Happiness is Hard

                                    © Janne Karlsson

I want to write but I’m

Too damn happy.

Sure, I’m depressed and

I have a shit job and

I haven’t seen a payrise

Since before we all saw

Kim Kardashian’s cunt

But I’m happy,
And it’s hard

I need to be able to write

Without the dove-shit white

Page gradually turning black

I’ve no way to let the

Beast out.  The madness out.

My condition will remain caged,

Locked up and prowling

Inside of me, eating

Whatever’s left of my soul 

-by David Louden

Belfast native David Louden is the author of the roman á clef neo-beat novels Lost Angeles, Bone Idol [bohn ahyd-l] and the novella-short story hybrid White Mexicans chronicling the life of his alter-ego Doug Morgan.  His major influences in literature have been cited as Charles Bukowski, John Fante, William S. Burroughs and Brendan Behan. At present Louden is developing a Noir project for television set in Belfast which he hopes will go into pre-production within the year.

Art Courtesy: Janne Karlsson

Janne Karlsson is a wildly prolific Swedish illustrator and writer.