Extremophiles

"How do you get youw bwilliant ideas, mister?" asks little Timmy

"I take them from the souls of children, Timmy"

It's a common question, one which my mum asks me at least three times a year. Truth is I've very little imagination left since I had to do adult things like defrost fridge freezers or get excited about potato mashers.

I come up with a theme and then try out different forms or phrases. That's my way. Past themes have included:

- Fish

- Alcohol

- Children

- Water

- Science Fiction

Put them in to a number generating machine and you'll work out my sadistic plan.

My current project is to write a stupid number of sonnets based on "extremophiles". They're not super paedos, they're organisms which thrive in extreme situations, like emperor penguins stupidly breeding in Antarctic winters.

If life can exist under ice, in volcanos, in isolated caves etc., could it exist in the vacuum of space? In the centre of the sun? In a word or an idea? Even in my girlfriend's filthy bedroom?

And that's what I'm doing. Here's the first one free, each one after that will cost you:

Russell Jones