then the winter happens, like a secret

Here in Shropshire, the mornings are crisp, the leaves a rich golden hue, and the low autumn sun still spills warmth across the fields and woodland. Yet the nights are drawing in, and we can feel the gentle, inevitable shift toward winter. Winter offers us a necessary pause - rather than something to endure, we see it as an invitation: to rest, to reflect, and to gather strength. It’s a time to slow down, turn inward, and nurture our mind and creative selves through the darker months.

This time of retreat can provide ideal conditions for deep creativity. For writers, artists and creatives, these moments of stillness and incubation can be deeply generative. Just as seeds need darkness and stillness to grow roots, so too do ideas need time away from expectation or productivity to become something meaningful. And beyond the work itself, rest and retreat can offer a return to the self: a gentle reconnection with what you notice, what you love, and what you long for - the fertile ground from which honest, resonant work so often grows.

In Wintering, Katherine May offers practical guidance on embracing the winter season and finding nourishment within it. Here are some of our favourite tips from the book:

1. Slow Down Intentionally - Accept that the pace of life naturally changes in winter. Reduce obligations, and give yourself permission to rest. Even small pauses count.

2. Honor Your Energy Cycles - Notice when you feel most awake and productive, and schedule creative or demanding tasks then. Use quieter periods for reflection, reading, or gentle tasks.

3. Spend Time in Nature - Even short walks in the crisp air or among golden leaves can boost mood and focus. Winter’s subtle beauty encourages mindfulness and wonder.

4. Practice Solitude and Reflection - Take time to journal, meditate, or simply sit quietly. This is a season for internal observation and for reconnecting with what truly matters.

5. Embrace Seasonal Rituals - Lighting candles, making warming drinks, cooking nourishing meals, or enjoying small daily rituals can give structure and pleasure to dark days.

6. See Winter as Preparation - Treat this season as a time to gather strength, recharge, and incubate ideas. Like seeds in the dark soil, rest now allows growth to flourish in spring.
    

   

   'Every bit as beautiful and healing as the season itself'
   Elizabeth Gilbert

At the Solstice

We say Next time we’ll go away,
But then the winter happens, like a secret

We’ve to keep yet never understand
As daylight turns to cinema once more:

A lustrous darkness deep in ice-age cold,
And the print in need of restoration

Starting to consume itself
With snowfall where no snow is falling now.

Or could it be a cloud of sparrows, dancing
In the bare hedge that this gale of light

Is seeking to uproot? Let it be sparrows, then,
Still dancing in the blazing hedge,

Their tender fury and their fall,
Because it snows, because it burns.

Shaun O'Brien

Cosy Poems
Edited by Gaby Morgan

Curl up with this beautiful warm hug of a book, which gathers together classic and brand-new poems about the things that comfort and nurture us — spending time with friends and family, being outdoors and watching the seasons change, settling in for winter, reading a good book, and finding moments to celebrate every day.

Includes poems by Brian Bilston, Nicola Davies, Valerie Bloom, Roger McGough, Brian Patten, Rashmi Sirdeshpande, Ian McMillan, Dom Conlon, Nikita Gill, Paul Cookson, and many more.

Run a bath as hot as your elbows can bear
Pour in bubbles (aim for thick cappuccino like foam)
Soak for twenty minutes
Dry with silk-soft towel and dress in oversized pyjamas

Mix steaming milk, chocolate, marshmallows 
(Allow time for marshmallows to reach for each other)
Close curtains, dim lights, sprinkle cushions and hope

Wrap yourself in a warm blanket and open book
Breathe in the scent of safety
Keep hot chocolate close

Leave to rest for at least an hour and enjoy

You can read the full poem here.
 

The winter months are a season for slowing down, replenishing energy, and letting the mind wander into fertile, creative spaces. To aid in this restorative work, we have prepared a carefully curated list of literary prescriptions. From Kari Leibowitz’s How to Winter, to Gaby Morgan's Cosy Poems, each volume offers a gentle tonic for the spirit - encouraging reflection and inspiration.

Special instructions: Take these books in measured doses by fireside, window light, or favourite armchair, and allow them to nourish your imagination through the season of calm. Browse the full list here.

We are delighted to celebrate the recipients of the 2025 Forward Prizes for Poetry, whose exceptional works illuminate the richness and resilience of the human experience:

• Vidyan Ravinthiran – Avidyā (Bloodaxe Books)
  Joint Winner of the Forward Prize for Best Collection

• Karen Solie – Wellwater (Picador)
  Joint Winner of the Forward Prize for Best Collection

• Isabelle Baafi – Chaotic Good (Faber & Faber)
  Winner of the Jerwood Prize for Best First Collection

• Abeer Ameer – At Least (MODRON Magazine)
  Winner of the Forward Prize for Best Single Poem – Written

• Griot Gabriel – Where I’m From (Manchester UNESCO)
  Winner of the Forward Prize for Best Single Poem – Performed
  (watch here)

These poets have been recognised for their profound contributions to contemporary poetry, each offering unique perspectives and voices that enrich our literary landscape. We encourage you to explore their award-winning works and experience the depth and beauty they bring to the world of poetry.