The TypewriterGirls at Kerouac Fest '09 - part 2/5

Part 2! This time it's the last Diane DiPrima poem, comedy as written by the lovely Crystal, and some sound poetry by Hugo Ball and a Dada manifesto by everyone's favorite Tristan Tzara.

The TypewriterGirls at Kerouac Fest '09 - part 1/5

Myself, Crystal, and Tracy Mortimer performing at Kerouac Fest 2009. More videos will be up soon!


In this video, we are performing Diane DiPrima's More or Less Love Poems. Future videos will have sketch comedy, some audience participation improv, and us performing some of Gary Snyder's work.

Of course, the real question here is why I can't get my husband to wear a skirt.

I sent out some submissions yesterday, something I haven't done in a few months. It feels good, primarily because submitting means that I have new poems that I'm happy enough with to send out into the world.

Worked on editing yesterday, so no new poem last week. I will write one this week.

I have (yet another) project idea bumping itself around in my head. The second chapbook manuscript I'm working on is taking itself in a different direction from where I thought it would go and is taking a much longer time to put together than I thought it would, so of course the best thing for my creative energies to do is to want to switch gears. Of course. Mid-project.

Perhaps (no, for sure) I should just be happy that my brain isn't devoid of ideas. I did go through a very brief period there where I had that terrifying thought of "oh god, what if I'm just out of ideas for poems?" It's funny, really, but because I'm not the fastest writer when I go through exceptionally long periods of poetic silence I do get that nagging voice in the back of my head. It's right up there with the "you're not really a poet" voice. Very silly in the light of day.

The TypewriterGirls' October hiatus is almost over and we will be coming out of it with a bang. Crystal and I are performing at the annual Chattering Bones party in Windber, and on the 10th we'll be taking our comedy to The Alternative Comedy Show at the Brillobox. Then, at the beginning of December we'll be holding a show as a benefit for the Carnegie Libraries of Pittsburgh. Funding's been reduced and they're going through a difficult time, and we love an excuse to have a crazy show for a good cause.

I have decided to dress in drag for Halloween. It makes me quite happy, really, and Halloween is as good an excuse as any to do it. I tried to convince my husband to also go in drag and I almost had him, but he's decided against it, tragically. I swear, we would have been adorable.

Boo, husband. Boo.*











*not really. He's awesome.

Catch up

My son will be spending the whole week in Cleveland and I have committed myself to doing some major catch up while he's away. There are many things to do;

• Get issue 03 of Weave finalized and sent out to the printer (!!!)
  
• Work on my 4 drafted poems
  
• Write up an evaluation for one of my interns (this really should be the first thing listed)
• Do some housework. The husband would be so pleased.
  
• Read! I have a book on Allen Ginsberg's Buddhist poetry that I'm really enjoying, that whole literary theory thing to plug away at, and more poetry than I can realistically shake a stick at.
• Do my best not to go overboard purchasing books this week. I can only read so many at a time.
• Obtain cover art for my chapbook. Very important.

There's also (conveniently) a poetry reading to go to on Wednesday, time to spend with my friends, and exercising that must be done now that I'm not constantly coughing.

It's good to know that even when I don't have a 4-year-old to worry about I can still run myself ragged.




Other Lovely Things

• If you haven't done so yet, you should head over to the Tilt Press website and purchase their 2009-2010 chapbook subscription -- and not just because my chapbook will be a part of it!
• GUD is having a pumpkin carving contest. Had I any skills at all I would enter this. You may have skills. You could enter. You could win books.
• There's a nice review of Weave issue 02 up on New Pages.
  

The seemingly monthly update

And again it's been a Very Long Time since I last wrote. But I will persevere! Even in the face of clearly not being the best at keeping up with a blog I will continue to -- um -- write once a month?

In my defense the past 30 days have been a whirlwind of crazy. Weave closed for submissions, I've been working on layout, trying to write a little bit (failing mostly, to be entirely honest. It's not been a productive month in the world of poetry), I decided to give myself a crash course in literary theory (we're only up to deconstruction. It's clearly not going very quickly), and I had 3 TypewriterGirls events the weekend before last (yes! three!). And of course there's my 40-hours-a-week job that's got nothing to do with poetry/publishing and my child needs some attention, you know, every now and again.

Oh yes, and I'm sick.

I decided to do this crash course in literary theory because I'm trying to get back into academic reading so that when I do apply for graduate school (whenever that may be) it won't be a huge shock to go from reading just poetry and little else to suddenly reading critical work by the bookfull. I've come up with a little "class" for myself on poetry, prophecy, and shamanism that I'm pretty excited about. Hopefully I can finish with my book on literary theory at some point and start reading the books taunting me from my shelf.

And of course all is not doom, gloom, and lack of time to breathe! Many wonderful and awesome things are happening in the world!

First, this year's chapbook subscription from Tilt Press is now available and my chapbook, Barefoot and Listening is first up! My lovely friend Heidi is working on a cover design, about which I am very excited. I'd already been thinking to ask her when I mentioned the book to a couple other friends, both of whom said "Oh! You should ask Heidi to do the cover!". This is because she is just that awesome.

My lovely, talented, fellow TypewriterGirl, and all-around best friend Crystal Jean Hoffman was nominated for her very first Pushcart Prize by Goldfish Press! She is an amazing poet and it is a well-deserved nomination.

Also - how excited am I to see this? Very very.





In other fun news the new issue of Goblin Fruit is up and the fine ladies who edit Goblin Fruit are switching journals with the editor from Mythic Delirium and for one issue will be editting one another's journals.

Also, Pank has one more day left in their chapbook competition! Hurry! There is still time!

My Big News

I've been practically busting with the news that my chapbook, Barefoot and Listening, will be published by Tilt Press as part of their 2009-2010 series of chapbooks. I could not possibly be more excited. Ever since I first picked up Julie Platt's In the Kingdom of my Familiar I wanted Tilt to be the press to publish Barefoot and Listening. I'm extraordinarily excited, honored, and lucky that they chose my manuscript.

Here's the full list of poets and manuscripts as posted on Tilt's website;

Margaret Bashaar, Barefoot and Listening
Dan Rosenberg, A Thread of Hands
Krystal Languell, The Mean Particle
Susan Yount, House on Fire
Rachel Abramowitz, One's A Crown

Now I have to decide what cover art I would like -- a very exciting dilemma!

The Manuscript (again) and submissions

Still working on poems for the second manuscript. However, the more I work on it, the more poems I want to write for it, so in spite of having written two poems and drafted one over the past week or so for this project, I'm still standing at 5 that need to be written. I wonder if I will ever be done. The main character has also shifted from one character to another, completely unintentionally. I'd be a little upset (I liked the original main character a lot) if it were not for the direction that this gets to take the writing itself.

I don't have any outstanding submissions right now and that is a very strange feeling. I'm the kind of writer who always has work out at one journal or another. I feel like I must be slacking or something. I'm hesitant to send out these new poems because I want to work on publishing this manuscript once I'm done with it (but who knows when that will be, really) and I'm hesitant to break from work on this manuscript to work on poems on a different theme (and what's the point of writing something just so you can send it out? That may be one of the stupider thoughts that has come to my head in a very long while - writing something not for my current project just so I can have something to send out. I've had a couple of requests for work, but seriously. Bad idea.). Still, it's a very strange feeling. It makes me antsy.

I've been making some new writing friends, which is also a very good feeling. I've been having lunches with some lovely people and I can't wait to spend more time with them. It's always wonderful to find new, fantastically creative and talented people you can connect with.

And on that fuzzy note, it's time I went back to work.