Hopes were built and met at the residence of Prof. J.P Clarck last Sun. 25th May, 2014 when he warmly welcomed AJ House of Poetry in his abode at Apapa, Lagos. In his words… “Feel free; feel at home” we were placed in the mood to have a down to earth discussion with him. It was more like a parlor talk ranging from Poetry to politics and of course to personal life experiences.
Life-time advices were given on what steps to take in being a better poet and in building a reputable poetry organization. In his words, “You should be your first critic; therefore you must know your subject and must go through your apprenticeship”.
Prof. J.P, whose wife (also a Professor in the art) advised The House to leverage on the modern-day technology in fast-tracking the publication of our works, talked extensively on how her husband and herself started-out as writers and the different steps taken to bring their works to fore.
At the end of the day Prof. J.P promised a visit to The House and books were exchange. Some of the titles gifted us include
-Still Full Tide (collections 1958-2012)
-The Example Of Shakespeare
-J.P Clark Collections 1962-2000
-The Song Of A Goat
-Two sisters
For me, it was great fun as I couldn’t stop gazing time to time on the different portraits and mind-blowing artworks that consumed the walls of the room.
Watch-out for a visit to Prof. Wole Soyinka…
