Got up early Friday morning and went to two terrific panels: one was “Can You Clarify That?: Experimental Poetry and the Workshop System." It explored the idea that experimental and non-linear poems may not be well-served in the usual workshop format, where poems are asked to be clarified, understood, or “fixed.” Great comments all around, but especially from Joshua Maria Wilkinson (who was published by Floating Bridge a few years ago now is getting his PHD at Denver), Suzanne Paola, and Timothy Liu (love the new hair). Great stuff.
Then went to a very different panel on "Narrative Poetry: Past, Present, and Future," which really focused on the quality of narrative continuity, and how essential it is to being human, to brain function. So, in a sense, one panel that was for rupture and disjunction, and Not Making Sense; and another trying to salvage what is left of our ability to Make Sense, in a world that is already fragmented and elliptical. A great pairing.
Had a lovely lunch with Sharon Bryan. Great discussion of the above, and writing, and teaching, and etc. She had a crab salad, I had a pulled pork sandwich. What is this "sweet tea" (pronounced "swate tay") that the wait-people are always offering?
Then I was off to the recording studio for the Poetry Foundation. They were all very warm and welcoming, and had asked me to bring 5 poems to read, plus one by another writer. After I read the first poem, Scott, the sound engineer, who was just a couple feet away on the other side of the booth's glass wall, asked if I would take off my shirt. I thought, oh my, was it that hot?(hehehe) But no, unfortunately, the shirt I was wearing was making a lot of noise as the fabric rustled, and messing up the recording. Could I please remove it? Was I wearing anything under it? Did I read bare-chested? I'll never tell.
Got back to AWP and went to the book fair. Had C Dale sign his lovely new book for me, and signed one of mine for Charles Flowers of Lambda/Bloom. It was the last one left: Copper Canyon had sold out their stock of What’s Written on the Body! (I think they only had a dozen or so, but still). So, I had only my one copy left (the one I was reading from) and none to sell at the Portfolio Reading that night. Ah well.
The Portfolio Reading was fun. A small but attentive audience. The Open Mic had everything from personal lyric to performance poetry to rap to political poetry. I loved Mary Fisher-Wirth's poems, very mature and evocative. Her new book is Five Terraces. On the way back from the reading a group of us chatted a bit about the similarities and differences between list-serves (like Wompo) and blogging. I have several good friends who do one or the other, or both. I think blogging is, perhaps, more interactive, less static. And I think my friends who do both would agree. But where do we all find the time!
Last day . . . home soon.
*
Showing posts with label AWP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AWP. Show all posts
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Friday, March 02, 2007
A Rainy Night in Georgia
AWP has been fun, but way too crowded. It is just a mass of humanity. There are so many panels, it's hard to decide what to go to, a feast in that sense, but overwhelming.
I went to the Robert Dana panel Thursday AM, and then to hear my friend Kathleen Flenniken give a great reading from Famous. It was fun to see all the nice people from Prairie Schooner again.
The book fair does not seem to be quite as well organized this year as other years, it is really hard to find the tables you want to visit. Still I have bought way too many books, and there are still 2 days to go! ~grin~
Met up with Michael and Joseph from Copper Canyon. It was great to see my new book sitting next to CD Wright's new One Big Self (which is terrific BTW, a long poem arising from her time interviewing prisoners in Louisiana with the photographer Deborah Luster).
Saw Charles Flowers at the Bloom/Lambda Lit table (my friend Jeff Crandall has a beautiful sonnet using some of the "over 100 false rhymes for 'love'" in the new issue: check it out!), and briefly said hi to C Dale (his new book is at Four Way: sweet). Saw Paul and Reb and Charles and Dana and others. It blows me away how many people are squeezed in to the conference area.
Went out with Collin Kelly and a dear friend of his named Geri to the fabulous Abigail & Muriel's (a funky 50's-retro restaurant in an old house just outside of downtown). A very hunky valet with a beautiful lanky southern voice parked Geri's van for us. A HUGE rainstorm and thunderstorm came as we were eating. The valet guy got soaked and had to take his shirt off (oh my). When he brought back our car, he said his pants were so soaked he thought they were going to fall off, and Geri shot back "I think I know a couple people who wouldn't mind seeing that" (or something to that effect). Hehehehe.
It has continued to be rainy and stormy here. I was hoping for some sun. Ah well. Perhaps I am guilty of bringing Seattle's rain with me.
