Plath Discovery

For some reason I find the literary remains of writers to be fascinating stuff. I believe we often get to see a different picture of a writer by material that surfaces postmortem and has otherwise been out of the view of the vast public. Sometimes it is a early draft of a published work and we get to see some progression and by that can visualize the mental progression of the writer. Or it may take the form of letters between peers or family or other significant people in their life. And then there is always the possibility of that lost or unknown piece of work that we get a view of for the first time. I find all of these possibilities utterly fascinating. It is almost like studying their DNA. You learn more about who they were.

So last night I was like a giddy kid in a candy store upon reading that pages and notes from an unpublished novel by Sylvia Plath have been discovered among documents left by the Ted Hughes estate to Emory University in Atlanta. [source]

The papers evidently comprise some notes and I believe two chapters of a work that was to be a fictionalization of an American girl who moves to London and marries her poet lover. The title of the book novel was Falcon Yard which was the place in Cambridge where Plath met Hughes, her future husband and bit him.

It was a known fact that such a novel was written by Plath as it is mentioned in her journals. Falcon Yard was meant to be a gift to her husband. A bestselling romantic comedy that would be successful enough for them to be able to get on with writing poetry. It was generally assumed that the manuscript had been destroyed.

Some of the material will be on display starting Wednesday at the Grolier Club in New York, starting Wednesday in an exhibit of Plath and Hughes material.

The archives at Emory University of the Hughes estate which contain Plath's material as well total two and a half tons of letters, poems, drafts, proofs, etc. God, I'd love to be able to sift through it.

Sylvia Plath Poetry Literature

Saving the Weekend

This morning is flush with the sun's welcome and I sit here with a cup of coffee (God, I actually had no caffeine yesterday) and attempt to establish a foothold on today's opportunity.

I did not sleep well last night but I am willing to forgive and forget that for the day. The weekend teeters on the brink of exhaustion and I must save it from itself while there is time. This will of course take magic. The magic of words. The right words and in their appropriate order. Let it Begin.

Web stat sheet rates literary heavyweights - Los Angeles Times

Judging a book by cost per word or cost per ounce. Amazon.com has the stats.

On the Written Word

"The palest ink is better than the best memory." ~ Chinese Proverb

Ah yes, the written word certainly has this advantage going for it.

I know we all write for different reasons. And sometimes we change why we write or may incorporate multiple motivations.

Do you write for yourself? For the future? For Profit? For relaxation? For Self discovery? For fame? For self expression? What motivates you the most in your writing? I'd love to hear from others on this.


Poetry Writing

Dignity

In light of what the people from the gulf coastal area have been through I thought the following quotation was worth repeating...


"The only kind of dignity which is genuine is that which is not diminished by the indifference of others." ~ Dag Hammarskjold

Always My Luck

It happened.
Just like that.
One moment and a
Jolt.

I tried to restart the damned thing.
The noise was not optimistic in the least.
There was a clicking sound
Like you kept punching
A single key
On the keyboard
Real
Fast.

Clickckickclickclickclickclickclickclick…

It was hot,
I had the window down.
Some man came by
Asked if I had a problem.

Told him the car died,
Wouldn’t restart.
He asked what it did.
I showed him.

Clickckickclickclickclickclickclickclick…

He said, “Yep, you got a problem
With the starter” and walked off.
Damn it’s hot today.

September Events - KC Area

September 9th at 8pm - Friday - Riverfront Reading Series: The Writer’s Place, 3607 Pennsylvania, KCMO

Guest Poet Readers - John Mark Eberhart & Phillip Stephens

Eberhart is the book critic for the KC Star and the author of a poetry book released in June titled Night Watch

Stephens first book of poetry, The Determined Days was released in 2000. He has been published in several journals and anthologies and is A resident of Kansas City, Missouri, he teaches in the low- residency M.F.A. program at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky.

September 26th - Monday at 8 pm - Writers Place Open Mic
3607 Pennsylvania, KCMO