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Frame
This COLLECTION OF POETRY explores the gallery of humanity, stripped and on display, all its flaws laid bare...
It's about all of us,
for we are all a little bit broken.
From the East Ridge Review:
'American writer Katherine Anne Porter once stated that "human life itself may be almost pure chaos, but the work of the artist is to take these handfuls of confusion and disparate things, things that seem to be irreconcilable, and put them together in a frame to give some kind of shape and meaning" (my emphasis). Helen Laycock's poetry collection Frame does exactly this by bringing together poems that explore both the brokenness and beauty of human experience.
With an accessible, personal, and lyrical voice, Laycock's poems outline how one knows, processes, and confronts hardship, ambiguity, anxiety, along with a myriad of other realities. As such, the collection expresses a varied mood—some poems express nostalgia, while others are sharp, crushing, and even overwhelming. But the diverse perspectives are held as one with a consistent style of language, use of imagery, and focus on "the broken". Frame is a superb volume of poetry and is worthy of wide engagement. I warmly recommend it.'
Reviewed by Dr Andrew Williams
Other feedback:
'Through gratitude and tears, my summation: Read. This. Book. It's a wonderful weave of poetry that I didn't want to put down. Helen Laycock's use of language and imagery is superb. Within the pages of this book I discovered framed fragility of the human spirit.'
'The art of poetry relies on a use of language in a fresh and original way and Helen Laycock does just that; it's a pleasure to find such surprising turns of phrase that bring new appreciation to what we may have always known, as well as provide us with a new perspective. I highly recommend this intriguing and memorable collection to anyone who enjoys poetry or would like to begin to do so.'
'I 100% recommend this read.'
'Some of her poems make tough reading - no anodyne words here - and every phrase counts. A book to return to more than once.'
It's about all of us,
for we are all a little bit broken.
From the East Ridge Review:
'American writer Katherine Anne Porter once stated that "human life itself may be almost pure chaos, but the work of the artist is to take these handfuls of confusion and disparate things, things that seem to be irreconcilable, and put them together in a frame to give some kind of shape and meaning" (my emphasis). Helen Laycock's poetry collection Frame does exactly this by bringing together poems that explore both the brokenness and beauty of human experience.
With an accessible, personal, and lyrical voice, Laycock's poems outline how one knows, processes, and confronts hardship, ambiguity, anxiety, along with a myriad of other realities. As such, the collection expresses a varied mood—some poems express nostalgia, while others are sharp, crushing, and even overwhelming. But the diverse perspectives are held as one with a consistent style of language, use of imagery, and focus on "the broken". Frame is a superb volume of poetry and is worthy of wide engagement. I warmly recommend it.'
Reviewed by Dr Andrew Williams
Other feedback:
'Through gratitude and tears, my summation: Read. This. Book. It's a wonderful weave of poetry that I didn't want to put down. Helen Laycock's use of language and imagery is superb. Within the pages of this book I discovered framed fragility of the human spirit.'
'The art of poetry relies on a use of language in a fresh and original way and Helen Laycock does just that; it's a pleasure to find such surprising turns of phrase that bring new appreciation to what we may have always known, as well as provide us with a new perspective. I highly recommend this intriguing and memorable collection to anyone who enjoys poetry or would like to begin to do so.'
'I 100% recommend this read.'
'Some of her poems make tough reading - no anodyne words here - and every phrase counts. A book to return to more than once.'
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About the author
Helen Laycock
21 books63 followersSHORT STORIES
Helen Laycock's short stories appear in a variety of anthologies, such as the Cabinet of Heed and An Earthless Melting Pot, in magazines, and in her own collections, and have been successful in many writing competitions. Her first attempt at play-writing secured her a shortlisting in Pint-Sized Plays in 2016.
FLASH FICTION
In 2018, she was commissioned as a lead writer at Visual Verse and her flash fiction has featured in several editions of The Best of CafeLit. Pieces have been showcased in Reflex Fiction, the Ekphrastic Review, Paragraph Planet, Serious Flash Fiction, the Beach Hut, and Lucent Dreaming – whose inaugural flash competition she won. She was longlisted in Mslexia’s 2019 flash fiction competition and her work has appeared in several Flash Floods as part of National Flash Fiction Day.
CHILDREN'S FICTION (MG)
She has penned nine children's books for 8-12-year-olds. She has been employed as a writer by an educational publisher and as a teacher.
