top of page
Welcome to The Jotter, my blog on books, writing, and culture.
Subscribe for free below, join 231 others, and receive the following:
-
A monthly newsletter sent to your inbox with videos and articles on books, writing, food, culture, and music
-
A free PDF guide on 'Preparing Your Poems for Publication'
-
Latest news and samples of my poetry, prose fiction and non-fiction
-
Exclusive, original work from guest writers
To support my writing, and for even more exclusive content, and extra entries to the poetry prize, buy The Jotter Premium Plan here.
EXCLUSIVE: 5 Poems and a Process Note by Andy Eaton
In this exclusive post, American poet Andy Eaton shares five of his poems as well as a process note, exploring how and why he writes....
Andrew Jamison
Sep 22, 20255 min read
Meet the Poems: All the Pretty Horses
In this series, Meet the Poems, Andrew takes you through how he wrote some of his most popular poems. This is a poem inspired by Cormac...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 19, 20254 min read
5 Questions to Ask Yourself After You’ve Written A Poem
"As a general rule, these are the five questions I'll ask myself at the end of writing a poem..." As a follow-up to my previous post...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 13, 20254 min read
5 Reasons to Write Blank Verse
Blank verse brings the music of everyday language to life. Blank verse is unrhymed iambic pentameter , meaning it has 10 syllables with...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 13, 20254 min read
The Poet's Workshop Poetry Prize 2026
The Poet’s Workshop Poetry Prize 2026 is now open for entries! This year it's totally FREE to enter. Enter here. All you have to...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 8, 20253 min read
Meet the Poems: The Starlings
Published in Happy Hour (Gallery Press, 2012), here Andrew reflects on how and why he wrote this poem. The Starlings Everything,...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 7, 20253 min read
7 Reasons to Get a Writing Mentor
If you’re an aspiring writer and often find yourself wondering how to take the next step with your writing or maybe you want more...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 7, 20254 min read
Behind the Scenes: How I Wrote 'Swans We Cannot See'
Swans We Cannot See was my third collection of poetry and in this post I want to give you an idea of what went into it, how I wrote it...
Andrew Jamison
Aug 2, 20257 min read
Video: Weekly Update 28 July
A video update from Andrew about what's happening on the blog this week. Sign up to the autumn Book Club sessions here:
Andrew Jamison
Jul 27, 20251 min read
6 Ways To Think About Imagery in Your Writing
"I am a camera with its shutter open..." "I am a camera with its shutter open, quite passive, recording, not thinking.' This quotation is...
Andrew Jamison
Jul 25, 20254 min read
5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Write a Poem
While poetry is undoubtedly about the freedom of expression, and it's important to embrace impulse and inspiration, if you're serious...
Andrew Jamison
Jul 17, 20253 min read
10 Reasons to Join a Book Group
"...it's always fun to take a book and its author to task..." 1. Reading is Good For You Committing to a book group means committing to...
Andrew Jamison
Jul 10, 20253 min read
EXCLUSIVE: 4 Poems from Alan Buckley's forthcoming 'Still'
I've known and admired the work of Alan Buckley for a long time , and I'm delighted to be able to publish four poems here, exclusively on...
Andrew Jamison
Jul 4, 20251 min read
My Top 10 Oasis Tracks
Subscribe to Andrew's weekly newsletter here for all his latest writing. With the band's first gig in 16 years tomorrow evening in Cardiff, I've collated my top 10 Oasis tracks. As someone who spent a disproportionate amount of their adolescence strumming along to Oasis songs at the end of their bed, with the band’s first gig in 16 years happening tomorrow night at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff I thought I’d put together my top 10 Oasis tracks. Now, as someone who lik
Andrew Jamison
Jul 3, 20255 min read
Video: Welcome to The Jotter
Video Introduction and Welcome to The Poetry Jotter
Andrew Jamison
Jul 1, 20251 min read
5 Top Tips for Publishing a Poetry Pamphlet
"Here, I want to share with you some of my insights from writing a prize-winning pamphlet." So, you’ve started publishing poems in a number of magazines, you may even have been shortlisted in a competition or two, or maybe you’ve won a prize - but, what next? In 2011 I won the Templar Poetry Pamphlet Prize and since then have gone on to publish three collections of poetry, so I can attest to how publishing a pamphlet can be a great way to kickstart your journey as a publish
Andrew Jamison
Jun 22, 20255 min read
3 Elements that Make or Break a Poem
"I’d say I value the following three traits most highly." While I approach all poetry with an open mind , and I’m always willing to...
Andrew Jamison
Jun 12, 20253 min read
The Star in the Skylight
My first blog post for The Poetry Jotter, reflecting on how and why I write
Andrew Jamison
Dec 18, 20245 min read
bottom of page