Allyson Whipple

Category: poetry

  • AFPF On Hiatus for 2015

    I mentioned this over at the official Austin Feminist Poetry Festival blog a few weeks ago, but I’ve decided to take a hiatus from the festival this year. The past two years were incredible! However, I’ve just finished a two-year term on the Austin Poetry Society board and I’ve spent the first few months of the year giving a lot of attention to the Texas Poetry Calendar. I’m at the point where I need a break. Plus, since I’m starting my MFA in the fall, I need to focus on my studies–and running a fall festival is not entirely conducive to that!

    I also want to restructure the festival, and get it more in line with my larger vision. That requires time. So I’m going to take this year to figure out how I want things to develop.

    I do have some smaller events in the works for later this year, so stay tuned…

  • Another Go at the 30/30 Project

    Back in 2013, I participated in the Tupelo Press 30/30 Project, an ongoing fundraiser for the press in which volunteer poets commit to writing a poem a day for 30 days, and those who are inspired by their work can make donations in their honor.

    I had so much fun in 2013 that I knew I wanted to participate again. I’m writing alongside a slew of amazing poets, and having fun. My initial poems have come from The Daily Poet prompts and politics. The title of my Day 4 poem popped into my head while I was washing dishes.

    You can check out the May 30/30 poems here. If you’re interested in donating, you can do so here.

  • Big Poetry Giveaway Winners!

    With the help of a trusty random number generator, I have determined the winners of the Big Poetry Giveaway!

    Jessica Goodfellow won America Zen: A Gathering of Poets

    Laurie Kolp won We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are

    Congrats, poets!

    I also won two books in the giveaway, and I’m thrilled. I always love getting new poetry in the mail.

  • Every Ending Must Be Earned

    I love getting to collaborate with other poets, and I love the way technology facilitates collaboration over great distances. This week, I’ve been working with my friend Jason Crane (who lives in Pennsylvania) on a collaborative exercise from the first volume of Wingbeats: Exercises and Practice in Poetry.

    I don’t post my own poems all that often, but here’s our first iteration of the exercise (Jason gets credit for all the final formatting):

    ending

  • MFA All The Way!

    I remember seeing an ad for the UT-El Paso Online MFA in Poets & Writers magazine back in 2011 (or maybe early 2012). Even before I knew much about the program, I was excited by the prospect of being able to pursue an MFA online, without having to leave Austin. (Heck, I didn’t even want to go for an MFA yet, and I was still intrigued.)

    Yes, UT-Austin has not one, but two excellent MFA programs (one at the Michener Center, and one through the English Department), plus we’re adjacent to Texas State in San Marcos. But I never had a gut feeling that these programs were right for me. They’ve produced a lot of great work and have wonderful faculty, including some of my favorite poets. But I still never quite got the sense that these were programs that were right for me.

    I kept re-visiting the UTEP Online MFA description every 4 or 5 months over the next couple of years. There was always a reason to talk myself out of it. I wasn’t ready, I wasn’t sure I wanted an MFA, I didn’t know how I was going to pay for it, I was getting divorced, and on and on. I kept finding reasons not to apply.

    But toward the end of 2014, things began to feel settled. I also felt I was in a place with my writing where I was ready for the challenges an MFA could bring. It was the next logical step in my career path. So I applied.

    The funny thing about the process was, I dreaded writing the statement of purpose. I still remember how much I struggled to write one in 2005 when I was applying to graduate school the first time around. But as it turns out, this time it wasn’t so bad. Maybe because I have a stronger sense of purpose at 31 than I did at 21.

    So I applied, and I waited, and waited… and I found out last week that I got in! I’ve already received a course description list, and have an advising call tomorrow! The program starts in August, and I can’t wait. I look forward to meeting my other five new classmates when we convene in our digital space this fall.

  • A Year in Readings

    Being bawdy at Austin Writers Roulette in February 2015
    Being bawdy at Austin Writers Roulette in February 2015

    At last year’s Poetry at Round Top festival, which was also the weekend of my 30th birthday, I gave myself a challenge: to do at least one reading a month before I turned 31. I was going to read in public at least once a month, either at an open mic or as a feature. It didn’t matter if it was one poem or several. I was just going to get up and get out there. That meant 12 performances of one kind or another in my 30th year.

    At the Georgetown Poetry Festival
    At the Georgetown Poetry Festival

    As it turns out, doing one reading every single month was quite challenging, and some months I didn’t read at all… But I not only met my goal, I surpassed it! In November, for example, I was too busy training for my black belt test to schedule anything. And while there are poetry readings and open mics just about every week in Austin, some months, I couldn’t get anything that meshed with my work schedule. But there were other months full of abundance. December was particularly active; I read four times!

    I ended up reading 16 times. 13 of those times were in Austin, one was in Georgetown, one was in Fort Worth, and one in Waco. This year my schedule was just too heavy for me to get to San Antonio or Houston again. I can’t believe I haven’t read in either of those cities in over a year!

    Now that this challenge has been met, I plan to keep it up. Reading 12 times in a year was tough at times, but overall doable. Now I’m just trying to figure out what the literary challenge will be for Year 31!

  • Big Poetry Giveaway 2015!

    The sixth Big Poetry Giveaway is up and running! The fabulous Kelli Russell Agodon is hosting again. And I’m looking forward to another great year of meeting new poets and sharing poetry.

