By Scott Bailey © 2016
Never ending beach
The crashing waves repeating
Permanence missing
Missing
scott bailey
Swift
By Scott Bailey © 2016
Swifts swoop and dazzle
Aerobatics in the sky
Still, we watch in awe
Still
By Scott Bailey © 2016
Stood before a wall
Dreaming of the road beyond
Still before a wall
Vanish
By Scott Bailey © 2016
You must remember
When waking from reveries
All your dreams vanish
Pets
By Scott Bailey © 2016
Let’s play with our pets
Keep them happy and content
While we milk them dry
Straight Path
By Scott Bailey © 2015
The Romans had it right
With their roads
Our roads wander
And wind
Avoiding stuff
Drawing closer to other stuff
But it’s all just stuff
We get lost
Never arrive
Or if we do
Too late
Too late
Dark Path
By Scott Bailey © 2015
(Musette Poem)
Sadness
Never ending
Madness
Will we
Learn to tread light
Greed free
Burning
Dreams leaving us
Yearning
Seafarer
By Scott Bailey © 2015
Seafarer wandering over the waves
Fine hair glistening with rime
Roaming and riding forgetful tides
Living away from life
But living
True
A man
Wandering
Along forgotten paths
Following the ancient ways
Expanding his mind in ancient ways
Speaking to the earth and the animal guides
Silent ghosts that leave his heart silent and unanswered
Leather like tanned skin, wrinkled with experience of a life lived hard and loved harder, dedicated
waning in strength
and
yet filled with
fire and
sand
Seafarer
Where are you now
Blues Bars
By Scott Bailey 2015
It sits right down
Sits all the way down
Then flies above the clouds
Soars high above the clouds
And I
I can’t get there
Can’t weave that
Magic weave
The harmony of the heart
The harmony of dreams and thought
With the making in the world
The making of the day
I crave
Crave that path
Sweet blue path
Of blues bars
Cold Morning
By Scott Bailey © 2016
Golden sunlight fills
The air where the songbirds spill
Their song while frost kills
Scrabble Limerick
By Scott Bailey © 2006
A Zen Buddhist Byzantium Queen
Played saxophone sexy and mean
She just blew jolly jazz,
with buzz and pizzazz
In a jacuzzi with Lizzy and Jean
The Night
By Scott Bailey © 2015
The music of the night!
The night of the wolves calling
The calling of the blood
The bloody business of mine
My feasting time
Ages
By Scott Bailey © 1999
In a crumbling house, we gathered,
sat around the ancient fire.
Logs burnt slow in the hearth,
warmed our expectant hearts.
Firelight flickered in the darkening eve,
We gathered around the elders.
sat in large and comfy chairs.
Red light upon our faces.
We heard of times gone by,
and smelt the burning wood.
The shadows held safe the past,
we gathered them in our hearts.
We looked back upon times gone,
held hands and were content.
Drinking from the cup of seers,
our fears eased, to sleep we went.
Upon the train, I sat,
late for work again.
Another day another dollar,
Tomorrow the same again.
But that’s the base on which I build,
The foundation for my fun.
Work hard, get paid.
Play fast, get laid.
Tomorrow is another day.
So head down, concentrate.
Don’t stop, can’t be late.
Avoid, the crunch.
Let’s do brunch.
Work hard, make a dime!
Night time, spend a dime.
Money opens up the door.
More, more, more, more!
Future goals.
Way ahead.
Sights set far.
Future goals.
Sacrifice.
For future goals.
Save.
Energy.
Spend nothing now.
For future goals.
Look ahead.
Way ahead.
Suffer now.
For future goals.
Work.
Don’t play.
Rest later.
Not today.
Save it all.
For future goals.
For future goals.
Sell your souls.
Don’t look back.
Only ahead.
Don’t think today.
Think ahead.
See the prize.
Of future goals.
Don’t listen to,
the bell that tolls.
For future goals.
Dimming Lights
By Scott Bailey © 2015
Lights in grey matter
Never reaching the day
Plans uncommitted
As the chance ebbs away
A refugee wanderer
In dream worlds and clouds
Where sparks can be realised
And escape from the crowds
Soul
By Scott Bailey © 2015
A soul full
Of tear-stained dreams
As substantial
As vapour
At the mercy
Of whispering winds
A storm approaches
Homecoming (Tyburn)
By Scott Bailey © 2015
Flying
Soaring
Roasting
Roaring
Majestic wings spread like thunder clouds
The dragon has come home to his realm
Dip Into Something New
Slip away for a few hours, into other worlds – away from all the troubles of this one.
