newsletter - 3rd March 2023
The week I wrote a letter to Tedros
I took a big leap of faith this week, handing in my notice at two of the jobs I work in order to commit more time to my poetry and other causes I care about. It was a long time coming. I’m the kind of person who cares far more about how I live my life in the day-to-day moment than to railroading myself into some soulless career that I don’t really care for, just for the opportunity to not have to work in the future. That has never appealed to me, and part of why I left my dental studies. That said, in this move, I’ve completely pulled the financial safety net from under myself, which is a scary prospect, but one that needed to be done for my own sanity. It’s why I’m so thankful for everyone who’s purchased a copy of my book or who has become a paying subscriber. It lessens the gap just a tiny bit and allows me to keep doing what I’m doing. Plus, what is life if we can’t take a few risks from time to time?
With all that said, this week has still been massive in the poetry realm for me. Here’s some of the things worth sharing:
New Poems
This week sees a big new poem, “A Letter To Tedros”, which draws on the work of
, and amongst others to respond to recent statements made by the WHO Director-General about the Pandemic Treaty. Feel free to watch the video version in the article below and sharing it with those who may resonate with its message.
I also contributed a few haikus to
's Horror Haiku Club again this week, which are as follows:A warped keyhole stared -
engraving its will on me,
so Hell might be free.
Pandora - by Tom Shaw (Prompt: Yearning)
The "i" in their tech
was accurate all along.
You are the product.
Manufacturing and Marketing - by Tom Shaw (Prompt: Apple)
In through my mind's eye,
squinting through those mental bars,
I glimpse the grisly.
Locked Away - by Tom Shaw (Prompt: Katabasis)
Tribe Updates
This week marks the final Tribe Blog entry as I revise the benefits that my paid subscribers have access to. “Tribe Blog” and “Tribe Info” have been merged with the “Other Stuff” and “About” sections respectively, and the Tribe Chat now lives on Substack. As this piece talk about the benefits Tribe members will be receiving, I have made this piece publicly available for all to view.
If you are already convinced that becoming a Tribe member is well worth its price (which I would say it very much is!), then I’d be honoured to see you sign up.
To mark the reformulation of my Tribe benefits, I’m giving away some 1-month paid subscriptions for those who might not be ready to commit long-term but who would like a taste of what’s on offer. All you have to do is restack your favourite poem of mine on Substack with a few words on what it means to you before Saturday 9th March, 7AM UK Time. I’ll then pick 5 names at random to be given gift subscriptions.
Shop Updates
There is now the option to purchase commissions on my store, which currently stands at £100 for just a poem or £200 for a poem with a video. This price will very likely go up in the future, so if you’re needing some poems for an upcoming project and would like me to help you with that, then feel free to get on it while you can!
Other Updates
A Conversation With Dr Tess Lawrie
This week, my conversation with
went live on her Substack, where we explore the impact of the past few years on young people. It was great being able to chat with Tess in-person, and I also performed a reading of "A Letter To Tedros”. Check it out below:
Additions To “Essays and Other Writings”
I’ve added one of my Over To The Youth articles, “The Fluoride Narrative and Its Sceptics” into this section this week. Just like other societal narratives, the story around fluoride is not one that stands up to scrutiny, which I discovered through the lens of my experience as a dental student and in discovering the number of Nobel Prize-winning scientists who have raised the alarm on fluoridation in the past. It seems a good time to re-share this, given how the latest major UK study on water fluoridation has shown no benefit to the levels of dental decay.
Other Content
While the poll I included in my last newsletter wasn’t too well-answered, it did show there is interest in writing guides and workshops from me I’m keen to experiment with this format, but as yet I’m still working out where to even begin and how I would approach this matter. I’d love to hear some input from you in the comments on this: based on the poems (and other writings!) that I put out, what aspects of how I write would you like to learn more about? With this, I can then build out a foundation for something based on experiences and things I know work for me, which I can then translate to you.
Some of the other ideas in that poll I plan to experiment with for my Tribe members. So if those things sound like your cup of tea, and you want to be in time for the podcast I’ll have out next week (!!), feel free to sign up as a paid subscriber below:
Poetry From Elsewhere
This week’s poem comes from a well-loved classic poet whose work has sadly escaped me until very recently: Pablo Neruda. Neruda came onto my radar after being given an opportunity by Dr Nick Thompson to read through a copy of his works while I was at his house. This week, I made some time to read more of his most well-known poems, which brought “I Love You Without Knowing How” my way. Neruda’s descriptions and imagery in this piece struck me so greatly that I knew it had to be the poem I shared with you all this week. Thus, without further ado, here it is:
I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz, or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off. I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul. I love you as the plant that never blooms but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers; thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance, risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body. I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride; so I love you because I know no other way than this: where I does not exist, nor you, so close that your hand on my chest is my hand, so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.
I Love You Without Knowing How - by Pablo Neruda
And Finally
Thank you for continuing to follow my progress. If you want to support my work, there are numerous ways you can doing that, including:
Becoming a Tribe member (paid subscriber)
Sharing the poems that resonate with you most with others
It's incredibly heartwarming to know you are here and believe in the work I'm doing, and I can't wait to be able to share more with you and the rest of the world soon.
With gratitude,
Tom
Congratulations on taking such a big step!