A Poetry Spree in Kentucky

I have just returned from my old haunt, Lexington, Kentucky. (How I miss living in a city in which I know where everything is!) It was a nice mini-vacation. The drive up on Thursday evening took longer than expected due to some horrific rain, occasional closures on I-75, and the meth-addled truck drivers roaring past at 97mph and sheeting me with water in already near-non-visibility conditions. *grump, grump* Once I got there, though, it was lovely. I met a friend, we spent the weekend on mini-shopping excursions, and I got to pop in to see my beloved tattoo artist (Charlotta of Tattoo Charlie's), though I didn't get any work done. I'll have to go back in July sometime for that.

Anyway, despite crappy weather, I got to see my good friend and catch up with her and her man, and I also got to see my other best friend on the planet, and her lovely husband.

On one of the shopping excursions, I acquired a Batgirl bobblehead doll, which will fit perfectly with my random office decor. (Everyone knows Batgirl was a librarian for her dayjob. (As a librarian, I aspire to have a nightlife in which I wear purple sparkly spandex and whoop badguy ass while wearing high heeled boots. To date, this has not happened.) We also hit a comic/horror convention that was in town. It was pretty pitiful size-wise, but I did manage to purchase pirated DVDs of the tv show Birds of Prey, which is about the daughter of Batman and Catwoman and her merry misfit band of goth/punk superheroes. It actually wasn't as bad as it sounds. I also picked up the tv series Brimstone, which I have never seen, but looks interesting. Plus, John Glover plays the devil. I'm looking forward to finding the time to watch that.

We hit the UK fan outlet, where sweatshirts for $5 wooed me, and I got a camo hat with "University of Kentucky" embroidered on it in pink.

The real win, though, was going to Half Price Books over in Hamburg. Lordy me, do I love that store. It's one of those massive used books (and DVDs, and LPs, etc) stores that will buy your stuff and then slashes prices pretty well, so it makes a nice alternative to the ridiculously expensive Barnes & Noble. I picked up:

Betting on the Muse by Bukowski

War All the Time by Bukowski

Rules for the Dance by Mary Oliver

A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver

Edna St. Vincent Millay: Selected Poems by Falck

The Captain's Verses by Pablo Neruda

The Book of Love by Rumi

What Work Is by Phillip Levine

Imperfect Thirst by Galway Kinnell

Leaves of Grass by Whitman

To Make a Prairie by Maxine Kumin

William Carlos Williams: Selected poems by Tomlinson

The Sleeping Beauty by Hayden Carruth

Outside History by Eavan Boland

Poems New and Selected by James Laughlin

New Selected Poems by Philip Levine

Poetry and the World by Robert Pinsky

Claiming the Spirit Within: A Sourcebook of Women's Poetry Edited by Marilyn Sewell

Including tax, this list set me back $93.59. That's right. Oodles and oodles of poetry that I haven't read yet, by authors that sounded either vaguely or very familiar, for less than a hundred bucks. I would like to report that I am, indeed, the winner. Nevermind that I didn't really *have* that money to spend. I will likely take it out of my grocery budget to pay that credit card bill when it comes in. It was totally worth it, since I likely have a good chunk of my bibliography for my next MFA semester.

Mmm, books. Delicious. It's just as well I don't have one of those stores locally, I suppose - I'm running out of places to put my bookses...

Sow's Ears and Silk Purses

Happiness! One of my recent poems that I'm actually really pleased with has just found a home at the Sow's Ear Poetry Review. As soon as I hear which issue "Wife at the Parole Hearing" will show up in, I'll be sure to post it. I'm particularly pleased with this placement for a number of reasons. First, Sow's Ear is a print publication, which is what I'm trying to restrict my submissions to at this point. It also has a pretty good reputation from what I can glean from fellow writers. Either way, I'm happy. Also, the turnaround time was less than two weeks (no, really. I swear), which is all but unheard of. That, and the editors and readers really went through the poem carefully, in detail, and had some great suggestions for edits. It was a lot like being workshopped from afar *grin*

I'm also happy because *I* get to send rejection letters to some editors. That's right - the tables have been turned! I haven't yet had the chance to do that with a simultaneous submission, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. That's right, slower-to-respond lit journals. I'll have to remove that one from your consideration, because someone else snatched up my goodies. You had better take a look at the rest of the pieces I sent you before they get scooped up, too...

