Declan Ryan

Declan Ryan is another of the poets who will be reading at Wednesday's publication launch. He recently completed his MA in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, and runs the monthly poetry event Days of Roses, a showcase of Royal Holloway students reading with guest poets.

Alongside Malene Engelund, he is releasing an anthology of the poets who have read at the events, which he aims to be released around June.

Last I heard, he was writing about Ronan Keating's playing away- hopefully in poem form ready for Wednesday. A non- Ronan related poem is featured on Todd Swift's blog here, and you can join the Days of Roses facebook group here.

Here is a poem by him.

----------

Petra to the Swan- Pedalo

In 2006 a swan named Petra fell in love with a swan- shaped pedalo at a zoo in Münster, Germany.

A sudden blow: neck glistering in the rain- diamond
- 100,000 fireflies - your silver pedals crack
the water's surface. The glide of you ruined
me, made me game, webbed in this single lake.

describing a perfect circle round your dazzle-
white haunches, plastering the cygnet- grey
air with ballads, crushing heather and basil
under my wing to scent flowering ice. Stay.

As our migrant kin ascend we'll sit and shiver,
forget magnetic fields, make Eden- on- water.
String me to your twine necklace,
. . . . . . . . . . . . .................... . . . . . your sleek

breast; marry me among weeds, mid- river.
I will bear your giant sons and daughters,
my Pole Star the gold of your indifferent beak.

----------