Alan Parry He/Him

Alan Parry He/Him

@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Independent Writer Spoken-Word Artist EiC @thebrokenspine.co.uk Workshop Facilitator Podcast & Events Host #PromoteIndieLit

4.1K followers2.5K following4.1K posts

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Merril D. Smith
@merrildsmith.bsky.social

I just spent my morning at this workshop, and it was well-worth it! Thank you so much @alanparrywriter.co.uk

Alan Parry He/Him@alanparrywriter.co.uk

I want your dead formats. VHS. MiniDisc. Burned CDs. Nokia ringtones. Songs taped off Radio 1. Not for nostalgia. I want to know who you were when they mattered. “The workshop gave me permission to write fearlessly.” — Paul Short 20 Sept. shorturl.at/K3JoV

shorturl.atThe Poetry of Cultural Debris - A Writing WorkshopTurn cultural debris into poetry: use everyday objects, pop culture and memory to generate, craft, draft and revise compelling new work.
Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

I want your dead formats. VHS. MiniDisc. Burned CDs. Nokia ringtones. Songs taped off Radio 1. Not for nostalgia. I want to know who you were when they mattered. “The workshop gave me permission to write fearlessly.” — Paul Short 20 Sept. shorturl.at/K3JoV

shorturl.atThe Poetry of Cultural Debris - A Writing WorkshopTurn cultural debris into poetry: use everyday objects, pop culture and memory to generate, craft, draft and revise compelling new work.
The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Fuck the Grecian urn. Write about the Argos catalogue. THE POETRY OF CULTURAL DEBRIS is a four-hour workshop about finding serious poetic material in the supposedly unserious stuff we've carried through our lives. 20 September. Online. shorturl.at/IZ5TX

shorturl.atThe Poetry of Cultural Debris - A Writing WorkshopTurn cultural debris into poetry: use everyday objects, pop culture and memory to generate, craft, draft and revise compelling new work.

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)
@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Loving dipping our toes back into poetry workshops. Alan brings years of professional teaching experience, & his workshops have always had fantastic feedback. We’re keeping them accessible too: free Cost of Living places, concessions, General Admission & Supporter tickets. #BadTaste coming soon!

Alan Parry He/Him@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Already in development... The follow-up to The Poetry of Cultural Debris is taking shape. BAD TASTE A Poetry Workshop in Misbehaving Precisely What happens to poetry when we stop trying to demonstrate good taste? Good taste can make bad poems. Booking opens soon.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Already in development... The follow-up to The Poetry of Cultural Debris is taking shape. BAD TASTE A Poetry Workshop in Misbehaving Precisely What happens to poetry when we stop trying to demonstrate good taste? Good taste can make bad poems. Booking opens soon.

Alan Parry He/Him@alanparrywriter.co.uk

What useless thing have you remembered for twenty years? On 20 September, I’m running The Poetry of Cultural Debris, an online writing workshop exploring pop culture, memory & the ordinary things we can’t quite forget. Come make poems from the junk. #PoemsAbout shorturl.at/NTneI

shorturl.atThe Poetry of Cultural Debris - A Writing WorkshopTurn cultural debris into poetry: use everyday objects, pop culture and memory to generate, craft, draft and revise compelling new work.
Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

What useless thing have you remembered for twenty years? On 20 September, I’m running The Poetry of Cultural Debris, an online writing workshop exploring pop culture, memory & the ordinary things we can’t quite forget. Come make poems from the junk. #PoemsAbout shorturl.at/NTneI

shorturl.atThe Poetry of Cultural Debris - A Writing WorkshopTurn cultural debris into poetry: use everyday objects, pop culture and memory to generate, craft, draft and revise compelling new work.
Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

For balance, I should acknowledge that I’m being an absolutely insufferable dickhead about people publicly enjoying books. Please continue having fun while I sit in the corner, mistaking curmudgeonliness for integrity. 😂

Alan Parry He/Him@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Please, just read poetry because you love it. Read slowly, reread, abandon a book halfway through, return to it six months later… whatever. Not every human pleasure needs turning into an obvious promotional campaign that everyone dutifully jumps aboard until reading becomes another public display.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Please, just read poetry because you love it. Read slowly, reread, abandon a book halfway through, return to it six months later… whatever. Not every human pleasure needs turning into an obvious promotional campaign that everyone dutifully jumps aboard until reading becomes another public display.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Watching small presses talk down to potential customers on social media is so fucking ick. People ask daft questions. People misunderstand things. That’s the public. The holier-than-thou, aren’t-I-clever responses are just cringe-inducing. Stop treating ordinary people like they’re stupid.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

I’m properly excited to be dipping my toes back into poetry waters: replying to emails, developing new ideas & finally completing work that sat on the back burner for a LOOOONG time because of my ill health. It feels good to be returning to @thebrokenspine.co.uk projects!

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

A new Broken Spine workshop is in development. The Poetry of Cultural Debris will explore how mixtapes, cinema tickets, obsolete technology, childhood toys, half-remembered sitcoms & other pop-cultural remnants can become poems of memory, identity & private mythology. More soon.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Who knew getting my ears pierced would unleash a full-blown earring addiction? 😂 What started as “I’ll just grab a couple of funky pairs” has spiralled into a situation where my earrings now need their own postcode. They’re running the place.

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Crack on peeps!

