This project ran from June 2020 until the lifting of most Covid restrictions in the UK in August 2021.
During the course of the pandemic, our online activity spiked drastically. Most of the conversations we might usually have been having face-to-face moved onto messaging apps and social media. Through your phone’s predictive text function (the constantly updating custom dictionary of your phone), a kind of record was created of what you, personally, were talking and thinking about during this period of crisis. This project sought to tap into that collective consciousness of the present moment, and to make insightful, experimental, and collaborative poetry from it.
Over the course of the project, I released 18 prompts across my social media channels, asking people from around the world to respond by typing the prompt into their phones and adding to it using their phone’s predictive text, completing a phrase or a paragraph of up to 25 words. For each prompt, I then collated all of the responses and edited them into the form of a poem.
All of the poems from the project are available to read below, with credit to those who helped create them. To all those who took the time to respond, I am so grateful. Without you, this project wouldn’t have been possible.
THE POEMS
It’s All Lifting
From the prompt: “It’s all lifting…” With thanks to: Alex Scott ᐧ Amelia Rice ᐧ Ariane Hunter-Wade ᐧ Bella Doyle ᐧ Beth Angle ᐧ Camilla Frankish ᐧ Catherine Light ᐧ Dila Toplusoy ᐧ Ele Onora ᐧ Emma ᐧ Gayathri Kandiah ᐧ Georgie Head…
One day on Earth
From the prompt: “One day on Earth…” With thanks to: Amelia Rice ᐧ Anna Wolf ᐧ Annie Percik ᐧ Anonymous ᐧ Anthony Burt ᐧ Ashen Munaweera ᐧ Fi Forrest ᐧ Gayathri Kandiah ᐧ Immy Reynolds ᐧ Joel Russel ᐧ John Cullen-Kennedy…
It Feels Like A Lifetime Ago
From the prompt: “Today it snowed…” With thanks to: Anonymous ᐧ Becky Brown ᐧ Fi Forrest ᐧ Michael Francis ᐧ Moira Gonzalez ᐧ Ruweyda Hassan ᐧ Ariane Hunter-Wade ᐧ David Hunter-Wade ᐧ Gayathri Kandiah ᐧ Leon Kashdan-Brown ᐧ Julian Kashdan-Brown ᐧ Julia Kashdan-Brown ᐧ Martha Kelly ᐧ Catherine Light ᐧ Ø Macioti ᐧ Zoe MacPherson ᐧ Jonathan Mann ᐧ Raffaela Martuccio ᐧ Lesley McLean ᐧ Sara Murray…
Today It Snowed
From the prompt: “Today it snowed…” With thanks to: Alex Scott ᐧ Amelia Rice ᐧ Amy Hodkin ᐧ Anonymous ᐧ Antique Animal Jewelry ᐧ Bella Doyle ᐧ Clementine Brown ᐧ David Hunter-Wade ᐧ Emily Sandstrom ᐧ Fi Forrest ᐧ Helen Sturt ᐧ Immy Reynolds ᐧ Jane Kibblewhite ᐧ Joel Russell…
My Life On Our Planet
From the prompt: “My life on our planet…” With thanks to: Catherin Light · Julia Kashdan-Brown · Lesley McLean · Rafaela Martuccio · Zoë Wells · Niki Jewett · Rose Hallett · Michael Francis · Bella Doyle · @poetryof_loren · Oscar Davenport · Leon Kashdan-Brown · Julian Kashdan-Brown · Amelia Rice…
The Days are Shorter Now
From the prompt: “The days are shorter now…” With thanks to: Patrick Ofosu ∙ Alex Scott ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Ivan Kashdan-Brown ∙ Zoë MacPherson ∙ Lucinda Roberts ∙ Helen Francis ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Joel Russell ∙ Amelia Rice ∙ Sara Murray…
What Happens Now?
