Patrick McGowan

My Mission

I aim to share this new poetry collection with as many people as possible at this time to raise our awareness of the fantastic possibilities for unencumbered science to build a cleaner and smarter world.

People have been seeking new sources of cheap and clean energy for a long time. I have investigated the work of a number of unconventional researchers and inventors in this field, and there is so much brilliance amongst them, people way ahead of their time, though now largely forgotten. I want to share their stories and their ideas. This collection is no text book, but it's a welcome spark to our sense of imagination and wonder, to remind us how the future has untold possibilities. Here is an accessible collection of stories about some amazing scientists. I also raise some important questions about science which the project entails. 

If you would like to read a poet-ed history of the free energy movement this is a book for you!

A few samples (links to Youtube): 1)  The CAT that got the Scream, 2) Viktor Shauberger, 3) The Casimir Effect

This is My Story

Since my earliest study days, writing has been a pastime for me. Over that time, I worked as a metallurgist; health food retailer; public servant, diplomat, and entrepreneur. I eventually decided to take some formal training in writing and obtained a Master of Creative Arts (Prose) from the University of Wollongong in 2011. Since that time I've been writing mostly full time, in a variety of genres: prose fiction; memoir; verse novel; and poetry. As I completed each work, I explored self-publishing, listing my works on either smashwords, lulu or amazon, hoping that I would one day expand the circle of readers with the help of a big time publisher. It's slow but I approached this writing phase of my life as a chance to experiment and learn, the most important thing was that I keep writing. Some may call it a folly. But it's a good life.

With this present project which I describe in detail below, I feel I have created a work of value, it's engaging, it's inspiring, food for the imagination. With its survey of the subject of energy science and profiles of the inventors, this work can uplift the reader, ideally I can reach the minds of young readers with an interest in science. For a wider readership, this work can clarify our demands and expectations for technology to produce cheaper, cleaner energy.

Researching and writing on this subject was a true journey of discovery. And by applying the writing skills I have  developed over years, I have found a way to share this sense of discovery in a fun art form. 

Project Description

This project had its beginnings in the 1980s when I managed a health food store in Bondi Junction and we sold copies of Nexus, an alternative issues magazine. One edition carried a story about Joseph Wesley Newman of Mississippi and his 'Impossible Machine' which got wide coverage on US television at the time. 

Newman's claim was that he needed a small battery to start his machine and then it would run itself. He first used it to pump water in his home town. I again caught up with him in 2015 via a documentary of his life on Youtube in 2015. There was no doubting his sincerity and passion (and of course his genius), but he had become a bitter old man. I recall asking a friend who prided himself on his knoweldge of science to watch the video and tell me what he thought. My friend refused, claimed it must be bunk because nobody can defy the law of conservation of energy. That is what got me thinking about people who cling to the dogmas of science. There's a difference between the conservation of energy and the conservation of power. Anyhow, I explored around Newman some more, and I found a long list of inventors with unconventional solutions to energy problems, many who have been rebuffed by either the scientific establishment or the investment world. There is a larger thread in this work of life paths followed, the choices people make, and the question of what truly constitute success.

I was initially attracted to the stories of these people alone. But I was also drawn by the poetry and musicality of the names of their machines, and even the names of the inventors themselves and the places where they lived. I decided to compile a chap book for a competition, maybe a dozen or so poems, but new poems just kept coming. I widened my scope to cover other related fields of energy research and soon I had a solid collection of stories in verse form.    

The sonnet was my preferred vehicle of expression for some good reasons. It's a wonderful container of words. It allows either narrative or argument, but it drives us to keep a strong focus on our theme as we only have fourteen lines, less than one hundred words to communicate our story. It's always an exciting challenge! I studied the sonnets of the past: Shakespeare; Petrarch; Pushkin; Cummings; Neruda, and many more. I especially enjoyed some of the Irish poets who, sometimes irreverently, stretched the sonnet to its limits and yet I could see the sonnet has a lot more life left in it yet. Discussing with a poet friend of mine, he commented, that 'the sonnet is the supreme form in my mind of rhymed poetry.' That was good enough for me. 

During my creative writing studies, I was introduced to the idea of found poetry by my university lecturer, Alan Wearne. Here, the order of words written in prose are preserved and reformed into a poetic format. I have always kept my eye out for such poems. I recalled a favourite music album of mine in the late seventies, My Life in the Bush of Ghosts by David Byrne and Brian Eno, where all words of the songs on this album were plucked directly from the radio and blended into the songs as is. A creative move at that time. I know that since then, David Byrne has compiled a whole album of songs using the words from the speeches of Madame Imelda Marcos, former wife of the Philippines president. Reflecting on the creative process, Byrne pointed out that another person says things in a different way compared to how he may speak, and to incorporate these other perspectives can often enrich a creative work.  

Thanks to Irina Llina (iirliinnaa) on pixabay.com for canary image

Thanks to canva.com for image editing.

Please note the book cover is still being designed.

The total cost for this project is $A2374. This will cover the printing costs of 100 copies ($732 incl GST), cover design ($300), mailers and postage ($288), listing on Thorpe Bowker ($400), maintain blog/author website ($500). I intend to proof-read in house. 

At this stage, I have decided against a physical book launch. If I exceed my first goal, I may set a stretch goal, to  hold a launch gathering at The Buzz Bar in Mortdale. Here we can record the event for those who live further away.

As mentioned elsewhere, once the book is printed and distibuted, I do not expect to reprint it. However, I will have an electronic copy available on smashwords.com. This self-publishing site has an option for adjusting the price of the book for libraries. And I pledge to make Canaries in the Sunshine free for libraries for one year upon its uploading onto smashwords.