    This year, I’m giving away two books. First up is my chapbook, We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are (Finishing Line Press, 2013).

    download

    I wrote the poems that became this chapbook after I had lived in Texas for about two years. It’s about finding place, falling in love with geography, taking journeys.

    The second book I’m offering is an anthology called America Zen: A Gathering of Poets. You don’t have to be a Buddhist to love this anthology. The poets in it are Buddhists, but their meditative, spiritual, joyful work transcends a single spiritual label.

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    So how do you win? Just leave a comment with a name and email address anytime between now and 11:59 p.m. on April 30th. I’ll randomly select a winner in May!

    For details on how to join BPG, see Kelli’s post here.

    Since Big Poetry Giveaway always draws new readers here, I like to take a cue from Kelli and do a little introduction of sorts. Kelli gave herself some great interview questions this year, so I’ll be using those.

    Welcome! My name is Allyson Whipple. I run the Austin Feminist Poetry Festival and am co-editor of the 2015 Texas Poetry Calendar. I have a black belt in Hung Gar Kung Fu and am training to become an instructor. I also teach business and technical writing at Austin Community College.

    Last year I: Saw my favorite band twice in two days, earned my black belt, got divorced, got some of Kay Ryan’s poetry tattooed on my arm, and applied to an MFA program (I am still waiting their decision).

    I believe in universal healthcare.

    I like sunshine, red wine, tacos, steak, the ocean, silver tequila, and jeans.

    I am always looking for ketchup potato chips, which are nearly impossible to find in Texas.

    People think I am not interested in hip-hop or country music, when in fact I like both.

    I recently: perfected my homemade bagel recipe.

    If I could live anywhere: I would stay where I am, except in a house that didn’t have foundation problems or a roommate.

    I do not buy bread from the grocery store. I’ve gotten too spoiled from my own baking.

    I am thankful for the amazing poetry opportunities that have come my way in the past few months.

    I cheer for Cleveland and Ohio State (on the rare occasion I pay attention, which is almost never).

    To me, success is actually pretty much 100% what Kelli said: “being able to control my own time and schedule.”

    My writing process is all up in the air right now, as I’ve turned my attention to getting my first full-length collection prepared for publication. (Hopefully this year, but we’ll see.)

    I am most like: an agave.

  • Weekly Writing Prompt: The Nagging Villanelle

    Think of a phrase you hate to hear. Maybe it’s something your parents said over and over to you about doing your homework or cleaning your room or not going out dressed a certain way. Maybe it’s something a spouse or significant other says (or used to say). Maybe it’s something your toddler is constantly repeating and you just don’t know why.

    Make this phrase one of the refrains of a villanelle. (It can be either the first or the second.) Try to find some catharsis from this poem. Or maybe you can shed some humor on the situation. Either way, enjoy!

    For more information about writing a villanelle, check out the description from the Academy of American Poets.

  • Register for Poetry March Madness 2015

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    March Madness is all about elimination. The competition winnows out teams one by one until only the best of the best remains. The games are thrilling and sometimes heartbreaking, but it’s the quick elimination of the weaker teams that ratchets up the competitive drama.

    Many poets struggle with revising their poems, especially when they have to cut lines or stanzas. Although we know a poem could benefit from pruning, our attachments to our work interfere with our ability to lose the words that weigh a poem down.

    In this online workshop, you’ll spend two weeks trimming the excess from your poems. You’ll eliminate bulky lines and unnecessary words. You’ll learn to let go of attachments to the phrases and stanzas that don’t really belong. And you’ll get practical advice for decluttering your space (whether it be hard drive or desk), as well as how and when to let go of the poems that just aren’t taking off.

    In April, when it’s National Poetry Month, many of you will try to write a poem every day. Let’s spend the weeks leading up to that shaping, polishing, and revising our old material.

    What you’ll get:

    1. Prompts to help you revise and condense your poems.
    2. Advice on how to declutter your hard drive and writing space, organize your work, and let go of drafts that aren’t working.
    3. Intensive one-on-one critique of two poems throughout the beginning, middle, and end of the workshop, guiding you through multiple stages of deep revision. Critiques available via email, phone, or Skype/Google Hangout.

    Cost: $20 (Note: Nobody will be turned away for inability to pay. Please contact me at literaryaustin@gmail.com if you need to make alternate arrangements.)

    To register:

    1. Fill out the online form: http://goo.gl/forms/LVtGBnW1PA
    2. Submit payment via Paypal to literaryaustin@gmail.com (If unable to use Paypal, please contact me to set something else up.)

  • January Retrospective

    2015 started off with some great opportunities for writing, reading, and sharing work.

    AWR January 2015
    The Austin Writers Roulette group

    First, I again had the honor of being a featured poet at the monthly Austin Writers Roulette show. The January theme was “Redemption,” and host Teresa Roberson once again rocked a thematic outfit. I performed three short, silly poems about feeling guilty for irrational things. We had a wide range of poems and stories, some honest and haunting. There were so many brave authors sharing vulnerable but inspiring work.

    ITWOW
    Having fun in Waco

    Despite living only about 90 minutes from Waco, the only time I’ve spent there has been driving through it. But Waco poet Jenuine Poetess, founder of In The Words of Womyn, invited me up for ITWOW’s birthday celebration/daylong writing retreat. I arrived in time for the afternoon potluck where there was amazing food. After two workshops that brought forth some incredible work from all participants, I got to hang out, eat delicious Vietnamese food, and then participate in a reading/open mic, as well as a silent auction. I made some excellent new friends, and found out that Waco has its charms.