Wednesday Poet Series No. 6

One of the things that has impressed me about this weeks Wednesday Poet has been the gift of her art to others; teaching children, young people, professional writers, educators, senior citizens and inmates at a prison for the criminally insane. Cecilia Woloch is the author of at least three poetry books. They are Late, Tsigan, and Sacrifice.

The poet Maxine Kumin said about Woloch and her book Late, the newest of the three, "To write movingly about love in an era infused with hate requires a special gift: nostalgia hard-edged with realism. She has that gift."

Woloch's talent has not only been directed to the printed page, but has been transformed to instruction with others through her many teaching and workshop assignments.
Those include University of the Redlands, New England College MFA Program in Poetry, Emory University, The Cider Press Review, California State University at Northridge, and Western Connecticut State University. She is the founding director of Summer Poetry in Idyllwild and the Paris Poetry Workshop.

Her credits are extensive - Nimrod, New Letters, The Chattahoochee Review, Zyzzyva, Good Poems for Hard Times, edited by Garrison Keillor to name a few. Her poetry has been translated into at lest three other languages, German, French, and Polish.

Woloch has received numerous awards for her work including:

• Pushcart Prize Nominations: 1999 (awarded Special Mention), 2000, 2002, 2003
• California Arts Council, Artist-in-Residence Grants, 1987, '88,'89, '91, '92, '93
• 2004 Georgia Author of the Year in Poetry, Georgia Writers Association for her book Late
• 2001 Anhinga Prize for Poetry, Finalist
• 2000 CEC/ArtsLink International Grant
• 2000 Hawthornden Castle International Retreat for Writers Fellowship
• 1999 Sue Saniel Elkind Poetry Prize, Kalliope Magazine, Finalist
• 1995 Literal Latte Poetry Competition, First Prize
• 1994 Marianne Moore Prize for Poetry, Finalist

Here are a few of Cecilia Woloch's poems:

1. On Faith
2. The Pick
3. Burning the Doll
4. The Gypsy Poem
5. Slow Children at Play

You can find more on Cecilia Woloch at these sites:

• Cecilia Woloch's Official Site
• Cecilia's Blog - Catching up with Cecilia

Tags: Wednesday Poet Series Cecilia Woloch

Election Day

No matter where you live in U.S. there is a House seat up for election and in many states there are important Senate races as well as other State and local measures. If you have not voted already, please get to the polls today and cast your votes.

A little election poetry here

Passages

"A poet must leave traces of his passage, not proof." ~ Rene Char

I cannot pretend to speak for this poet, but I find a commonality with these words in more than one way. First of course in verse itself. I am a firm believer in the magical mystery of poetry. To those who take the strong belief that poetry must be crystal clear I say hogwash! As children and then again as parents we often cheer the magical nature of children's literature, of movies that are presented as children or family oriented. The idea that as we grow old we should cast all which creates an atmosphere of wonderment to the wind and get totally serious about everything is crap. I like to see poetry that evolves into something that still clings to the notion that you or I can add our own finish or spin or derive something very personal from it that the author could not even possibly know about.

But I like to believe too that poets themselves in their work leave traces of who they are behind. Just a bit of themselves in written passages to contemplate in amazement. The very personal side of their work.

Put your ear down close to your soul...

Sent off three more submissions yesterday. I am hoping this gets way more habit forming during the next year.

The early afternoon is sweetly fall. Wife and I took the dogs for a walk earlier and while it was cool, it was most comfortable. The trees are looking elegant in the breeze. This is the kind of afternoon when the world around seems still. It brings to mind these words of Anne Sexton, "Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard." This is the kind of day when the soul is much easier to hear. A day perfect for poets and lovers. I suppose lovers of poetry as well. ~0~

Jilly is forever finding interesting and worthwhile items. This one on literary wills is worth looking at. Complete with a PDF file of a sample will form.

I was delighted to learn that Poet Laureate Donald Hall will be coming to Kansas City the latter part of January.

tags: Donald Hall Anne Sexton literary wills poetry Writing

Is it Tuesday yet?

