62 Comments

Masterful, Sir. I even started to half believe it myself. I liked your poem actually. As Olivia says, you're a very talented liar. In fact, I believe you even made up this comment

Expand full comment
author

Hahahaha. Very clever. (<me responding to my own comment!)

Thank you, Terry. It's all your doing. I really really enjoyed writing this one, especially because parts of it were actually true. I've also thoroughly enjoyed reading some Browning in the last week, so perhaps sometime in the future, this post will resolve itself into being less of a lie.

So do I actually follow up and try and post another post of poetry?

Expand full comment

1. I shall cross post this

2. Do you wish to, or should we try another round, with you reviewing something non-existent of mine, or call 8t a day. I'd prefer one 9f the first two options myself. Or we could run a poll, see what readers think? Or maybe readers could respond in these comments

Expand full comment
author

Cross-posting would be great, thanks.

A poll is also a great idea.

I would like to try to actually write a piece with multiple verses (if that's the correct term ... my lack of knowledge of poetry), but I'm not sure how long it'd actually take me.

And of course, happy to continue, these have been such fun!

Expand full comment

I agree. We could try and thrash out some ideas by email. Regarding verses taking a long time. I I have the same issue with experiments in style, so what I'm doing is writing drafts and will publish when there's something to show. Plus, my new schedule of every two weeks will help by easing the pressure, but I am comm tied to getting the next one published a week on Sunday, so it feels like a good balance. Maybe you could do something similar, i.e. Write in the background and then publish when you have something reasy

Expand full comment
author

Sounds like a good plan.

Expand full comment

Oh my goodness, Nathan, even after reading your previous challenge for Terry & then his challenge for you I STILL fell into thinking this was all true & was completely thrown at the reveal! Which is absolutely joyful because David is working and hasn't had the opportunity to come & spoil it in advance!

Well done, sir. Beautifully written, the whole thing, but considering you've never written poetry before...?? -SLOW CLAP THAT BUILDS TO RAUCOUS APPLAUSE-

Expand full comment
author

Hehe I was hoping you might get to it before David!

The question is, do I actually follow through and attempt to write more for an actual post? Or leave this as is. Or simply post a blank page and refer back once more to Terry's challenge 😉

(Also, that moon crept there into the line of verse.)

Expand full comment

Oh I vote more!! I vote more, with at least a cheeky reference to a quote from Nature, for those in the know...😉

I was grinning like a madwoman at the crescent line 🌘

Expand full comment

You’re killing me! Every time I fall in love with a work, only to find out it does not exist! I was going to post it on Reddit, set the sleuths on their mission, and then, and then! Well unreliable narrator, fortunately the true parts are what drew me to the false. I can’t wait for more. Splendid!

Expand full comment
author

Plot twist: it's all the truth...

No, no, sadly not. My apologies for nearly sending you down a near rabbit hole of sleuthing then 😉

Expand full comment

You had me for sure. What a delicious little conceit. I also read a lot of Stephen King, when I was young. He’s had a huge influence on my writing. I’m interested to see where you go next down the rabbit hole.

Expand full comment
author

Heh, thanks Ben. I had some trepidation about this one, and even a little more so after reading your recent Note!

Always glad to meet a fellow admirer of King.

Expand full comment

Damn. And here I believed every word. You’re a very talented liar - which is a marvelous skill for fiction!

Expand full comment
author

😆 Sorry! But thank you, about the lying, in the fictional context. I tell the truth when speaking, I promise ...

Expand full comment

I again fell for your ruse! But, I knew you were a poet! You are a poet. It's clear to me in all your writing. There's so much poetry there. You may want to consider writing that poetic collection of yours.

Expand full comment
author

Thanks Nadia, too kind. I spent many moments trying to make something come across as passable poetry. I feel it'd take me weeks just to write a full poem!

Expand full comment

I know you have it in you. Just do it!!! ;-)

Expand full comment

Wicked, wicked, Nathan! The gig was up once I read ‘poetry’ Fool me once... ;) Nicely done. Very convincing, too! Come to think of it, I read most of King in German decades ago.

