Sunday, December 26, 2010

Do a Verb

 
I just finished reading Twyla Tharp's The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life. I loved this book and will likely have more to say about it at another time, but for now I want to say that one of the aspects of the book I enjoyed was that so much of what Tharp says about her life and work as a dancer has parallels to the life and work of a poet. For example, some of her strategies for getting herself out of a creative slump could easily work for poets.

One activity Tharp uses to get out of a creative dead end is called "Do a Verb." She chooses a verb and acts it out physically. For example, the verb squirm leads to wiggling her hips, shrugging her shoulders, and moving her limbs in such a way that a "dance phrase" gets underway. She videotapes the process and when she plays back the video, she invariably finds something "strange and new" that revs up her dance engine.

I think that we poets could translate this exercise to poetry. Choose a verb and free write about it for five minutes. See what emerges. Or begin literally with the physical, as a dancer would. Then write about that.

Some verbs suggested by Tharp: dart, twirl, chafe. Then there is her "Civilian Big Ten," verbs consistently suggested by groups she's worked with: push, spin, run, jump, twist, roll, skip, turn, walk, fall. But feel free to choose your own verb, a snazzy one or an ordinary one.

This activity might be a good way to end 2010 or to begin 2011. Or both.

 

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Yes, Virginia


Each Christmas I like to revisit the following essay from the The Sun. My grandmother read it to me many years ago. I've always remembered it. If you don't already know this piece, I hope you'll enjoy it. I also hope you'll have a Merry Christmas if that's what you're celebrating. And I hope you'll have a wonderful New Year. Thank you for being a Blogalicious reader.

Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York's The Sun, and the quick response was printed as an unsigned editorial September 21, 1897. The work of veteran newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial, appearing in part or whole in dozens of languages in books, movies, and other editorials, and on posters and stamps.

Here's Virginia's letter:

"DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
"Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.'
"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

"VIRGINIA O'HANLON.
"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."

Here's the reply:

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Review of The Working Poet

 

 Last year I reviewed The Working Poet, edited by Scott Minar and published by Autumn House Press. I love this book. It's loaded with wonderful prompts for new poems. I have two exercises in the book, each with a sample poem. I'm joined by a few dozen other poets whose prompts and poems have stimulated some new poems for me. I'm sure the book would do the same for you.

I was delighted to see this brief review in the current issue of The Bloomsbury Review. I agree completely with the recommendation made in the last sentence. But you don't have to be in a classroom to use the book. You can use it to home school yourself. If you don't yet own this, now is the time to treat yourself.


Tuesday, December 14, 2010

My Secrets Revealed at Pif Magazine


I was recently interviewed by Derek Alger for Pif Magazine. The interview appears in the December issue. Derek works in a somewhat unusual manner. In the past the interviewer has sent me questions via email, sometimes a few at a time but usually all at once. I then responded to the questions and sent them back. But Derek wanted to talk first on the telephone. We made a phone date and then chatted for over an hour. A week later Derek emailed his topics, not really questions, with some notes on what I'd said on the phone. He told me to respond any way I wanted. So I incorporated some of his / my notes and took off from there.

Some of the topics covered are the public response to my new book, my experience at a recent reading and makes for a good reading, my late bloomer status, graduate school, my David Copperfield childhood, teaching, my first two books, time spent at The Frost Place, my current work in poetry.

I am grateful to Derek for doing the interview. You can read the interview here.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Surprise Review of What Feeds Us

I didn't expect to get any more reviews of my second book, What Feeds Us, so it was just delightful to learn that Sheila Bender had reviewed the book in her magazine, Writing It Real. This is a subscription only online publication, but occasionally there's an issue that includes non-subscribers. The review appears in one of those issues.

Sheila gives a generous overview of the collection, then zeroes in on three poems: "Love Test: A Ghazal," "Blueberry," and "Idiosyncrasies of the Body." Since Writing It Real is a newsletter that goes to writers, the review is followed by three prompts, one based on each of the three poems. There's also a blog where people can leave comments. 

Here's a bit from the Introduction:
"A 2006 Quentin R. Howard Poetry Prize winner, the volume is as witty as it is heartbreaking. Diane's poems draw her readers in as they transform visits to the hair dresser, eating pickles as a child, wanting more out of a marriage as a husband brings in cold pizza on a snowy night, being stung by a bee and tended to lovingly, looking at blueberries in her kitchen, noticing an announcement about a coming test, or having an MRI and dreading the results into moments of revelation and introspection. Diane's gift for melding observations of food she prepares, activities in her life, and notions of her own and others with her deepest longings and fears reaches fully into the heart." 

You can read the entire review here. I love this review! 

You might be interested in subscribing to Writing It Real. It costs $30 per year. Sheila is an experienced poet, prose writer, editor, and teacher.
Here are some of the Subscriber Benefits:
  • Links to each new article emailed every Thursday
  • Access over five years of weekly articles in our archives
  • Read any article online or download the print version
  • Receive updated publishing and writing resource information each week 
  • Customize your email preferences to receive newsletters and special notices
  • $20 discount on all Writing It Real online workshops
Read some Free sample articles. 

Consider treating some writer you know to a subscription. Consider treating yourself to a subscription.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Invitation to a Reading

If you're in the Philadelphia area, please join us. It sounds like fun.


A LITTLE WINTER MADNESS:   A SAMPLING OF MAD POETS AND MUSICIANS

On Saturday, December 11, 2010, the Mad Poets Society will present a special music and poetry reading, “A Little Winter Madness: A Sampling of Mad Poets,” featuring four poets and three musicians.

Media Borough Hall 
in the Mansion Parlor 
3rd and Jackson Streets
Media, PA 
7:00 p.m.
hosted by Media poet Brian Sammond

The four featured poets are Thaddeus Rutkowski, Diane Lockward, Gloria Parker and Jason Fritz.           


The featured musicians are renowned local singer-songwriter, Tom Mullian, and the talented duo, “Silver Wind,” comprised of Mike Mascia on American Indian flute and Jackie Neuman on guitar.

