If you’re in Sarasota, Florida this afternoon, or St Petersburg, Florida, next Sunday, you can check this show out:
Becoming the Villainess – The Show!
Click here for Herald Tribune story.
Speaking of unusual ways to promote a poetry book…
http://www.alleycatplayers.org/Site/Current_Show.html
I really, really hope someone puts this on YouTube!
So, it is with some sadness I point you to the “Farewell Issue” of Endicott Studio’s Journal of Mythic Arts. I was honored to be asked for some poems for this final issue, and am going to mourn this journal – a combination of scholarly essays on fairy tales and mythic archetypes, smart fiction, and imaginitive poetry.
http://www.endicott-studio.com/jMA08Farewell/index.html
This is a frighteningly accurate portrayal of how difficult it is to sell poetry books, even for a hard-working poet (and thanks to Ron Silliman for the link:)
http://criticalmiscellany.wordpress.com/2008/08/15/selling-your-book/
But you may want to substitute “blogs” for discussion boards.
The two places where my experiences diverged with any signifigance from the one written about there were:
1. I was lucky enough to have my poems read by Garrison Keillor, on a national radio show, besides being on the local public radio show. Any national media attention is going to really help poetry book sales, so I am grateful to the people that make that happen on a regular basis.
2. My university reading experiences were almost uniformly much better than the one described in the essay, mainly due to the hard work of the faculty who asked me to come out in promoting my reading, more enthusiastic-than-usual poetry students, and probably the good will of said students for said faculty, who were all very well-liked. Due to that, I am much more likely to be excited by a chance to read and come talk at a university – I’ve had very good experiences so far!
But it is a reminder that no matter how hard we poets work, the sad fact is many more people want to buy fiction, non-fiction, and anything else rather than poetry books. Even our fellow poets.
- At August 18, 2008
- By Jeannine Gailey
- In aware, Howard Junker, San Deigo
4
Sooo, still haven’t received all my paperwork for the position yet, so can’t reveal anything about that for a little while longer…
but, in life news, we are re-thinking our decision to go to Phoenix, due to stuff like air pollution, crime, surprisingly expensive rentals, number of creepy-crawlies, things like that. We are now (late, I know, to be re-thinking…) leaning towards the northern suburbs of San Diego after considering Flagstaff and Boulder as other alternatives. More expensive, but supposed to be ideal for asthma as long as you don’t live right downtown where the smog is. Anyone with tips on San Diego living (neighborhoods, poetry scene, etc) is welcome to leave them in the comments!
I found this lovely little analysis of my poem (“Aware for the Woman Who Disappears in Silence”) that was published in Mythic Delirium a little while back:
http://thefix-online.com/features/inspiration-of-others/
It was wonderful to read!
In other news, Howard Junker is retiring from ZYZZYVA! See here for more. Can’t believe it – in his blog he always sounded so enthused about his work at the magazine. Sounds like they might be looking for a new editor-in-chief!
Getting ready to change reservations for our trip out to rent-hunt, and going to my poetry group tonight, which I haven’t been able to attend much lately, so I’m excited!
So, some good news on the job hunt front…
Unless I mess something up radically in the paperwork (always a possibility) I’m going to start teaching a poetry seminar class for an MFA program this fall. It’s not full-time or tenure-track or anything fancy, but a great start. Squuuuueee! Now I’m nervous!!! I know some of you have been teaching forever, and it’s all old hat to you seasoned professionals, but for me, it’s thrilling. Name of program to be revealed later…
Did I mention both my parents are professors? So I couldn’t escape it. Plus, it turns out, what with all those guest-teaching stints and workshops that wonderful people offered me, I really loved teaching.
I guess this means I’m part of the po-biz now, eh Eduardo? Now, to get together enough funds to move AND start my own press…then I’ll really be shaking.
Did I already recommend taking b12 supplements? Awesome stuff. Why wasn’t I taking this ten years ago, since I’ve been borderline low at least that long? So much more energy!
Also, I wrote a new poem, first one in some weeks. And I liked it! It was partially inspired (gothic-mood-wise) by the book Daphne, which continues the gothic reading streak started by “Jane-in-the Box.” Daphne follows the lives of a contemporary graduate student in a Mrs. De Winter-marriage, Daphne du Maurier, a dubious Bronte librarian, and Branville Bronte. One reason to love the book is that the “Rebecca-type” character is a glamorous, thirty-something, brunette poet. Gotta love those kinds of villainesses, right? Also, repeated references to JM Barrie and Peter Pan, Henry James, The Snow Queen, Jane Eyre…
Yes, I’ve put the ad in the paper for the dreaded moving/garage sale for next Saturday. Getting rid of our stuff will put us a little step closer to being ready to move! We’ve moved a lot while we’ve lived in the Northwest (six times in eight years) but this is our first cross country move since 2000, and that was a corporate move (paid for by my company.) So we are crossing our fingers that everything goes well. I do hope that the positive parts of the move (better health for me, lower cost of living) outweigh the negatives (leaving all the people! And my otters!)
And, to finally do some poetry chapbook reviews, as I have promised. First up, Rita Maria Martinez’ chapbook from March Street Press, “Jane-in-the-Box.” A series of poems that catapults Jane Eyre and other characters into the present, I knew I was going to enjoy this, especially (sorry C. Dale – here’s that blurb thing) when I read the blurbs by two favorite writers, Denise Duhamel and Nin Andrews. The sensual “In the British Museum” and “The Jane and Bertha in Me” were two poems that really stood out. From “The Jane and Bertha in Me:”
“The Bertha in me believes leathery hands barnacled
with gypsy rings are an omen of fertility…
while the Jane in me wants to extract Rochester’s teeth
with her Tweezerman, stow them in a jar…
so she can feel his presence, so she can lay
that satchel on her pillow and wake each morning
to the prayer of his teeth marks on her pale cheek.”
