John Kinsella, Meg McKinlay & David Brooks @ Perth Writers Festival

As a young man, I was passionate about poetry - the history of it (or them - researching poets one by one), the reading of it, the writing of it, the sharing of it ... but life and making a living etc etc and so forth have taken the edge off, and the constant and widespread applause for the other writing forms, from novels to screenplays, has all gone a long way toward taking more glitter off. But then I hear a couple of good readings, I talk poetry and poetics with other poets, I see an audience thrilled and moved by poems spoken in a public place, and I am hooked again.

This year's Perth Writers Festival has played host to a few of my favourite Australian poets, people I'm proud to call friends: Robert Adamson, David Brooks and John Kinsella. A new face to me was Mark Tredinnick, and a quiet man in the crowd was Philip Mead. No women, you cry? Well, Meg McKinlay read and Tracy Ryan was also involved, but as a novelist.

In today's session, Kinsella, McKinlay and Brooks read, chaired by another poet, Dennis Haskell.

John read from his version of Divine Comedy: Journeys through a Regional Geography. His voice suffered from the flu he was carrying, but his stage presence was enough to win the audience. Here's a taste, a Sub-Paradiso poem, Mushrooms:

It has rained enough for mushrooms to emerge,
to crack open the still crusty soil and platform their heads,
gazebos of dark and gilled orchestras

Ah, nowhere near enough, but get the book and enjoy it yourself - Divine Comedy, UQP 2008. You can also read more samples at http://poems.com/poem.php?date=14138

From 410 pages of John to Meg McKinlay's 52 page chapbook, Cleanskin, the baton change over was amazing and amusing. Meg's easy confident manner and humble performance won the crowd over in a different way than John - it was a wonderful example of the many sides of poetry. Her witty intros also helped knit the poems into a delightful sequence. Here are the final lines of In China, a poem about expecting to find and finding at least one poem in a two week visit to that exotic civilisation:

Is this what it takes, to find
the poems of away -
a first sight of home?
And so I begin.

After Meg, the dramatic sight of David Brooks: shaved head, moustache and brush beard, dressed in black. David's approach was more the classic stance of the contemporary poet, if that's not too much of a clash: he spoke clearly and elegantly to the microphone, and drew the audience in with a performance that was intimate in such a public room. His poems were all love poems from his new collection The Balcony, UQP 2008. (It was medium range length at 120 pages, btw, if you were counting.) I have met his wife, Teja, and can vouch for this accurate picture of her:

She's still at the age
where she thinks that she's immortal,
smokes too much,
drives too fast,
has the patience
of spilt quicksilver ...

Love in many disguises, or should I say, many guises, came through this poetry reading today, and served to extend the enormous poetry rush I had yesterday from Robert Adamson's reading (mainly from The Golden Bird: New and Selected Poems, Black Inc. 2008)

Such a pair of days gives me the push to write more, to read more, to eulogise more - but first, I must walk the dog. While I walk, you find a poem you like and read it aloud, letting the wind carry it to others to share your joy.

Perth Writers Festival 2009 @ UWA Crawley Campus

Barry Maitland, David Brooks and Michael Meehan discussing 'Peeling back the Layers' at the first morning session. Then two pictures of the crowd, small to start with, on a Sunday morn. The panel discussing poetry (top photo) were Joanna Featherstone, Robert Adamson and Mike Tredinnick.

One more day to go, including sessions with James McBride and Sebastian Barry. One of particular interest to me is Lyrical Voices, with readings by David Brooks, John Kinsella and Meg McKinlay. 11am in the Dolphin Theatre.

Monk's advice to Steve Lacy

This is Steve Lacy's work, who played with Monk in 1960. Lacy's introduction to Thelonious Monk: His Life and Music uses the above material explicitly.

Congratulations, Marcus North! 117 on debut ...

Our local Perth batsman (and part-time but excellent bowler), Marcus North has waited a long time for his place in the Australian Test cricket team. Now, he has shown his class in a stunning debut innings at the historic Wanderers ground in South Africa wheren Australia scored 466(3.70 runs per over)in their first innings.

Bloody beauty, Marcus.

Here I quote from 'cricinfo' - http://content-www.cricinfo.com/australia/content/site

A superb century on debut from Marcus North and a thrilling boundary-filled innings from Mitchell Johnson allowed Australia to take charge of the opening Test at the Wanderers, and the feel-good factor was enhanced in a final session in which they grabbed three wickets and reduced the run-rate to a crawl. Two century partnerships, both involving North, were followed by a stunning 53-run stand between Johnson and Peter Siddle, which included 26 from a Paul Harris over. Ben Hilfenhaus then took a wicket with his second ball in Test cricket as a glum crowd looked on, and it was clear that if South Africa are to wrest that No.1 ranking, they'll have to do it the hard way.

In 132 years of Test cricket, only 18 Australian batsmen have made centuries on debut. Michael Clarke was the last, in Bangalore in 2004, and North joined that select band with a wonderfully mature innings that allowed his team to take firm control. His 117 spanned nearly three sessions and 233 balls, and it was the 113-run partnership with Brad Haddin that changed the complexion of the match. The 117 that he went on to add with Johnson for the eighth wicket was a record for Australia against South Africa, and both stands served to highlight the maturity and composure of his batting.

At 29, he's no greenhorn and he came into this Test with 8880 first-class runs behind him. As much as the fluent drives and the precise sweeps against the slow bowlers, what was really notable was his judgment of which deliveries to leave. There were few wild wafts, and initial circumspection gave way to much more positivity after lunch.

A site for wretched writing ...

I hope you enjoy.


http://www.bulwer-lytton.com:80/lyttony.htm

Thanks to Jayne for passing this on.

Black Factor Sports interviews ICC 's Charlie Burke

My youngest son, Charlie Burke, works for the International Cricket Council. In his role, he visited the Imparja 2009 Cricket Cup where they interviewed him, on camera, which you can access at http://nitv.org.au/blackfactor/

If I had more technical prowess I'd embed the video here >g<

Poem for Today ... & Art

Of all the words of pen or mouth,
the saddest are, "My stocks went south."