Working the Manuscript

Instead of doing actual work this weekend, after a long week and fulfilling my semester requirements for both the MFA and the MA programs, I decided to put in a bit of time on my full-length manuscript, which is taking shape quite well. I'm having a tough time finding a thread that runs through the pieces - I rarely write on one theme exclusively (I'd bore myself to tears), though I have discovered that seasons and place (mostly Kentucky and Long Island) get mentioned quite often.

As of right now, I am tentatively titling the collection "A Stranger in Tornado Country." I don't know why, but I like the ring of it, and I like the poem it comes from, so for now, that's the winner. I hate sending things off half-cocked, and there's nothing worse than a collection with a lackluster title, especially with all the volumes of poetry being written. I don't want editors and judges bored before they get past the table of contents.

I've culled the collection to only polished pieces, and pieces I'm very fond of. Right now that puts me at fifty, with my new poem "Summer Sings," though there are about five or six I may take out because they're weak and/or obviously don't fit the rest of the tone of the collection. For instance, I happen to be in love with my new poem "Love Letter from a White Woman," but it's jarringly different in both tone and style, and relies more on rhythm than most of my other pieces do. I want it to be as strong as possible, but I also don't want to wait until the end of the MFA program (November 2009) to start submitting the manuscript.

My goal is to submit the full length manuscript to at least 4 competitions this year, as well as to some open reading periods at places like Tupelo Press, where the editor sends a handwritten note and critique for their open reading period. For poets, a full length manuscript is generally between 48 and 100 pages. Chapbook competitions are markedly shorter than that, requesting manuscripts of about 16 to 30 pages (and often shorter than that). There are tons of competitions, but it gets rather expensive after awhile, since most are about $20 a pop, with the full length competitions running closer to $25. Then again, I need to remember to ask if I can write those off...

My next daunting task, after writing a few more pieces that will round out the manuscript, will be to figure out what order they should be in. I haven't found a decent software program to do this (I've heard Scrivener is great, but I don't work on a Mac), so I'm seriously considering doing it with index cards and a giant corkboard. Any other ideas or suggestions are, as always, welcome and encouraged.

Does anyone have much experience putting together a successful poetry manuscript? What say ye?

I am a Sonnet

I'll admit it - I'm on OKCupid. I heard from one of my twitter friends that it's not bad. Plus, it's free, and eHarmony hasn't been doing me any favors lately. What I love about OKCupid, though, are all of the random tests and quizzes you can take. For instance, the Dating Persona quiz. I wanted to know what sort of a dating personality the quiz thought I had. I'll tell you, I am completely honest when I take these things. To a fault. (I also occasionally read my horoscope, though I don't take my Gemini status as seriously as some Scorpios I know, who ascribe their every relationship move and personality quirk to their star-sign. Ahem.)

You can take the test here, if you like. Definitely check out my results below - don't I sound like a lovely and date-able Poetess?. I was very surprised to find I'm a sonnet, especially since I answered all of the dirty questions honestly *grin* I was not surprised to find that I was told to always avoid The 5-Night Stand (DBSM), The False Messiah (DBLM), The Hornivore (RBSM), and The Last Man on Earth (RBSD), but I thought it was interesting that my direct opposite (according to the test) is Genghis Khunt, Random Brutal Sex Master. Not sure that's a title I'd covet anyway.

The Sonnet

Deliberate Gentle Love Dreamer

Romantic, hopeful, and composed. You are the Sonnet. Get it? Composed?

Sonnets want Love and have high ideals about it. They're conscientious people, caring & careful. You yourself have deep convictions, and you devote a lot of thought to romance and what it should be. This will frighten away most potential mates, but that's okay, because you're very choosy with your affections anyway. You'd absolutely refuse to date someone dumber than you, for instance.

Lovers who share your idealized perspective, or who are at least willing to totally throw themselves into a relationship, will be very, very happy with you. And you with them. You're already selfless and compassionate, and with the right partner, there's no doubt you can be sensual, even adventurously so.

You probably have lots of female friends, and they have a special soft spot for you. Babies do, too, at the tippy-top of their baby skulls.

The Pooped Poetess, and the Wonders of the MFA Residency

I've been waiting for some sort of writerly inspiration to strike me before posting again, and have run dry for the moment. As a matter of fact, I've felt the need to learn to knit, to learn to embroider so I could Tattoo my Towels, and I want to cook something delectable for someone, but my brain positively balks when I prepare to write something. Anything. My brain, she is empty of deep and interesting topics, or the will to write about them.