For further information about this event: Mad Poets Society   


Monday, December 6, 2010

In Search of Holiday Cheer

 I went to the mall this morning and tried to get into a holiday spirit. It didn't work. The Short Hills Mall is beautiful and there's covered parking which is great on a cold day with bits of white stuff coming out of the sky. But the Santa display was all blocked off with huge plexiglass cases. I couldn't see the little kids with Santa or any of the Christmas display. Bah humbug. Then Macy's—ugh, what a nightmare! Get me outta there, fast! Is there some reason why Macy's has to have the heat up so high and the perfume in the air so thick?

Okay, I got that out of my system. Now onto far cooler stuff.

This weekend poet and blogger Kristin Berkey-Abbott added this post to her blog: "Favorite Poetry Books of 2010: Add These Books to Your Shopping List." I like the imperative that comes after her title's colon. I also like having my own Temptation by Water on that list! My book is keeping good company on this list. Several of the books I already own and can add my recommendation to Kristin's: Letters from the Emily Dickinson Room, by Kelli Russell Agodon; I Am the Jukebox, by Sandra Beasley; Unmentionables, by Beth Ann Fennelly; Underlife, by January O'Neil; and The Alchemist's Kitchen, by Susan Rich. Kristin's list sent me over to Amazon where I ordered Poetry in Person, edited by Alexander Neubauer. I've added a few of the other titles to my next order list.

The list put a smile on my face and so did reading these words in Kristin's post: "And as I chose this list, I couldn't help but notice how every book but the one by Kamiko Hahn came to my attention because of blogs. With several books, I already knew about the poet (again, usually because of stumbling across their blog), and I had the pleasure of watching the book publishing process of the book on the list below (author photos, blurbs, promotional videos, book covers—a wealth of information on various blogs). So if you ever wonder if your time spent writing a blog is worthwhile, I would say yes!"

That's been my experience, too, as a poet who blogs. The circle has widened. I've become part of an ever-growing community of poets. I've read books by poets I've met in this circle, and I know that some of them have, in turn, supported my work.

Also putting a smile on my face today is a nice mention in The Caldwells Patch "About Town" feature. If you are not familiar with patch.com, it's an online newspaper spreading like wildfire throughout the US. Many towns now have their own "patch" where residents can find up-to-the-minute news, information about local events, restaurant listings, and so on. Today's "About Town" feature is Good Books, Good Deeds. The reporter recommends my new book, gives a bit of information about me, and provides a cover image. I wonder if this means that I will now be recognized at the Foodtown.

The next recommendation in the article is the Alhambra Poetry Calendar that I blogged about on Saturday. The reporter learned about the Calendar from my blog. Another example of how effective blogs can be in spreading the word about poetry, poets, and books. And calendars.

Speaking of restaurants, while you're visiting The Caldwells Patch, check out this review of my husband's restaurant, The Fieldhouse Pub, in Fairfield, NJ. We love this review! Also check out the virtual tour (just click on the small video image). I made this video and must say I'm rather proud of my work. I used Animoto, a wonderful program for video-making.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Holiday Gift Idea





Need an idea for a great holiday gift for someone who appreciates poetry? This calendar can sit on a desk or a table, at home or at work. It offers an ideal way to begin the day or end it. No need to check a website or inbox for your daily poem. 

Alhambra’s stand-up desk calendar for 2011 contains 365 classical and contemporary poems by more than 300 poets. Poetry from different eras and poetry movements is included, with a particular emphasis on contemporary poetry. The calendars are bound in a spiral, so there is no need to tear off pages and they can be used later as a reference book.

The calendar comes in English, French, and Deutsch. It's priced at $29.95. That might seem expensive, but calculate how much that comes to per poem and you'll see that it's a major bargain. You can order the calendar from Alhambra or from the Academy of American Poets.

When you're deciding who should receive this lovely gift, don't forget to ask for one for yourself!

I've been in this calendar all but one of the years since it first appeared. Two years ago I read with a group of calendar poets at the Bowery Poetry Club in NYC and had the pleasure of meeting Shafiq Naz, the creator of the calendar. My poem this year is "Weather Report," from my book, Temptation by Water. As always, I'm delighted to be part of this beautiful project. Here's the list of all the poets included in the 2011 calendar:


