Cor Blimey, Brian - thanks so much for that!

Yep, I do spend too much time emailing - I have to hold my hands up to that  weakness I'm afraid,  but I do love helping other writers and seeing them developing and standing back to watch as they move on to do all sorts of things...just as you helped me...  so I'm not sure what I can do about it.

Let's throw away superlatives shall we?  You were the first Birmingham Laureate and the city's laureateship began as an idea you and Jonathan had on a train. You're full of energy, a great observer and opener up of people, the city's sonneteer (or 14 liner as you prefer to call them) and I was gob-smacked by  'Waters of Bham' when I first came upon it in a Bham bookshop years ago. Don't go talking yourself down! You're full of energy and enthusiasm too,  travelling backwards and forwards to India as you write, The train to Gujarat' - so what's this about a wake?

I don't like comparing one laureate with another as we're all so different and people are fabulous in their own ways... there's a lorry load o' luvly laureates in Brum.  David Hart's 'Crag Inspector' melts on your tongue... spirits you away. I love the way he experiments with language and his gentle humour too. He's got a unique voice and he encourages so many other writers to open up new avenues, to play with words and manages to win the odd national poetry competition too!   Roz  is great and a good friend ... have you had chance to read her 'Dismantling the Hotel Room' yet? There's no point going through the whole list to say how different and fab everyone is but you only have to look at our happy smiling faces at the 10th laureate anniversary photo to know, 'We are family!' - as the song goes, 'So, get up everybody, dance!'  Which brings me to Roi and his drum - sadly no longer with us.  Djembe means 'to come together'  - and that's what we do... we hear the beat but we dance in our own different ways.  Birmingham celebrates diversity and the laureates reflect that I think... just look how different we all are.    Our citycould be said to love us as a parent loves his children; equally but each in a unique way.