- Jon Corelis

... and while I'm here, take a look at she gone 2
http://ciccariello.viewbook.com/she
by Peter Ciccariello
More art available at http://invisiblenotes.blogspot.com/

First Poetry & Performance Night at The Fringe Gallery

Terry Farrell compered and welcomed the audience last night at The Fringe Gallery's inaugural night of literature and music down in Willagee. Myself and Sally Clarke (pictured) were guest readers, and Rob Binelli was the musician/singer, with instruments created by himself. The open mike section started with Mike (pictured), and included Janet Jackson, Peter Jeffery, Annamarie Weldon, Jo Clark, Terry himself and a young lady singer/songwriter, Susan.

It will be on again on the last Sunday of March, so please support The Fringe Gallery readings by attending and bringing friends! I will post full guest list and details before the event.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

Barrack Obama is visiting a Glasgow hospital.

He enters a ward full of patients with no obvious sign of injury or illness, he greets one.
The patient replies: Fair fa your honest sonsie face,Great chieftain o the puddin race,Aboon them a ye take yer place,Painch, tripe or thairm, As langs my airm.
Obama is confused, so he just grins and moves on to the next patient.
The next patient responds: Some hae meat an canna eat, And some wad eat that want it, But we hae meat an we can eat, So let the Lord be thankit.
Even more confused, and his grin now rictus-like, the President moves on to the next patient, who immediately begins to chant: Wee sleekit, cowerin, timorous beasty, O the panic in thy breasty, thou needna start awa sae hastie,Wi bickering brattlen
Now seriously troubled, Obama turns to the accompanying doctor and asks, 'Is this a psychiatric ward?'
'No,' replies the doctor, 'this is the serious Burns unit.'

ABC Radio National Books and Drama

20-27 February 2009

(Andrew's interruptionn: Could I point you to POETICA firstly - this one is a good one, I've heard it as a podcast;The Monkey's Mask on AIRPLAY - Dorothy Porter's famous PI verse novel; How Fiction Works with James Wood on 26th at 10am. A great week on ABC radio!)

POETICA
21/2/2009 15:00
26/2/2009 15:00
Blackwater: the poetry of Robert Adamson
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/poetica/stories/2009/2471246.htm
Since childhood, poet Robert Adamson has had a strong connection with the Hawkesbury River, north of Sydney. Producer Libby Douglas and Sound engineer Phillip Ulman travelled to the Hawkesbury and spent two days with Robert, his wife and photographer Juno Gemes. They recorded Robert in his home and on his boat, reading his poetry and talking about his life.


LINGUA FRANCA
21/2/2009 15:45
26/2/2009 15:45
Ka-NAIF = KNIFE
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/linguafranca/stories/2009/2495596.htm
Marking International Mother Language Day with Alexei Bayer on translating to and from his native tongue, and how he pronounced the very first word he learned in English, ‘knife’, as Ka-NAIF.


SUNDAY STORY
22/2/2009 08:30
Sean by Annette Trevitt
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/shortstory/stories/2009/2496831.htm
When his father leaves, Sean does not know who to blame.


AIRPLAY
22/2/2009 15:00
26/2/2009 19:00
The Monkey's Mask (Part 1), by Dorothy Porter, featuring Deborah Kennedy, Jeanette Cronin, Jessica Napier, Kelly Butler, Neil Fitzpatrick, Nicholas Eadie and Steve Vidler, music by Lesley Sly, produced by Libby Douglas
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/airplay/stories/2009/2471227.htm
Airplay celebrates the work of the late poet Dorothy Porter who passed away late last year with the most famous of her verse novels, The Monkey's Mask.
Jill Fitzpatrick is a tough streetwise private investigator on the trail of a missing person. Along the way she encounters cars going out of control on mountain roads, murder, deception and an unforgettable femme fatale. The Monkey's Mask has been described by reviewers as 'A tour de force that manages to be a complex thriller, a state-of-the-gender sexual novel and a convincingly lyrical on-rush of poetry'.


THE BOOK SHOW
Monday to Friday 10:00am (repeated at midnight)

The secret world of ghost writing (10.05)
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookshow/stories/2009/2495925.htm
It's the publishing world's dirty little secret and it's booming. It's ghost writing. We delve into the world of anonymous scribes who make a living writing other people's stories.

23/2/2009
Writer's Rooms: Mem Fox (10:25)
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookshow/stories/2009/2497062.htm
Have you ever wondered where writer's write; where novels are crafted; where classic lines are penned? In the first of our writer's rooms series, we take a guided tour of the private writing space of Australian children's author Mem Fox.

26/2/2009
How Fiction Works
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookshow/stories/2009/2497071.htm
James Wood talks about his new book How Fiction Works an account of character, point of view, and what he calls lifeness.

THE BOOK READING
Monday to Friday 2.00pm
9/2/2009 - 27/2/2009
The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bookreading/stories/2009/2260727.htm
Flann O'Brien's surreal comic novel The Third Policeman is a kind of rural Irish Alice in Wonderland where people and bicycles swap identity, police stations exist in other dimensions and eternity is reached by taking a lift downwards in a forest.


FIRST PERSON
Monday to Friday 10.45am
23/2/2009 - 11/3/2009
American Journeys, written and read by Don Watson, produced by Justine Sloane-Lees
URL: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/firstperson/
As an outsider, and travelling by rail, Don Watson investigates the meaning of the United States: its confidence, its religion, its heroes, violence, material obsessions, landscapes and people. From the window of the train he peers out to the landscape and history unfolding on the other side of the glass, while within he shares encounters with cowboys, political lobbyists, artists, Christian aid workers, shock jocks, and many other ordinary and extraordinary people. Through them he discovers the incomparable genius of America – its optimism, sophistication and riches – and also its darker side, its disavowal of failure and uncertainty.

Sunday Evening @ The Fringe Gallery - Sally Clark & Andrew Burke

It is always flattering to be asked to open a series of almost anything, so I'm standing tall - which is difficult for me, right - to be one of two guest poets at The Fringe Gallery for their first Poetry and Performance Night this Sunday night in Willagee. The other poet is Sally Clark with a new book out, if I'm not mistaken. & somewhere there is a musician - I'll need to do more research on that score (no pun intended).

Poetry and Performance Night
at the Fringe Gallery
Last Sunday night of every month
commencing Sunday 22nd February

About the gallery

The Fringe Gallery is an artist run studio and exhibition space in Willagee which seeks to encourage emerging artists with the exhibition or performance of their work. The Gallery provides affordable exhibition space for hire and runs various art classes for the public. The Gallery also provides five artist’s studio space for lease.

