THE POETRY & FICTION OF ALAN R.C. MITCHELL

This website is 'dedicated' to my poetry and fiction. The (continuing) barely known talent that is Alan R. C. Mitchell.

There's also a page of information on the music that I, along with my writing partner Keith Melhuish (we are known collectively as 'Mitchell&Melhuish' and/or 'UnderTow') have been creating music since 2006. We continue to write and record and are currently completing a double CD concept album (along prog lines) which we hope will be released early in 2026. We are also finalising a difficult to explain piece with music and narration based on one of my original short stories ('Timing') which will be available in two versions when finished. Should our musical interest you, please point your cursor to our separate M&M/UT site here: undertow-music.co.uk

I am also happy to signpost you to my dedicated Photography site: alanmitchellphotography.co.uk. This site arose from an idea that I had about doing something with the thousands of photos I've taken over the years. When I started an NCFE photography qualification (in January 2017); there was a requirement to write a Blog about the course and my journey through it. I thought I'd get myself in gear and combine the two - create an online Gallery and Blog on one site. Even after my third course of academic photography studies finished (in 2019), I could still use the site for my ongoing visual adventures.

But this site is not about my photography or music. It is about the words I write and the way that I write them. My ongoing and perennial pursuit of capturing in words a thought, a feeling, a story that needs to be told and sent 'out there' into the ether. To any audience - or no audience at all.

Most of my poetry is very personal. I have been writing poetry and fiction for over 46 years. This has not always been every day (and sometimes in the past; not even every year) but usually often and consistently. Mostly, this output has been committed to paper, or printed and then put away ('darkling poetry put away on a shelf'), never to see the light of day.

I have written many hundreds of poems, many short stories (plus a few other oddities) and am usually writing and collating an ongoing collection of poetry (my 2024 poetry collection - and thirteenth poetry book - 'These Decisive Moments' was published early 2025), and five of my short stories 'Unwanted Stories' was published in April 2025 and is available now!

My NEW collection, 'Windows of Uncertainty', will be published in early 2026 and I am pleased with how it has gone. The current number of poems written stands at 104 so there will be lots to sample when it's in print and online!

I have two collections of stories currently in print which will fall into two main themes - child-friendly stories (for the 'tween reader') and stories for the older person. The latter are not overly salacious (we are not talking 50 Shades here), but perhaps dealing with more adult themes. I am also working on the (obligatory) novel, although this is still at an early stage (and has been for years), as well as other stories and fiction projects.

In 2018 I started to create, along with Keith; a project from one of my short stories - the exceedingly brief 'Nomor & I'. Keith narrated it and put some backing sounds to it. In 2023, I wrote a new story specifically for an International Literary Prize called 'Timing'. It didn't chime with the judge who read it but after the 'results', Keith asked if he could read it so I sent him a pdf of the story.

To my surprise and joy, he wanted to do something similar to 'NoMor' and I obviously gave him the go ahead to give it a go. What he produced was wonderful. A 12 part version with music, narration and effects that took the story in a completely different direction. I learnt a lot about the story and its structure as we realised that the script he was using was basically the version as originally written. This, we felt, was missing a trick or two so I sat down to rewrite it, freed from the constraints of the standard story structure. It's been edited and adjusted a few times over the months but Keith is working on the final version and we hope to be able to release it in a CD 'Audiobook' type format as well as on streaming platforms very soon.

I am pleased that the first collection of three of my short stories - 'Dances of Friendship' - was published back in 2017 and has had a fairly good reception from the feedback I've received from it's (all too few) readers. This has made the work on the other stories all the more pleasurable. I know my work is niche, I'm no David Walliams, Tom Gates or Jacqueline Wilson; but I have a belief in my work, know that it's worthwhile and offers a different reading experience to the norm. I view my fiction as being for those looking for 'a different reality curve' as it's individual, quirky and definitely not mainstream (maybe that's why I'm not making shedloads of money)!

As for poetry, I have a strong assertion that poetry really should be heard aloud, rather than listened to via the internal narrative voices of the mind. The 'music' that is in the poetry, the beat, the metre and flow, can be heard clearer when read out than when in the confines of the readers' head, and I'd like everyone who reads my work to at least give it a go. Try it with any poetry that you like to read and hear how it sounds outside as well as inside your head. You might be surprised!

My personal viewpoint translates (and is often transposed) into the songs I have written with Keith Melhuish. Keith (a multi-instrumentalist, artist, woodcarver and general renaissance man) supplies the music and I come up with the lyrics. We have created over 200 songs in this way, the first few of which appeared on the 'One Day' album (available via our UnderTow page). We hope that like another of our albums ('London Diary', released early 2023) it will be available on Spotify and other streaming platforms along with our second album 'In Session' recorded during one 8 hour recording session in 2019 at Rogue Studios, Wembley. Our other current CD is an EP called 'Passing Moods' which is available now.

More songs continue to be written regularly and when finished, mixed down to a final stereo version and become available as CD's they will be added to the Store page of that site ready for purchase. In 2016, after a hiatus; we rekindled the project and have continued to write songs and are (still) finalising an ongoing 'prog' epic, called 'discoveryONE'. This double CD is in the final stages and we hope will be released early in 2026.

I was fortunate to have been gifted an 8-hour Studio Recording session at Rogue Studios in London by my wife. On the 30th September 2019 Keith and I went 'into the studio' (always wanted to be able to say that!) and beyond all expectations we 'laid down' 13 acoustic tracks. For more information on this, and to see the tracks we recorded, head over to www.undertow-music.co.uk and have a browse. Like all our music, it's available as a download or as a physical CD and it was an amazing experience; the result of which we are extremely proud of.

I have been a keen photographer for over 4 decades, from the older film days (I had my own monochrome darkroom) to the newer, more 'free' digital age. I have taken many photos across a variety of subjects - even being the official photographer at Birthday Parties, Events, Ceremonies and Weddings!

I am married, have two children and moved to Lincolnshire after the COVID Lockdowns. Located in a really nice village between Louth and Grimsby, Lisa, Laura and I are building a new life there. Ed (the Yeti) has moved to Staffordshire with Molly (his girlfriend) building theirs in a new and slightly larger house they are making into a home.

Should the need arise; I am available for parties, weddings, gatherings and other situations where the presence of a poet/photographer/writer/singer could be of some use....

Now there are lots of people I could thank for all sorts of reasons, and perhaps One Day (see what I did there?), I'll add something here a bit like one of those really embarrassing Oscar winner speeches, full of (well rehearsed) spontaneous pathos, tears and stumbling thanks to everyone going back to the person concerned's midwife's partner's Dachshund.

But right now, right here, I'd like to thank my family for being there, my friends for putting up with me, and mostly you for taking the time to stop by and pop your head round the door frame of my world to see what's inside.

I hope you enjoy your visit to my site and that you'll want to return somewhen soon.

Take care, stay safe, keep reading.

Alan

Poetry & Fiction across many years!

Poetry & Fiction
across many years!