Reverse Psychology

Poet Nikki Giovanni toned it down a bit in her first public appearance since the ruckus she caused on October 14th at the dedication of Fountain Square. [here]


You knew it would happen... Poetry Reading Phone Line. [here]

Amanda Shipman: To read or not to read at poetry open mic. [here]

Eileen Tabios Wants you to ask her anything. [here]

Poetry Portal: Arteroids - Yes another fine job Cindy has done at finding procrastination tools for those in need. [here]

Tags: Eileen Tabios Nikki Giovanni

Wednesday Poet Series No 5

The Wednesday Poet Series was due for a female poet this week. I do hope the female readers of Stick Poet will indulge me while I take the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of Howl to feature poet Allen Ginsberg. I promise to do back to back women to even the series out.

Allen Ginsberg is perhaps the most noted of the beat generation poets. These would include Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs among others. They came into prominence in the late 1950's and early 1960's and represented a counter-culture that was given to spontaneity, open form composition, in their work and a rejection of what they believed was the psychological repression of their times. There were a number of other attachments suggestive of these writers and their friends and followers, many which were negative. Among them was a drug culture. But the writings and works of these people, and most assuredly Ginsberg would have a lasting effect, not only upon poetry and the arts, but significant impact on other areas of American culture.

I am presently reading:The Book of Martyrdom And Artifice - First Journals and Poems 1937-1952. The first thing that struck me about young Ginsberg is the degree to which he was exuberated with himself. Yes, I know there is a common belief that we poets are all about ourselves, but in all seriousness, the degree to which Ginsberg, as early as 1944 outwardly projected extreme confidence in himself was striking. He clearly was intellectually astute and very well read. He had an opinion on just about everything and was not timid in sharing it.

His best know work, Howl, a work that combined biographical references and abstractions. It was first publicly performed in San Francisco on October 7th 1955. Sometime thereafter, Lawrence Ferlinghetti published the work. He was part owner of City Lights Bookstore, a small press publishing house. In 1956, a reporter for the NY Times wrote a piece on the new poetry scene that helped bring Howl into national attention.

In 1957, copies of Howl entering the U.S. from a London printer were seized by customs officials. Obscenities charges were brought against Feringhetti for the publication. The trial only served to give Ginsberg and Feringhetti more exposure for the work. With the support of the ACLU, the publisher won the legal action. The judge deciding that even with the questionable language in the book, the poem was of "redeeming social importance."

Howl- in all three pasts can be read here. (here)

Here are a number of other Howl related resources you might find of interest:

Howl at Wikipedia

Yowl

Howl at 50 - NPR


The following are some more examples of Ginsberg's writing.

A Supermarket In California America Five A.M. War Profit Litany

Fourth Floor, Dawn, Up All Night Writing Letters Sunflower Sutra Nagasaki Days

I would be remiss if I did not make note that Allen Ginsberg's activism included vocal opposition to the war in Vietnam. This in addition to often targeting institutions in his writing as well as frequent mention of drugs and sex made him an easy target for authorities. Herbert Mitgang wrote a 1988 piece on the FBI and writers. It is interesting and focuses mostly on Ginsberg. (view here)

Ginsberg's poetry clearly has a dissonant style to it. He used his writing to speak pretty much what he felt at the moment.

I have selected a few very telling quotes from Ginsberg to close with. I believe these too will give greater insight to both the man and his writings.

"Poetry is not an expression of the party line. It's that time of night, lying in bed, thinking what you really think, making the private world public, that's what the poet does."

"I have a new method of poetry. All you got to do is look over your notebooks... And think of anything that comes into your head, especially the miseries... Then arrange in lines of two, three or four words each, don't bother about sentences ..."

"Wherever I go I see myself in a mirror- it used to be my own selfblood, now it is god's."

"America I'm putting my queer shoulder to the wheel."


"Fortunately art is a community effort - a small but select community living in a
spiritualized world endeavoring to interpret the wars and the solitudes of the flesh."


tags:Wednesday Poet Series Allen Ginsberg Howl