DANNIE ABSE · JOSEPH ADDISON · KIM ADDONIZIO · SANDRA ALCOSSER · MONIZA ALVI · NIN ANDREWS · ANTONELLA ANEDDA · RAE ARMANTROUT · MATTHEW ARNOLD · ROSE AUSLÄNDER · ROBERT BAGG · DAVID BAKER · CHRISTIANNE BALK · MARY JO BANG · ANNA LAETITIA BARBAULD · DAVID BARBER · ELLEN BASS · THOMAS BASTARD · DEREK BEAULIEU · FRANCIS BEAUMONT · THOMAS LOVELL BEDDOES · JACK B. BEDELL · APHRA BEHN · LINDA BIERDS · DAVID BIESPIEL · KATE BINGHAM · WILLIAM BLAKE · ADRIAN BLEVINS · ROBERT BLY · EAVAN BOLAND · STEPHANIE BOLSTER · TODD BOSS · ANNE BRADSTREET · GEOFFREY BROCK · PATRICIA BRODY · EMILY BRONTË · RUPERT BROOKE · JOEL BROUWER · ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING · ROBERT BROWNING · ALAN BROWNJOHN · COLETTE BRYCE · ROBERT BURNS · SAMUEL BUTLER · KATHRYN STRIPLING BYER · THOMAS CAMPION · THOMAS CAREW · CATHERINE CARTER · CAROLINE CARVER · CHRISTINE CASSON · MARGARET CAVENDISH · ANN CEFOLA · LYNN CHANDHOK · GEORGE CHAPMAN · GEOFFREY CHAUCER · JOHN CLARE · GEORGE ELLIOTT CLARKE · SUZANNE CLEARY · ARTHUR HUGH CLOUGH · SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE · BILLY COLLINS · DAVID CONSTANTINE · TRISTAN CORBIÈRE · CHARLES COTTON · WILLIAM COWPER · HART CRANE · BARBARA CROOKER · SAMUEL DANIEL · JOHN DAVIES · JON DAVIS · GREG DELANTY · EMILY DICKINSON · FRED DINGS · GREGORY DJANIKIAN · JOHN DONNE · ERNEST DOWSON · WILLIAM DRUMMOND · SASHA DUGDALE · DENISE DUHAMEL · IAN DUHIG · PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR · LADY CATHERINE DYER · ELIZABETH I · ALISTAIR ELLIOT · CLAUDIA EMERSON · RALPH WALDO EMERSON · FAIZ AHMAD FAIZ · EDWARD FIELD · MARTIN FIGURA · ROY FISHER · EDWARD FITZGERALD · JAMES ELROY FLECKER · JOHN FULLER · GEORGE GASCOIGNE · JOHN GAY · DOREEN GILDROY · MARIA MAZZIOTTI GILLAN · DANA GIOIA · OLIVER GOLDSMITH · GEORGE GORDON, LORD BYRON · THOMAS GRAY · JAMES GREENE · DORA GREENWELL · LINDA GREGERSON · EAMON GRENNAN · FULKE GREVILLE, LORD BROOKE · JANE GRIFFITHS · KELLE GROOM · IVOR GURNEY · JENNIFER HABEL · MARILYN HACKER · RACHEL HADAS · MARIAN HADDAD · HAFIZ · KIMIKO HAHN · DANIEL HALL · JOSEPH HALL · SOPHIE HANNAH · THOMAS HARDY · JOY HARJO · JAMES HARMS · JEFFREY HARRISON · DAVID HARSENT · DOLORES HAYDEN · FELICIA DOROTHEA HEMANS · WILLIAM ERNEST HENLEY · JOHN HENNESSY · JAMES HENRY · GEORGE HERBERT · DAVID HERNANDEZ · ROBERT HERRICK · BOB HICOK · BRENDA HILLMAN · EDWARD HIRSCH · JANE HIRSHFIELD · H. L. HIX · TONY HOAGLAND · OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES · THOMAS HOOD · PAUL HOOVER · GERARD MANLEY HOPKINS · JOHN HOPPENTHALER · JOHN HOSKINS · A. E. HOUSMAN · HENRY HOWARD, EARL OF SURREY · ANDREW HUDGINS · GLYN HUGHES · LEIGH HUNT · MARK IRWIN · HELEN IVORY · MAJOR JACKSON · AMANDA JERNIGAN · LIONEL JOHNSON · SAMUEL JOHNSON · DEVIN JOHNSTON · LIBBY FALK JONES · BEN JONSON · MARILYN KALLET · ALICE KAVOUNA · JOHN KEATS · BRIGIT PEGEEN KELLY · X. J. KENNEDY · HENRY KING · SUSAN KINSOLVING · DEBORAH LANDAU · WALTER SAVAGE LANDOR · D. H. LAWRENCE · EMMA LAZARUS · SYDNEY LEA · EDWARD LEAR · ELEANOR LERMAN · PHILLIS LEVIN · TIM LIARDET · SARAH LINDSAY · TOMOTHY LIU · DIANE LOCKWARD · WILLIAM LOGAN · HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW · RICHARD LOVELACE · AMY LOWELL · JOHN LYLY · KATHLEEN LYNCH · MARWAN MAKHOUL · RANDALL MANN · CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE · RICHARD MARTIN · ANDREW MARVELL · DAVID MASON · HAROLD MASSINGHAM · JOHN MCCREA · GARDNER MCFALL · JAMIE MCKENDRICK · JOSHUA MEHIGAN · ERIKA MEITNER · HERMAN MELVILLE · RICHARD MICHELSON · JOHN MILTON · ROBERT MINHINNICK · CAROL MOLDAW · LADY MARY WORTLEY MONTAGU · ESTHER MORGAN · SIMONE MUENCH · PAUL MULDOON · RICHARD NEWMAN · AIMEE NEZHUKUMATATHIL · BARBARA NICKEL · EDWARD NOBLES · JEAN NORDHAUS · CHRISTOPHER NORTH · KATHERINE NORTHROP · D. NURKSE · NAOMI SHIHAB NYE · KEVIN O’CONNOR · JOHN O’KEEFE · WILFRED OWEN · ERIC PANKEY · JAY PARINI · ELISE PARTRIDGE · LINDA PASTAN · COVENTRY PATMORE · MOLLY PEACOCK · PASCALE PETIT · KATHERINE PHILIPS · CHRISTOPHER PILLING · ROBERT PINSKY · DONALD O. PLATT · STANLEY PLUMLY · EDGAR ALLAN POE · ALEXANDER POPE · JACQUELYN POPE · PETER PORTER · D. A. POWELL · NEIL POWELL · MATTHEW PRIOR · SIMON RAE · SIR WALTER RALEGH · JACQUES RÉDA · JAMES RICHARDSON · ATSURO RILEY · ROBIN ROBERTSON · PETER ROBINSON · DAVID RODERICK · PADRAIG ROONEY · ISAAC ROSENBERG · J. ALLYN ROSSER · CHRISTINA ROSSETTI · DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI · MICHAEL RYAN · LAWRENCE SAIL · FIONA SAMPSON · REG SANER · ROBERT SAXTON · GRACE SCHULMAN · SIR WALTER SCOTT · CHARLES SEDLEY · WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE · RAVI SHANKAR · DON SHARE · PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY · RICHARD BRINSLEY SHERIDAN · ANDREW SHIELDS · VIVIAN SHIPLEY · JAMES SHIRLEY · PEGGY SHUMAKER · PENELOPE SHUTTLE · SIR PHILIP SIDNEY · JOHN SKELTON · ED SKOOG · R. T. SMITH · THOMAS R. SMITH · EDMUND SPENSER · ELIZABETH SPIRES · A. E. STALLINGS · PAGE HILL STARZINGER · DABNEY STUART · MATTHEW SWEENEY · JONATHAN SWIFT · ALGERNON CHARLES SWINBURNE · ARTHUR SZE · GEORGE SZIRTES · EDWARD TAYLOR · MARILYN L. TAYLOR · SARA TEASDALE · ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON · EDWARD THOMAS · JEFFREY THOMSON · HENRY DAVID THOREAU · ADAM THORPE · RICHARD TILLINGHAST · DANIEL TOBIN · RHETT ISEMAN TRULL · GEORGE TUBERVILLE · BRIAN TURNER · THOMAS TUSSER · CODY WALKER · SUE WALKER · ROSANNA WARREN · MICHAEL WATERS · ELLEN DORÉ WATSON · JOHN WEBSTER · WALT WHITMAN · SUSAN WICKS · ELLA WHEELER WILCOX · C. K. WILLIAMS · HUGO WILLIAMS · WENDY WILLIS · JOHN WILMOT, EARL OF ROCHESTER · ELEANOR WILNER · CHRISTIAN WIMAN · TERRI WITEK · ANNE FINCH, COUNTESS OF WINCHILSEA · CECILIA WOLOCH · WILLIAM WORDSWORTH · BARON WORMSER · SIR HENRY WOTTON · MARY WROTH · SIR THOMAS WYATT · ELINOR WYLIE · WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS · STEPHEN YENSER · GARY YOUNG · ISABEL ZUBER