About the poetry and performance night

The night will include:
• Readings from invited poets and writers
• An open mike section ( if you wish to read please come early to register)
• Some music by local artists
• A book exchange ( bring along any old but worthy books that you wish to sell)

When: 7.30 – 10 pm Last Sunday of every month
Where: The Fringe Gallery Willagee, 94 Bawdan Street Willagee
(opposite Webber Reserve)
Cost: $5.00. Refreshments can be purchased on the night




For further information contact:
Terry on 0412 911562 or email to tfarrell@linq.net.au

William Carlos Williams is applauded at Home

Williams enters Hall of Fame

(by Daniel O'Keefe - February 11, 2009)(from http://www.southbergenite.com/NC/0/2268.html

Doctor, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and lifelong Rutherford resident William Carlos Williams is one of 13 greats from the Garden State inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame's class of 2008. This year Williams joins fellow literary greats Walt Whitman and F. Scott Fitzgerald as well as popular celebrities Jon Bon Jovi, Shaquille O'Neal and Jerry Lewis.

"It's about time," said Daphne Williams Fox, Williams' granddaughter. "I'm hoping it opens more doors for his work." Though throughout the academy Williams is widely considered one of the most influential American poets of the last century, he isn't nearly as well known to the general public. However, Fox and other Rutherford locals have been working lately to make his name better known in the state.

"I was taken aback by all the people who supported him," said Fox. "For me this was like coming home again." She noted a book by her father about Williams, "Title," as well as a Caldecott Honor-winning children's book "A River of Words," have recently been published.

The Rutherford Public Library has a rotating exhibit of items belonging to Williams, such as his violin, correspondence with his publishers, his straw hats and some of his medical equipment such as a microscope and a blood pressure machine. Williams' dual roles as poet and local doctor are well symbolized by his desk which had a top that could be flipped over with a flat desk on one side for medical work and a typewriter attached to the other side for writing in between appointments. The library's collection is the most extensive of any of its kind, according to library director Jane Fisher.

Della Rowland, founder of the William Carlos Williams Symposium which began in 2005 and celebrated the poet's 125th birthday last year, said the work of people such as Fox, Fisher and borough historian Rod Leith over the past few years has helped focus wider attention on Rutherford and its native poet.

"I'm pleased he's being recognized in his home area for which he drew all his inspiration," she said. "What's happened here in Rutherford in terms of the poetry readings and everything has rippled out to the whole state."

Singing the Praises - of Stimmung and The Five Peace Band

I've had a full week, the highlights of which have been music.

First, there was John McLaughlin (gtr), Chick Corea (keyboards), Kenny Jarrett (sax), Christian MacBride (bass) and Brian Blade (drums) electrifying the night air at the Pioneer Women's Memorial Gardens within our beautiful Kings Park (1 thousand acres on the crest of the city of Perth). My friend Perry mused as we walked the long distance from our parking spot, I wonder what they're going to play. Fair question: it could have been mainstream jazz, Indian-tinged pyrotechnics, night club fusion or any number of things in between.

They sauntered out on to stage - a blue lit giant music shell before the lake - and swung right into a fast electronic contemporary jazz piece, influenced mainly by McLaughlin's guitar. The compering, such as it was, was shared between John and Chick. Very little chatter, but relaxed announcements. In John's humility, he always introduced all the rest of the band, perhaps thinking or knowing that a lot of people were not essentially from the jazz world but the rock-end of fusion - Mahavishnu Orchestra et al. John introduced the second piece, which was a composition by Chick Corea. The solos were always exciting, and built to a point just after when I expected them to release, if you catch my drift. You would expect the world of John and Chick, and you'd be right. Kenny played a more restrained role, like he was a second-stringer - but nothing could have been further from my mind. Kenny was one of the main reasons I went. It wasn't he went into his shell or anything so dramatic, just he wasn't as front-line as I had hoped. The drummer's name was stated a lot during the performance, but I am only guessing at Brian Blade. He was a fiercesome storm behind each number, and even when he switched to brushes for a quieter segment, he was still as busy as Elvin Jones. At times I miss the subtle playing style of people like Max Roach or Connie Kay, but perhaps I'm an old fuddy-duddy.

The eye-opener, or ear-opener more accurately, was the masterful and melodic playing of Christian MacBride. A beautiful bass player in anybody's book, be it electric or bull-fiddle. He was a revelation to me - memories of Jaco Pestorius and Charlie Mingus flew through my intoxicated head.

A stand out piece was the Hymn to Andromeda, a new piece composed by Chich Corea and about to be released on a new CD. It started with synthesizer and electric piano, and permutated through sections to a frenetic jazz crescendo as endo. I would have liked a return to the original theme and instrumentation as denouement, but that's my mind, tidying up. Another piece worth mentioning was the surprise inclusion of Dr Jackyl, a track first released by Miles Davis 50 years ago.

The evening was perfect weather, funky coffee, huge and appreciative crowd, kookaburras laughing on cue, and over two hours of music (I didn't keep a watch on it). Parking was the only drag, but that's average for this kind of event, isn't it.

An American friend has described a recent night out at a Cassandra Wilson show - and I think ours, slightly different in that it was a concert in the outdoors, was a far superior event. But it did cost $80.

Secondly, there was Stockhausen's Stimmung, performed by the Theatre of Voices at University of Western Australia's Hackett Hall. I went in ignorance of this work, even though friends had offered to let me borrow their CDs of it. I wanted to be surprised and to take the creative journey as freely as possible. This meant not researching the piece. It was an amazing journey - incredibly beautiful music sung by six voices, and wit and improvisation all combined. I didn't understand a word of the German songs and poems embedded in the work, but that didn't matter one iota. When it finished - about an hour and forty minutes - I wanted them to start again. When I arrived home, I immediately researched it and read the program notes, etc. & then was even more amazed. Absolutely beautiful piece of music, but very difficult to pigeon-hole. Somewhere it has been said that Stimmung is a perfect doorway in to Stockhausen's work for the uninitiated, and I would agree with that. I have heard lots of Stockhausen's works, but this is the most lyrical and witty.

Louis Bellson RIP (1924-2009)

Louis Bellson,world famous jazz drummer, has died at the age of 84 in Los Angeles.

He was a great jazz musician, composer, arranger, bandleader, and long-time educator.

Louis Bellson won the 1940 Slingerland National Gene Krupa drum contest at the age of 17, cutting out 40,000 drummers and launching a career that began with the Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, and Harry James big bands.

