Succour 11: February 6th, 2010

For Succour 11, our Spring/Summer 2010 issue, we would like to invite submissions which pertain not to a theme, as has hitherto been the case, but which adhere to a pair of conditions.

Condition 1: All submissions should be written on Saturday February 6th, 2010.
Condition 2: What you write should not be an attempt to execute an idea – for a story, for a poem, etc – that has previously occurred to you. Rather, we would prefer you to write whatever happens to come into your head at that particular time.

The idea for this issue was inspired by 20 Lines a Day by Harry Mathews, in which the author sets out to follow a rule Stendhal once set himself, to write ‘Twenty lines a day, genius or not’. Mathews undertakes this project in an attempt to overcome ‘the anxiety of the blank page’; it becomes part of his writing practice, his way of starting off, getting in the zone, before going on to whatever his main writing project may be. We would like submissions to February 6th, 2010 to be written in the same spirit.

We will be accepting submissions to February 6th, 2010 from Saturday February 6th 2010 until Monday February 8th 2010 – thereby allowing a couple of days for typing up etc.

Maximum word count: 400

Send your work to succourdublin@gmail.com.

The Boru Revue

Hosted by actress Claire Jenkins, The Boru Revue takes place on the last Thursday of every month in the 'Loft' venue at Hedigans 'The Brian Boru' pub in Glasnevin. It features "poetry, drama, storytelling, comedy, music and many wonderful surprises."

I'll be reading a set at this month's event, on Thursday 24 September. Start time is 9pm and admission is 5 Euro.


Update: Thursday 24 September, 11am

I was informed by Claire this morning (this morning!) that she is unable to slot me in to the event. This after she had taken the initiative to invite me to perform. Now, having read some more of my work, she says that her audience "can be quite reserved" and that "tried and tested material works well". This development is, to say the least, inconvenient...

We're all Illusionists Now

The explanation that Derren Brown proposed for his lottery prediction trick seemed simply to be an extension of the original trick. An explanation was never forthcoming, or necessary.

There have been countless articles, discussions and opinion pieces in print, online or in bars and staff canteens attempting to dissect the trick's every detail and explain or reveal how it was really done. The theories doing the rounds are various.

But it's all academic, isn't it? The trick's purpose was, in the first place, to delight and entertain, wasn't it? At the time that it was performed it seemed like magic. With every subsequent viewing it still looks like magic, but a little differently so every time. Scrutinising it is enjoyable, yes: especially if we are, or want to become illusionists too. Being unable to tell with certainty how it was achieved - even if we swoop on little clues here and there to proclaim a possible solution - goes a long way towards proving its worth.