     

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Mystery Solved

Nobody came up with the correct name of the form in my last post. Fortunately, while I was straightening out my extremely cluttered kitchen table, I unburied the source. The form and the directions are found in Kim Addonizio's book, Ordinary Genius, which I previously blogged about here. The prompt is found on p. 254. The form is called a "sonnenizio," invented by Kim and bearing her name, i.e., a fusion between "sonnet" and "Addonizio."

Here are Kim's directions:
1. Begin with a line from someone else's sonnet.
2. Your poem must be 14 lines.
3. No meter or rhyme scheme.
4. One word from the first line must be repeated in each of the following 13 lines.
5. The last two lines must rhyme.

Now I think it would be fun if we each invent a form that is a spin-off of a known form. Then we name it using Kim's fusion method.

In my December Poetry Newsletter, which went out this morning, I recommended Strange Terrain: A Poetry Handbook for the Reluctant Reader, by Alice B. Fogel. Unfortunately, while the link had been working, I somehow messed up and the newsletter went out without an active link to Amazon. So I'm going to include my brief writeup here, along with the cover and link.

This month I'd like to recommend Alice B. Fogel's Strange Terrain: A Poetry Handbook for the Reluctant Reader. The book is designed to make poetry comprehensible and enjoyable to those who are intimidated by it. And it serves that purpose, but it also is a kind of primer, taking the reader chapter by chapter through an understanding of the elements of poetry. What to look for in a poem? What to appreciate? I think the book would also be useful to those hoping to enhance their own writing skills. It might also be useful to someone planning to lead a workshop as it proceeds in a developmental way with first things first, then moving on to more challenging areas. One aspect of this book that I find unique and interesting is that Fogel uses her own poems to illustrate the poetic concepts. I wasn't sure if I would like that approach, if it would seem egomaniacal. And what if I didn't like her poems? However, I found it enlightening and fascinating to observe a poet analyzing her own work, to witness this poet's mind at work. And I did like her poems.


Click Cover for Amazon

Sunday, November 28, 2010

An Invented Form

The other night I went through my writing folder to see if I had any poems in progress that might hold some promise. This folder holds the poems that have been semi-abandoned, that is, they weren't working but I liked them well enough to hold onto them, thinking something might click for me weeks or months down the road. I throw out nothing, no matter how vile the first draft might be. Most of the drafts in this folder do not, in fact, ever amount to anything, but every once in a while I come across a draft and wonder why I abandoned it. I see some promise in it. Or I find a line that's the very one I need in another draft.

What I found this week was an unrevised draft, one I'd completely forgotten about. I don't know if this draft will amount to anything, but the form is intriguing, and I might like to give it another whirl. I can't, however, remember where I came across this form. I think it's an invented form. I love invented forms. I'm hoping that one of you can identify the name of this form and possibly even be able to tell me where I found it.

I wrote down the instructions for the form:

1. Begin with a line from a poem by someone else. (I suspect that the original instructions might have directed me to draw from a sonnet and then create a sonnet. My draft is 14 lines long and my first line is from a famous sonnet.)

2. Having chosen your first line, you must now repeat one word from that line in each successive line of your poem. For example, my first line was "Let me not to the marriage of true minds." I then decided to repeat "not" in each of the following lines.

3. The final two lines must rhyme.

Now while I love invented forms and rules, I also like to break the rules, so although I'd decided to use "not" as my repeating word, I also decided to use variations of the word. I first brainstormed a word bank: knot, nod, nut, nude, null, knotty, nub, but, cut, lot, mutt, knotted, nit, knit, gnat, note, net. Then I wrote the draft using a number of those words.

Does anyone recognize this form or know where I found it? Anyone feel up to giving it a try?

Note: My December Poetry Newsletter will go out this Wednesday, December 1. If you want to subscribe, go over to the sidebar and fill out the quick form.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Turkeys and Poetry



No, I will not be eating one of these turkeys for Thanksgiving. They showed up in my backyard about a week ago. I counted 27 of them! They walked around and pecked the ground, exhibiting what struck me as extreme arrogance. This was their ground and they could take whatever they wanted. Then they left and have not returned. I will not be roasting any turkey. We're going the restaurant route, letting someone else do the work and the clean-up. This could also be called the lazy route.

Several days ago Kathleen Kirk invited Facebook poets to post a favorite poem, one we're thankful for. I chose Yeats' "Adam's Curse," a poem I love. Some years ago when I attended the seminar at The Frost Place, we were each asked for one of our readings to read three favorite poems by other poets. This was one of mine. Reading this in Frost's barn was a lovely experience. It's a poem I'm thankful for.


Adam's Curse

We sat together at one summer's end,
That beautiful mild woman, your close friend,
And you and I, and talked of poetry.
I said, "A line will take us hours maybe;
Yet if it does not seem a moment's thought,
Our stitching and unstitching has been naught.
Better go down upon your marrow-bones
And scrub a kitchen pavement, or break stones
Like an old pauper, in all kinds of weather;
For to articulate sweet sounds together
Is to work harder than all these, and yet
Be thought an idler by the noisy set
Of bankers, schoolmasters, and clergymen
The martyrs call the world."
                                              And thereupon
That beautiful mild woman for whose sake
There's many a one shall find out all heartache
On finding that her voice is sweet and low
Replied, "To be born woman is to know—
Although they do not talk of it at school—
That we must labour to be beautiful."
I said, "It's certain there is no fine thing
Since Adam's fall but needs much labouring.
There have been lovers who thought love should be
So much compounded of high courtesy
That they would sigh and quote with learned looks
precedents out of beautiful old books;
Yet now it seems an idle trade enough."