I remember him from the early ’50s with Duke Ellington, when he wrote and performed a monumental drum solo piece Skin Deep. It was one of the reasons I learnt drums as a teenager (but you blame it all on him). He left the Ellington band to work as musical director for Pearl Bailey. They married in 1953. The marriage lasted until Bailey’s death in 1990.

Chick Corea, John McLaughlin & Kenny Garrett tonight in Kings Park

Tonight we hear some of the greats of contemporary jazz, right here in Perth, in our thousand acre park overlooking the city. The venue sounds idyllic, but will the sound be idyllic? It depends on the night winds blowing and the amphitheatre acoustics of the Pioneer Women's Fountain location. Not ideal for my once in a lifetime chance to see these guys together - but, that's the deal. And I am looking forward to it.

Put it on your calendar now ...

Poetry and Performance Night
at the Fringe Gallery
Last Sunday night of every month
commencing Sunday 22nd February

Special Guest Poet: Andrew Burke

About the gallery

The Fringe Gallery is an artist run studio and exhibition space in Willagee which seeks to encourage emerging artists with the exhibition or performance of their work. The Gallery provides affordable exhibition space for hire and runs various art classes for the public. The Gallery also provides five artist’s studio space for lease.

About the poetry and performance night

The night will include:
• Readings from invited poets and writers
• An open mike section ( if you wish to read please come early to register)
• Some music by local artists
• A book exchange ( bring along any old but worthy books that you wish to sell)

When: 7.30 – 10 pm Last Sunday of every month
Where: The Fringe Gallery Willagee, 94 Bawdan Street Willagee
(opposite Webber Reserve)
Cost: $5.00. Refreshments can be purchased on the night




For further information contact:
Terry on 0412 911562 or email to tfarrell@linq.net.au

Every little bit helps.

http://www.redcross.org.au/vic/services_emergencyservices_victorian-bushfires-appeal-2009.htm

Hear Australian Poets read their own works

From the ABC's website -

A Pod of Poets is a series of eleven, 40-minute podcasts of Australian poetry, read by the authors. The poets come from all over Australia; some are emerging talents and some are established; several of them are on the school syllabus.

The audio is available to download and you'll also find transcripts, photographs, interviews, and more. We hope that this website will be an ongoing resource for researchers, schools, universities and the general podcast audience.

Subscribe to the podcast series here at http://www.abc.net.au/rn/poetica/features/pod/default.htm.

The poets are: Robert Adamson, Les Murray, Joanne Burns, John Kinsella, Josephine Rowe, Craig Billingham, L.K. Holt, Aidan Coleman, Jayne Fenton Keane, Martin Harrison, Sam Wagan Watson, Kathryn Lomer, Esther Ottaway, John Clarke and Jordie Albiston.

We look forward to bringing you the work of this vibrant and diverse group.


Poetica · Saturday 14 February 2009

To mark the launch of this special podcast series, four of the programs will also be broadcast on Poetica, continuing with Jayne Fenton Keane on Saturday 14 February at 3pm.

*

For access and further information go to http://www.abc.net.au/rn/poetica/features/pod/default.htm

Victorian Bushfire Images from The Age

http://www.theage.com.au/photogallery/2009/02/10/1234028024842.html


There must be the right words to say about the bush fires tragedy in Victoria but I haven't found them. My mouth dries up whenever I let my imagination go to the last seconds of those poor victims' lives. Blame? The game has begun, as we all knew it would, but I hope it will peter out through lack of support very quickly. A cohesive and solid plan for the nation for such tragedies in future is the only activity worth pursuing now. Perhaps Tim Flannery and General Peter Cosgrove could be asked to head such a multi-disciplinary team. The immediate on-the-ground task is the re-establishment of the survivors' lives, and many heroes are already working day and night at that task, from the armed forces to local CWA groups. I thank them all for doing what I can't help do from this distance.

The right way to plural - from the Sydney Writers Centre

The Sydney Writers Centre advertises writing courses of all sorts and styles, some at the Centre and many on-line, but as a free tip today they sent a short piece on Plurals at http://www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au/ . I think it is worth sharing as many people get these areas wrong consistently.

TIP: The right way to plural

Noun plurals - there are so many irregularities here that it can sometimes be difficult to find the right word! Some of these may seem obvious but it’s amazing how many times people get it wrong.

Here are some handy rules for a few of those nasty irregular plurals:

* If the word ends with '-us' the plural form will end in '-i'
For example: cactus to cacti, nucleus to nuclei, focus to foci
* If the word ends with '-on' the plural will end
in '-a'
For example: phenomenon to phenomena,
criterion to criteria
* If the word ends with '-o' the plural will have an
'-es' added
For example: potato to potatoes or tomato to
tomatoes.

Creative Writing Workshops - All welcome!

led by Andrew Burke
each and every Wednesday
10am to noon
Tom Collins House
home of the Fellowship of Australian Writers
in the trees
cnr Wood and Kirkwood Streets
SWANBOURNE.

$20 per session, or $120 per 8 sessions
(Unwaged and pensioners of all types, $15 per session)

Quote of the Day

Awards are merely the badges of mediocrity.

- Charles Ives

Thanks to Doug BARBOUR for this one.

Creative Writing Workshops by the Sea

Last Wednesday was the first of my Creative Writing Workshops at Tom Collins House for 2009. We had a small number but all interested in furthering their writing skills and all eager to shake the rust from their pens (or laptops). If, Mr Rudd wishes to throw money at the population, perhaps he should subsidise computer equipment for beginning writers who are not cashed up. Just a thought ...

Anyway, I thought LOVE would be a popular subject so I went with that trying to win back Valentine's Day to a Romantic base: write a Romantic poem or text to your partner or someone you'd like to have as partner. There were howls of shock at the idea! It was not popular - so I persevered and soon we were discussing the various aspects of love you could approach, with examples from Nikki Giovanni, ee cummings, Galway Kinnell and my friend Max Richards from Melbourne. He had emailed a nostalgic tender love poem of sorts earlier that day, and I used it in the group. It was about the most popular poem there, so 'local grown' is again the best >g<

A couple of phone calls have come in for people wanting to know what time it starts. That's strange because I always write the hours it runs when I advertise it. Oh, well, maybe they just want to make contact first, and use that as an opening gambit.

