Marc Brightside is a graduate of Winchester University (UK) where he  was mentored by Julian Stannard.

He has previously been published by:
 The Poetry Society;
 Vortex;
 Litmus;
 Tuck Magazine;
 And Other Poems (online)
 and other literary journals,
 and in various anthologies.

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ISBN: 978-1-907435-50-8
Perfect-bound paperback
149mm x 210mm
91 pages
​63 poems

KEEP IT IN THE FAMILY by Marc Brightside

This is a narrative poetry collection based around the theme of lying: the necessity of lying, the lies we tell ourselves, manipulation and artistic cynicism. Other aspects that are explored throughout include groupthink, commercialism, trends, relationships and self-fulfilment. 

The poems, in three segments, trace the young writer's development through his abusive childhood, his transition into adulthood and his realisation of deceptions and pomposity in the commercial and artistic worlds that exist beyond his university creative writing course.

Amazon reviews of "Keep it in the Family" :
Highly recommended for anyone interested in unpretentious, thought-provoking modern poetry. Right from the start the book grips the reader - Eleven Years of May is a big, heavy-hitting poem that I keep coming back to (no wonder it was one of the winners in the 2016 National Poetry comp) and this book has several in this vein, interspersed with poems that range from bleak to (darkly) humorous. A top first book and Marc is a new poet to keep an eye on. (TLE)

Wasted Youth

Lying in the moonlight would be too
romantic, so we chose a cloudy day.
Just pretend that it was raining.
 
A spotlight parting entertained our fantasies.
For a moment I was Mr Bailey; my lover,
she was Mary. I lassoed the moon.
​
© Marc Brightside

Praise for "Keep it in the Family"
"Sensitive, compelling treatment of a tragic life…The poet zooms in intimately, strongly conveys childhood, its apartness from the comprehensions of the adult world, the pain of the passage of time, rather than its healing quality, but energy is retained throughout, and there’s no descent into sentimentality.”
- The Poetry Society
 
“Laconic, sharp, brutal and unsentimental, with an occasionally shocking sense of realism.”
- Julian Stannard