I haven't written anything heart-rendingly wonderful lately, though I'm currently a fan of my piece-in-progress, "Wife at the Parole Hearing," which starts with "Pennies are a punch/ in the mouth" - I've submitted it as part of my worksheet of pieces to be workshopped at the spring residency at Spalding. I'm tired. Work is more than a full time job (I love it, but it's demanding), keepign a steady stream of writing was far easier at the beginning of the semester than it has been in the last month and a half, and I just completed a 15 page paper and another workshop here at UTC. The Poetess is pooped.

I am very much looking forward to the 10-day residency in Louisville. Not so much because it will be an opportunity to relax (because it won't - residency is a ridiculously busy 10 days), but because I desperately need the reinvigorating atmosphere. In November, my first residency in the MFA program, it was something like being at a carnival with not enough time. Happily, they send out the schedule in advance, so the utter nerd in me was able to make a blow-by-blow plan in 15 minute increments.

It's tough *not* to be inspired to write when surrounded by fellow artists and supporters of the art community. Between panels by successful authors of every genre you can think of, discussions with small press editors, readings by faculty, students, and outside authors, class sessions taught by graduating MFA-ers, and a Buddy Guy concert (no, really), and chillaxing/collapsing in the hotel lobby by the bar at night with the likes of storytellers like Drew, the air is positively filled with inspiration. Finding the time and energy to write during residency was not as simple as I'd hoped, though I managed to jot a few things down that grew into poems later.

I'm looking forward to this residency for a few reasons. First, it's proof that I've completed my first semester (or will have, once I email my last packet of work out this Friday). Second, I'm going in with a lot less trepidation this time around because I already know a number of fabulous people from *last* residency, and have been sharing work and bitching about life for the past few months with these folks. You then pile in all the interesting lectures and panels, the opportunity to do a reading for people who are genuinely interested in what writers produce, and a posh hotel like The Brown, and it's pretty much heaven, even if it *is* in Louisville. (No offense meant, I'm simply more partial to Lexington, given the choice.)

Anyway, yes, residency is around the corner - about two months and counting, and I could really use the creative tank refill it offers. Now, as for where on earth I'm going to find the time to get in some actual relaxation....that's anyone's guess.

A Minor Rejuvenation, and Some Excellent Fiction by Saintcrow

For the past month, my creative writing has been on something of a hiatus, as work has been busy. (Who would have thought that librarianship could be hectic?) Anyway, I've had one or two decent pieces written in the past few weeks, but this weekend was the first one where I've had time to sit down and do some personal work. I spent Saturday mailing out my taxes (in a veritable monsoon, which I know the IRS won't appreciate), and then writing a ten page paper on Anne Sexton and confessional poetry.

Today, on the other hand, was monsoon-less, and I spent a good deal of it outside, sitting in the grass with my basset hound Otto. It was delicious. There is very little in this world that is as gratifying as a mild spring day and having a sun-warmed dog in your lap. Add that the dog is a basset hound, and really, you can't wipe the smile off.

The real accomplishment of the weekend, however, was not grinding out that paper. (That paper, by the way, isn't due until *next* Wednesday. I love the feeling of accomplishment that comes with finishing an assignment early!) Nor did I make any sort of a dent in the fifth and final packet of work due for my first semester in the MFA program at Spalding. No, what I did accomplish was reading the first four books in Lilith Saintcrow's Dante Valentine series.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Lilith Saintcrow for creating the sort of badass, emotionally-damaged-but-not-terminally-annoying warrior chick in a world with paranormal characters that Laurell K.Hamilton almost created in her Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series. Perhaps it's because it's still in the first few books, but each of Saintcrow's books is still taut, exciting, and surprising. While Hamilton fell into the abyss of favoring elaborately staged sex scenes at the expense of plot, Saintcrow drenches us in plot and character development. If that is due to her surprising lack of detailed sex scenes, then I will happily turn to my trashy romance novels to keep me set for that.

I am a tiny bit upset that I didn't realize book 5 of Saintcrow's series was already out, but I suppose it's just as well. It's 9pm on a Sunday night, and I simply don't have the stamina to read more than four books in a 24-hour period.

Anyway, this minor indulgence has been extremely satisfying, since I've admittedly read no fiction in the past few months (the horror! My brain weeps at the lack of candy). It has helped to ease much of the stress I've been feeling, and despite the fact that I wasn't doing anything "productive," I feel better. The only thing missing was a pedicure, but I'm still waiting on my tax returns, so one thing at a time.