Here are the details again:

Creative Writing Workshops
lead by Andrew Burke
each and every Wednesday
10am to noon
Tom Collins House
home of the Fellowship of Australian Writers
in the trees
cnr Wood and Kirkwood Streets
SWANBOURNE.

$20 per session, or $120 per 8 sessions
(Unwaged and pensioners of all types, $15 per session)


Cartoon from one of the funniest cartoonists in Oz, Judy Horacek at http://www.horacek.com.au/

The Private Press invites you to submit ...

Call for Poems

'I can't figure out if you're a detective or a pervert.'

Seeking poems that explore the twisted world of David Lynch's Blue Velvet for The Private Press's next chapbook anthology.

Go to for further details and Submission Form http://zoo.f2s.com/privatepress/callforpoems.html

Word of the Year? Check it out!

The Macquarie Dictonary has a very entertaining site with lots to amuse any wordsmith. They have selected a Word of the Year and also a list of winning new words in various categories.

The Macquarie Dictionary Word of the Year Committee comprises:

Dr Michael Spence, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sydney
Professor Stephen Garton, Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Sydney
Les Murray, renowned Australian poet
Susan Butler, Editor of the Macquarie Dictionary

Go to http://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/anonymous@919FFC17548334/-/p/dict/WOTY08/index.html?utm_source=MailingList&utm_medium=email&utm_content=swc+newsletter+085

A Book of Music - by Jack Spicer

Coming at an end, the lovers
Are exhausted like two swimmers. Where
Did it end? There is no telling. No love is
Like an ocean with the dizzy procession of the waves' boundaries
From which two can emerge exhausted, nor long goodbye
Like death.
Coming at an end. Rather, I would say, like a length
Of coiled rope
Which does not disguise in the final twists of its lengths
Its endings.
But, you will say, we loved
And some parts of us loved
And the rest of us will remain
Two persons. Yes,
Poetry ends like a rope.



from http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19747

Steve McCaffery: If the aim of philosophy is, as Wittgenstein claims, to show the fly the way out of the fly bottle, then the aim of poetry is to convince the bottle that there is no fly.

2009 Creative Writing Workshops - with a cool sea breeze ...

start 10am to Noon Wednesday 4 February
at Tom Collins House,
corner Kirkwood and Wood Streets, Swanbourne,
set in amongst the trees
and home of The Fellowship of Australian Writers.

$20 per session or 8 weeks for $120.
Unwaged and disabled, $15.

Conducted by Dr Andrew Burke, a Creative Writing teacher with a couple of decades experience in steering people towards creating texts in their own voice.

In a fun loving and open-hearted way, we approach writing stories, poems and life stories through notes, writing exercises, group discussion and examples. Subjects we have covered in the past include Characterization, Dialogue, Description, Editing your own Work (and others), Plot versus Unplot, the many styles and opportunities for poetry, writing competitions, how to send your work away, Concrete Images, the song in the words ...

"I am an experienced Creative Writing teacher with a couple of decades experience in steering people towards creating texts in their own voice." Andrew Burke

Poetry and Performance Night at the Fringe Gallery

Last Sunday night of every month
commencing Sunday 22nd February


The Fringe Gallery is an artist run studio and exhibition space in Willagee which seeks to encourage emerging artists with the exhibition or performance of their work. The Gallery provides affordable exhibition space for hire and runs various art classes for the public. The Gallery also provides five artist’s studio space for lease.

About the poetry and performance night

The night will include:
• Readings from invited poets and writers
• An open mike section ( if you wish to read please come early to register)
• Some music by local artists
• A book exchange ( bring along any old but worthy books that you wish to sell)

When: 7.30 – 10 pm Last Sunday of every month
Where: The Fringe Gallery Willagee, 94 Bawdan Street Willagee
(opposite Webber Reserve)
Cost: $5.00. Refreshments can be purchased on the night




For further information contact:
Terry on 0412 911562 or email to tfarrell@linq.net.au

CREATIVE WRITING BY THE SEA - STARTS WEDNESDAY

2009 Creative Writing Workshops
start 10am to Noon Wednesday 4 February
at Tom Collins House,
corner Kirkwood and Wood Streets, Swanbourne,
set in amongst the trees
and home of The Fellowship of Australian Writers.

$20 per session or 8 weeks for $120.
Unwaged and disabled, $15.

Conducted by Dr Andrew Burke, a Creative Writing teacher with a couple of decades experience in steering people towards creating texts in their own voice.

In a fun loving and open-hearted way, we approach writing stories, poems and life stories through notes, writing exercises, group discussion and examples. Subjects we have covered in the past include Characterization, Dialogue, Description, Editing your own Work (and others), Plot versus Unplot, the many styles and opportunities for poetry, writing competitions, how to send your work away, Concrete Images, the song in the words ...

"I am an experienced Creative Writing teacher with a couple of decades experience in steering people towards creating texts in their own voice." Andrew Burke

(Photo shot at CW Workshop in Notre Dame Uni, Broome, last November - very similar scene)

John Updike has died. Read more at the New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/books/28updike.html


I particulalry chose this photo because it shows him in a comfortable setting. Many other times he looks uncomfortable in air-conditioned libraries and offices. His formative years were spent in open spaces, so a part of him was more comfortable there, to my mind. I was a fan of his short stories, and, of course, read Couples and Witches of Eastwick, etc - but the short stories remain in my mind as almost faultless.

snap: the internal cage

… just like a poet,
contemporary,
to grunt and grizzle.

What can you tell
about a person
from their unhappiness?

~

We all have a cage
inside the other cage,
open

or closed,
hanging in there.

~

Poems are triggered
between the pun-up at midnight
and the write-down at dawn -

it’s the ancient phrase
and the latest craze
that signs our days.

Quote of the Day

"You can't get rid of poverty by giving people money."

- P. J. O'Rourke

experimental work showcased - send yours ...

multifarious things going on at http://pganickz.livejournal.com !check them and send something for consideration !

text in message window only ... no attachments ...

thanks ! send to pganickz@gmail.com ...

Ibis on the drying lake

The Life and Times of Allen Ginsberg

http://poetsonline.blogspot.com/

I wanted to see The Life and Times of Allen Ginsberg but it tells me it's not available in my country or domain. Part of AG's life and times was spent in Australia, so we have a right - no? (& I thought the internet was universal ...) The trailer is available at the website spelt out above. Can you access the YouTube version in other countries? Free to air?

The Blueroom and Openmouth present the inaugural "Perth Poetry Slam".