We sat grown quiet at the name of love;
We saw the last embers of daylight die,
And in the trembling blue-green of the sky
A moon, worn as if it had been a shell
Washed by time's waters as they rose and fell
About the stars and broke in days and years.
I had a thought for no one's but your ears:
That you were beautiful, and that I strove
To love you in the old high way of love;
That it had all seemed happy, and yet we'd grown
As weary-hearted as that hollow moon.
 

Saturday, November 20, 2010

New Chapbook in Progress

Several months ago I received an invitation to publish a chapbook as part of the Greatest Hits series published by Pudding House Publications in Ohio. According to the information I received, this is an invitational series. A poet is nominated by the last poet who had a chapbook with the press. I won't reveal the name of my kind nominator, but I send him much appreciation. After a nomination is received, then a committee of six determines whether or not to issue the invitation. The series now includes close to 300 chapbooks.

As this invitation arrived right around the same time my new book was coming out, I asked to delay it for several months so I could give my full attention to the new book. Delay granted. I was instructed to select my 12 greatest hit poems, that is, the ones most often requested, most talked about, most well-travelled. That ought to be easy, but wasn't. It was easy enough to select the first 6 or so. The others, not so easy. I'd make a selection and then realize, no, that's one of my favorites, but it hasn't really circulated as much as others. I was instructed not to choose my favorites but my greatest. Then, of course, it's hard to even think of greatness. It seems so arrogant. But eventually I got the poems selected. Don't think I stuck with the original list, however. There was some more hemming and some more hawing. Several changes were made.

Next, I took notes on each poem. Where did it first appear? Where did it go from there? I did this note-taking as I also had to write an introduction to the collection. This essay was supposed to trace the lives of the poems in chronological order. I delayed and delayed. And so many other things intervened, other writing projects that had deadlines. But finally a few weeks ago, I took charge of myself and sat down to do it. I decided I'd do one poem a night. But once I got underway I ended up doing 3 or 4 each night, so it was done rather quickly once I got started. The challenge was to make the essay comprehensive and interesting and, at the same time, manage not to sound like a obnoxious braggart. Then, of course, several rounds of revision.

Next came the Acknowledgments page and the Contents and assembling the entire chapbook into one file. I sent it off last week to the publisher, and she's let me know that she's already working on it and plans to have it for AWP.

I will have no involvement in the cover design as all covers are the same—gold card stock with a black border. Likewise, all titles are the same: Greatest Hits, followed by dates and the poet's name.

More details as the chapbook moves along.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

A Prince of a Reading

You know the story that ends, "You have to kiss a lot of frogs to get a prince"? I sometimes think of this as a metaphor for poetry readings. Some just work out better than others. Occasionally one makes you wonder why you do readings. Occasionally one reminds you why you give readings and how wonderful they can be. That, I'm happy to say, was my experience this past Saturday night in Lambertville, NJ.

I was invited by Vasiliki Katsarou to read at Panoply Books, a charming used books store owned by Roland Boehm. I was very much looking forward to the reading as it was my first NJ reading from my new book, Temptation by Water. Vasiliki made a beautiful flier which she posted around town and in the store. She also emailed it to me so that I could use it to invite people. She also posted the reading at Facebook and Twitter.

I was hoping for maybe ten people to show up, so was delighted when we had somewhere between 20-25. Considering the size of the store, that was a big crowd, standing room only! What a fabulous audience they were! Attentive, engaged with the poems, not one person working on her own poems.

I read ten poems in the order in which they appear in the book. That allowed me to talk a bit about the structure and motifs of the book. Then we had a Q&A, something I always enjoy after a reading. Vasiliki provided a lovely spread of snacks—crackers and cheese, some kind of filo dough hors d'oeuvre, grapes, Prosecco. So people had some nice munchies after the reading. I sold and signed books and continued the conversation a bit longer.

Then I went home and slept like a baby.

Lambertville is one of those artsy towns with lots of bookstores, antique shops, and art galleries, 
sort of an old world feel to it. Did I mention that this is where Gerald Stern lives?

Every second Saturday of the month the stores stay open late, so there were lots of people milling about. 
Some of them wandered in during the reading and lingered for a poem or two.

The outside of Panoply Books

The interior, back room where I read

Me reading, looking somewhat spectral, feet of some audience members—photo taken by Ray Brown who brought 5 people with him which is one reason why I'm a big Ray Brown fan


Sunday, November 14, 2010

A New Review and It's Weird

Poet and reviewer Nicelle Davis has written a delightfully wacky review of my book, Temptation by Water. The review is posted at Pank and illustrates that reviews don't have to be stodgy affairs. This one is creative and unusual. There's a brief prose overview and then two visuals. Yes, visuals!

The prose part begins, "Diane Lockward’s collection of poems, Temptation by Water, takes readers on a journey through a maze of sorrows and delights." Click HERE to read the rest of the review.

Here's one of the visuals. Notice how the book's water motif is visually represented and how Davis manages to bring in some quotations from the poem. The second visual is a unique kind of maze. Very charming, I think!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Poetry Reading in Lambertville

Any chance that you'll be in NJ this Saturday? If so, I'd love to see you at this reading. The bookstore looks like a very cool space, and Lambertville is supposed to be filled with galleries and artsy spots. This is the one Saturday per month that all the stores and galleries will be open. Try to come!


Sunday, November 7, 2010

Mystery Solved

Thank you all for the nice notes about my Verse Daily poem, Birdhouse. I challenged you to identify the form. Sadly, no one rose to that challenge! So I will now solve the mystery. It's an Anagram poem. I have five of them in my new book, one in each section.

I was introduced to this form by a friend. She'd just learned it in a workshop with Terrance Hayes. He has a bunch in his book, Wind in a Box, and defines the form in his end notes. You begin by choosing a word of substantial length. Then you quickly make as many words as you can from the letters in that word. You need a list of at least eleven words, but more is better. Hayes stipulates that all words must be four or more letters and words cannot be formed by the addition of an "s." I am not that strict.


