Latest Posts & Publications

P O E M S  F A R  A N D  W I D E

JULY 2018

I am delighted to announce that leading Australian literary publisher Puncher & Wattmann will publish my latest collection of poems, Poems Far and Wide, in late 2018 / early 2019.     

 Without being too cocky (sorry!) I believe this is a substantial collection, possibly my best so far, and includes many poems that have been previously published, anthologised, or have won - or shortlisted in - local and international competitions.

So watch out for it! I hope readers enjoy Poems Far and Wide.... just as much as I enjoyed putting it together. 

Some poems date back to 2004, while others are very recent indeed, with a few still receiving a final cut and polish! The tone is contemporary and bold; while my sensibility tends to favor an eclectic inclusiveness. There are are some longer dramatic and narrative poems, and others more lyrical in essence.

There are poems very close to home, some are observations of the natural world, while others take readers to far-flung destinations around the globe. Some are dramatic, or the poetic equivalent of 'character studies', with reverberating psychological resonance. There are poems of fast-paced wit and humor, and others deadly serious. There are trance-like or dream-like poems too, and experiments in language – often contrasting with hard-nosed factual observation. I hope the wide-ranging ambition of this collection will be enjoyed.

Poems Far and Wide is currently in early production stage, but I will display a copy of the cover on this website as soon as it becomes available, plus news of launches, reviews and details of price and where you can purchase a copy. See link to publisher's website, below:

Puncher & Wattmann is one of Australia's leading literary publishers, so I am in excellent company. To date, they have published more than 100 titles, with more on the way. They deserve support from all serious readers: see https://puncherandwattmann.com/

**

The following is a sampler of recently published, performed (or short-listed) pieces, going back to around 2016. For news of larger-scale projects, go to main menu categories, above.

July 20187: I have just learned that I have been shortlisted for the 2018 Alan Marshall Short Story Award, to be announced early September this year. I was previously shortlisted for this major Australian competition in 2017. So, fingers crossed! See: http://www.nillumbik.vic.gov.au/Living-in/Arts-and-Cultural-Development/Alan-Marshall-Short-Story-Award

2018: Two ultra short poems were included in Coolabah Short Poem Issue (No 33, 2018), curated by Australian poet Peter Bakowski and published by the University of Barcelona. 

See following link:

 http://revistes.ub.edu/index.php/coolabah/issue/view/1786

Foliage of Eucalyptus Coolabah. 

March, 2017: In role and in costume, I trotted out As I Wandered by the Seine, a plaintive Parisienne lament, at the annual Warrandyte Grand Read (Grand Hotel, Warrandyte). I had previously served this popular ham dish at Collected Works Bookshop, for their December end-of-year party. Pic: Richard Mudford.

2017: My short story, Through a Latte Darkly, was published by Margaret River Press in the prize anthology, Joiner Bay & Other Stories, edited by Ellen van Neervenm 2017. (A previous short story, That Summer at Manly, was published in the MRP 2013 prize anthology, Knitting and Other Stories, and reviewed here: http://margaretriverpress.com/index.php/news/archived-news/anne-skyvington-reviews-knitting-and-other-stories/)

 2016:

My cautionary poem ‘Mr Menzies Shows Me My File’ from Growing Up with Mr Menzies is included in the recent anthology titled Contemporary Australian Poetry, edited by Martin Langford, Judith Beveridge, Judy Johnson and David Musgrave; published by Puncher & Wattmann, 2016.

 2016: I had the pleasure of writing the introduction to Chris Mann's thoughtful, challenging and often very funny Whistlin is Did, published by Cordite Books (2016). My intro can be read in full at the following: http://cordite.org.au/guncotton/jenkins-mann/  And for more info on the versatile Mann, see a chapter from my 1988 compilation, 22 Contemporary Australian Composers: http://www.rainerlinz.net/NMA/22CAC/mann.html

Nov. 2016. It was a privilege to judge the Melbourne Poets Union (MPU) International Poetry Competition for that year. An extract from my judge's report was published in the MPU news bulletin, Poam (No. 358, Feb./March 2017).

Nov. 2016. It was a pleasure to launch Debbi Hamilton's collection of poems, The Sly Night Creatures of Desire (Hybrid Publishers 2016). My launch speech can be read at Rochford Street Review: https://rochfordstreetreview.com/2016/11/29/subtle-multiple-implications-john-jenkins-launches-the-sly-night-creatures-of-desire-by-debi-hamilton/

2015/16 My The Beach of Pink Shells, a scifi/fantasy short story, was shortlisted in the competition held by the The International SciFi Film Festival, held in 2015 in Paramatta,NSW, and published on the Festval's website. 

2002 - 2016/7 I am delighted that Travellers Tales of Old Cuba, ed. John Jenkins, 2002/2010/2014/2016 is still selling very well after going into several editions, the most recent in 2016. Published by Ocean Press. See the Books (non-fiction) section of this website for more details. Available via all good bookshops in Australia and internationally.

My work goes back to the 1970s. For a much more comprehensive list, go to the Austlit website, at: https://www.austlit.edu.au/ or consult TROVE (Aust. Nat. Library database) at: http://trove.nla.gov.au/