See hear touch taste and smell it - BE ONE!!

The Perth Poetry Slam series is part of the "25 nights of Summer" program at the Blue Room - 53 James Street, Northbridge in the PerthCultural Centre.

Starting Wednesday 4th February 2009 from 8pm, the Perth Poetry Slam runs each Wednesday night until the 4th March. Up to 20 wordmongers willdazzle each other in a battle to the death.

To Register go to: http://www.perthpoetryslam.com

In the spirit of the Australian Poetry Slam: One poet, 2 minutes, no props, no backing. Just you and the mic in the spotlight - performing original spoken word, poetry, hip hop, monologues and stories - or whatever...

Five randomly chosen audience members will judge the performances to see who wins the final on the 4th March.

Heats:
1. Wednesday 4 February 8pm
2. Wednesday 11 February 8pm
3. Wednesday 18 February 8pm
4. Wednesday 25 February 8pm
Final: Wednesday 4 March 8pm

Prizes etc to be announced soon.

To register, find out more or book tickets:
go to http://www.perthpoetryslam.com
or email: slam@radicalhack.com
or phone 0402 573 580

Hosted by WA performance poet Allan Boyd - aka the antipoet.

Registration is free. Audience tickets are $5. Limited capacity - please book.

Tune into RTRFM 92.1 Wednesday mornings during the series to hear 2 poets battle it out in an on air Slam Off!

Perth Poetry Slam Website:
http://www.perthpoetryslam.com

THE BLUE ROOM website:
http://www.blueroom.org.au

Hear here: Robert Creeley at PennSound

http://www.umit.maine.edu/~ben.friedlander/RC-SP-PennSound.htm

Tinfish - Looking for Submissions

Aloha! We at Tinfish are looking for work for our 19th issue of the magazine. Submissions of up to 6 poems are welcome from anyone in or beside the Pacific Ocean. Please send to 47-728 Hui Kelu Street #9, Kaneohe, HI 96744. Don't just send us your own work; also send another poet our way, as well. If you don't know what kind of work we publish, go to the website and check under "free stuff," or better yet, subscribe to the journal!

This year we will publish books by Paul Naylor and Kaia Sand, as well as our annual mag. So please keep your ear close to our URL: http://www.tinfishpress.com

I have started a Tinfishish blog, too: http://tinfisheditor.blogspot.com/
so please check there on occasion.

Susan M. Schultz
Tinfish editor
--------------------

Go to the Tinfish website for more information http://www.tinfishpress.com

On my walk today ...

As We Swelter, Linfen Freezes

People walk on a road covered by the ice surge. On the morning of January 18, a rare ice surge took place near a scenic waterfall spot on the Yellow River in the Jixian County, Linfen City, in north China's Shanxi Province. The sudden ice surge raised the riverbed by four meters along a run of more than 800 meters. Nearby roads and public infrastructures were submerged by the ice. Dozens of houses and shops have been flooded and damaged. The local authorities have established a rescue headquarters to evacuate trapped villagers and tourists. The ice surge has not caused any casualties so far and the full extent of the damage is being assessed. [People's Daily photo]

Poetry: "... how lucky we are to love such a wild untamable thing."

Ada Limon's 5 Ways To Practise Poetry can be found at http://poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2009/01/mystery_birds_5_ways_to_practi.html

1) Write everyday. It's easier than it sounds. Make time everyday to write SOMETHING. Even if it's one line scribbled into a napkin on the subway or the bus, or a whole precious early hour in the morning. This practice lets the mind know that everyday we must be observant, that we are paying attention, always.

2) Learn poems you love. Read whatever poems you can get your handson. Not just the classics, but those poets who are writing today. Pick up journals, magazines, and anthologies; search for the poems that break you open. Read those poems over and over again until you have them memorized in your mouth. Don't worry about mimicking them, just accept them as your teachers and hold them close. Become an expert on the poems you adore.

3) Cultivate silence. Silence is essential in order to hear your own voice. Especially nowadays when we often have the television on, the radio on, or music playing all day long, it is essential to find some silence to listen to your own voice. Your own voice is the only thing your poetry needs.

4) Embrace revision. Revision might be the hardest thing that writers have to do, aside from battling our own internal demons, because it means admitting that we are wrong. Sometimes we are so wrong that we need to start all over again, and it's embarrassing. Sometimes we only need to change a comma, but listen, every poem needs revision and every poet needs to learn humility.

5) Practice gratitude. Cherish those friends and colleagues who care enough to read and comment on your work. If you truly pursue writing, you will come to realize how enormously important these people are to your writing life and therefore to your making of a "real" life. Make sure you read their work with the same care and closeness they offer you. And buy them coffee and cakes when they return a manuscript with pencil marks on every page. It is a true act of kindness that should be greeted with great gratitude. And be thankful that you want to write at all, what a powerful art to devote a life to, how lucky we are to love such a wild untamable thing.

Here Comes Me - an interview

The following interview uses the questions set out by Here Comes Everybody, which Lance Phillips started in June 2004 & kept up through January 2007, over 130 interviews in all. See them all at http://herecomeseverybody.blogspot.com/

I just trotted these answers out tonight for fun. They would probably change if I did it again tomorrow.

1. What is the first poem you ever loved? Why?

‘Said Hanrahan’ by P.J. Hartigan ("John O’Brien")
Because it spoke wittily, and kindly, about human weakness, and showed the cyclical balance of nature. And because it was as easy to remember as song lyrics.

2. What is something / someone non-“literary” you read which may surprise your peers / colleagues? Why do you read it / them?

The sports pages in the daily newspapers and on the internet – especially during the cricket season.

3. How important is philosophy to your writing? Why?

My daily philosophy of life comes through loud and clear in my writing, but I am not an adherent of any one school of philosophy.

4. Who are some of your favorite non-Australian writers? Why?

Michael Ondaatje for his imaginative, organic style, built of rich language and human insights.

Charles Bernstein for his wit and wordplay.

Sheila Murphy for her creative energy and the constant surprises in her writing.

Samuel Beckett for his unflinching eye on his fellow humans, his timing and brilliant use of English, constantly renewing the power of words by their placement and associative stance.

Bob Dylan for his vulnerability and humanity, his wit and style while reinvigorating colloquial language, and his durability.

5. Do you read a lot of poetry? If so, how important is it to your writing?

Yes, I read poetry everyday, often poetry I’ve read before but through a different set of lens - the New York School or Olson, but then I’ll read a bit of Chaucer or an old ballad, just to hear the song in words again.