Perhaps into the future – a near-future – dark and disturbing and yet – so close. There, follow the fates of four people worn down and broken, angry with the system. Who break out of it, try to break it. Who question why they did and falter in their resolve only to be thrown back into the fray. Who discover the truth within themselves. A tale that questions rebellion and its motivations while railing at the oppression around us.
Mankind Limited
Or if not the future – then other worlds – supernatural ones – that impinge onto ours from – where? Some other dimension? The afterlife? Our own minds?
Where ever they come from – try these Thirteen Tales of the ghostly variety.
Thirteen Tales of Ghosts
Or forget them all and take a moment each day – to read a little poetry and think. Three hundred and sixty-five poems in all shapes and sizes sprung from dreams and emotion. Published day after day for a year. There are haiku, sonnets, katauta, lanturnes and many other forms – including free form. The moods are as varied as the forms and often reflect my mood on the day. There is sadness and grief, joy and love and much more
A Spring of Dreams
Or take in something longer, deeper and more considered. Buck the trend for quick gratification and enjoy something epic.
The poems in this collection were written over a long period and for different purposes. They are varied but they are all long. And they all represent challenges. Each was a challenge to myself, to sustain a quality of writing for a long period and within tight constraints of form while still telling a story. They also represent and challenge to the reader. The throw off the pressure of everyday life, the pressure to hurry, hurry, hurry to take the time to read something, absorb it over time.
Such effort needs reward, these poems should not be a one-time quick fix. If the reader is going to put that effort in then there should be a payoff, they should be able to continue to get something from it afterwards. Whether that be from contemplation of what they have digested or from revisiting, rereading and seeing things they missed the first time around. So the final challenge to me was to provide this depth of content – not just quantity.
Andervayne’s Dream and Other Poems
All my books are now available in Hardcover
Yes, if you fancy a bit more luxury, you can now get all four of my books in hardcover format!
For quick links to them all jump over to my Amazon Page.
Or read on.
Mankind Limited
Marc trudged on with life, marching in line with his fellow workers. Weighed down by the everyday burdens of life, the pressure to conform, to succeed or face destitution.
Yet he knew, in his heart that it was all wrong, the questions squirmed like fiery dragons in the pit of his heart, beneath his deepest darkest doubts.
Until they grew and burst his sanity, set him on a path of defiance and rebellion. A path that would cross three others – all like him seeking answers.
A path of danger and adventure that would see him marked as a terrorist and fleeing for his life. It would see him find love and heartbreak, hope and despair, Most of all, it would open his eye to the possibility of an ancient and powerful secret that might answer all his doubts and fears.
If he survived.
In a world obsessed with measurement and success four rebels question everything – including themselves.
Andervayne’s Dream
In these times of quick gratification and short attention spans, I decided to try and buck the trend and present something not only with greater length but also depth.
The poems in this collection were written over a long period and for different purposes. They are varied but they are all long. And they all represent challenges. Each was a challenge to myself, to sustain a quality of writing for a long period and within tight constraints of form while still telling a story. They also represent and challenge the reader. To throw off the pressure of everyday life, the pressure to hurry, hurry, hurry to take the time to read something, absorb it over time.
Such effort needs reward, these poems should not be a one-time quick fix. If the reader is going to put that effort in then there should be a payoff, they should be able to continue to get something from it afterwards. Whether that be from contemplation of what they have digested or from revisiting, rereading and seeing things they missed the first time around. So the final challenge to me was to provide this depth of content – not just quantity.
Something not only with greater length but also depth
Thirteen Tales (of Ghosts)
As the title says – thirteen tales about ghosts. Yet, while ghosts feature in them all – not all are traditional ghost stories.
You will find the vengeful spirit but also the plaintiff one. The haunting message from the past and the playful spirits capturing the joy of their past lives.
Some of these visitors from beyond lead the haunted to peace and joy – others take them on much darker paths to places with no return.
Enjoy them – just don’t get too comfortable.
Ideal for sitting around a campfire and late at night under the covers. Or maybe not if the stories themselves are any guide.
A Spring of Dreams
Three hundred and sixty-five poems in all shapes and sizes, sprung from dreams and emotion. Published day after day for a year. There are haiku, sonnets, katauta, lanturnes and many other forms – including free form.
