I haven't posted much on here at all lately, and in the time that I've been away there was the very sad news of the death of Roddy Lumsden.
His funeral was yesterday, and there have been a lot of moving tributes on Facebook and blogs, from friends and fellow poets.
I only knew Roddy a little, mainly online, although I'd met him a couple of times at London readings too. He was always, as others have noted, trenchant in his opinions, but also very generous with his time and encouragement for other writers. He once selected a poem of mine (Pluvialis), for an anthology, much to my surprise, and emailed a few comments on it that made me think of the poem in a different light altogether, as well as feeding into one or two other pieces I was working on at the time. Quite unsolicited advice, but very perceptive and warmly welcomed.
But anyway, this page at the Poetry School site tells you everything you need to know. His impact there, and in the wider poetry world, will be felt for a long while yet.