6. What is something which your peers / colleagues may assume you’ve read but haven’t? Why haven’t you?

Hmmm, have to think about that one.

7. How would you explain what a poem is to a seven year old?

I would give the child examples from their own experience – if I knew it – and then go through images of the five senses with the child, hopefully keeping them all on one subject, like an orange or a kitten or some such - and together we would create a poem.

8. Do you believe in a Role for the Poet? If so, how does it differ from the Role of the Citizen?

No.

9. Word associations (the first word which comes to mind; be honest):

Lemon : tree
Chiseled : face
I : thou
Of : when
Form : content

10. What is the relationship between the text and the body in your writing?

I believe words are fished out of the brain in the body, and the pace and imagery of the language I use is created by the pulse and library of my body, from where it has stored all the accumulated sensory data of my experience. Therefore, how I apprehend and comprehend the universe through my senses happens on a continual millisecond by millisecond basis and influences not only past experience but the outpourings of my present. This includes reading, viewing and hearing creative works by other artists – and tasting too, perhaps. So, the body, my body, is of paramount importance and the primary source of my writing. (So I should look after it better …)

SAID HANRAHAN
by John O'Brien


"We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan
In accents most forlorn
Outside the church ere Mass began
One frosty Sunday morn.

The congregation stood about,
Coat-collars to the ears,
And talked of stock and crops and drought
As it had done for years.

"It’s lookin’ crook," said Daniel Croke;
"Bedad, it’s cruke, me lad
For never since the banks went broke
Has seasons been so bad."

"It’s dry, all right," said young O’Neil,
With which astute remark
He squatted down upon his heel
And chewed a piece of bark.

And so around the chorus ran
"It’s keepin’ dry, no doubt."
"We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out.

"The crops are done; ye’ll have your work
To save one bag of grain;
From here way out to Back-O’-Bourke
They’re singin’ out for rain.

"They’re singin’ out for rain," he said,
"And all the tanks are dry."
The congregation scratched its head,
And gazed around the sky.

"There won’t be grass, in any case,
Enough to feed an ass;
There’s not a blade on Casey’s place
As I came down to Mass."

"If rain don’t come this month," said Dan,
And cleared his throat to speak –
"We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan, "
If rain don’t come this week."

A heavy silence seemed to steal
On all at this remark;
And each man squatted on his heel,
And chewed a piece of bark.

"We want an inch of rain, we do,"
O’Neil observed at last;
But Croke "maintained" we wanted two
To put the danger past.

"If we don’t get three inches, man,
Or four to break this drought,
We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out."

In God’s good time down came the rain;
And all the afternoon
On iron roof and window-pane
It drummed a homely tune.

And through the night it pattered still,
And lightsome, gladsome elves
On dripping spout and window-sill
Kept talking to themselves.

It pelted, pelted all day long,
A-singing at its work,
Till every heart took up the song
Way out to Back-O’-Bourke.

And every creek a banker ran,
And dams filled overtop;
"We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"If this rain doesn’t stop."

And stop it did, in God’s good time:
And spring came in to fold
A mantle o’er the hills sublime
Of green and pink and gold.

And days went by on dancing feet,
With harvest-hopes immense,
And laughing eyes beheld the wheat
Nid-nodding o’er the fence.

And, oh, the smiles on every face,
As happy lad and lass
Through grass knee-deep on Casey’s place
Went riding down to Mass.

While round the church in clothes genteel
Discoursed the men of mark,
And each man squatted on his heel,
And chewed his piece of bark.

"There’ll be bush-fires for sure, me man,
There will, without a doubt;
We’ll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out."

A way in for the way out

there's some new texts on peter ganick's literary blog:
http://pganickz.livejournal.com

click on the link to have a look and read.

send Peter Ganick some words/text.

send all mail to <pganickz@gmail.com>

they could be online within a few days.

WRITING CINEMATICALLY: THE CONSTRUCTION OF BRILLIANT CINEMA

With Duncan Thompson

A free one day seminar presented by the Australian Writers' Guild in association with the International Film School Sydney Writing ...

Topics covered include: the drama of being human, dramatic legibility of character, subjectivity, the cinematic brilliance of the central passive character, writing moments, the phenomenological structure of character subjectivities, thematic expression through dramatic engineering, writing great cinematic endings, creating compelling character and audience journeys, writing inspired dialogue, creating the brilliant scene.

When: 9.30am to 4.30pm Sunday 18 January 2009
Where: Theatrette, Building A School Of Isolated and Distance Education(SIDE)
164 ­ 194 Oxford St Leederville
SIDE is opposite the Luna Cinemas.

Cost: FREE Limited places, bookings essential

Bookings: Your email booking should be addressed to Alan Payne, AWG WA Manager, and sent to wa@awg.com.au [Ed: Copy and paste into the 'send' area of your email provider if this link doesn't work] In the subject heading of the email, please write [Surname] Writing Cinematically.
Please provide a phone contact number.

Closing Date: 5.00pm Thursday 15 January Early booking recommended.

Source: http://www.writingwa.org

My Moma told me there'd be days like this ...

Cartoon by Julia Suits

Poems on view ...

I have a couple of poems up at http://pganickz.livejournal.com When you have a mo, have a look.

In a day or two, Peter Ganick (editor) is also going to publish an experimental short story of mine, entitled Two Dead Matches. So, feel free to return on Monday >g<

Belief & Technique for Modern Prose -- List of Essentials by Jack Kerouac

Scribbled secret notebooks, and wild typewritten pages, for yr own joy

--Submissive to everything, open, listening
--Try never get drunk outside yr own house
--Be in love with yr life
--Something that you feel will find its own form
--Be crazy dumbsaint of the mind
--Blow as deep as you want to blow
--Write what you want bottomless from bottom of the mind
--The unspeakable vision of the individual
--No time for poetry but exactly what is
--Visionary tics shivering in the chest
--In tranced fixation dreaming upon object before you
--Remove literary, grammatical and syntactical inhibition
--Like Proust, be an old teahead of time
--Telling the true story of the world in interior monolog
--The jewel center of interest is the eye within the eye
--Write in recollection and amazement for yourself
--Work from pithy middle eye out, swimming in language sea
--Accept loss forever
--Believe in the holy contour of life
--Struggle to sketch the flow that already exists intact in mind
--Dont [sic] think of words when you stop but to see picture better
--Keep track of every day the date emblazoned in yr morning
--No fear or shame in the dignity of yr experience, language & knowledge
--Write for the world to read and see yr exact pictures of it
--Bookmovie is the movie in words, the visual American form
--In Praise of Character in the Bleak inhuman Loneliness
--Composing wild, undisciplined, pure, coming in from under, crazier the better
--You're a Genius all the time
--Writer-Director of Earthly movies Sponsored & Angeled in Heaven

Yours - Jack



thanks to http://theresawilliams-author.blogspot.com/2009/01/jack-kerouac.html for the above.

