Approximately once a year Tim Walker hops onto Linda’s Book Bag and I’m delighted to welcome him back today with a slightly different post, introducing PERVERSE – a collection of short prose and verse, his brand new collection of short stories and poems, and sharing a poem with us.

Last time Tim was here we were sharing an extract from Arthur Dux Bellorum. Tim has introduced his book Uther’s Destiny in a post you can see here, as well as  previously writing a fabulous guest post about fiction and fear when the second book in his A Light in the Dark Ages series, Ambrosius: Last of the Romans, was published, and you can read that post here.

Tim will be back in June so don’t forget to pop back then.

PERVERSE – a collection of short prose and verse is available in ebook and paperback. It’s also free today in Kindle unlimited!

So, over to Tim:

Perverse – a collection of short prose and verse

PERVERSE is an eclectic collection of short, snatched memories and random ideas that tumbled out of a monthly spoken word event called The Innerverse. After two years, I had amassed plenty of odd poems and short stories, and began to pull this collection together during corona virus quarantine in March 2020.

‘Perversity’, is an obstinate urge or contrary behaviour; a wilful desire to not conform.

That made me think – life can sometimes be perverse – full of contradictions, disappointments, grief and sheer bloody-mindedness. But despite this, our sense of what is right and our collective willingness to submit to the rule of law, provides a counter balance that somehow gets us through.

I hope you enjoy this collection of verse and prose – a pastiche of my life, a nod to history and current affairs, a wistful look back, a hope for better days, and a celebration of life and all its riches.

Thanks so much Tim. I think we could all do with a celebration of life right now. Thank you for introducing PERVERSE and for sharing the following poem Down to the Sea with us (as well as the impossibly cute photo of you as a toddler in the sea).

Down to the Sea

Tiny feet dancing on the hot sand

Happily holding Mummy’s hand,

Giggling and squinting in the bright white light

White granules reflecting with all their might

Rhythmic lapping of white prancing mares

Whisper a summons to Neptune’s wet lair.

 

I break away from her protection

And run towards the beckoning big blue

Her shriek drives me on, wanted to be chased

Into the unknown; a brand-new experience

The consequences only big people know

Onwards into the cool splashing sea

You see it’s all just a game to me

She catches me when I’m up to my chest

Lacking a plan except she knows what’s best

Before my mischief leads to whatever I’ll find

In my infant’s inexperienced and untested mind.

 

She lifts me with a cry of relief mixed with rage

Her tight grip tells me this is not a game.

It’s the end of my adventure now I’ve been waylaid

Confined to the towel digging holes with my spade.

But I remember the thrill of running into the sea

A defining experience of risk-taker me.

By Tim Walker

About Tim Walker

Tim Walker is an independent author living near Windsor in the UK. He grew up in Liverpool where he began his working life as a trainee reporter on a local newspaper, The Woolton Mercury. A media career ensued, including a stint overseas in Zambia.

His creative writing journey began in earnest in 2013, as a therapeutic activity whilst recovering from cancer treatment. He started an historical fiction series, A Light in the Dark Ages, in 2015, following a visit to the near-by site of a former Roman town.The aim of the series is to connect the end of Roman Britain to elements of the Arthurian legend, presenting an imagined history of Britain in the early Dark Ages.

His latest book is Arthur, Dux Bellorum, a re-imagining of the story of King Arthur, published in March 2019. Book four in the A Light in the Dark Ages series, it won two book awards in April 2019 – One Stop Fiction Book of the Month and the Coffee Pot Book Club Book Award. The final book in the series, Arthur Rex Brittonum, is due out in June 2020.

The series starts with Abandoned (second edition 2018); followed by Ambrosius: Last of the Romans (2017); and book three, Uther’s Destiny (2018). Series book covers are designed by Canadian graphic artist, Cathy Walker. Tim is self-published under his brand name, timwalkerwrites.

Tim has also written two books of short stories, Thames Valley Tales (2015), and Postcards from London (2017); a dystopian thriller, Devil Gate Dawn (2016); and two children’s books, co-authored with his daughter, Cathy – The Adventures of Charly Holmes (2017) and Charly & The Superheroes (2018) with a third in the pipeline – Charly in Space.

To find out more you can visit Tim’s website. You’ll find him on Amazon and Facebook and you can also follow Tim on Twitter @timwalker1666.