POETRY
Pushcart nominee, winner of Black Bough Poetry's Chapbook Contest, former recipient of the David St. John Thomas Award, and nominee for the Dai Fry Award, Helen Laycock’s poetry collection Frame has featured as Book of the Month at the East Ridge Review.
Her poetry has been published by Black Bough, Broken Spine Arts, Folkheart Press, Prattlefog and Gravelrap, The Wombwell Rainbow, Poetry Roundabout, Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis, Onslaught, The Storms Journal, Popshot, Lucent Dreaming, Literary Revelations, Kobayaashi, Three Drops Press, The Caterpillar, The Dirigible Balloon,Fevers of the Mind & Visual Verse. Many of her poems can be purchased at https://www.facebook.com/pillarboxpoe....
She also writes humorous verse.
She has four websites:
Fiction in a Flash
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/fict...
Children's Author
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/hele...
Poetry
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/marb...
Tiny Tales
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/tiny...
All her books are available on Amazon:
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Helen-Laycoc...
US: https://www.amazon.com/Helen-Laycock/...
She can be followed on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/helenlaycock...
Twitter:
@helen_laycock
Helen Laycock's short stories appear in a variety of anthologies, such as the Cabinet of Heed and An Earthless Melting Pot, in magazines, and in her own collections, and have been successful in many writing competitions. Her first attempt at play-writing secured her a shortlisting in Pint-Sized Plays in 2016.
FLASH FICTION
In 2018, she was commissioned as a lead writer at Visual Verse and her flash fiction has featured in several editions of The Best of CafeLit. Pieces have been showcased in Reflex Fiction, the Ekphrastic Review, Paragraph Planet, Serious Flash Fiction, the Beach Hut, and Lucent Dreaming – whose inaugural flash competition she won. She was longlisted in Mslexia’s 2019 flash fiction competition and her work has appeared in several Flash Floods as part of National Flash Fiction Day.
CHILDREN'S FICTION (MG)
She has penned nine children's books for 8-12-year-olds. She has been employed as a writer by an educational publisher and as a teacher.
POETRY
Pushcart nominee, winner of Black Bough Poetry's Chapbook Contest, former recipient of the David St. John Thomas Award, and nominee for the Dai Fry Award, Helen Laycock’s poetry collection Frame has featured as Book of the Month at the East Ridge Review.
Her poetry has been published by Black Bough, Broken Spine Arts, Folkheart Press, Prattlefog and Gravelrap, The Wombwell Rainbow, Poetry Roundabout, Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis, Onslaught, The Storms Journal, Popshot, Lucent Dreaming, Literary Revelations, Kobayaashi, Three Drops Press, The Caterpillar, The Dirigible Balloon,Fevers of the Mind & Visual Verse. Many of her poems can be purchased at https://www.facebook.com/pillarboxpoe....
She also writes humorous verse.
She has four websites:
Fiction in a Flash
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/fict...
Children's Author
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/hele...
Poetry
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/marb...
Tiny Tales
https://helenlaycock.wixsite.com/tiny...
All her books are available on Amazon:
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Helen-Laycoc...
US: https://www.amazon.com/Helen-Laycock/...
She can be followed on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/helenlaycock...
Twitter:
@helen_laycock
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 13, 2022
I've long admired Helen Laycock's poetry for its vivid imagery and raw portrayal of the human condition. In 'Frame' we see her remarkable range across formal and free verse, covering a spectrum of relatable moments, events, and reckonings.
I'm enamoured with Laycock's treatment of the child/parent relationships within this collection. Her use of nursery rhyme forms and horror references in poems such as Life Library, Big Fat Hen, Nostalgia, act almost as a dissociative tool in covering multiple dimensions of an experience.
Tragic. Brutal. Honest. Hopeful. I loved this book.
I'm enamoured with Laycock's treatment of the child/parent relationships within this collection. Her use of nursery rhyme forms and horror references in poems such as Life Library, Big Fat Hen, Nostalgia, act almost as a dissociative tool in covering multiple dimensions of an experience.
Tragic. Brutal. Honest. Hopeful. I loved this book.
June 17, 2023
Wonderful!
Helen Laycock is an amazing writer. Frame was a carefully, and wonderfully penned collection of poetry which was both poignant and interesting.
Helen Laycock is an amazing writer. Frame was a carefully, and wonderfully penned collection of poetry which was both poignant and interesting.
January 12, 2022
Easy to be absorbed by this book. Such despair, such beauty. Such reckoning of self with inner demons. A brilliant common thread, too, this idea of seeing ourselves as through a frame.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews