Annie Rutherford

close up of snow drop in clutch of snowdrops, in low light, dark behind, but the front ones have a little weak sunlight on them, and are just beginning to open.

Inclement Weather for Immortal Hags February comes in on a storm, wind shaking the roof to its rotten core, slates chattering. We are spare teeth compacted in its jaw like enchanted sleepers. Trees tapping at our panes with fingerbones loaned from the dead, infecting our fractured dreams. Everything screaming. All gale, no owl. No one could rest through a night like this. The day rises up like a flood, inevitable. My ancestors shudder in my skin. We go out not because the day is better, but because the nights are worse. We go out to move our blood. We meet three deer on the common. We see a giant raven carrying sticks in their beak. At the top of our tiny world, a weak sun blinks through cloud. The lightning rod of the white birch I tied a red thread round on this same day in an antique era watching suspiciously with its many eyes. The thread – a spell against loss, a plea for mercy from the perilous realm – frays into a sleety wind. Next year it will vanish entirely. I won’t notice for months. It’s not raining or snowing. It’s not fine either. The lake slate grey like a roof or wall that would shut any mortal out. Is it winter enough for an end to winter? We declare inclement weather for immortal hags. Aged as we have, a thousand years in the turbulent dark, my crone shadow on top of me now. We have one foot in this place and one in another and something is dragging at both of our hands. I want to go home. I want to sleep through. I want the cave and the torpor. I want to take all these layers off and lie skin bared to a parallel sky. Do immortal hags feel their feelings? I’m feeling all mine. We have left an offering of our sadness, our small despairs poor fuel for her fire.

An imbolc poem from #EmergencyDream. I wish you inclement weather for immortal hags today. I wish you fuel enough for your fire but less need for it. I wish you an early and thorough thaw. Melted ice. A new season of hope blooming. Spring spring spring spring spring. #Imbolc #BrigidsDay #Cailleach

"If you use AI there’s a loss of process—art process, theatre making, translation....Process is where you build knowledge. Just going from A to B without process, you gain no knowledge, no human experience. You gain zero opportunity because you are not having to engage with anybody else..."

#xl8 💙📚

78 loans of Basic Nest Architecture
27 loans of Much With Body 
8 loans of Recovering Dorothy
1 loan of Shadow Dispatches
304 loans of hardback Some of Us Just Fall
264 loans of paperback Some of Us Just Fall 
387 loans of hardback The Company of Owls 61 loans of The Company of Owls ebook

In Praise of PLR (Public Lending Rights), all those who fought for them, lending services, all those who use them! Viva Libraries!

PLR statement day. Incredibly helpful payment (£140 for me this time) but most of all I love to see which of my books have been borrowed. Keep reading!

Masterclass: Winter writing as (self) preservation | Saving up Light for The Long Night | Arvon What does winter mean to you? Is it something to celebrate or something to survive? Would you rather hibernate through it or do you relish the cold? In 'Summer Haibun' Aimee Nezhukumatathil writes of...

Ahhhh I almost forgot to do one last shout out about my NEXT event.

Join me online tomorrow evening - Tuesday 20th January - for an @arvonfoundation.bsky.social at home Online Masterclass -

On 'winter writing as (self) preservation Saving up Light for The Long Night'.

#WritingSky #BookSky

Question for publishing people! Is Unbound Edition Press connected in anyway to the now defunct Unbound publishers, or is the name just a coincidence?...

'Write a memory, soak and tear
into as many pieces as your years...
I cannot promise you it will work'.

Love this poem, 'Home-Charm' by Harry Josephine Giles on @annierutherford.bsky.social 's Advent Calendar today in aid of #msf Still time to sign up!
mailchi.mp/posteo/poetr...

“There is still hope in the handwriting that refuses to be mass-produced for the world.” Leena Norms

Let me recommend the Advent Poetry Calendar by @annierutherford.bsky.social raising funds for #MSF

This year’s selection fits the world we live in like a glove

mailchi.mp/posteo/poetr...

So glad you're enjoying, Sam!

My email account finally learnt not to send these to junk today 🤦‍♀️ no taste! Every day so far has been a jewel, so glad I signed up

V proud to have had poems included in Annie’s brilliant poetry advent calendar each year. It can be a difficult time but what better company through it than a poem sent to you every day? And knowing that is helping others in terrible need? That’s the spirit of the season. Not too late to sign up!

My other beautiful advent calendar, @annierutherford.bsky.social’s poetry calendar benefitting @msf.ca, today features Polly Atkin locating hope & endurance in the form of a grey wagtail’s winter lessons. I needed that. @pollyrowena.bsky.social

What a lovely treat to find this, Paul! Thank you so much for doing it. Along with @annierutherford.bsky.social 's advent calendar for @msf.ca that's the season sorted 🙏 😊 🙏

The best Advent Calendar is back!

GitHub - pluja/awesome-privacy: Awesome Privacy - A curated list of services and alternatives that respect your privacy because PRIVACY MATTERS. Awesome Privacy - A curated list of services and alternatives that respect your privacy because PRIVACY MATTERS. - pluja/awesome-privacy

There's a list of options here: github.com/pluja/awesom...

This is a lovely thing.

This was a lovely part of my December last year and I'm glad to see it return. Perhaps your inbox could use some poetry, too?

When I first came up with this idea back in 2023, I told myself that if the Poetry Advent Calendar could raise £500 for MSF, I'd be more than chuffed - this year, we've surpassed that in the first 90 minutes of the advent calendar going live! Huge thanks to everyone who's donated and shared so far ❤️

Time ONCE MORE for the best advent calendar of them all! Donate! Get a poem every day throughout this miserable month!

Signed! Thank you for putting the effort into organising this again, Annie. It was fabulous last year, and most importantly it's for @msf.ca Poetry friends, Annie brings you the gift of poetry, please sign up👇

Perhaps, like me, you already have an extraordinarily indulgent & fancy chocolate advent calendar sent by your extravagantly delightful sibling 😇

But I recommend also signing up for Annie’s poetry advent calendar to benefit MSF & their indispensable relief work. Last year’s was an utter joy.

Image of an advent calendar, with the words "Poetry Advent Calendar"

It's a tad down to the wire, I know, but I'm thrilled to say that I'm running the Poetry Advent Calendar again this year -- sign up by donating to @msf.ca and receive a poem every day from 1 to 24 December: book.benefacthq.com?id=poetry-ad...

Queer Gothic Words - Lavender Menace A monthly book club at Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive focusing on gothic books by LGBTQ+ authors, or featuring queer characters/themes.

Edinburgh's Lavendar Menace Archives run a Queer Gothic book club, might be worth getting in touch with them? lavendermenace.org.uk/event/queer-...

And @kaitewelsh.bsky.social will also have interesting thoughts on this!...

In advance of this -- if any of my fellow translators have some favourite reviews, which you think deal with translation particularly well, I'd love to see them!

✨ A week to go ✨ Join @annierutherford.bsky.social for 'Reviewing Translations: Making the Translator Visible' ONLINE on Wednesday 22 October 📚 ✨

Find out more and book: www.uea.ac.uk/groups-and-c...

In partnership with @goethe-institut-uk.bsky.social

Green speech bubble containing text that says: Join our Board of Directors. Are you passionate about inclusion and fair employment for disabled people? Do you want to contribute to an award-winning charity that is making a difference? Apply now

Green box containing text that says: We are particularly keen to hear from people with experience in: Policy landscape / political environment. Funding environment, Local / National Government or Third Sector. Commercial and business development. Diversity and lived experience. Marketing or PR. Digital transformation, IT, Cyber Security. Apply now - intowork.org.uk

Join our Board of Directors!

Deadline for applications: Monday 20 October at 2 pm.

Find out more and to apply on our vacancy page: buff.ly/IMUuTQP

#EdinburghCharity #BoardMembersWanted #JoinOurTeam #NonprofitLeadership #CharityRecruitment #VolunteerOpportunities #InclusiveLeadership

Oh no, what a shame.

I agree, I'd tend to translate Mensch as human/person -- unless the masculine is clearly intentional rather than just implied in the original. I like your version!

We need this in Scotland. It’s not even wishful or fanciful thinking: it’s financially astute. Our creative industries are absolutely vital

I'm really looking forward to this, do come along!

What a fantastic event! @bcltuea.bsky.social @annierutherford.bsky.social @goethe-institut-uk.bsky.social