On June 15th, I’ll be the feature at the Midnight Special Gong Show at Coldtowne Theater. I have never been in a gong show before, but I think it will be an interesting change of place from the usual poetry venues.
June 16th is the big day! At 4:00 p.m. at BookWoman, I’m officially celebrating the release of We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are. I’ll be reading and signing copies of the book, and of course, there will be food. Come join me for a fun celebration!
Finally, on June 20th, I’ll be the featured reader at Thirsty Thursday, held at the New Life Lutheran Church in Dripping Springs. The reading starts at 7. Admission is free, but food pantry donations are encouraged.
This weekend, between my birthday, a co-worker’s birthday, and probably having to put in some time at work, I’ll be enjoying the events of the Austin International Poetry Festival.
On Sunday the 21st, I’ll be opening for Julene Tripp Weaver at BookWoman. I’m honored to be starting off a great afternoon of poetry.
Finally, April 26th-28th I’ll be enjoying the inspiration and tranquility of Poetry at Round Top. This is one of my favorite poetry events, and I can’t wait.
I’m back from a great trip to North Carolina, tired but happy. While I was away, I realized that I forgot to add something exciting to my Poet About Town post from last week. This Wednesday, I’ll be featured on Writing on the Air, a show hosted on 91.7 KOOP. I’ll be talking about my chapbook and the Feminist Poetry Festival.
The show runs from 6-7 p.m., and will also be streaming live on KOOP.org, so you can listen if you live out of town! And if you’re on Twitter, you can ask questions during the broadcast by directing them to @WritingOnTheAir.
I’m very excited to have this opportunity. Thanks to Francois Pointeau for bringing me on!
BookWoman is the cornerstone of my literary career so far. I worked there in 2009 and 2010, and through the store I met Debra Winegarten and thus became a member of the Austin Writergrrls. Helping with the store’s open mic, I met lots of local poets, and gradually found a place in the local poetry community. While working on Sundays, I met Abe Louise Young, who became my mentor. I learned about Gemini Ink and Poetry at Round Top. I bought writing manuals and honed my craft. BookWoman is part and parcel of the writer I am today.
To that end, I’ve decided to turn my pre-sale period into a chance to give back to the store that has given so much to me. My book is available for pre-order until the 27th, and for every copy I sell in pre-order, I’ll give $1 to the store. (This applies if you’ve bought a book before I made this announcement. Congratulations! You’ve pre-emptively donated $1 to BookWoman!
You’re not only supporting poetry; you’re now supporting a bookstore as well. There are only 11 feminist bookstores left in North America. So pre-order now and support BookWoman, small businesses, and feminsm!
2013 is a photogenic one, apparently. On January 6th, I joined the Photographers Adventure Group for a photo walk downtown. This past weekend, I went on a hike with my friend Melanie and her pug, Lux. Then I walked around the Capitol area taking photos while Jon played Ingress (though apparently one does not “play” Ingress — whatever). Below is a sample of what I’ve been doing behind the lens.
Like what you see? There are always more photos at my Flickr page.
I’ve got some literary excitement headed my way this month!
First, I’m guest-hosting the BookWoman Poetry Open Mic on January 10th. The event will feature Gloria Amescua.
Gloria Amescua is an inaugural member of CantoMundo, a national Latino poetry community. She resides in Austin, Texas and received a Masters degree from the University of Texas in Austin. Gloria has a chapbook, Windchimes. She has published in several journals, including Awakening, IXHUA, Di-Verse-City, Kweli Journal (www.kwelijournal.org), Generations Literary Journal, Texas Poetry Calendar 2013, and Acentos Review, August 2012 (www.acentosreview.com). A workshop presenter for youth and adults, she was also a 2011 resident at Hedgebrook?s Writers in Residence program in Washington.
Come out at 7:15, and bring a few poems to share! I’ll be reading some new stuff, and also some selections from my chapbook because….
We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are goes up for pre-order this month! On January 15th, you can start placing your orders, which will ship in April. Finishing Line Press is offering a shipping discount for all pre-orders, so order now! The book won’t be available on Amazon until the pre-order period is over, so this is the time to get a jump on getting your copy.
And, as I mentioned yesterday, I’m participating in the 30/30 Project as a fundraiser for Tupelo Press. Any amount you can give helps! Check out the blog, enjoy the poems, and contribute.
Ordering poetry books helps put kibble in my bowl. Donating to small presses just makes me happy. You do want me to be well-fed and happy, don’t you?
This feels like the month I’m just trying to empty your wallet. But poetry is always a good cause. Do it for Maxwell!
