The Well of the Moon had its first outing last Thursday, courtesy of St Mungo’s Mirrorball, and in very distinguished company. Ellen McAteer and William Bonar (whose books I had the privilege of editing) launched their books (you can get them both from Red Squirrel Press) and Vahni Capildeo headlined, and was awesome.

I’ve added the book to the shop, and so far 27 copies have made their way to people all over the country, so I hope they are enjoying the poetry. Red Squirrel Press is arranging a formal launch in the next fortnight – I will add a post to confirm the date.

I have put my editing hat back on now, and there are no less than three books on the go, two full collections and a pamphlet, and there is the prospect of an anthology later on too. Plus we are still in the process of moving house. We have been held up by repairs to this house, but the last ones have been booked in. Meanwhile the housing market has taken off, and twice now a house we were interested in has sold before we had a chance to view it. The garden has taken something of a back seat, though benign neglect seems to suit it. The cold snap means that we have peak aquilegia at the same time as the first roses and sweet rocket as well as peonies. Birds don’t seem to have done so well as last year. Despite a lot of territory marking and mating behaviour, there have been very few fledglings – some blue tits and sparrows, one single starling and a robin.

Perhaps they are all late. The frogs were very late this year, fortunately missing the frost, and now we have a lot of tadpoles and newts. Usually blackbirds and magpies demolish loads of them, but they haven’t done so this year, and we could be in for something biblical when they leave the pond! The swallows and house martins were very late arriving too, but they are making up for lost time, and the swifts are here in force. It is allowed to be summer now.