Interview with Poet
Peter Devonald
1. How long have you been writing?
Most of my life, even at school, I was always getting lost writing stories or poems. I took Theatre, English and Aesthetics for degree at Lancaster University, had a lot of plays on and set up a poetry magazine there and at my sixth form college before that. I loved poetry but this was largely pre-internet so had no idea of a career path despite winning awards and getting work published. So I went into theatre and then film for many decades, rediscovered the love of poetry again the last decade.
2. What kind of writing do you do these days?
Only really poetry. I love screenwriting but there is so much networking and collaboration. I wrote a novel too. But I love how singular poetry is – a great freedom to write something and sometimes get it published the same week. With film/TV, I had options for years that went nowhere, series cast and never released, it was heartbreaking.
3. What compelled you to start writing poetry?
Always been inside me from a young age, often wake with poetry or dialogue ringing in my head.
4. How do you feel about whether or not a poet should be paid when having their work published?
I think when poetry has reached a certain level then there should be payment, but it is relatively rare. But poets do have to be aware of how difficult it is for publishers too, so many costs and so few paying readers. I have so much sympathy for publishers and editors, the money generally isn’t there.
5. How has writing poetry helped you in other areas of life?
I’ve always used writing as a catharsis – a way to understand my past and try to resolve (the unresolvable). I don’t think I’d still be here without writing.
6. What was your biggest accomplishment as a poet?
Winning the Waltham Forest Poetry Competition in 2022 meant the most to me – it was my first big poetry win so really stood out. (Link)
Accomplishments are hard to rate – but I was thrilled by the Pushcart, Forward Prize and two Best Of The Net nominations. But winning Broken Spine Reader's Choice Award 2025 was probably the biggest because it was an audience vote and even in film (where I won a lot of awards), we never won public votes.
2nd in Shelley Memorial 2024 was a major success too, wonderful awards ceremony. And delighted to get in some dream publications such as Broken Sleep, Full House Literary, Abridged, The Alchemy Spoon, Door is a Jar, and The Spectator.
7. What are your thoughts about whether or not a writer should pursue an MFA in poetry in order to increase their chances of getting their work published?
Coming from the UK I can’t really comment much. I know several award-winning poets who workshop every single one of their poems, so any access to that is important. It can also help develop one’s own voice - I think that’s the key ---- learn what’s been before but make sure you retain what makes you unique. Use the tools but don’t lose your voice.
8. What other poets have inspired you the most?
I keep coming back to the extraordinaries: T.S. Eliot, Sylvia Plath, and Ted Hughes. There are so many awesome contemporary poets too. Jenny Mitchell is awesome. Fran Lock is an astonishing talent. Stuart McPherson is a wonderful poet, highly creative and pushes the barriers. So many poets I love and admire, we are so blessed to have access to so many.
9. What types of poetry are your favorite and why do you like them the most?
I love free form sonnets; they condense the work to its key vital elements. I am very fond of two-column contrapuntal poems, space poems, and Concrete Poetry. I also love Haiku and Sestinas. Ekphrastic are always fun and reveal new ways of seeing the world.
Form comes into its own with Postgrad study of course, it gives a shared language of poetry which is so helpful talking about poetry, reviewing poetry, networking, etc.
10. What are some of the challenges you have faced in writing poetry and how did you overcome them?
I have had multiple chronic illnesses since the age of eleven, which has greatly restricted my life. I have terrible trouble remembering specific words. Often automatic writing helps cut through it, but it can be very frustrating. The complications of long-term illness make it hard keeping track of applications and sending work. I suffer terrible brain fog, pain, and exhaustion.
11. What is the best writing advice you have ever received and why do you feel it is important?
I remember my dad reading my work when I was young and he said, “I wouldn’t write this line like this, but it’s very you, so keep it.” It meant a lot to me – partly finding a writer’s voice but also, it’s absolutely essential to stay true to ourselves.
As we all face the challenge of AI, it is all the more vital to write poetry that is unique to us --- otherwise, we might as well let computers take over. It’s a shocking and terrible thought. Write passionately, show what it means to be human.
12. If you have books of poetry published, please list the titles and where they can be purchased online.
I have so much work in anthologies, but some that mean the most to me:
My Ear Is Full of Milk, a great anthology of writing about Laurel & Hardy – Broken Sleep Books
Six excellent books from Broken Spine including:
Glow: City at Night Poetry (The Broken Spine: Thematic Slimline Poetry Anthologies)
Beautiful Little Fools: Poetry of Glamour, Obsession and the Gilded Age
SHINE Poetry Quarterly: Issue 6, March 2026 – wonderful anthology out now with some of the best writing
13. Where can we find some of your poetry published in publications online?
A lot of work is here.
14. What advice do you have for aspiring poets thinking of getting their work published?
Send to a balance of places – don’t just aim for the highest, because some publishers take over a year to get back to us, so you need a variety of levels to keep momentum and keep you going.
Create a good spreadsheet/document to keep track of applications, successes, and failures. Always remember that if a poem is rejected then often it’s because of the numbers game of poetry, not the quality of your writing (or even bad luck: think of a magazine as a symphony – each poem is a movement that has to fit in with each other, so sometimes our work just doesn’t fit). But saying this, after any rejection, check the work again, see if it can be pepped up – stronger images, cut out any cliché, better opening line, a title change perhaps, etc.
Look at contemporary poets you love and see where they are getting work published; it might be a good indication of where to send and find your tribe. There are so many styles of poetry – so always read copies before you send. Some places love very short poems, others epics, others avant-garde, others short sentence structure; increase your chances with good research, it will save a lot of heartache in the end.
15. What is it about poetry that you love and how does this influence your writing of poetry?
It’s as close to revealing our dreams as any writing. It is mysterious, organic, and elegant. It strives to be more than us, it cuts through all the noise and touches the eternal.
So many comedians and actors return to poetry in later life – there is something so beautiful about it. A sense of being better than ourselves, reaching for the stars, aiming for the infinite.
ABOUT PETER:
Peter Devonald is a multi-award-winning poet/screenwriter, published in hundreds of journals including six Broken Spine anthologies, Broken Sleep, Abridged, Alchemy Spoon, IS&T, Seventh Quarry, Full House, Shine and The Spectator. Winner Broken Spine Readers’ Choice Award 2025, Loft Books Best Poem 2025, two Heart Of Heatons and Waltham Forest. Runner-up Shelley Memorial and N2tS. Finalist Tickled Pink, commended Poetry Café, Bermondsey&Beyond, Hippocrates, Passionfruit Review, Saveas & Allingham. 50+ film awards, former senior judge/mentor Peter Ustinov Awards (iemmys), poet-in-Residence Haus-a-Rest, editor The Post newspapers Poetry Corner and judge Whispering Wisdom. Forward Prize, Pushcart Prize, twice Best-Of-Net and Children’s Bafta nominee.
His links:
Facebook: @pdevonald
BSky: @pdevonald.bsky.social
Instagram: @peterdevonald
Twitter/X: petedevonald
Substack @pd101