East Asia Pacific team wins in Australia

While the Aussies and the Proteas battle it out on the last day of the Third Test, it is a rest day for the Australian Country Cricket Championships in South Australia. My interest there is my youngest son, Charlie, works for the ICC and coaches a team called the East Asia Pacific Team, combining members from Papua New Guinea, Japan and other nations in the area. I wouldn't mention it only they won yesterday! Here's a mini-report from head office:

The EAP team are currently competing in the Australian Country Cricket Championships in the Barossa Valley, South Australia. After being thumped in Round 1, the boys rallied to knock off South Australia thanks largely to a 4 wicket haul from Raymond Haoda Jnr and a thrilling century from Kila Pala, including 10 sixes!!!

END QUOTE

I only wish I had a photograph of Kila Pala and his mighty sixes to share with you. Charlie assures me they were classic shots and not huge swings - simply grace, timing and power.

Washing

at Tom Collins House


Today you won’t see one
but back in the Sixties
the historic house I lived in had
a timber and wire clothesline,
propped up in mid string
by the long branch of a gum tree
which forked at the top and held up
each sagging line. Urban Aboriginals,
out of work and down on their lunch,
walked door to door selling these props,
cut down on bush walks out of town.
With over six metres of sheets and nappies
flapping in an easterly off the desert, strong wires
hung loose between two crucifixes
with movable arms. On the night of a full moon
a small feathered woman would arrive
and sit on top of the post near
the gnarled and knotted mulberry tree,
her wisdom silent in her,
two deep eyes focused on me
as I wrote by moonlight,
sitting on the back steps,
pad resting on sunburnt knees.


Query: I'm looking for verification of the type of wood used to make those clothes props, post WWII, and sold in the Perth area.

Freddie Hubbard dies at 70

Hard bop trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who first hit the New York scene when he was just 20, died of a massive heartache. Full report at http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/hubb-j03.shtml

11 Things for a Poet to Do by Linh Dinh

First one: Hoard your time, since you’ll need it to be alone to think and to write.

Now read the rest at http://poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2009/01/what_i_usually_say_to_my_stude.html


(Drawn to my attention from http://ronsilliman.blogspot.com/ for which I give thanks)

Walking to the River (edited)

The river. Dogs swim in it, fish piss in it. It washes its dead up on the banks. The banks ignore it. The river is our destination through flaking trees and salty flowers, across riverside roads and sign-posted paths with people celebrating the invention of the wheel. Out of the river a bird sticks its black arse, a Rabelaisian greeting, and I half expect a cartoon balloon to belch into the air, saying, 'Fuck off, will ya, I'm trying to fish here!' I look down and at my dog's front paws there lies a complete river bream. It seems healthy, not a mark on it, so I look around, thinking it might be some mass death by industrial pollution. No: just one stark fish, its scales silver in the sunlight. My dog has one sniff and into the river for a swim. I call her back but there is no stopping her and I trust her instincts to judge fresh water from foul. Reeds grow green and straight, the cormorant appears again, with its knowing look. The river seems healthy enough. Here again, today, two pelicans do their strange ritual: while one swims up river, close to our bank, the other swims down river by the far bank, the bank with the restaurant nesting on its jetty. Like pedestrians walking both sides of a suburban road in different directions. My dog comes to shore and does her shake dance. 'Go, girl, go!' I say to her, half laughing, then wet dog and I turn for home, leaving the dead bream for birds to peck, the cormorant to his fishing, and perverse pelicans to come to their conclusion.


(Thanks to Sarah French for editing suggestions.)

Get writing!

from http://poetsonline.org : 'Our prompt is simple - a poem about laundry, wash, clotheslines or anything connected to that whole simple experience.'

This site is a good thought starter for poems if you haven't a thought in your head but you want to write. Maybe it is a rare moment when you have time to write - our busy lives are like that, aren't they. The current prompt is inspired by a Jane Kenyon poem called WASH


Wash

All day the blanket snapped and swelled
on the line, roused by a hot spring wind....
From there it witnessed the first sparrow,
early flies lifting their sticky feet,
and a green haze on the south-sloping hills.
Clouds rose over the mountain... At dusk
I took the blanket in, and we slept,
restless, under its fragrant weight.

Jane Kenyon from Otherwise

- and even undomesticated I can relate to that! You get to offer up your poem for publication too if you have it finished before January 10. Get writing!

Who said this? A riddle with an answer

"Cricket, the whole thing, playing, watching, being part of the Gaieties, has been a central feature of my life."

Go to http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2008/dec/26/harold-pinter-final-interview to find out more.

Five Poems by Sarah Gridley

New and On View: Mudlark Poster No. 78 (2009)

Honey Ants | Is He Decently Put Back Together?
Return of the Native to the Widespread Hour
Ovation | The Orator's Maximal Likelihood

Sarah Gridley's poems have appeared in Chicago Review, Denver Quarterly, The Beloit Poetry Journal, jubilat, Drunken Boat, Meridian, Journal 1913, VOLT, Barrow Street, Crazyhorse, Gulf Coast, and Tusculum Review. Weather Eye Open, her first collection of poems, was published by the University of California Press (Berkeley 2005). A new collection, Green Is the Orator, is forthcoming from California in 2010. She received an MFA from the University of Montana in 2000, where she was a Richard Hugo Scholar and won the 1999 Merriam Frontier Award. Currently she is a Lecturer in poetry at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

Spread the word. Far and wide,

William Slaughter

MUDLARK
An Electronic Journal of Poetry & Poetics
Never in and never out of print...
E-mail: mudlark@unf.edu
URL: http://www.unf.edu/mudlark
or http://www.unf.edu/mudlark/index.html#index_top

New Year's Day haiku

river’s edge
roots hold the tall she-oak
steady at high tide