Kicking off the New Year at The Writers Place - I was there from 1:00p.m. till 7:45p.m. to participate in their New Years Day readings. Some kick-ass poetry - very enjoyable evening that was still running till midnight tonight when I left.
I have some pictures that will follow - likely tomorrow. I'm too tired to download them right now. It was a great start to the year to be able to share my own work with so many other inspiring writers as well. I'll do a recap tomorrow!
Happy New Years form Stick Poet!
Saturday, January 01, 2005
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Breakfast Served Anytime All Day
Cindy Lawson another Missouri writer took me up on my question. What poet/poetry book has meant the most you this year? Cindy's choice was Donald Hall's Breakfast Served Anytime All Day : Essays on Poetry New and Selected. Cindy not only made and excellent case for her choice, but shared some personal insight to her connection with Hall. I recommend heading over to her site and reading her post on this subject. I now have to add this book to my 2005 Reading list. See what I got myself into?
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
Kansas City Area Event - New Years
New Years Day
at
Sharon Eiker and the Writers Place
will host the
ONE HUNDRED WRITERS
event starting at 1:00 p.m.
January 1st
Readers will be alloted up to 10 minutes
of their own work or works of other writers
that inspired them.
The Writers Place is located at
3607 Pennsylvania
Kansas City, Missouri
call 816-753-1090 to get on the list
program runs from 1:00 p.m. till midnight!
The End Of The Line
Two things have converged to bring me to the subject for this blog entry. One is the passing of yet another year and the other, the passing of another writer. The two I suppose are inevitable. Like night follows the day, we can and I suppose should expect it.
NPR's piece Marking the Legacies of Writers Lost in 2004 is a fitting pause and reflection of another year gone and the writers lost as well. Alan Cheuse remembers those writers who died this year, with help from poet George Garrett, who reads his poem "Anthologies."
NPR's piece Marking the Legacies of Writers Lost in 2004 is a fitting pause and reflection of another year gone and the writers lost as well. Alan Cheuse remembers those writers who died this year, with help from poet George Garrett, who reads his poem "Anthologies."
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
The New York Times > Books > Susan Sontag, Writer and Social Critic, Dies at 71
The New York Times > Books > Susan Sontag, Writer and Social Critic, Dies at 71
Margalet Fox writes of the life and accomplishments of Susan Sontag who passed away.
Margalet Fox writes of the life and accomplishments of Susan Sontag who passed away.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Wichita Eagle | 12/04/2004 | Reviews of recent books on faith and values
Wichita Eagle 12/04/2004 Reviews of recent books on faith and values
This caught my eye - largely due to the Sam Hamill poem that was quoted.
This caught my eye - largely due to the Sam Hamill poem that was quoted.
Sunday, December 26, 2004
Morning Poems by Robert Bly - Uncommonly Common
The other day when I mentioned that I would blog about the poetry book which I believe was the most influential one to me that I read this past year, I did not at that moment have a specific book in mind. There are a number of poets that I have read individual works of that were inspiring to me, but not an entire book written by them, so I will limit my choice the criteria of a book by a single poet. There are many that have impacted me in one way or another. But I have chosen in the end, a book that is written by a living poet, Robert Bly.
Morning Poems by Robert Bly is a small book. I read it the first time in an afternoon on a bus trip with my youngest daughter. Reading aloud many of the poems that struck me as the most interesting. My daughter, who is not particularly into poetry, seemed to enjoy many of these gems. A book of poems that can penetrate the minds that are normally closed to poetry must have something going for them.
What Bly's book did most for me was to reinforce the idea that poetry that is not static. Most of these works were about what seemed like common folks -- in common situations in life that were often told in a most uncommon context. I liked that. I liked the freedom that seemed to radiate from the pages. The freedom to know it was alright to let go with my own writing and be more bold about the images. It is very liberating to come to that point where I can accept that I don't have to explain away everything... like the poem must have a set of instructions to understand it.
Bly also reinforces that notion that writing about common things is quite all-right. I do recognize Bly as a poet with a history of activism. An outspoken critic of the war in Vietnam and the present war in Iraq. He can be quite serious about some of his messages. This is alright by me because I certainly believe that when possible, poets should play a role in the defense of humanity. But alas, it is his "down home" subject matter I like and the fact that he can challenge you so well with his imagery of everyday life.
I'd like to know some of your favorite poetry books - ones that greatly impacted you any why.
Morning Poems by Robert Bly is a small book. I read it the first time in an afternoon on a bus trip with my youngest daughter. Reading aloud many of the poems that struck me as the most interesting. My daughter, who is not particularly into poetry, seemed to enjoy many of these gems. A book of poems that can penetrate the minds that are normally closed to poetry must have something going for them.
What Bly's book did most for me was to reinforce the idea that poetry that is not static. Most of these works were about what seemed like common folks -- in common situations in life that were often told in a most uncommon context. I liked that. I liked the freedom that seemed to radiate from the pages. The freedom to know it was alright to let go with my own writing and be more bold about the images. It is very liberating to come to that point where I can accept that I don't have to explain away everything... like the poem must have a set of instructions to understand it.
Bly also reinforces that notion that writing about common things is quite all-right. I do recognize Bly as a poet with a history of activism. An outspoken critic of the war in Vietnam and the present war in Iraq. He can be quite serious about some of his messages. This is alright by me because I certainly believe that when possible, poets should play a role in the defense of humanity. But alas, it is his "down home" subject matter I like and the fact that he can challenge you so well with his imagery of everyday life.
I'd like to know some of your favorite poetry books - ones that greatly impacted you any why.
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