Exercise Two: 'The Sound of Silence' (Saturday 7th December 2013)

This morning I set out from my house in Ilford to catch the bus into town which my handy smartphone app predicted would arrive at 05:02. Once in Ilford I caught the 123 and got off at Wood Green, North London I wrote my thoughts down in my journal whilst on the bus and have used them to compose the following poem.

Tell me what silence is

As brief as the morn without a sound

That as our journeys progress

The universe makes its mission

To rip through

The silence as we think it

With a concoction of sounds from every direction.

The trundle of the bus

On its fixed rigid route

Through the semi-desolate streets.

Breaking through the cold atmosphere

Which earlier took its break from usual narcissistic brutality

But now of its presence we can be aware

Contributing to the sounds

We must be subjected to

By rule

By expectation

And by reminder that we know not what silence truly is.

London @ 5am Inspiration: About the Project and Preliminary Exercise

About the 5am London Project

The concept of the project was formed and developed by writer Gemma Seltzer who was interested in capturing 5am which she found to be an interesting time of day just in between night and day. She went around the city writing about her observations and thoughts and recorded them in her very own blog which can be accessed online.

http://5amlondon.com/

Why I've Chosen to Replicate the Project

I am really excited by the possibilities for inspiration this project can create. I heard Gemma Seltzer was running a workshop based on the project and signed up. 

Before the workshop we were sent some exercises to do in preparation for it. I chose to get up early in order to go  out at 5am and observe my local area and beyond. I did some free writing and eventually decided that I would culminate my thoughts into poetry which I would share on this blog and I will continue to do probably once every fortnight for about six months in order to keep a record of my own inspirations and to hopefully inspire other fellow creative writers. I will not be copying the original idea but will see what direction it takes me in personally. 

Preparation Exercise (Thursday 21st November 2013)

" The journey of life is unpredictable. Reflections through the window point to the sky." (My favourite initial observation)

For the preparation exercise I started off in Ilford, where I live and took the nearest bus which had at least 20 or so people on it before I got on and I got off at Ilford Town Centre. I proceeded to take the 25 bus that heads toward Oxford Circus and eventually decided to get off the bus wherever I happened to be at 6am. I got off at St Paul's. 

Pictures of my trip and the poem it inspired me to write follows:

Oh London, Oh London sleep you never do

Sometimes I wonder what you've got to prove.

Illuminated by fakery and artifice galore

At the heart and at the core.

Whoknowswhere we will end up

Every reflection makes its declaration to the sky.

Does heaven have the capacity to hold

The abundance of early risers who enter the morning cold?

The Workshop

During her workshop yesterday (21st November 2013) Gemma got us to do a range of free writing exercises, providing us with triggers (e.g. what does 5am feel, taste and sound like?)

My favourite exercise involved taking a picture from another era and two from Gemma's 5am project and creating a piece based on how they could interact. I had a black and white picture of a couple in their wedding clothes and I had to place them within a forest and a telephone box near a Blockbusters store. I will definitely be considering how these characters could develop in my story and  I may even decide to publish it in the future!

Gemma, if you happen to come across this blog, I would like to thank you again for inspiring, teaching and showing me a world of creative possibilities at 5am in London.