The moods are as varied as the forms and often reflect my mood on the day. There is sadness and grief, joy and love. If nothing else – these can provide a small moment in everyone’s stressful lives to stop and contemplate the world in a different way.
The result of a year-long challenge to write a poem a day for a year. Raw and accessible poems of many moods.
Enjoy!
An Attempt at Opera!
This is something different. I was digging around my old files and found a full libretto I wrote for an opera that never got off the ground. A good friend of mine actually wrote a lot of the music to go with it but in the end, it was too ambitious for us.
We ended up writing a shorter one – adapted from a short story of mine. That was less ambitious in that it was written for a string quartet and two singers. It was finished but never got performed. These days we could get it out on YouTube but back then even the internet didn’t exist!
I have been playing with the idea of publishing a set of longer poems and thought I might include this as one of them. But not sure – it’s more like a script than a poem.
So I thought I would put a taster here and see what people think.
So – here’s the first part.
The Golden Man
Part 1
Upon a mountaintop, in a cleft between its twin peaks lies a lake. In the centre of this lake is an island. At the centre of the island are the ruins of an ancient temple. A roof held up by pillars but no walls. In this ruin stand five figures on the points of a pentagram, silently facing inwards to a conspicuously empty space in the centre.
It is the dead of night. They begin to chant.
SKY– From the shadows of the valley deep,
To the starlit white of highland peaks,
On a night when the silvery sphere is bright,
We gather here to proclaim our rite.
CERISE– With purpose dread of high renown,
Calling all the powers down.
Power sets our passions free,
So ancient spells we here decree.
LINCOLN– Secrets held within our flesh,
Combine to weave a mystic mesh.
Long guarded secrets we do share.
Long lost charms we do declare.
SAGE– From our cities and our homes we come,
To do here now what must be done.
To ease the path we have to tread,
To speak the words that many dread.
RAVEN– To finally tear down walls of fear,
The path of victory is what we hear.
So we can defend the weak,
Spells, enchantments, rites we speak.
SKY– We conjure a spirit to defend our land.
CERISE– We conjure a spirit with a golden hand.
LINCOLN– We conjure a spirit who shall not tire.
SAGE– We conjure a spirit with a burning fire.
RAVEN– We conjure a spirit who shall not fall.
ALL– We conjure a spirit to serve us all!
SKY– With the breath of hope.
CERISE– With the echo of a sigh.
LINCOLN– With the light of the flesh.
SAGE– With the warmth of the sky.
RAVEN– With the scent of a sword.
ALL– With the shape of our word.
Pause
SKY– All our power we put forth in thee. To bring you here to set us free.
CERISE– All our wealth shall touch your hand. To bring you here to save this land.
LINCOLN– All our health dispels death’s throes. To bring you here to destroy our foes.
SAGE– All our dreams will be your goals. To bring you here to ease our souls.
RAVEN– All our strength shall steel your arm. To bring you here to ward off harm.
ALL– Come!
The light dims as a cloud descends and obscures vision. When it is clear again the five are still in their positions but lying in the centre is the Golden Man lying deathly still with his hands crossed upon his chest.
To see the rest get Andervayne’s Dream and other Poems
Mankind Limited – Succumb
Would all the earth succumb to the concrete blanket of mankind? Was that the best legacy they could leave? Was their vision that limited?
One day there would come a time when it would be more profitable to tear these trees down than to leave them. Then there would be no power on earth that would save them. Even concerned consumers couldn’t stand in the way of profits anymore.
Read an excerpt here.
Available as
or hardback
from Amazon
A Dangerous Rebellion
Four people, four rebels. Rejecting society or rejected by it – either way, they have had enough. They have decided to fight – and they have taken on the government on its most dangerous and brutal front.
Will they survive?
And have they thought about what comes next?
Or why they are fighting?
Will their convictions be a match for the crimes they will have to commit and the guilt that comes with them?
Read an excerpt here.
Available as
or hardback
from Amazon
Scott Bailey is an author and blogger. His works include the dystopian novel “Mankind Limited”, “Thirteen Tales” – a collection of Ghost Stories and “A Spring of Dreams” collection of poetry, plus his latest work, a collection of epic poems – “Andervayne’s Dream”. His blogging ranges across family articles, poetry and short stories and even the odd book or movie review.
Mankind Limited – Nothing Changed
Being
By Scott Bailey © 2015
Those ones and those zeroes
Paint glorious pictures
On our screens
In our minds
That bring us closer
To being
The things we don’t understand
Mankind Limited – Pebble
Distant Touch
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Does the earth miss
The hard and distant touch of
The rocks from the stars
Capitalist Control
Brave New World (Aldous Huxley) shows us almost perfect social control by programming people at birth – even before birth. People as used like cattle unaware and caring for nothing.
1984 (George Orwell). The people are fully aware of the hell they are in and the control the state has over them – they are kept in line by fear.
Mankind Limited (Scott Bailey) shows capitalism being used as the perfect tool of social control keeping the cattle both happy and unaware.
Until a few people start to see the cracks.
Disobey
By Scott Bailey ⓒ 2017
Years of servitude
Have begat
More years of servitude
Leading to
A question
Is it time
To Disobey
Dancing
By Scott Bailey © 2017
With playful passion
Light dances on the ripples
Until the freeze comes
Onshore
By Scott Bailey © 2006
What lies within that deep dark world?
That immensity of green threat
Where lies the leviathan of doom
In that swelling encompassing brine
Where plankton swirl through tentacles
That writhe and sway and curl and wave
And small fish dart discreet?
The leviathan’s milky domain!
Filled with cries of beasts the creature eats
Where crescendos rise and pull the heart with sighs.
The leviathan shifts with a thrashing fit
A rumble excites the waves.
And gulls drop and chop their prey and hop
from surf to spray to cloud to rock.
The whole sea moves with a great heart’s beat
Where will its great thoughts lead?
Will it be content to nibble and gnaw
Or rise with a tumultuous roar?
A great green wall with weight of stone
While here, nearby, and all alone
I
Stand
On the sand
Unsure
Anticipate
By Scott Bailey ⓒ 2017
I anticipate
The dissipation
Of the all
The scattering
Of goals
The rise of dreams
To ride
Upon the mists
To be blown
Upon the winds
To reside
In clouds
And hide
In trees
To sleep
In earth
Drink water
Sup sunlight
Weep rain
And sigh
Late
By Scott Bailey © 2017
He should have taken
The holiday he needed
Forever too late
Exist
By Scott Bailey ⓒ 1999
If I
Cease to exist
Will my
heart and soul dissolve in the air?
If I
Breathe my last breath
Will my
Golden thoughts shine anywhere?
If I
unbind from this earth
And
Sail the sun
right out to the stars.
Will I
Find my way back?
Or
Roam forever that celestial park?
If I
Cease to exist
Will my
Precious dreams chase after my soul?
If I
breathe my last breath
Will my
Endless hopes continue to roll?
If I
Fly up from the earth
And
Spiral up to the bright dancing stars
Will I
Find my way back
Or
Make my home where galaxies are?
Hard to exist
Back to back to the hammer of flesh.
Gasping for breath
Tried escape from this strangling mesh.
Tied hard to the earth
Brought to ground by invisible hands.
If I
Find my way back
Will I
Find my house fallen in sands?
Shout to exist
Drink the sun and swallow the air!
Savour the breath
Turn the corner and take up the dare!
Stand firm on the earth
And
Walk the roads under the stars.
We’ll find our way back
While our dreams fly where galaxies are.
Sublime
By Scott Bailey ⓒ 2016
“Have we reached full coverage?”
“Not quite yet but we will very soon, the momentum has built and it will hit critical mass in a few days. It needs no further intervention on my part.”
“We have all the channels covered?”
“Everything! From the popular to the obscure. From hard copy books to online articles. From political diatribes to Twitter. From old newspapers to blogs and click-bait articles.”
“And we have hooked everyone in – no matter their passion, no matter their inclinations?”
“We have everything – we have erotica, geological patterns in the earth’s crust, astronomy, astrology. We have Game of Thrones and Star Trek. We have novels from established authors and fan fiction. Hell, we have fanfiction erotica stories about the Star Wars characters crash landing in Narnia! There’s no angle we haven’t covered.
His boss laughed.
“Ok, Ok. I get the idea.”
He paused
“And the subliminal messages?”
“So subtle not one has been detected.”
“They are taking effect?”
“They have done their job. The population is yours to command – or will be in a few more days. I would say probably enough to make no difference already.”
“Good. And no one else knows?”
“Just me and you.”
His boss smiled. A warm smile – full of sunshine and hope that he rarely graced on anyone. It made him feel pride in a job well done.
“Good,” his boss repeated, “now, just step through this door.”
Push and Pull
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Memorise
All the sighs
Every loving glance
And long slow dance
Hold them tight
As we approach the night
Sanitise
Then fill with lies
Squeeze out the dreams
With mindless streams
Of celebs and fear
Until no one is here
Realise
And cherish the wise
Thoughts that flow
Before they go
Into the night
So hold them tight
Characterise
Categorise
Into a box
And cattle stocks
To milk and drain
To strike the brain
Live your dreams
For our revenue streams
Complete the bucket list
No source to be missed
Hold on to the light
For our gold so bright
Enamoured
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Enamoured
By the glamour
Of the eighties
We stuck our heads
In the nineties sands
The new century
Is one of denial
Our time has peaked
There’s only decline
Left
Luck
By Scott Bailey © 2016
No rhyme or reason
Bad luck keeps on reigning down
Good luck’s hard to find
Northern Wonder
By Scott Bailey © 2017
The sun reaches out
And excites the northern sky
A watcher’s pleasure
A Dark Future Vision – Or is it Already Here
This book shows the how society could evolve if capitalism were allowed to follow through to its extremes. It’s a dark shadow of this world. Or is it? Is this the world that we already live in?
Enter a world of pressure and release – rebellion and doubt and the rediscovery of a simple Secret the rulers of the world would rather you not know.
Mankind Limited
Marc trudged on with life, marching in line with his fellow workers. Weighed down by the everyday burdens of life, the pressure to conform, to succeed or face destitution.
Yet he knew, in his heart that it was all wrong, the questions squirmed like fiery dragons in the pit of his heart, beneath his deepest darkest doubts.
Until they grew and burst his sanity, set him on a path of defiance and rebellion. A path that would cross three others – all like him seeking answers.
A path of danger and adventure that would see him marked as a terrorist and fleeing for his life. It would see him find love and heartbreak, hope and despair, Most of all, it would open his eye to the possibility of an ancient and powerful secret that might answer all his doubts and fears.
If he survived.
Trapped. In a world where everything is measured and control pervades every area of life, four people begin to break down. Instead, they break through the walls of deceit and propaganda and into a world of revolution.
Each, in their way, vows to overthrow the established order. They embark on a journey against the forces arraigned against them, forces of state and self-doubt.
Ultimately their paths converge on a dangerous road and the discovery of an ancient secret.
One one level this is a story about how different people react the ever growing and relentless pressure of everyday oppression. It explores their journeys as they are broken and rebuilt and investigates their modes and motivations for rebelling.
At another level, it is a critique on the darker side of capitalism and free markets and how that has driven us further and further away from the evolutionary advantage that gave us supremacy in the first place. It questions whether the human race has doomed itself or whether we still have the capacity to wrench ourselves from the track we have so tightly committed our society upon.
Holiday
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Resting on the coast
The soothing sounds of the sea
Fill this empty shell
Hope
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Hope holds back the tide
Stays the shifting golden sand
Thin mist arises
Two Idiots
By Scott Bailey 2017
Two idiots
Glaring
Staring
Waiting for the flinch
Too stupid
To stop
Stupid!
They glare
At each other
Down time
From the first war
To the last
Amble
By Scott Bailey 2017
In the gambler
There is a yearning
Hidden
To leave behind the rat race
The frenzy and the risk
And just amble
Carousel
By Scott Bailey 2017
Life is a carousel
Bright, distracting,
Going around in circles
Fun
While its lasts
Painted Ladies
By Scott Bailey © 2017
The painted ladies
Thousands fly from Africa
To be lunch for birds
Fog
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Kept in deep dark fog
With tantalising beacons
But we remain lost
Worms
By Scott Bailey © 2017
Spring showers cascade
The blackbird enjoys the hour
Worms join the party
Lust
By Scott Bailey © 2017
In all the bluster and noise
There is lust
Hidden
Pest
Meet the Characters – William
William
William considers himself the only true revolutionary there has been. Living a life of utter destitution below the city, he leads a community of people the rest of the world sees as outcasts and losers.
His is the long game. He know’s the aim, he knows what he is fighting for.
He also knows that he will probably never see the results in his lifetime.
So when the chance to act, the chance to make a difference presents itself will he forget his principles and give up his long-term plan, or stay resolute to his goal?
Available as
or hardback
from Amazon
Looking Forward
By Scott Bailey 2017
Looking forward to a night out tomorrow
Where, no doubt, I will be looking forward to getting home
For a cup of tea
It’s an age thing
I have always tried to look forward
Trouble is
I miss the now
Scott Andrew Bailey - Author 