Wheelsong Books Review of 2023

2023 has been an amazing year for Wheelsong Books. I established the company in 2020 during the early months of the pandemic, basically for something to do. I set it up as a not-for-profit company to promote new and emerging voices in poetry, and also to raise much needed funds for Save the Children - a global relief charity. 

What did Wheelsong do in 2023? 

January saw the publication of the first book in the Symphoniya de Toska trilogy by American writer Marten Hoyle. Its January 19th publication coincided with the birthday of one of his favourite poets, Edgar Allen Poe. Marten's second publication was released on April 9th, the birthday of Charles Baudelaire, and the final instalment was published to coincide with the birthday of another of Marten's favourite dark writers, H. P. Lovecraft, on August 20th. How's that for symbolism?

In late February, together with my good friend Charlene Phare the Facebook group Invisible Poets was launched. The name was an ironic swipe at the fact that most poets go unnoticed and uncelebrated even though they may actually be quite brilliant (and in many cases better than those who are well-known, highly visible, published poets. The group quickly flourished, and now, at the time of writing this post, has reached 15,000 members. 

Also in February, Tunisian bard Rafik Romdhani released his third book, Vapour of the Mind through the Wheelsong Books label. As in previous books, Rafik excels in the use of rich imagery, metaphor and awesome insights into his life in North Africa. 

In March Wheelsong Books announced the call for poems for Wheelsong Poetry Anthology 2. The anthology was published in April with a stunning cover photograph (courtesy of Kerry Cole) and sold quite nicely, raising around £450 ($565) for Save the Children. As with all Wheelsong Books, it is still available on Amazon and other online outlets worldwide. In the same month I published a book called Nocturne, which featured a lot of poetry about the night, sleep and dreams, and darkness. 

In June, Matt Elmore's first poetry collection, the sublime Constellation Road was published and this was followed closely in July by Imelda Garcia's debut collection Beyond the Pyre for Wheelsong. Both books contain some stratospheric poetry, and both deserve a wide readership for their brilliance. 

September saw the publication of Wheelsong Poetry Anthology 3, which featured a stunning image by photographer Lynda Clifton. Containing over 200 poems from more than 100 poets, Anthology 3 has already sold 400 copies and continues to be available. We have so far donated £750 ($940) to Save the Children for their relief initiatives from the sales of this book.

December saw the publication of Brandon Adam Haven's second poetry book, This Broken Home, which is a darkly gothic collection of somewhat disturbing poetry and horror flash fiction. If you intend to read this book alone, I strongly advise you to keep all your lights on. 

We also relaunched Live Poets Society, which now goes out live twice each week, on Friday at 8pm (UK time) and on Tuesday at 3pm (US Eastern time). Viewing numbers have been on the increase, which this shows a healthy interest in the spoken word and live performance poetry.

The Wheelsong Books blog was also launched in the summer, with regular posts about poetry from me, alongside Matt Elmore, Brandon Adam Haven and Charlene Phare, alongside guest posts. It has so far attracted almost 30,000 views and there are some amazing, thought provoking posts on all aspects of poetry and creative writing. 

That was 2023. Let's raise a glass to the coming year and do our best to keep poetry remains alive and kicking. Wheelsong Books has a long list of publications waiting in the wings, including two more anthologies!

Steve Wheeler

A Review Of “Beyond The Pyre”

There is a purpose that burns within us all… a fire that longs for expression and validity. At times it burns without even being identified,… a longing, existing to redeem sufferings into something new and precious as life itself.  This refinement burns brightly within an incineary collection of poems by Imelda Garcia entitled “Beyond The Pyre”, published by Wheelsong Books.

Imelda possesses an exuberant edge that sets her apart from everyday authors. A poet in every sense of the word, she is able to extrapolate images out of emotions… weave stories out of feelings, and discern truths out of deception.

Her topics maneuver between the diverse and the divine. She is no one trick pony, touching upon such hot button subjects as climate change, war, poverty, racism, women’s rights, and child advocacy. She also celebrates her Latino background exquisitely through the eyes of an endlessly expressive spirit. Imelda is bold, and writes with a distinct expression that gives every poem her signature. 

Her years of experience with tragedy and celebrations as a mother come to life in such poems as “Momma Doesn’t Want”, “Bolt” and “Woman Of Wonder”, in which she elegantly celebrates her daughter. She delicately touches upon childbirth and the ups and downs of motherhood here in “Womb”: 

“mothers sow seeds from the womb

tend then watch seedlings grow 

nurturing throughout life’s expanse 

often while consumed with sorrow”

The spiritual  aspects of her poetic voice are also evident in selections with such enthralling  titles as “What If God’s Not One Of Us”, “Untouchables”, “Rock Of My Altar”, and “Oh J.C.!” In “I Thirst” she passionately petitions to us all to become aware of our own precious redeeming vulnerabilities by addressing her own:

“I and mine call on your humanity

though He might have said it first

look to your souls, you’ll see

I am a human being, and I thirst”

Able to cover so many subjects, she ducks and dodges jabs of the mundane like a skilled prize fighter, unafraid to challenge any metaphor. She dances with death in poems like “Above Crosses” or “Forbidden Fruit”, and even explores the cosmos itself with titles like “Celestial”, “Of Stardust” and “Ethereal”.

Her love poems soar as she professes a most solid adoration for her beloved husband. Balancing between heavenly and earthly desires, Garcia knows romance where it comes to for better or for worse, or as she would describe it, “… to go for gold and failed to fall”, a fine line from “In Heaven”. From passion to endearing forever love beyond the physical, she does not fail to deliver.

Her dedication to poetry is evident in offerings like “La Poeta”, “On The Swing”, and the following excerpt from “Abstract Stamp”:

“…The art I now create for prosperity 

Are words, I hope with clarity

Impress upon future review

My definition of my view

Having shared on podium stalls

On stage, in schools, library halls

I try to stamp a liberal mark

On countless minds who hear my spark” 

No one writes quite like Imelda Garcia. Her use of short staccato phrasings, set with a lush use of metaphors, paints a mosaic of meaningful word murals that are both enjoyable to read and practical to interpret.

“Beyond The Pyre” is exactly that… a white hot refinement beyond our earthly reality into an understanding of illuminating truths, both profound and utterly beautiful. 

Matt Elmore

Available now on Amazon

Beyond the Pyre
https://a.co/d/5vlnfqY