For a second example, here's another anagram from my book. I'd recently come across the word "ecdysiast" and fallen in love with it, so it was one I wanted to work with. If you first just glance at the end words of my poem, you'll see that all of them—easy, cast, act, Yes, desist, and so on—are made up of letters from my lead word. You are free to not use the lead word as your title, but I think that there should be a connection between that word and the content of the poem. Now read the poem. Then read it aloud.


Ecdysiast

You think it's easy
to unravel the boa of feathers and cast
it off, to turn the act
of undressing into an art, suggest Yes
to each hungry face, go just so far and then desist?

Not one can touch, but all must leave feeling sated.

Sequins sparkle as she slinks across the dais,
peels the skirt and tosses it as if rolling dice,
and then the bustier, hook by hook, and thrown aside,
a spider molting, her gaze at once smoldering and icy,
the swivel of hips, to keep the tease slow and steady.


I hope that you noticed the sounds as you read. Lots of rhymes and near rhymes, assonance and consonance. For me, one of the really appealing aspects of this form is the sounds that result. You can't help but get music into the poem.

Now you know what's coming next, don't you? A challenge: Write your own anagram. Warning: This form is addictive. You'll find yourself working on words in your head when you ought to be paying attention to other things. So what! Enjoy.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Verse Daily Knocks on My Door


Today I am enjoying the honor of a feature on Verse Daily. My poem, Birdhouse, from my new book, Temptation by Water, will be strutting its stuff for 24 full hours and then will be archived for all eternity. Please pay a visit! Then let me know if you can identify the form of the poem.

The feature includes an image of the book cover, a link to Amazon, image links for my other two books at Amazon, a bio, and a list of additional poems of mine available online. This last, I think, is a wonderful addition to the Verse Daily site. It provides an easily accessible library of a poet's work.

"Birdhouse" first appeared in Tiferet, a beautiful print journal. I am grateful to them for having chosen it. And I am grateful to Verse Daily for choosing it now.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

New Journal: The Stillwater Review

Arctic Meadows Preserve and Mud Pond, Stillwater Twp., Sussex County, NJ. Photo courtesy of 
The Nature Conservancy

Here's a publication opportunity some of you might be interested in:

The staff at the The Stillwater Review from the Betty June Silconas Center 
at Sussex County Community College invites the submission of poems for the premiere issue of a new print journal.
 Deadline for submissions is December 1st.

 Submit 3-5 poems to poetrycenter@sussex.edu 



You are asked to submit your poems as doc, docx or rtf files, and include your name, 
address and phone 
number on each poem.
 No previously published poems or simultaneous submissions.

According to the managing editor, this will be a bound journal. She adds, "This first edition will be poetry only, and we are looking forward to creating another journal for the fine poetry being written today.  We plan to put some of the poems in the journal online with video clips of a selection of the poets in the journal reading online and talking about their work.

I know some of the people involved in this new journal and am confident that it will be an outstanding addition to print journals.

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Dancing with the Dead Poets

Happy Halloween! This morning I discovered the fun of making a JibJab video. You can make a number of them for free (example here) or you can pay a minimal fee for a full membership. Videos are available for all sorts of occasions. The program is easy to use and fast.

Check out my dancing video. Can you identify my dancing partners?




Thursday, October 28, 2010

Poets and Geeks

First there were poets. Then there were geeks. Now there are poet-geeks. I'd like to give a shout-out and a big round of applause to some of these strange but wonderful people who love poetry and computers and who are finding new ways, via the internet, to spread the good word about poetry. They do not sit around moaning and groaning that nobody buys poetry books anymore. Instead, they are creating new ways for poets and poetry lovers to experience poetry.

First on my list is Dave Bonta, who must be a real mega-geek. His name pops up in all kinds of discussions about online journals and technology. Rather than do the same kind of online journal that has proliferated, i.e., an online parallel to a print journal, Dave has created a truly innovative online journal, qarrtsiluni, which takes full advantage of what the internet can do. Issues are themed and editors change. Instead of the entire issue appearing all at once, poems are added daily, thus giving each poem and poet a chunk of time in the spotlight. Each poem is accompanied by an audio with an introduction by Dave and a reading by the poet. Readers / listeners are invited to leave comments, so there's an interactive element. You can subscribe by email and iTunes and you can follow on Twitter. Like what you've found? Say so at Facebook and any number of other sites with a quick click of the appropriate icon. You can also download any of the podcasts. For free! Links are provided to each author's blog and website if available. This is no concession to The Book Is Dead philosophy. In fact, Dave and his cohorts recently instituted a print version of themed online issues as well as a chapbook contest. Hey, Dave even has a hoodie!

Nic Sebastian has recently taken on another kind of innovative project, a site she calls Whale Sound. Nic has a lovely reading voice which she puts to good use by creating audios of poems by other poets. There's an Index of Poets with each poet's name linking to a bio and to the recorded poem. Readers can Like at Facebook and Tweet. They can also leave comments. Guess who helped Nic with the technical issues involved in running such a project? Dave Bonta! Another interesting aspect of this project is that Nic limits it to what she has named "web-active poets." Here's the definition from her submission guidelines:

If #1 below and at least two of the remaining items accurately characterize you, you are a web-active poet:

1. A fair amount of your finished work is freely available online (on yours or others’ blogs/sites or published in online poetry journals).
2. You check and respond to email at least once a day.
3. You have a comment-enabled blog that you update at least twice a week.
4. You have a Facebook/Twitter/other online social network account that you check/post on at least twice a week.
5. You have a website that consistently displays current contact info and material.


Although the site did not begin with this limitation, I think that Nic soon became overwhelmed with requests from poets to record their poems. And she noticed that those poets who had a heavy web presence were attracting many more visits than those who didn't. This is a web project, so, of course, it makes sense to want to expand the exposure using the resources of the web.

Last on my list is Jessie Carty who has begun an online project called Referential. Jessie selects a poem or a piece of prose from submissions for which she puts out a call. That single piece is posted in the online journal. Other people are then invited to respond to it in an original piece of their own. That can be another poem, a piece of prose, some kind of audio, or a visual piece. These pieces can be submitted anytime during the year. After the initial piece is posted, the referential ones accumulate. From what I can see, subsequent ones may also, in turn, stimulate referential pieces. These are posted with a piece of art. What an interesting concept! A kind of Ponzi scheme for writers.


