Author profile: New Contexts 9

Chris Athorne’s poetry appears in Acumen, MAGMA, Poetry Scotland, The Ekphrastic Review and anthologies Apocalyptic Landscape and Lines of Communication. A pamphlet, A Book of Songs, is with Poetry Salzburg. Chris enjoys running, tango, drawing, the piano, and fine wine.
John Atkinson’s writing tries to capture the sound and images of people as they live their lives. Previously published in international magazines and a playwright; he hails from Wexford, Ireland.
Sam Aureli is an Italian-born poet living in the Boston area. A first-generation college graduate, he spent decades working in design and construction before turning to poetry. He is the author of On the Edge of Knowing (Kelsay Books, 2026) and That’s Not My Shadow (The Poetry Box, 2027).
David Birkett is a husband, poet, cyclist and vegan, although not always in that order. He will, if unchecked, discourse at length on what he believes to be the overlooked poetry of Mervyn Peake.
Helen Boyles has poetry collections published by Indigo Dreams and Palewell Press and is Co-chair of the South Devon-based community of Moor Poets.
Susan M. Breall’s short stories have appeared in numerous anthologies. By day she handles cases involving abuse, abandonment and neglect of children. By night she writes fiction.
Joseph Chaplain is a writer who lives in the Peak District. His poetry has appeared in New Contexts, The Rebis, The Crank Mag and At the Fraying Edge of History by Derby Stanza Poets (Coverstory Books, 2025). 
Ray Clark is the award-winning author of the best-selling Yorkshire Murders series, set in Leeds, West Yorkshire. He divides his time by writing, singing live on the music circuit, and helping to raise money for the OPA cancer charity.
Landscape, nature, weather, man’s destruction, local history & his farm all inspire Andrew Collinson. Northern Counties Collection, Pendle War Poetry, Networds & Plumb Tree Tavern all exhibit his work.
Annemarie Cooper lives in Tower Hamlets and has had poems in various magazines. Here latest published pamphlets are Proof of Identity and No Overall Plan (both with Poetic Cat Press). She loves walking and gardening.
Arthur Davis is a retired management consultant who has been quoted in The New York Times and in Crain’s New York Business, taught at The New School and interviewed on New York TV News Channel 1. He was featured in a single author collection, nominated twice for a Pushcart Prize.
Sara Davis is a member of Roundel poets in Kent. Her poems have been published in the collections Links in the Chain and Catching the Shards. She was joint winner of the Sir Philip Sydney poetry prize in 2020 and won the 2024 Autumn Voices poetry prize.
Philip Dunkerley does his poetry in South Lincolnshire, where he lives. His poems quite often sneak past editors, and he is, improbably, Peterborough’s current ‘Good Shout’ Slam Champion.
Jim Friedman is a member of the Derby Poetry Stanza. He had his first collection of poems, Standing Alone, Leaning Against (with Dave Smith), published in 2022. His second collection, A Picture’s Worth, was published in 2024.
Ian Gouge has a number books to his name: novels, short stories, and collections of poetry. He is a prize-winning short story writer and has had his prose and poetry published widely. A sometime Indie Publisher, you can find his work on Substack at Writing until the light goes out.
Jeremy Grant lives in Leicestershire. Previous poetry publications include Magma, War, Literature and the Arts, Before the Cameras Leave Ukraine: An Anthology Raising Funds for Ukrainian Refugees, The Emma Press Anthology of Fatherhood, and New Contexts: 7 and 8.
Laurie Hollman is a psychoanalyst, artist, author of the debut novel, The Impasto Effect, and a poetry/art collection, We Are All in All of Us in Love and War. She has also written award-winning parenting books. Other work has been published in Huffington Post, Brussels Review, California Quarterly and elsewhere.
David Horner’s most recent books are the Cracking Creative Writing series for Brilliant Publications and The 26 – poems inspired by the alphabet.
Alison Hramiak is a poet, writer and tutor from West Yorkshire. She has been published in several Forward Poetry anthologies, New Contexts, and on various websites. She reviews books for websites aimed at giving immigrants and refugees a voice. Her work can be found at http://www.poetryforlives.co.uk. 
Ben Hramiak is an author with a Bachelor’s Honours in English Literature and Creative Writing. He is currently writing a historical novel set in feudal Japan.
Tim Kiely is a criminal barrister and writer based in London. He is the author of three poetry pamphlets, including Hymn to the Smoke and No Other Life, and his poems have been published in Magma, Under the Radar, Atrium and Ink, Sweat & Tears.
Dave Kurley lives in central Portugal. His first book of poems and photographs is Irritating the Silver Lining. He has a website crammed full of his poetry and photographs at http://www.davekurley.net. You might also bump into him on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/badvibrations62.bsky.social.
John Lancaster is author of five poetry collections, most recently Potters: A Division Of Labour and Where The Trent Rises. Widely published in magazines and winner of competition prizes, including being a runner-up in the National Poetry Competition. A jazz trombonist, he lives in Totnes, Devon.
Richard Lister’s poetry draws you into stories of intriguing characters, images and places. His Scattered with Grace is ‘a sumptuous collection, sprinkled with humour and a generosity of spirit’. In Edge & Cusp, he ‘captured life like a vibrant painting’. His work is also widely published including Acumen & Orbis.
Alwyn Marriage’s eighteen books include poetry, fiction and non-fiction. She gives readings throughout Britain, Europe, New Zealand and Australia. Her latest two poetry collections are Travelling Light and From Darkness to Light. You can find her at marriages.me.uk/alwyn.
Caroline Matusiak has published in early years education, and was a contributor to the Rumbold Report. She has two collections of poetry: The 36 from Ripon and Words on the Bus. She enjoys wild swimming, hiking and open mic nights.
Iain McClure, originally from the North of Ireland, lives and works in England, teaching literature and politics. He writes about Ireland, the near and distant past, the natural world and landscape. His most recent work explores the intersection of lyrical and scientific language.
Denise McSheehy is a poet and short story writer. She has had two collections of poetry published, the most recent with Oversteps Books, and is working on a collection of short stories. She has received a grant from The Society of Authors towards work in progress.
Jonty Pennington-Twist is an English poet, residing in Edinburgh. His work has been published in several magazines, anthologies and international collections and he is currently closing in on the final selection for his first collection (due to be published in 2026).
After a career in education, Janet Philo started writing in 2015. She has two solo poetry pamphlets plus work in numerous anthologies. She loves to share her poetry live alongside her husband’s guitar music. Janet is inspired by other writers and is a member of Ashbourne Writers’ Group in Derbyshire.
Jenna Plewes has published 4 full collections and 6 pamphlets. A Heart-squeeze of Beginnings and Endings is her latest from Hedgehog Press. Her pamphlets are sold in aid of ‘Doctors without Borders’ and ‘Freedom from Torture’ and are available from her, jenna.selvas@googlemail.com.
Stephen Poole is a retired policeman. His poems have appeared in The Ekphrastic Review, Poetry on the Lake, LPP Magazine and in various anthologies. He has performed his poetry to live audiences at venues including The Poetry Cafe in Covent Garden, Maidstone Fringe Festival, and Maidstone Radio.
Jenny Robb has been writing poetry since retiring from a career in children’s and mental health services. Her debut collection is The Doll’s Hospital, (Yaffle Press 2022.) Her second collection is Hear the World Explode, (Yaffle Press 2024.) She lives in Liverpool.
Dave Smith is currently working on a short collection of poems which reflect life in the 1960s. His debut collection Standing Alone, Leaning Against (written alongside Jim Friedman) was published in 2022.
Nicholas Samuel Stember spent most of his life in the suburbs of Princeton, NJ, but now lives in the Faroe Islands with his wife and grandkids. His works can be found in novels and anthologies. He can be found at https://nsstember.com.
Eleanor Jane Turner is happiest when swimming. She enjoys the outdoors, especially remote Scotland. She presents her creative writing at the Forest Hill stanza.
Kate Vanhinsbergh has been nominated for a Pushcart prize and Best of the Net, and has poems published in Aftershock, Iamb, Frazzled Lit, Ink, Sweat & Tears and others. She was long-listed in the Mslexia Poetry Pamphlet Competition 2026.
Keith Willson celebrates words in poetry, prose, and song, performing regularly around East Sussex at open mikes and on local radio. His poetry has appeared in Dream Catcher and New Contexts, and his stories in Bridge House’s Good News anthology, The Frogmore Papers, and Scribble Magazine.
Charlotte Wilson lives in Ripon, North Yorkshire, where she is inspired by nature, spirituality and the ways we find meaning in our ordinary – or extraordinary – lives. She has had poetry published in New Contexts and the Ripon Poetry Festival anthologies for 2023 and 2024.
Robin Lindsay Wilson is an award-winning playwright, director and poet. He has three collections of poetry published by Cinnamon Press. His new collection will be published by Cinnamon in spring next year. His work has appeared in many literary magazines internationally and in the UK.
Dave Wynne-Jones gained an MA in creative writing, then scratched a living writing articles and organising expeditions for mountaineers. He’s published three books of mountaineering non-fiction and poetry pamphlets, Kidstuff and The Way Taken. Other poems have appeared in anthologies and magazines.