Mike O’Brien@zoomburst.substack.com

In the absence of a #PoemsAbout this week, I am going to suggest an #OddFriday of #PoemsOn #OpportunityKnocks. I don't want to tread on the toes of @alanparrywriter.co.uk - so I am more than happy to take this down if he has something up his sleeve. I just want to have my regular read this Friday.

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Eleanor Holmes | Eliot North
@eleanorholmes.bsky.social

Really looking forward to attending @thebrokenspine.co.uk #poemsabout #openmic … thank you 🙏 @alanparrywriter.co.uk , these evenings have always been super wonderful supportive spaces 🥰

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

This night matters more than it looks. To the room. To the people in it. To the ones rebuilding. 26 April, 19:00. #PoemsAbout #OpenMic #Return

shorturl.atThe Return of #PoemsAbout: Online Open Mic (Zoom) | Hosted by Alan Parry Tickets, Sunday, April 26  •  6 PM - 8 PM UTC | EventbriteEventbrite - Broken Spine Arts presents The Return of #PoemsAbout: Online Open Mic (Zoom) | Hosted by Alan Parry - Sunday, April 26, 2026 - Find event and ticket information.

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Ronan Murphy
@ronanmurphymusic.com

Absolutely honoured to be part of this. Many thanks @alanparrywriter.co.uk

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Major announcement: #Wave3 of #TheWhiskeyTree is complete. Built on the work of #Wave1 + #Wave2 — writers like @karenpgonzalez.bsky.social @markantonyowen.com @eatthestorms.com et al — who laid the foundations and built this project into what it is. This is the final wave. #TheWhiskeyTree #Wave3

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Karen Pierce Gonzalez
@karenpgonzalez.bsky.social

These are deep and perfectly suited for surfing #poetry that catches the waves to and from any shore. Another great @thebrokenspine.co.uk @alanparrywriter.co.uk project! bsky.app/profile/theb...

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Major announcement: #Wave3 of #TheWhiskeyTree is complete. Built on the work of #Wave1 + #Wave2 — writers like @karenpgonzalez.bsky.social @markantonyowen.com @eatthestorms.com et al — who laid the foundations and built this project into what it is. This is the final wave. #TheWhiskeyTree #Wave3

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

I don’t say this lightly, this has been years in the making. I’ve worked with some of the finest poets I’ve come across, building this series: ten collections in total. Three waves of three — and one final, bumper anthology that will bring the whole project together. #TheWhiskeyTree #Wave3

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Major announcement: #Wave3 of #TheWhiskeyTree is complete. Built on the work of #Wave1 + #Wave2 — writers like @karenpgonzalez.bsky.social @markantonyowen.com @eatthestorms.com et al — who laid the foundations and built this project into what it is. This is the final wave. #TheWhiskeyTree #Wave3

Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Cmon Bluesky, do your thing! Wonderful to see BBP being increasingly active here!

Black Bough Poetry@blackboughpoetry.bsky.social

A one off #TopTweetTuesday where we will also run this on Bluesky. Next week’s prompts: - prophecy, collision of present day and myth, ritual, the future, the city. Up to 120 words. Imagistic, metaphorical, free verse. Inventive, quirky. Bold title, your name italicised. No A.I.

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)
@thebrokenspine.co.uk

A5 page. 2 poems. 10pt Times New Roman. That’s the formality. Everything else? Break it. Rip up the rulebook. Burn the workshop. Write it like it matters. #PoemsAbout #LiftToTheSky #PoetsOfBluesky #WednesdayWIPs #Poetry #SubmissionWindow

thebrokenspine.co.ukCall for Submissions: Poetry With Spit, Spine, and Something to Say - The Broken SpineSubmissions Open Throughout February 2026 | Publication Later That Year
Alan Parry He/Him
@alanparrywriter.co.uk

Well this is annoying! Alt Text: A person stands in low, warm light wearing a yellow sleeveless bodysuit. Their arms are tattooed, and they hold a pineapple at their lower torso. Their head is slightly bowed, expression unreadable.

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Last week stripped us bare. This week: #UnderTheSkin. Not what touches you. What stays. Write the wanting that lingers. The look that learns your name. The ache that doesn’t leave when the body does. New theme opens Friday. Don’t post early. Use Alt Text. Tag #PoemsAbout to be found.

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Todd Dillard
@toddedillard.bsky.social

whenever someone talks about line breaks online someone always shows up and says something like LINE BREAKS ARE ONLY THERE FOR BREATHS and I just can't imagine saying you love poetry while hating it so much

Alan Parry He/Him reposted

Sarah O
@palimpsest22.bsky.social

Thrilled to have a dark little poem in this upcoming anthology. Some cracking company and oh how I love naming the grim on occasion. Thanks @alanparrywriter.co.uk

The Broken Spine (SUBS OPEN)@thebrokenspine.co.uk

Something Gothic this way comes… Submissions are OPEN for The Havisham Steps: Modern Gothic Poetry. We want poems of neon dread, fractured love, haunted minds. Closing date: October 31st #PoetrySubmissions #SubmissionWindow #TheHavishamSteps #ModernGothicPoetry

thebrokenspine.co.ukSomething Gothic This Way Comes: Submit to The Havisham Steps: Modern Gothic Poetry - The Broken SpineSubmissions Open Throughout October 2025 | Publication in 2026