Sunday, October 24, 2010

Temptation by Water: Book Trailer

I have finally finished my book trailer. To be more precise, I should say that I have finally mustered up the courage to release it to public view. Now why should that take courage? I guess for the same reasons it takes courage to go public with any creative endeavor. There's that inner voice that says, Maybe it really stinks. Maybe people will mock it—and me! Maybe it does my book a disservice. But then I took myself in hand, put those voices to silence, reminded myself that I put a lot of time and effort into this, and mustered up the courage to unveil my creation.

I obtained most of the photos from photoXpress. This site allows you to download up to 10 photos per day. They have an extensive selection of high quality photos. I also used Keypad, part of the Apple software in iWork, to make the clips with text and the opening cover page and the final author picture. Again, I borrowed my music track from Kevin MacLeod. Getting the right music is a challenge. It has to thematically fit the video and it has to be the right time length. I feel very fortunate to have found "What You Want," which fits my trailer for time but more importantly for theme and tone. I listened to a whole bunch of tracks, but as soon as I hit on this one, I knew it was just what I wanted.

I initially had at least three times as many pictures as I ended up using. Making a trailer for a poetry collection is a real challenge. How to capture the essence of a collection that contains 51 poems? How not to offer a plot summary when the collection is not a narrative one? How to get in everything you want? The answer to this last question is that you can't get in everything you want and still keep the video to the recommended maximum length of two minutes after which viewers hit the Pause button. So there are a lot of hard choices to be made, just as in revising a poem.

In the end, I zeroed in on what I perceive to be the collection's dominant thread—the idea of temptation—and the dominant recurring image—water. (This pretty much parallels the book's underlying structural plan.) Other motifs come in, but I'm not sure you'll recognize them as motifs without reading the book. My hope, of course, is that the trailer will tempt you to read the book.

So grab some popcorn or a box of Junior Mints and check out my movie.



Saturday, October 16, 2010

Poetry Salon: Glenna Luschei

I've never met Glenna Luschei in person, but I feel a kinship with her. In 2006 I reviewed her chapbook, Seedpods. By way of introduction here, I'm going to resurrect my opening words from that review: "Glenna Luschei’s name is well-known in poetry circles. She’s been moving in those circles for many years in many different roles. As a poet she has published seventeen collections. As a translator she has published an additional three books. As the founder and publisher of Solo Press, established in 1966, she made it possible for many other poets to see their work in full-length collections. Now in its fortieth year, the press no longer publishes books, but continues to put out a chapbook series as well as Solo Café, an annual journal. Luschei also served her community as the Poet Laureate of San Luis Obispo for the year 2000. As a philanthropist in 2002 she permanently endowed the editorship of the highly regarded journal, Prairie Schooner. And as if all this weren’t enough, she’s also an avocado rancher."

Since I wrote that review, Glenna's number of collections has increased, but she's still the same lovely, generous poet. It's a pleasure to host this salon in celebration of her new collection, Salt Lick: A Retrospective of Poetry. Let's hear what she has to say about the book.

Diane: This book strikes me as an enormous undertaking. Tell us about the process you used to gather together and winnow down the mountain of work that spans a 40-year career and 21 collections of poetry.

Glenna: I think in order to compile a retrospective such as Salt Lick you must work with an editor or friend who has known you for a long time and watched your development. I had that good luck with John Crawford of West End Press in Albuquerque. I lived in Albuquerque forty years ago, even before he moved there, but we had the same friends and knew the same terrain. I fell in love with the desert and the high, dry mesa of Albuquerque. I grew up in Iowa which produced the best crops in the world but also the hottest summers and the coldest winters. Someone was always sick and that person got to recover in the sick room which was the story and poetry room. Some of my poems in Salt Lick were started in the sick room seventy-five years before.

I think the best feature of John was that he could share my pain with me, that of losing a daughter
during the Aids Pandemic when she was only thirty-six, the most beautiful age for a young woman.
John always talked of my resilience which surely is the watchword of a poet putting together a retrospective. We have to go down for healing, come up for air. No one escapes tragedy which is a blessing in a long life, a long book.

John was tireless. He read through all of my chapbooks, artist books, and trade editions. We had
another old friend, Bill Witherup, who helped us select poems. That friend has since died. I was  pleased we could acknowledge him and I am dedicating the next issue of my magazine to him. What I realize now is that all the people are interwoven in the book. They speak to each other through the pages—and the ages.

I think the way I helped the most was just sitting back and watching the process. I was just grateful it was taking place.

Continuing on the subject of a retrospective and how we keep touching on themes and people, William Stafford once wrote me that the book I sent him (I think it was Matriarch) was like a train trip with stops at stations.  I think the themes and the people I keep coming back to are the stations. They are signals for me.

It seems significant to me that during the process of the book John and I both lost our mates.  Because of an accident on the avocado ranch where I live, my husband Bill died the week Salt Lick was published.  He never got to see it. He loved Susan Kelly's painting and helped me choose the cover image of a New Mexican landscape and dwelling with a moon overhead. John's wife Pat, of native American heritage, was my dear friend, a life-long supporter of poets and artists. I pray that we honor them with our work. She told me once that I published her first poem.

Diane: Tell us the story behind your cover.

Glenna: I try to return to New Mexico every year. I held both DH Lawrence and Wurlitzer Fellowships there plus teaching assignments. When cover artist Susan Kelly and her husband, Booker, moved to San Luis Obispo because of his health, Bill and I became close friends with them and got together for Saturday walks and poetry evenings. Their house in San Luis Obispo held many New Mexican artifacts and above all her gorgeous oils. She and I often talked of a collaboration which will take place this summer in Santa Fe. She will illustrate a number of my poems and we will hold poetry readings with Southwestern poets. A third artist will take part in our show—Margaret Berry, from Lincoln, Nebraska. She has illustrated my poems in encaustic art or wax. I love it that an idea can gather momentum and go on in unexpected ways.

Diane: Why did you title the book Salt Lick?

