大象传媒

It is an Austrian custom to write a poem or a little verse into a book, which is kept in a wooden box, when you reach the peak of the Alps. That was how I started and then I was occasionally asked to write for birthdays and weddings.

A male friend encouraged me to write more love poems and when I came to study in England听I refreshed my style with only English poetry and discarded any German poetry altogether, thinking it sounded rather harsh. Through my teenage years I admired Lord Tennyson and Lord Byron's poetry as well as Shakespeare and used to recite ballads at parties.

I worked as听 a teacher in London and Bristol. That took most of the creative vein out of me, but in a phase of being bored at work听I picked up my poetry again. In one of my rather dull jobs I met another writer who worked as an accountant and we decided to choose one topic or title for a poem each week and then read the newly written poem to each other over a cooked meal. That's how my first book took shape.

Heidi Rabenau.

I love writing - mainly in a bookshop cafe and that became my dream: to have my book on the shelf, in the bookshop, next to Sylvia Plath. My dream came true last year.

When I think too hard over what I'm writing it doesn't tend to touch people, but sounds rather academic and artificial. So I often听keep thoughts on my mind until before I fall asleep then suddenly something grabs me and it all pours out of me like a waterfall.

My poems capture the adventure of living with a vitality that expresses both joy in the mundane and awe at the marvellous. Affirmative and yet real, inventive, playful and reflective, my poems strike a chord with the heart and invite the reader to embrace their dreams and creativity and reach for the stars.

Or simply to ponder awhile to celebrate the ordinary wonders of everyday life. Funny, charming and constantly surprising, my words invite you to take time out of the bustle of life and in exchange you'll get images that will stay with you long after the world starts up again.

Heidi Rabenau