Expand full comment
author

Too whip smart, you are. A more devilish plan I must devise.

Expand full comment

I followed both threads, so that may have helped 😅 Still, superbly written!

Expand full comment

I can't believe I had already forgotten the challenge between you and Terry until you mentioned the title...! Beautifully done, looking forward to more poetry.

Expand full comment
author

Haha, that's awesome Mya, glad to have snuck in with some words before you realised what was going on ;)

Expand full comment

This fooled me. I thought I’d discovered a new, different side of you—the masterful poet you’re hiding from all of us, and I was about to DM you about a copy of that book😂 my friend, what a wonderful wordsmith you are.

Expand full comment
author
Mar 14·edited Mar 14Author

Teehee, I'm pleased to hear 😉😆

Thanks for reading this one, Andrei. Glad you enjoyed.

Expand full comment
Oct 28, 2023Liked by Nathan Slake

That was a near miss... my brain shuts down at poetry. Can't. Won't. Was going to say that and pass this post until I read the other comments.

Expand full comment
author

Glad you made it mate 😉

Expand full comment

This is my story!

My story is One Big Lie

Bearing many truths

This is very good. I really enjoyed the ride.

Expand full comment
author

Why thank you, Gadzooks! 😄

Colour me intrigued...

Expand full comment

What?! Nooooooooooo! I was really looking forward to your poem! 😂 Man I am such an easy mark....

These experiments are awesome! Even if you now widely considered Unreliable. 😉

Also: Browning's wife was the better poet in my opinion by far!!!

Expand full comment
author

Hehe, so sorry! ;)

Don't worry, even my wife was caught off guard here.

And is that so regarding Browning's wife? I am going to go look up some of her work!

Also, thank you for the big sweep of reads this morning. I'm very sorry I'm slightly behind on your last two. I have them open in my browser ready to be read properly.

Expand full comment

Oh goodness, don't apologize for being behind! 😊 Getting to things in your own time is one of the joys of Substack over other social media. Which I take full advantage of!

Also: So sneaky! But sneaky in the cause of excellent and fun art, so it is allowed! 😄

Expand full comment
author

That's so true.

Still, I do like to try and remain on top of my reading list, otherwise it can get out of hand too easily here 😄

Expand full comment

I do admit to feeling a bit daunted as I am catching up

Expand full comment
Aug 29, 2023Liked by Nathan Slake

Jesus, I was really starting to doubt my memory. I spent most of the post saying "What? He's never spoken of this", "I don't remember that?" to myself.

Expand full comment

I had started working on my comment. It's on a post-it on my phone.

Expand full comment

What is happening? I need a reread.

Expand full comment
author

Sorry! Might be confusnig without all the context. It might be best to start here, Jo: https://slake.substack.com/p/mere-morsels

Expand full comment
Aug 27, 2023·edited Aug 28, 2023Liked by Nathan Slake

This is hilarious. "Terry Freedman’s Forgotten Paths and Winding Memories—a discovery of London's bike trails" - I mean, I used to work for Lonely Planet in Melbourne (rode my bike the 5km each way) and this could definitely have been a real book.

Expand full comment
author
Aug 27, 2023·edited Aug 27, 2023Author

Hah, that's brilliant!

Oh, and a fellow Melburnian. *Waves* Can't recall if I knew that about you already.

Expand full comment

Hello! Nice day in Melbourne today (for now) (all Melbournians will understand).

Expand full comment
author

Yeah it's beautiful right now. Roll on spring!

Expand full comment

Love it. I’m someone who finds poetry somewhat difficult. Substack is slowly showing me that the effort might be worth it. But life is so short! And there is so much to do. Food for thought at the very least. Thanks so much. A terrific response.

Expand full comment
author

Thanks Beth, that's very kind of you. And yes, poetry very difficult for me, too, in part because I do not really understand enough about its form and structure. If anything, this post made me learn a few bits.

Expand full comment