Welcome to
Tom's Voice Magazine...

and to Issue 10.

ISSUE TEN!!! That is amazing. Thank you to all our writers, to our readers, to those who have helped on the way, editing, selecting subs, proof-reading. And the biggest thanks in the world for Zoe King without whom Tom's Voice simply wouldn't exist. Keep those subs coming in - I want to hear from YOU!

Stop Press
How lovely is this? A contributor has started up a writing group - all writers in recovery, and is to call it Tom's Voice Writers. They asked if I minded, and I told them, I was honoured!

I very much hope the group works well, and produces some wonderful writing - for the members themselves and for those lucky enough to share it - and I send them my very best. Who knows - we might be hearing more from them in future! This is from Aimee Dearmon, whose work you will find in this issue, describing how her group came to be formed - How brilliant that this little magazine has been an inspiration.

Dear Vanessa,

The idea for the writer's group came about when I was discussing your magazine and the acceptance of my story with a friend of mine, a talented musician who also loves to write. I told him how others I'd told of Tom's Voice had begun to approach me. Like me, they had no idea there was a recovery magazine outside of the AA Grapevine.This led to my expression of a possible need for a writers group. My friend offered that like Tom's Voice,the group should be for people in recovery and again, like Tom's Voice, it should be open to anyone in recovery.
So, here we are set to begin on February 10th with 6 people planning to attend...

Vanessa

Why ‘Tom's Voice'?

Because one of my first students, a good guy called Tom, tried hard to overcome heroin addiction in 2003. He battled through three months in a tough rehab. and while he was there discovered that he could write wonderful wacky poetry and prose poems. Tom died not long after he finished at rehab. and beside his body was a poem. His own version of 'To everything there is a season'.

He Had a Voice

Addiction is a cruel enemy. To fight it you need some strong weapons. But sometimes the weapons to fight the cruellest enemies seem to be the smallest things. A pencil. A scrap of paper...