Showcase: Jessica Death + Great Uncle Pat + The Evolution Of Evolution

Edited by Mary Walsh

Hello, I’m Mary Walsh and this is my final Showcase for October. We’re nearing Halloween; a festival that has evolved over the centuries from the Irish Samhain (pronounced Sawain) to signal the end of Summer to all Souls Day, to the all-singing, all-dancing, pumpkin-carving trick-or-treating festival we see today. This first piece by Liam Smith, Jessica Death, is an ethereal eerie poem about the death of Jessica and starts with rain-soaked dirt and a beechwood casket. A lament for things left undone and regrets of actions…

Jessica Death

How little I knew. How little I wanted to.
And as the rain-soaked dirt is flung
Grave wards, to where the frugal
Beechwood casket rests
I find my mind, unbidden, dredge the past
And exhume my memories of Jessica Death.

Nights in spring air, beneath the cloud-choked skies
Cold wind in golden hair, caught in halogen light
There’s industrial on the stereo. I close my eyes
And feel her forward fingers thread through mine…

Condensation shrouds the windows. Smeared
By ungainly grappling in the backseat.
Unconsummated. And yet – I traced each
Hesitation mark, every red rehearsal.
It doesn’t hurt.
No.
And yet – it must have done so. I wonder now
What role I played when it came to walk
That final stage. If indeed that was the play.

Days spent in silence, avoiding her path
Allegations of violence that riddled her past
One morning I waited, fingers drumming the wheel
And yet no door was opened, her house remained still…

I traced my fingers lightly over clues and tokens
The meaning between the words that weren’t spoken.
In my heart, I guess – I know –
Whose hand authored that obituary. If not
The method, the cause, the final straw.
It doesn’t hurt.
No.
Not anymore. Not
For Jessica Death.

(c) Liam Smith, 2025

Connect with Liam on Facebook: facebook.com/liamsdesk, Instagram: @LiamSmithAuthor  and via his website: www.liamsdesk.co.uk/

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There has been a revolution in travel too. The 200-year anniversary of the railways has just taken place; however, people thought in Victorian times that going at such speed would make one’s head explode! I wonder what they would think of today’s hop-on-hop-off airlines? Here’s an extract from a letter by my Great Uncle Pat Sullivan, who went to Australia in 1912 – a journey of six weeks by ship. He found work on a sheep farm, and here he describes the work and his life in Oz. I was stunned by the amount of milk and eggs he consumed in the course of a day!

Dear Brigid, Tom and Little Tommy,

Well I tell you now, how I like Aus and what I have to do.  Australia is a fine country and very Beautiful & healthy. But I could not or would not advise anyone to come out here unless he or she has friends and plenty of money because there is terrible Hardships awaiting them. I was one of 100 to succeed has I have succeeded  only through friends have I got on so well. & now I am one of the Boys & as Happy as the Day’s are long. I am working on a Dairy Farm and Sheep Station. my work is Boundary Riding. From Mon to Sat. .Rise at 5⁰⁰ AM.  Swim in river. 1 pint of Fresh milk & 4 eggs.  Groom my 2 horses Molly & Tricks. Feed & water them. Breakfast 8^AM 2 courses. Saddle up & start around Boundry. A Glass Milk and egg at 10⁰⁰ Lunch. Around Boundry again  Dinner 12.30^pm 3.Course. after dinner Tree falling or in Garden until 4⁰⁰ saddle up muster sheep 1.000.  Drive mob of Fat Cattle from hills to river for Water  take them Back & Finish. Sunday Rise 5.o.c.am as usual. Finish at 9.30 or 10^oc AM. Change & go in for Mass 11^oc at Mansfield 14 miles. Return in time for mustering sheep. My friend is in the Milking Shed driving Milking Machines. I have some exciting times while I am doing my Round  Eagles are terrible slaughters of lambs and sheep that are down. some eagles measure 9 feet from tip of one wing to the other. The snakes are also very dangerous to foot passengers. I am as Wild & as Lively as a Cat. I am Singing and Dancing from Morn till night. If Joe wants to come out here he will have to do some hard Graft to make him fat & strong & be able to lift some heavy Logs & Trees Xxx Your Affectionate Brother Pat xxx

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Our last piece is by Jilly Henderson-Long. Pen to Print has certainly caused a writing revolution in Barking and Dagenham and across the world. Always helpful and supportive, it allows new and emerging writers to gain confidence in their craft: whether that’s in novels, short stories, playwriting, or poetry. Here, Jilly shares the evolution of publishing your work.

The Evolution Of Evolution

I first experimented with self-publishing in 1999, when I produced a booklet entitled Beyond The Clouds. It was A5 and ran to just 18 pages, which I arduously typed, using both sides of the paper. I then bound each issue with an orange cover, using three staples and a ‘spine’ of black masking tape. It took me several weeks to produce half a dozen or so copies, which I gave away to friends and family, keeping one for my records. My next venture came later in 1999, when I put together a poetry book, Presents, with the idea of printing off enough copies to give to every child I knew as a special gift for Christmas. Through a contact, I was able to get the address of a printing company who agreed to print the book, so I ordered a couple of dozen copies. Over the course of the next few years, I produced several further poetry collections which were printed by Parchment (Oxford) Ltd.

In 2021, I decided the time was ripe for a new collection of poems and my book Evolution was born, featuring what I considered to be my best work. Once I’d decided which poems to include, I printed off a dummy copy from my laptop, swapped and switched the poems about until I was happy, and then began to seek a printer. The first company that came to mind was Parchment. I contacted them and asked for a quote. When they said they’d be happy to oblige, I emailed the book over to them. My consignment of 100 copies arrived a few weeks later. I now sell these at poetry readings, or to people I know who wished to buy a copy.

If you’re considering following this path, here are a few tips to help you along the way. ALWAYS do your research. For example, how many copies could you realistically sell, and where? ALWAYS be sure of how you want the pages laid out, even if you have to self-print a dummy copy (or several) like I did. SHOP around. I was lucky – I knew I could trust Parchment  – but when my young writer group produced two volumes of their work back in the mid-2000s, I approached several local printing companies before I had a quote to suit the group’s budget.

Finally, a note about ISBNs (International Standard Book Number). If self-publishing small volumes like these in low numbers, an ISBN number is not pre-requisite. However, if you’re looking to market to a wider readership, it’s a good idea to apply for one. Most local bookshops rarely take books without an ISBN, so it’s worth considering if you want your book to go on general sale. ISBN numbers can be purchased from Nielsen UK ISBN Store (for the United Kingdom and Ireland) and Bowker (for the USA). A single ISBN number costs around £89.00 but they can be bought in bulk if you plan to publish lots of books. Personally, I tend to keep my marketing small and local, especially if raising funds for charity. It won’t bring worldwide fame and fortune, but it has every chance of raising my local profile. Good Luck!

(c) Jilly Henderson-Long, 2025

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You can hear great new ideas, creative work and writing tips on Write On! Audio. Find us on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Google Podcasts and Spotify. Type Pen to Print into your browser and look for our logo, or find us on Podcasters.Spotify.com.

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If you or someone you know has been affected by issues covered in our pages, please see the relevant link below for ​information, advice and support​: https://pentoprint.org/about/advice-support/