There is no one else writing like Chloe Balcomb, no one else who can render huge themes - feminism, death, our life with other animals into such finely observed and delicately wrought vignettes, vibrant with original diction and vocabulary.'
Roselle Angwin, Poet and Author
'Deft descriptions of fearless women. She has a strong narrative line with a natural rhythm and musicality... while much of her poetry deals with loss and deep feeling, some of it is also very funny. Chloe reads her work exceptionally well, bringing her characters to life.'
Jennifer Grigg, Editor, Green Bottle Press greenbottlepress.com
'elegiac poems of loss, leavened with o a sharp mix of humour and cruel wit. It is one of the most striking I have read this year.'
Rennie Halstead
‘beautiful unshowy language; a precisely controlled tone that allows for an expert build up of narrative suspense.’
Amy Wack, Poetry Editor, Seren Press
Pamphlet Collections
The Waney Edge, Green Bottle Press, 2019
Upstart Jugglers, Hen Run, Grey Hen Press, 2020
Recent published poems
'My Great Great Grandfather', Ink, Sweat and Tears, 2021 inksweatandtears.co.uk/chloe-balcomb/
'Run Like a Girl', 13 Players and a Poet, 2021 www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3YNMllTXkI
'Little Sure Shot', Phenomenal Women, Grey Hen Press 2021
'Captured, Three Paintings by Piers Browne', Lighting Out, Beautiful Dragon's Collaborations, 2021
'First Walk in Ecclesall Wood', Lovely, Dark and Deep, Grey Hen Press 2021
'Blether', Frogmore Papers, 2020
'The Sisters of St. Hilaire', Face Up to the Sun, Manchester Cathedral Publications 2019
'Equinox', Well Dam, Beautiful Dragons, 2019
'What We Know About Snipe', 'Lepus', Dawn Treader, Indigo Dreams Press, 2019
'Neighbours', The Interpreter's House, Issue 80, 2019
theinterpretershouse.org/balcomb-70
'Glory', All the Sins, Issue 9, Art from History, 2019
allthesins.co.uk/issue-2/issue-9/glory-chloe-balcomb/
'Bohemia', Under the Radar, September, 2018
'What We Did', Not a Drop, Beautiful Dragons, 2017
'My Son the Cockroach', 'Culture', And Other Poems, September, 2017
andotherpoems.com/2017/09/08/two-poems-by-chloe-balcomb/
'The Backcomb Beauties', My Mane Memories, Silver Birch Press, 2016
silverbirchpress.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/the-backcomb-beauties-poem-by-chloe-balcomb-my-mane-memories-poetry-and-prose-series/
Recent prizes and commendations
Hooligan Girls, Longlisted, Primers, Nine Arches Press 2021
'Diamond Geezer', Longlisted, Fiction Factory 2021
'Blether', Frogmore Poetry Prize, 2020, Second Runner Up
'Crossing', Elmbridge Literary Competition, 2020
'The Sisters of St Hilaire', Manchester Cathedral Poetry Competition, 2019
'Driving Lessons', The Cannon Poets Sonnet or Not, 2017
'Strange Creatures', Guernsey Literature Festival, 2016
'Advice for Female Funambulists', Mslexia Poetry Pamphlet Competition, 2016
Short Stories
'Thirst', Eunoia Review, 2019
eunoiareview.wordpress.com/2019/08/06/thirst-3/
'Flamenco Tat', The Cabinet of Heed, (Issue 24), 2019
cabinetofheed.com/2019/09/07/flamenco-tat-chloe-balcomb
Recent performances
'Upstart Jugglers' Zoom Launch, July 4th, 2021
Sing for international Women's Day 2021
'The Waney Edge', Bishops House, Sheffield, 2019
'The Waney Edge', Green Bottle Press Launch, Poetry Cafe, Covent Garden, 2019
'The Waney Edge', Off The Shelf, Festival of Words, 2019
'The Waney Edge' Wirksworth Festival, 2019
Female Funambulists, Wirksworth Festival, 2018
Female Funambulists, Off the Shelf, Festival of Words, 2018
Female Funambulists, Frost Fair Performance, 2018
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More about meAbout Me My poetry began with the telling of family stories but increasingly the voices and tales of those who have takena different or daring path draw me to them. I am interested in exploring the intricacies of relationships and the inner and outer journeys we take in order to make sense of our lives. Primarily a narrative poet, I take inspiration from the natural world, social history and myth. |