Not sure what panels I am going to today. I've been invited to record some poems for the Poetry Foundation this afternoon. And tonight is my reading at the Portfolio Center. (Thank you to Collin for setting it up).
more later .
I went to the Robert Dana panel Thursday AM, and then to hear my friend Kathleen Flenniken give a great reading from Famous. It was fun to see all the nice people from Prairie Schooner again.
The book fair does not seem to be quite as well organized this year as other years, it is really hard to find the tables you want to visit. Still I have bought way too many books, and there are still 2 days to go! ~grin~
Met up with Michael and Joseph from Copper Canyon. It was great to see my new book sitting next to CD Wright's new One Big Self (which is terrific BTW, a long poem arising from her time interviewing prisoners in Louisiana with the photographer Deborah Luster).
Saw Charles Flowers at the Bloom/Lambda Lit table (my friend Jeff Crandall has a beautiful sonnet using some of the "over 100 false rhymes for 'love'" in the new issue: check it out!), and briefly said hi to C Dale (his new book is at Four Way: sweet). Saw Paul and Reb and Charles and Dana and others. It blows me away how many people are squeezed in to the conference area.
Went out with Collin Kelly and a dear friend of his named Geri to the fabulous Abigail & Muriel's (a funky 50's-retro restaurant in an old house just outside of downtown). A very hunky valet with a beautiful lanky southern voice parked Geri's van for us. A HUGE rainstorm and thunderstorm came as we were eating. The valet guy got soaked and had to take his shirt off (oh my). When he brought back our car, he said his pants were so soaked he thought they were going to fall off, and Geri shot back "I think I know a couple people who wouldn't mind seeing that" (or something to that effect). Hehehehe.
It has continued to be rainy and stormy here. I was hoping for some sun. Ah well. Perhaps I am guilty of bringing Seattle's rain with me.
Not sure what panels I am going to today. I've been invited to record some poems for the Poetry Foundation this afternoon. And tonight is my reading at the Portfolio Center. (Thank you to Collin for setting it up).
more later .
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
AWP-land
Looking forward to going to Hotlanta for AWP, though it seems like I just got back from ASU. Ah, the life of a jet-setting poet (haha). But seriously, I'm really looking forward to meeting up with several po-bloggers and others.
*
And now for a little shameless self-promotion:
If you are at AWP make sure to stop by the Bloom booth. Charles Flowers says the new issue is hot off the press (including my little poem "Twenty Years After His Passing My Father Appears to Us in Chicago, at Bobby Chin's Crab & Oyster House, in the Guise of Our Waiter, Ramon").
*
Also make sure to stop by the Copper Canyon Press table, and pick up a copy (or five! ~grin~) of my hot-off-the-press new book, What's Written on the Body. I'd love to sign one for you! (Other new titles include CD Wright's One Big Self, Dan Gerber's A Primer on Parallel Lives, Ellen Bass' The Human Line, and Marvin Bell's Mars Being Red).
*
And finally: please come to the off-site reading I am doing with Ann Fisher-Wirth (author of Blue Window, and a study of William Carlos Williams), at Collin Kelly's "Poetry at Portfolio Center" series, on Friday, March 2. It starts at 7:30, and there is an open-mic (sign up at 7pm). The Portfolio Center is located at 125 Bennett Street, Atlanta, GA 30309. Phone: 404.351.5055 or 800.255.3169. See you there!
*
And now for a little shameless self-promotion:
If you are at AWP make sure to stop by the Bloom booth. Charles Flowers says the new issue is hot off the press (including my little poem "Twenty Years After His Passing My Father Appears to Us in Chicago, at Bobby Chin's Crab & Oyster House, in the Guise of Our Waiter, Ramon").
*
Also make sure to stop by the Copper Canyon Press table, and pick up a copy (or five! ~grin~) of my hot-off-the-press new book, What's Written on the Body. I'd love to sign one for you! (Other new titles include CD Wright's One Big Self, Dan Gerber's A Primer on Parallel Lives, Ellen Bass' The Human Line, and Marvin Bell's Mars Being Red).*
And finally: please come to the off-site reading I am doing with Ann Fisher-Wirth (author of Blue Window, and a study of William Carlos Williams), at Collin Kelly's "Poetry at Portfolio Center" series, on Friday, March 2. It starts at 7:30, and there is an open-mic (sign up at 7pm). The Portfolio Center is located at 125 Bennett Street, Atlanta, GA 30309. Phone: 404.351.5055 or 800.255.3169. See you there!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