Thanksgiving dinner is over, and I’m curled up on the couch with two very tired dogs. We went and had dinner with some friends, and got to take Maxwell and Simon with us. They spent several hours tearing around the huge backyard with their doggie friends.
Since one of our hosts is of Filipino ancestry, we had a few delicious dishes that weren’t traditional American, but were a wonderful part of the spread. I contributed homemade dinner rolls and mulled wine (apparently I mull wine like a boss), and had a lovely afternoon with my Texas family.
(If you’re wondering why my couch looks torn up in the photo…..we’re still working on Simon. He looks like an angel in that photo, but beneath that sleepy exterior, he enjoys deconstructionism. Just not in the literary sense of the word.)
Cheddar-Parmesan roll, mac and cheese, a Filipino noodle dish, lumpia (similar to egg rolls), redskin potatoes, and turkey. and that wasn’t even the extent of the spread!
In the spirit of thinking about what I’m thankful for, I’ve been going through my poetry files to contribute something to Drew Myron’s Feast of Words. What I’ve found is that while I wrote many poems with a gracious, grateful spirit, I don’t write much explicitly about gratitude.
The poem I’ve selected to share today is a short one I wrote after a friend brought me some mangoes and taught me how to remove the pits in a way that would not damage them, so that they could be planted. Little acts of kindness like that often carry more weight than they appear to on the surface. I spent much of 2012 dealing with the loss of a good friend, and the simple act of paring a mango and then preparing the seed for planting was a sort of light-bulb moment, realizing the way good things endured. From the destruction of a piece of fruit came nourishment for myself, as well as the potential for a new mango tree.
This poem is, admittedly, still in draft form. I’ve given it a few passes, but it’s not a piece that has occupied a lot of my creative attention, so it’s still a little rough. But it comes from a grateful spirit — grateful for a friend, for fruit, for the reminder of what endures.
You bring me mangoes
and you bring me mango pits
you never make promises,
but in your smooth hands,
there is potential for sustenance,
nourishment,
for roots –
there is a reminder
that life goes on after
skin is cut
flesh is eaten,
that a future exists;
that something beautiful
endures after loss
Are you fluent in both English and Spanish? Do you have any experience with simultaneous translation? We need folks for the following translation collaborations:
A. Simultaneous translation to headsets during panels and events
B. Individual translation for folks networking
C. Individual translation for organizing issues during the conference
We are looking to staff folks on shifts during Friday and Saturday, October 5 and 6, 2012.
If you are interested in getting involved with activist translation, please email Andrea Zarate at a.zarate@utexas.edu to let us know which of these pieces you would be interested in and prepared for.
2) Housing and transportation for conference participants
The conference organizers are looking for volunteer housing and transportation to and from the airport for a number of the conference participants over October 4-7.
Volunteers are needed to assist in conference registration, session set-up, and helping to answer general questions for conference participants. We are seeking volunteers for shifts on both Friday, October 5 and Saturday, October 6.
I’m excited to announce that I’m going to be the featured poet at the Kick But Coffee Spoken and Heard poetry open mic on Sunday, September 9th. I’ll be doing thirty minutes of material, which means this will be the longest reading I’ve done. I’m working carefully to set up a good balance of poems. The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free (though if you’re going to come, please at least buy a cup of coffee to help support the venue).
September 27th-30th brings us the newest incarnation of the Austin International Poetry Festival. I’m excited to see the changes, and also glad that some things are staying the same. There’s a great lineup of featured poets, and I look forward to all the readings, open mics, and workshops. I’ll definitely be reading at least two or three of the open mics. The festival is free to the general public (though donations are appreciated), so please come out and help us celebrate poetry in Austin.
For those of you who read both this blog and Literary Austin, apologies for the double post. I know a good chunk of people read one blog or the other, so I’m reposting from the original Literary Austin post to make sure this information gets to everyone.
I’m planning a literary event, and I need your help!
Plans for the First Annual Austin Feminist Poetry Festival (working title) are underway. The tentative date is April 4th through 7th, and I am looking to recruit volunteers to help me plan and implement the event.
Anyone who wants to help is more than welcome. I have a particular need for people who can assist with fundraising and grantwriting, but anyone who is enthused and wants to help is more than welcome. This will be a big job, and the more the merrier!
Please note that this festival embodies an inclusive definition of feminism. It is not an event for women only (however you define the term). All feminist-identified people, regardless of sex/gender expression, are welcome to join the planning committee.
If interested, please contact me at literaryaustin@gmail.com. Once I have ascertained interest, I’ll email interested people to set up our initial planning meeting.
Please feel free to share this with your various social networks, in order to reach people who might not read this blog, but who would be interested in participating.
