Bio - Richard Fleming

Richard Fleming is an Ulster-born poet and short-story writer, now resident in Guernsey.

His work has been broadcast and widely published and will be familiar to listeners of BBC Radio Guernsey, BBC North-West and Radio Ulster.

He has performed at various literary festivals in the UK and Europe, has three collections of verse in print:
A Guernsey Double, Strange Journey and Stone Witness, recently published by Blue Ormer. He is currently compiling a fourth collection.

Richard enjoys music, books and films, food, wine, animals and sunshine. You’ll find these subjects featured in his popular blog, Bard at Bay (http://redhandwriter.blogspot.com) along with many of his better-known poems and short stories.

Bio - James Willis

James Willis

I am now retirement age. I have been in Guernsey for 44 years and I have a wife, Win, and 4 boys, now all married.

I was Technical Director in an engineering firm for 33 years working for the Horticultural industry as well as diversification into other areas towards the end of that era. Theatre was my hobby, both on and off stage. I was the Events Manager at St.James for the last 10 years. I have written poetry since my early teens, with a gap when I was busy house building and raising a family. I have had a number of poems published in books and magazines and my name is on the Roger Perrot Trophy in the Eisteddfod. I have written and directed a Guernsey play in the GADOC One Act Play Festival.

James

Bio - Janinka Diverio

Janinka Diverio

Of Polish and Italian descent I was raised in Guernsey and spent all of my childhood and formative years on the island. I moved away to study and work in Switzerland and Northern
Italy when I was fifteen and never really returned for more than a few months at a time until suddenly twenty-five years later and I’d only been ‘home’ once.

Both of my parents died before they were fifty whilst I was in early adulthood and with no family home or paternal base I found myself constantly questioning topics such as
belonging, abandonment, home, death & love. In my quest to understand myself, my losses and my own thoughts I took to exploring my own creative intuitions and writing seemed to work best for me.
I wouldn’t however really call my self a poet but more of a ‘sorter of thoughts’ and I am very happy that through the Guernsey Poets Blog I have found a home for them at least.

My other inspirations are music (improvised, jazz, indigenous) and conceptual art. I admire the uncompromising nature of artists working in this challenging area despite the odds against
fame or monetary gain.

I am now living in North Wiltshire and run a party business (shop and venue) in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. I feel privileged to be able to contribute to John’s special project and love having this connection with the island which will always have an enormously special place in my heart....as will all of my Guernsey friends, old and new.

Janinka

Bio - Kathy Figueroa

Kathy Figueroa

First of all, I'd like to say that I consider it to be an honour and a privilege to be a contributor to the, 'Guernsey Poets,' blog, particularly since I live in rural Ontario, Canada!

My involvement with this group of writers, from the Channel Islands, who are situated such a great geographic distance away from Bancroft, Ontario, initially came about when an invitation was extended to me to join a Facebook poetry group that had been created to facilitate communication with, and display poetry by, writers from that area. The Facebook site proved to be such a success that the, 'Guernsey Poets,' blog was created to accommodate the ever increasing number of poems that were being submitted. Of course, I was interested in participating!

To tell you a bit about myself, I'm a freelance writer and photographer. A small plant nursery, which I own and operate, has provided the subjects of many of my photographs. These floral photos are featured on cards that I produce and offer for sale in various places in the Bancroft area and, also, when I take part in an annual art studio tour.

Since 2004, both local newspapers, The Bancroft Times and Bancroft This Week, have published my articles and photographs. Over the years, my work has appeared in a diverse variety of other print media, across Ontario, such as: Mystical Voices Magazine, the Mohawk Nation Drummer, Anishinabek News (including the annual Pow-Wow Guide), the Haliburton Echo (including The Weekender section), and the Belleville Intelligencer. Online, besides appearing on the, 'Guernsey Poets,' blog, my work can be found on various poetry websites such as, 'Fieralingue' (Italy), and, 'Tsunami Books' (France), as well as on Sun Media community newspaper websites across both Ontario and Canada.

Recently, I've been involved with producing a series of illustrated poetry chapbooks that feature small collections of my work and the first two, 'This And That: Five Poems,' and, 'Rural Rhymes: Five Poems,' have just been completed. I'm hoping to eventually have a collection of my poetry and photographs published as a hard cover volume and am currently going through the process of looking for a book publisher.

Along with being happy to contribute to the Guernsey Poets blog, I'll have to mention that I really enjoy reading the fantastic work of the other poets, which is so artistically and abundantly displayed there. A poetry site of this nature is, in my opinion, truly a delight to read as well as to contribute to.

Kathy