A teensy bit of news…
http://www.winningwriters.com/new/wn_new.php
Check out August 2nd’s news! I totally missed it until today. Thanks Winning Writers!
Parents went home today. We had a great visit, including my first ever whale watching tour. There were lots of orcas, and a minke whale, and then they took us to an island covered with seals and baby seals, and nine bald eagles. When the boat drifted, the seals started swimming towards us. I just wanted to jump out of the boat and swim with the seals back to their little island and stay there, a la “The Secret of Roan Inish.” I know, not practical. Pictures to come!
Well, it’s August first and I still don’t have anywhere to live come end of September. We’re planning a trip out to Phoenix soon to take a look at possible places. But it’s all very nerve-wracking. Especially for a person like me who likes to be all settled. But the docs are saying it’s the best thing I could do for my allergies and asthma problems, so it’s a health-motivated thing. The allergies out here are pretty brutal. I’d like to feel healthy again! Soon! Anyone with a nice house to rent in say, the North Scottsdale area should contact me right away 🙂
Speaking of nerves and doctors…I’ve been feeling sickly for the last month or so…fatigue, sore throat, etc. I also had a numb hand (which I mistakenly attributed to carpal tunnel.) Well, went to the doc, and after some blood tests it turns out I have a serious vitamin B-12 deficiency that was causing a lot of my fatigue/sore throat/numb hand stuff, as well as a generally crappy immune system. Huh. Apparently, when you don’t have enough b-12 it can cause numbness and tingling. Yikes! And some common drugs leach b-12 from the system. So, if you’re feeling tired and numb, go out and get yourself some b-12 stat! I’m taking 1000mcgs lozenges under the tongue each day (apparently we don’t absorb b-vitamins in the stomach very well, hence the shots and lozenges and other delivery systems.) This has been Jeannine’s monthly public health announcement.
Also, a little good news: my interview with Matthea Harvey for the Poetry Foundation (Post-apocalypse, Poetry, and Robots) a little while ago will be sent by the PF into syndication this fall. So it may pop up in a newspaper near you!
And I promise to get back to doing mini-reviews and poetry-talk soon…This week I’m entertaining my parents in this small town by the sea. We’re taking a four-hour whale-watching tour (I’ve never done anything like it, but I have seen whales twice while living here – once on a ferry, and once while vacationing on San Juan Island.) Should be fun! And windy.
- At July 28, 2008
- By Jeannine Gailey
- In art updates, baby otter, Laurie McClave
- 7
Yes, I know, what you really wanted after that last post was some visual aid: what exactly do those baby otters look like?
But first, I have to tell you about my new artist discovery. What would you do without me to tell you about cool hip women artists who do surreal art about fairy tales and such? So, I went into a little shop, and was all excited to buy a cute coffee cup with a work by Chiho Aoshima on it. (See the “Drop Dead Cute” collections for more of her work; she’s super cool.) Anyway, the owner of the little shop told me about an art exhibition across the street, in, of all places, a sub shop! So I checked it out and it was edgy, disturbing, very Villainess-y. I loved it! The artist is local; here’s some of her work if you want to take a look:
http://lauriemcclave.com/McClave.aspx
Plus, she put poems next to her art! I love that stuff! Collaboration between artists and poets!
Okay, on to the baby otter – this is one of a mother baby and otter taking a sand bath! Click to enlarge and see their scrunched up faces…
Yes, sometimes I really love this little town. Today I met with some awesome local high schoolers at the Port Townsend library to talk about comics and poetry, they were terrific, and I could have stayed another hour. So bright, such good writers, so enthusiastic! One of my favorite things was how we were talking about cliches, and they were like, “Oh, like Stephanie Meyer (the author of that terrible teenage vampire series Twilight.)” I mean, they already know the difference between good speculative writing (Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link, etc) and bad. Impressive! I think I’m going to make some lit mag donations to the library too, so the high school kids will be able to see what’s going on in contemporary poetry.
And then afterwards took a walk on Fort Warden’s pier and saw a mother otter with two babies, then another otter with two more babies, and then it was indistinguishable piles of otter cuteness! The other day I had to turn someone in to the ranger station for letting his (off-leash, which is against the law on the state park’s beaches because of pupping seals and sea otters) horrible big dog attack an otter and her baby. There are huge signs everywhere, by the way, that say to keep your dog on a leash and not to harrass the wildlife. Well, turns out that letting your dog attack otter pups is a federal offense. I spoke to the (horrible, wifebeater-wearing) man first, before setting the rangers on him, and he was all “Well, the dog never catches ’em.” Then I became the avenging goddess of otters. I was so happy to see all the babies alive and well today. So much for evil tourists and their ill-behaved dogs!
And I ran into Marvin Bell yesterday at the post office. Whenever I talk to Marvin I remember how much fun poetry can be.
Jeannine Hall Gailey served as the second Poet Laureate of Redmond, Washington and the author of Becoming the Villainess, She Returns to the Floating World, Unexplained Fevers, The Robot Scientist’s Daughter, and winner of the Moon City Press Book Prize and SFPA’s Elgin Award, Field Guide to the End of the World. Her latest, Flare, Corona from BOA Editions, was a finalist for the Washington State Book Award. She’s also the author of PR for Poets, a Guidebook to Publicity and Marketing. Her work has been featured on NPR’s The Writer’s Almanac, Verse Daily and The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror. Her poems have appeared in The American Poetry Review, Poetry, and JAMA.