Glenna: The title of the poem including the salt lick is "Salt of the Earth." I spent summers at my grandparents' farm in the Nebraska prairie which is filled with buffalo grass and Spanish bayonet. When I was trampling through the grasses, I came upon a salt lick created by the tongues of cattle. I must have been three and remember it vividly as the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. It was my first work of art, the uncarved block as the Taoists say. It was a work of nature and formed my idea of art as something simple and organic. Does this seem hard to believe? I still can't think of anything more pure than a salt lick. People have also pointed out that there is an erotic connotation to the title. I hadn't thought of it, but that's okay, too.

Diane: What do you hope readers will take away from your book?

Glenna: First of all, that life is joy, even the hard parts, and a feast. I hope readers will like my bringing New Mexico into California in "Rain Dance." Landscape is so much a part of poetry, as are images. I hope beginning poets will take heart that they can have a retrospective in mid or late life, too, if they do what William Stafford said to do: "Let poetry be a beacon for you in your life." He said that the poets who last aren't the early prize winners so it's important not to be discouraged. Just follow the beacon. As if we had any choice!

Diane: Please choose a favorite poem for us and, if you like, tell us why you chose this one.

Glenna: I am choosing "Rain Dance" as one of my favorite poems because it illustrates forgiveness by which I try to live my life.


Rain Dance

Twenty years of waiting for him
to apologize, to ask me to dance.
I asked him

and we danced at our son’s wedding
to his Mexican beauty. Two hours
with Mariachis, all night with DJs.
Salsa, meringue, samba, cha-cha-cha.
Even to Smoke Gets in Your Eyes,
while the machine threw out smoke.

And on the bronzed California hills,
it began to rain as in the green
corn dance at Zia Pueblo. It rained down
mudhens, kashares, crickets, lightning
bugs and lightning. The Wall
broke into wet crumbling adobe.
Our grandchildren slid down the berm
like salamanders.

And I forgave him,
understood why smoke
got in my eyes, why lovely things die,
why I loved him.
The shine on our children’s faces
when they saw us dancing
made me grieve for our estrangement.
Our children, with splits in their heads
like Frankenstein’s monster, would not heal,
become whole, until I merged with the other
half of the nucleus. I grieved
that I withheld this peace from them.

And we danced in the rain until dawn
until the bride was green with dollar bills.


Glenna: In the third stanza it is interesting that when I read the lines: "I grieved / that I withheld this peace from them" some people think I am saying "piece" instead of "peace," because I am talking about the other half of the nucleus. I also am uncertain about the last line. Sometimes I change it to say "until roses fall upon the path." People then protest and say they wanted the payoff with dollar bills. I like to read poems that people comment on or protest. I think a reading is communication, not just one person getting up there to pronounce.

Thank you, Diane, and dear readers, my lovers.

***************

Now let's all join Glenna in her garden and listen to her read "I Want To Be Your Poet."




I'm more than happy to have Glenna as my poet! Now please help yourself to a glass of sauvignon blanc and some pineapple spears, watermelon, and pear slices wrapped in prosciutto, all chosen for you by Glenna.


Overheard at the Party:

"At the heart of Glenna Luschei's poetry is . . . a fierce love, the kind that keeps us always connected to those with whom we travel, albeit all too briefly, through this life, the kind that tenaciously embraces every memory and dream. For some forty years, she has published honest poems rich in intimacy and passion that manage to balance love and loss, fulfillment and despair, mourning and reconciliation—the heart's inseparable pairs."—Steven Shur

Before you head for home, please be sure to pick up a copy of Glenna's book. Then while you enjoy your snacks and some more poetry, please leave your comments for Glenna in the Comment section. Thank you for coming to the salon.

Click Cover for Amazon


Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Dodge Poetry Festival 2010

This past weekend I attended the Dodge Poetry Festival. I was part of the staff so had several assignments throughout the three days. Not as thrilling as reading at the festival, but I had a really good time. In fact, I was rather surprised as I wasn't at all sure what the festival would be like in its new venue. In the past when I've worked at the festival, I've been provided with a hotel room, but this time, because of a tightened budget, I had to commute. I stressed over the drive and the parking for days! Needlessly. The drive was easy and the parking was a breeze. I wasn't happy about having to pay for parking, but at least I got into a lot right across the street from the NJ Performing Arts Center and even managed to get the same exact spot all three days.

I also wondered if the move from the rural setting of Waterloo Village to the urban one of downtown Newark would work. It did work. Surprisingly, the feel wasn't even urban. I felt like I was in a village. NJPAC is a beautiful building—what a dope I've been for not going there before this!—and the grounds are beautifully landscaped. Unlike at Waterloo where the various venues were spread out and a long hike was sometimes necessitated from one to the other, in Newark all the venues were within short walking distance. We were blessed with three days of the most gorgeous weather, so it was lovely walking outside.

As always happens at the festival and part of the fun, I ran into tons of people I know but never see. I also met some people I'd known by name only. Each time I went from one place to the next, I stopped and chatted several times along the way. In this new location all of the reading venues were indoors, so no stomping through mud or squishy grass as has sometimes happened at Waterloo (though with the weather this year, Waterloo would also have been lovely outdoors). And what an improvement in the bathroom situation. There were ample bathrooms in all the buildings. Any lines that developed moved quickly. The bathrooms were clean and the floors were dry.

I couldn't help but notice, though, that the number of people seemed diminished. I know some people who didn't go this time because they were reluctant to travel into the city, but the festival really wasn't in the heart of the city; it was on the very outskirts. Perhaps the attendance will pick up next time if the festival is again held in Newark. I attended only one event where the room was filled to capacity. Some of the others were generously filled but not completely. Mostly where I noticed the reduced number of people was in the Borders Book Tent. I had to pass through it—and it was huge—on my way to lunch and back. Each time the tent had merely a handful of people in it. No exaggeration.

I wish I'd taken more pictures, but here are a some that might give you a sense of the festival.

People arriving early Friday morning

Food Court early Friday morning--a great variety of food

NJ Performing Arts Center

Students gathering in front of NJPAC

Dorianne Laux reading in Trinity and St. Phillips Cathedral—one of my jobs was hosting this one

Sharon Olds in the center background

Matthew Dickman

Matthew Dickman and Aimee Nezhukumatathil co-reading Aimee's poem

Michael Dickman

Taalam Acey at From Homer to Hip Hop

Me with poet Madeline Tiger in the Borders Book Tent--notice the absence of book buyers
(photo by Anthony Buccino)


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