Countdown to Publication: The Cover Story

Before my first book, Eve's Red Dress, came out in 2003, I admired the cover art on the book of another poet I knew. When I attended the book party for that poet, I met Brian Rumbolo, the artist, and asked if he'd be interested in doing my cover art if my publisher agreed. He said Yes and my publisher agreed. I loved the cover that resulted. So when the manuscript for What Feeds Us, my second book, was together, I asked my publisher if we could again use the same artist. Again, he agreed. Again, I loved the result. So when the third book—okay, you get the picture. Yes, my new cover is by Brian Rumbolo. I think he's an amazing young artist.

I sent him the title poem and a handful of others that I thought captured the essence of the collection. He then sent me one piece. I loved it, but since Brian had in the past sent me several sketches to choose from, I asked for one more. I was asking for trouble as I loved that one too. (No, I don't love everything! I'm really not that easy to please.) I vacillated for a few weeks. I made the mistake of asking for other people's opinions. I say "mistake" because the votes were 50-50. But my publisher favored the first one and so did I by that point.

Then someone said, "Oh, that's Hiroshige's Wave." I didn't know who or what that was, though it turns out that I should have. I did a Google search and the first thing that came up was the exact image of MY wave.

I thought, Oh no, now I can't use that one. But I did some more research and learned that Hiroshige himself had borrowed the wave from his teacher and that it has become a practice and a tradition for other artists to create their own renditions of the wave. I liked that sense of history. Other artists have put boats, trees, flowers inside the wave. I liked my piece even more now with its insertion of a woman—and there's a woman in the title poem, a woman who wants to walk into the sea. I also learned that this tradition is associated with Japanese haiku. Poetry and Art. Furthermore, my title poem is an ekphrastic one, based on Matisse's Open Window. So I was back in love again. When I later asked Brian if he'd used Hiroshige's Wave, he replied, Oh yes, it's my favorite image. Mine too now.

And so my mind was made up. Then onward to the layout—the publisher's job. I asked him, though, to leave as much of the art work visible as possible. Thus the name bar at the bottom instead of my name somewhere in the midst of the art work.

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Poets in Bloom

I spent every day this week with third graders. Need I say that I'm really really tired? Third graders are adorable, so open to trying new things, so full of imagination. They write amazing poems. But oh my, the energy level. Forget about sitting down. I was on my feet the whole time for each of four one-hour sessions all five days. Three cheers for third grade teachers! Fortunately, this school is one town over so my drive was fast and easy. And I now know my way around the school as this was the fourth year in a row that I've been their poet-in-residence.

We did a new poem each day. Day 1 was a color poem, day 2 a rose poem, day 3 an ekphrastic poem, and day 4 a memory poem. My favorite this year was the ekphrastic poem, my first time trying that with such a young group. Back in January when I met with the teachers for a planning session, they told me that parents had been coming in all year teaching the kids about famous paintings, so they wanted something that would bring art and poetry together.

The timing of the ekphrastic poem could not have been better. The title poem of my forthcoming book, Temptation by Water, is an ekphrastic poem, based on Matisse's The Open Window. So I showed the kids a print of the painting, and we talked about the colors and the details. We talked about how it provokes curiosity. I asked them how they might get into the picture and what they would do once inside. Then I read them my poem, a bit over their heads but it's short and they heard the colors and details and understood how the woman in the poem got into the painting.

Then I told the kids that I'd sent that poem and a few others to my cover artist and how he'd used the poem to stimulate a piece for my book cover—again, art influencing art. My cover is a rendition of Hiroshige's Wave, so yet another example of art influencing art.

I'd found a portfolio of prints Hiroshige's One Hundred Views of Edo and used five of them for the writing. I put them on the board, and we pretended we were in a museum as the kids lined up and walked by and studied each print. Then back to their seats to get the writing underway. Fabulous poems! Full of colors and details, imagination, mystery, and wonder.

This sweet card was presented to me yesterday, signed by each student. And on the other side . . .

A wave!

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Rehash of Poetry Party

The Poetry Party went really well. I was sort of nervous about the turnout as it was day 2 of Rosh Hashanah and there were two other readings going on not too far away, both with popular poets.

But we had 25 poets and a handful of people who were there just to listen. The theme, "When Arts Collide," worked very nicely. A few people even wrote and read poems just for the occasion. Others had a good time finding something that would fit. So we had poems about music and one that included some singing. Several poems based on paintings. A handful about the fine art of cooking. A few about dancing. All in all, a very interesting mixture.

One poet, Ray Brown, sent me a note prior to the reading saying that he'd written a poem that had been inspired by my poem, "Organic Fruit," and a poem by Anthony Buccino. So we read those three poems, one after the other, with Ray last. How's that for a collision among poems?

We went in two rounds with each poet reading one poem in each round. This method kept things moving right along. This also meant that all poets had the full room for at least one of their poems. Most poets stayed the entire time. In fact, I noticed only one leaving after she read her second poem. I kept the poets to a one-page maximum poem length. And I was strict! One poem each round, no more than one page each. And don't argue with me!

Our poets ranged in age from 10-80! Some had been at the May Poetry Party. Others were first-timers. One was so anxious to read that he arrived a full day ahead of time. Fortunately, he returned a day later. Many of our poets were well-acquainted with the podium. One read for the very first time in public.

Several stayed for dinner after the reading which was a fun way to end the day.

I'm going to admit here that I often want to pull out my hair at an open reading. If I'm not the featured poet, I usually leave before they begin. If I am the featured poet, I almost always stay, but sometimes to my regret. If the host fails to enforce the time limits. If someone blabs on and on before, during, and after the poem. If readers are permitted to read more than two poems, regardless of how many readers have signed up. And especially if I see open readers in the audience working on their own poems while I'm at the front of the room reading! More especially when open readers arrive just as I'm finishing, just in time to be an open reader.

But I know that poets want and need places to read. I've got a place. So I invented the Poetry Party and must say I've enjoyed both and plan to do another.

Anthony Buccino


Jessica de Koninck

Christine Waldeyer

Vera Gelvin

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