Nudie Paintings! The Poetess Collects Art

I will admit to some odd taste in art. I don't much care whether it's famous or not. I choose my wall decorations the same way I choose favorite poems - based on whether I am touched or inspired by them. Deep in my soul, I admit that I desperately want to be able to do figure drawing and painting, but I haven't made the time to develop that skill. (Truly. I've even bought canvas and oils and acrylics and brushes and brush cleaner. I'm just terrified of putting paint to canvas and looking as untutored as I am. I feel I need professional training or something. Bob Ross vids, here I come!)

Instead, I peruse art and buy what I like, if I can afford it. I have a number of prints, and a few watercolors, and even some oils, all thanks to that affordable bastion of reproduction, eBay. I will discuss later whether or not the fact that I am buying 99 cent oil paintings detracts from the value of the original. (Personally, I don't think it does, since I can't afford the gazillion dollar originals but would still love to display an artist's work, but again, this is a discussion for a different post.)

I do usually end up choosing figure studies, and (I admit it) female nudes. My former roomies (both male) considered this a great boon - free porn! It actually comes down to this - for art purposes, I find the female form more graceful, with a more soothing line to it. On a personal level, sorry ladies - when it comes to holding onto something, I prefer men. But feel free to whistle at me anyway, I always take it as a compliment.

But it's true - landscapes don't do it for me - they leave me feeling cold. On occasion I fall in love with a simple seascape, but it has to be devoid of people, umbrellas, and the other detritus that comes with inhabitants. I like my oceans to be solitary places of refuge.

I don't prefer abstract art, though I appreciate it. For me, art is a space to go to reflect upon beauty and silence. A painting or print with people in it is no longer silent - I can hear the noise of conversation. (My one huge exception to this is Jack Vettriano's work. You can look him up at art.com if you don't know who he is.) Flowers and landscapes and such are too impersonal for me, not my cup of tea. Van Gogh doesn't entice me in the least - his work looks like a talented kid with crayons gone wrong, and Starry Night gives me a headache. Picasso's pieces look to me like they were tortured, torn up and pieced back together. See how judgmental I am? I am one very picky poetess. For a very long time, I didn't put any art up at all. As I've grown older, this has become more and more unacceptable t the artist in myself.

I like simple things, with simple lines and grace.

Let's discuss my current eBay oil painting spree - I have other oils rolled up in the corner form other sprees, but let's focus on what I've got visuals for.

I have a number of Michael Austin prints, which I love. This one is already matted, framed, glassed and on the wall in my living room:

I had planned to make it an all-Austin room, because I love his figure painting, but that seems a bit sterile and predictable. His lines are gorgeous and simple, the pieces are stark, and (very important to me) they have no faces. I do not like faces of weird/strange people on my walls. It's a personal preference, of course, but if anyone is going to be lookin at me, I'll make it photos of my family. For me, art is personal, and much like a book in that I do not want to be told overmuch about tiny details, I want to make some of it up on my own.

And so, I have been shopping victoriously on eBay, which is a wonderful way to find art on the cheap. Yesterday, I picked up this beauty, which was a print I had been eyeing on Art.com:

My living room carpet is sand colored, the walls are white, and the couches are a merlot color, so the splash of red in this piece fits perfectly.

This one - well, I don't have an explanation for why I'm bidding on this one, other than that I like it. I don't have a dang thing in my apartment that blue will match with, so I'll have to improvise to find a spot for it.

I have considered taking all of the random art I love (but that doesn't "fit" anywhere) and simply stuffing it all into my mini office area in my apartment - a deluge of inspiration and beauty, if you will. Besides, mom decorated the rest of my place with such an eye for detail and matching that it seems a shame to clutter it up with my odd taste in pretties.

This piece I did win already, though I have no clue where I'll put this one, either.

At least it's pretty neutral, so it can go in the bedroom no matter what, though I've considered draping a scarf across the top (and left to dangle down the sides) just for color once it gets stretched and ready to hang. This one *is* too risque for the living room, methinks. My old roommates used to get a kick out of how my bedroom was the "porn room," but I do want whomever visits my apartment to feel comfortable.

One of the best compliments I've ever received was when one of my old roommates walked into my bedroom after I had, in a frenzy, hung all of my pieces in a manner that suited me. He said, "Well, you can definitely tell that you are indulging your tastes, and that you're not putting this up to impress anyone else." I suppose, offhand, it seems rather like an insult, but I'm okay with that, too. A large part of my life is spent bowing to the will of others - we all do it, both at work and in other areas of my life. I don't mind it overmuch; my boss is quite okay with my tattoos and the occasional pink streak I sport in my hair. But I want my art to reflect my tastes, particularly if it is going to hang in my home, which is my sanctuary.