New year, new blue, new news

February 7, 2026 admin No comments

I’m delighted to head into 2026 with 2 poems taken for Stoat Poetry and The summer before taken for The Fig Tree women’s special online issue and anthology. Big thanks to the editors and more on both of those soon… Also, in today’s round-up: reviews, readings, podcasts, interviews, publications and some snippet quotes from Darling Blue.

REVIEWS

Big thanks to The High Window and Gary Day for his wonderful and detailed review of Darling Blue.

“Anyone who’s been in love will find something of their experience reflected in this daring and tender volume. […] James is endlessly fascinating as she explores the nature of love and desire, relationships and the difference between fantasy and reality. What she shows, unsurprisingly, is that there are no answers but there is always art.”
Gary Day, The High Window, full review here

INTERVIEWS

I was delighted to be asked to focus on Darling Blue and the Pre-Raphaelites on The Pre-Raphaelite Society Podcast. This art-influenced chat/interview was so enjoyable, talking with Pre-Raphaelite Society Poet-in-Residence Sarah Doyle about Darling Blue’s Pre-Raphaelite inspiration and sharing some of the art-inspired poems. You can enjoy it here.

I had a great time too on Spoken Label – chatting with the host, Andy N, about Darling Blue, the writing process and putting together both the art-inspired poems and the interweaving fictional narrative, a short reading of a different selection of poems and talking specifically about some of the lines and choices of form and layout, with lots of thanks to Dawn and Ronnie at Indigo Dreams. You can listen to that here. (Structure-wise, extracts from Amanda and Andy N’s work up to 1m 57s, followed by background info on Spoken Label, then Part 1: the interview with me at 3m 15s, with Part 2: my reading of poems at 37m 15s.)

I was pleased too to be interviewed for What! The Heys — to talk about my new collection Darling Blue, my writing generally, how my disability feeds into this and my work running V. Press. Heys Wolfenden was great to chat to, with lots of interesting insights and questions. You can listen to the interview here and do check out the other interviews while you’re there; Heys has had a whole series of interesting writers on the podcast. There’s also a video from the interview here.

Big thanks to all involved with these podcasts — front of house and behind the scenes.

OTHER NEWS

My poem The Lost Garden’s Poison Patch, which was shortlisted in the Black Cat Press Nature Competition 2024, has been published in The Water Knows I Love You (Black Cat Poetry Press, 2025).

EVENTS

Thursday, 12 February 2026 — Headline Poet, Worcester SpeakEasy

Thursday, 12 February 2026
7:30 – 9:30pm
Boston Tea Party, Worcester (18 Broad St, Worcester WR1

Saturday, 28 February 2026 — Darling Blue Spring Launch at Script Haven in Worcester

Darling Blue blue & nature themed spring launch at Script Haven
Daytime Poet/Publisher in Residence with evening reading and open mic
Date: Saturday, 28 February 2026
Times: Poet/publisher in residence 10am-12pm and 1.30-5pm; reading & open mic: 6.30–8.30pm
Venue: Script Haven, 104 High Street, Worcester WR1 2HW
Limited evening 3-min open mic slots
FREE but please contact scripthavenltd@gmail.com in advance for an open mic slot

Daytime Poet/Publisher in residence is set to feature: a poem from Darling Blue on the hour every hour; book signing for Darling Blue; Sarah will be there to chat to readers and writers and answer writing or publishing questions; poet-in-residence haiku written on request; poetryfilm on loop.

Saturday, 18 April 2026 — Cheltenham Poetry Festival: Ways to Say We Are Not Alone – Simon Alderwick, Sarah James, Duncan Forbes

Cheltenham Friends’ Meeting House – Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Cheltenham, GL52 2NP
Sat, 18 April 2026
5:00PM – 6:00PM
Tickets: £10.00
Booking here.

How can we write about the pain or pleasure of a relationship and love without veering into sentimentality, or equally into cynicism?

Three widely published poets demonstrate how they write from the heart, whilst remaining clear-eyed.

Prize-winning poet Sarah James’ collection Darling Blue (Indigo Dreams) blends ekphrastic poems with a fictional narrative exploring love, lust, and letting go, inspired by Pre-Raphaelite artworks. Darling Blue has been described as ‘rich in imagery and sensory detail, reminding the reader ‘how brightly sunlight shines through // when freed from a cracked mirror’ (Sarah Doyle, Pre-Raphaelite Society Poet-in-Residence), and as a ‘vivid, emotive, and essential reflection on what endures’ (Luke Kennard).

Duncan Forbes poems have been published by Faber, Secker and Enitharmon, who produced a Selected Poems in 2009, drawn from five previous collections. He has won a Gregory Award, Stephen Spender Prizes, Hawthornden Award and TLS/Blackwells prize for his most recent collections of poems, Human Time (2020) and Under the Sun (2024). ‘Duncan Forbes is a real discovery.’ Vernon Scannell.

Simon Alderwick is the author of the heartfelt and moving ways to say we’re not alone (2024) and the forthcoming reaper in a headlock (2026), both with Broken Sleep. Simon’s work addresses masculinity, fatherhood, the anthropocene, time travel, mental health and addiction. His work has appeared in Magma, Berlin Lit, Ink Sweat & Tears. A former Cheltenham resident, he now lives in Oxford. ‘Simon Alderwick’s poems fizz with a deep uncertainty and moments of imagistic magic. These are poems of faith and love, reminding us that, ‘not all prayers are answered’ Marvin Thompson.

Notes: For schools and other group bookings, please email the Festival Box Office cpfboxoffice@yahoo.com for information on discounts.
This event is part of a special offer. Buy tickets for three events on Saturday 18th April and get 20% off. This offer only applies when tickets are bought together. Offer runs until 28 Feb 2026.

A DARLING BLUE TASTER

Below, you can enjoy some of the social media snippet quotes posts for my collection Darling Blue (Indigo Dreams, 2025), which interweaves poems inspired by Pre-Raphaelite art with a book-length fictional poetry narrative of love, lust and letting go.