This week on Stories. Songs. Seasons., I'm joined by poet and writer David Toms to talk about three stories, three songs, and one season.

David grew up in Waterford, the youngest of six, and has lived in Norway since 2016. He's the author of the memoir Pacemaker and the new poetry collection Holdover Fire.

His stories take us from a grand-uncle who led a 1960 Liverpool dock strike and was kept going in prison by seaweed wrapped in newspaper, to the age of sail in Master and Commander, to Joyce's "The Dead". His songs are from I Am Kloot, The National, and Saint Sister. His season is winter.

FIND DAVID TOMS

Holdover Fire (order here)

Instagram: (follow here)

MORE FROM STORIES. SONGS. SEASONS.

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A solo episode - three of my own stories

This week's a bit different. Instead of speaking with a guest, I thought it was a good time for you to find out a bit more about me, so here's three stories I've written, read out loud.

Read the full pieces:

• Tell Me There'll Be Saturdays
• Grá Mór, Jamie
• Internet Killed the Video Star

Coming up:
I've got a live show in Leeds on 5 December at Heart Headingley. Tickets: https://storiessongsseasons.substack.com/p/stories-songs-seasons-live-event

Subscribe to Stories. Songs. Seasons. on Substack: storiessongsseasons.substack.com

And find me on Instagram, the handle is @itstomshiels

Jackie Lynam is a writer and librarian from Dublin who has been writing poetry since 2017. Lynam’s poems have been published in several journals and anthologies, and have been shortlisted for the Anthony Cronin International Short Poem Award and RTÉ’s The Prompt writing competition. Her writing has also featured in the Irish Independent and on RTÉ Radio 1’s Sunday Miscellany programme. Jackie’s debut chapbook Traces: Poems and Essays was published in 2023 and was longlisted for the Carousel AWARE Prize for Independently Published Authors. It was Alan Hanna’s bestselling poetry book in 2023.
You can find out more about Jackie and grab a copy of her collection Traces here.

Listen to the songs we talked about on the Stories. Songs. Seasons. playlist here.

Follow Stories. Songs. Seasons. on Instagram here.
And buy tickets to Tom Shiels live in Leeds on December 5th 2026 here.

What a way to kick off the podcast with Richard Walters.

Richard is a critically acclaimed UK artist and Grammy nominated songwriter. As a solo artist, he has released five albums and four EP's since 2007. His music has featured on a number of TV shows including Grey's Anatomy, Netflix's After Life and CSI: Miami.As a songwriter and collaborator Richard has worked with an eclectic mix of artists including Grammy winner Joe Henry, British icon Alison Moyet, US alt-rock legends Semisonic, a number of key players in the electronic music world - including Deadmau5, Kaskade, and Sultan + Shepard - current UK poet laureate Simon Armitage (as part of the band LYR) and Oscar nominated actress and singer Florence Pugh. Collectively, his work has amassed well over 200 million streams. Recent commissions have included 'Blossomise' for The National Trust, the North-East Culture Awards winning 'Firm as a Rock' for Durham Brass festival 2022 & 2025, and a new piece for the BBC Proms 2025.Richard’s releases have gained notable support from Lauren Laverne and Guy Garvey at BBC 6 Music, Jo Whiley and Dermot O’Leary at BBC Radio 2, and a number of influential publications including The Guardian, The Line of Best Fit and Mojo Magazine.

Find out more about what's going on with Richard by following him on Instagram.

You can read the poem Eden Rock by Charles Causley here.

Follow Tom Shiels on Instagram here.

Get tickets for Stories. Songs. Seasons. Live at Heart Headingley in Leeds here.