From the prompt: “What happens now…” With thanks to: Zoë Wells ∙ Bella Doyle ∙ Amelia Rice ∙ Charles Brewer ∙ Alex Scott ∙ Michael Francis ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Katie James ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Lucinda Roberts ∙ Sarah Mann ∙ Adrienne Maginness…
There’s No Such Thing As
From the prompt: “There’s no such thing as…” With thanks to: Anonymous ∙ Emma Victoria Ferguson ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Dione Orrom ∙ Lucinda Roberts ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Sara Murray ∙ @poetryof_loren ∙ Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Alex Scott ∙ Amelia Duffield ∙ Willow Orton ∙ Reuben Cox ∙ Cat Martin ∙ Amy Hodkin ∙ Bella Doyle ∙ Zoë Wells ∙ Kate Brown ∙ Amelia Rice…
Don’t Be Afraid
From the prompt: “Don’t be afraid of…” With thanks to: Joel Russell ∙ Zoe MacPherson ∙ Lottie Seymour ∙ Alex Scott ∙ Ben Tye ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Michael Francis ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Katie James ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Jonathan Mann ∙ Amy Hodkin ∙ @poetryof_loren ∙ Anja Črnivec…
Climate Change Is
From the prompt: “Climate Change Is…” With thanks to: Amy Hodkin ∙ Leon Kashdan-Brown ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Olivia Spalter ∙ Sara Murray ∙ Zoë MacPherson ∙ Charles Brewer ∙ Anja Črnivec ∙ Zoë Wells ∙ Amelia Rice ∙ Jonathan Mann ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Anna Wolf ∙ Owen Haywood ∙ Dila …
Now is the Time
From the prompt: “It feels like…” With thanks to: Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Zoë Wells ∙ David Hunter-Wade ∙ Helen Francis ∙ Raffaela Martuccio ∙ Maurice Samely ∙ Hannah Louise Murray ∙ Ioana Traistaru ∙ Amy Hodkin ∙ Wendy Bibby ∙ Jacq Bridge ∙ Casper Burton ∙ Hannah Davenport ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Sara Murray …
Peace
From the prompt: “Peace is…” With thanks to: Tilly Street ∙ Robbie ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Aidan ∙ @nottmeg ∙ Jess Stiles ∙ Zoë Wells ∙ Jonathan Mann ∙ @siennafullerr ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Olivia Macioti ∙ @kitkat_kiw ∙ @poppy.ellanewton ∙ @india.mallorie ∙ @emily.parker.55 ∙ Hamidah Duffus ∙ Zoë MacPherson ∙ Bex Arthur ∙ @fd3bagota …
We Are Here To Help
From the prompt: “We are here…” At the end of the day, we have to be here to helpWe can have some good fun, our family together in the woodsTalk about it for a few days, analysing what the world needsAnd what the government is doingOr not doingTo find out what the best way is … Continue reading We Are Here To Help
Returning
From the prompt: “Today I’m drawing energy from…” With thanks to: Anonymous ∙ Julian Kashdan-Brown ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Lucinda Roberts ∙ Alex Scott ∙ Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Shelley Hope ∙ Willow Orton ∙ Amy Hodkin ∙ Ryan Carraro ∙ Dione Orrom ∙ Anthony Burt ∙ Joel Russell ∙ Leon Kashdan-Brown ∙ Lauren … Continue reading Returning
A Love Letter To Walking
From the prompt: “When I’m out walking…” With thanks to: Amelia Rice ∙ Ben Tye ∙ Leon Kashdan-Brown ∙ Zoë MacPherson ∙ Catherine Light ∙ James Chadwick ∙ Kate Brown ∙ Vani ∙ David Hunter-Wade ∙ Rachel Pryor ∙ Raffaela Martuccio ∙ Amy Hodkin ∙ Dan Walker ∙ Dione Orrom ∙ Willow Orton ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown … Continue reading A Love Letter To Walking
Going Forward: A Suggestion
From the prompt: “Perhaps the world needs…” With thanks to: Anonymous ∙ Ariane Hunter-Wade ∙ Jane Kibblewhite ∙ Sara Murray ∙ Hannah Davenport ∙ Darren Stronach ∙ Lucinda Roberts ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Dove Cooper ∙ Jennifer Taylor ∙ Dom Kippin ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Kate Brown ∙ Nick Levitt ∙ Anna Fiteni ∙ Callum … Continue reading Going Forward: A Suggestion
The Story of a Tree
From the prompt: “The tree is…” With thanks to:Lucinda Roberts ∙ Anthony Burt ∙ Zoë Wells ∙ Penelope Kease ∙ Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Jess ∙ Sophia Akhtar ∙ Holly Burrows ∙ Blythe Germ ∙ Dec Price ∙ Jonathan Mann ∙ Owen Haywood ∙ Jonathan Goh ∙ Catherine Light ∙ Iona ∙ Yasmin Norvill ∙ Anonymous … Continue reading The Story of a Tree
A Diary of Isolation
From the prompt: “Today I’ve been…” With thanks to: Julia Kashdan-Brown ∙ Immy Reynolds ∙ James Chadwick ∙ Rob Cooke ∙ Sue Wells ∙ Michael Francis ∙ Sam O’Connor ∙ Kayla ∙ Anna Wolf ∙ Ryan Carraro ∙ Kathryn Llewellyn ∙ Steffy Clements ∙ Katy Baldock ∙ Anthony Burt ∙ Simon Huthwaite ∙ A. J. … Continue reading A Diary of Isolation
