Happy Easter. Today, I'm celebrating this most sacred of the Christian holidays by watching a film called "Old Boy," cleaning up after my family, and eating girl scout cookies. They're the lemon creme ones --not too shabby. It's only me and the cats today. As far as holidays go, today's itinerary puts this particular day up above an average Christmas or my usual birthday.
Anyway, this week, I'm going to throw some test pages of the new book I'm working on up. It's more on the snake handlers.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Friday, April 10, 2009
Happy
Just got a note from my wife. My sister-in-law has two publishers offering her $25,000 for the children's book she wrote last fall.
It's a great break for her. She's a special education teacher who works with autistic kids. She rescues animals and has had rotten luck with cars, places to live and her weird girlfriend. She's put in the time, too. As long as I've known her, she's always maintained an impressive discipline toward her writing schedule. She gets her ass in the chair to write.
$25,000 will come in handy and maybe it will give her the financial power to take care of a few things and treat herself a little. It's validation because the awful truth is "it ain't art until it's paid for." The deal, whichever one she takes, is also great encouragement because if you can do it once, you can do it twice, and if you can do it twice, you can do it as much as you want.
This is a great day for her. She deserves this. She's earned it. I'm proud of her. Her entire family is proud of her.
I'm just so God damned happy. Clearly, my karma has cancer.
It's a great break for her. She's a special education teacher who works with autistic kids. She rescues animals and has had rotten luck with cars, places to live and her weird girlfriend. She's put in the time, too. As long as I've known her, she's always maintained an impressive discipline toward her writing schedule. She gets her ass in the chair to write.
$25,000 will come in handy and maybe it will give her the financial power to take care of a few things and treat herself a little. It's validation because the awful truth is "it ain't art until it's paid for." The deal, whichever one she takes, is also great encouragement because if you can do it once, you can do it twice, and if you can do it twice, you can do it as much as you want.
This is a great day for her. She deserves this. She's earned it. I'm proud of her. Her entire family is proud of her.
I'm just so God damned happy. Clearly, my karma has cancer.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Burn
One of these days, things are just going to suck a lot less. This is what I've lowered the bar to now. It's not about being happy. It's not about being content. It's not even about being comfortable. These are ridiculously unattainable. It's about things not sucking someday as much as they suck today.
I ought to write fucking greeting cards...
I ought to write fucking greeting cards...
Monday, April 6, 2009
70, 69
It was a slow moving week last week. I got two more in, but just barely.
Disquiet : Julia Leigh -Finally, something really disturbing. This short, almost novella of a book deals with an absurdly wealthy and weird Australian family dealing with a stillborn death at their family estate in France. High points? Putting the dead baby in the fridge to keep it from spoiling. The father of the dead child nursing from the mother who is just shy of being out of her mind. Oh, and they have two absolutely unlikeable other children who seem to torment everyone within a square mile (including an oblivious, distant grandmother who doesn't always understand what they're saying to her). It's a well-written book that deals with a serious subject without flinching. It's life, death and moving on. Loved it.
Bicycles : Niki Giovanni -I'm a fan. I've dug her poems since I first read "Quilting The Black-eyed Pea." The title references a couple of different ideas. Bicycles, as in falling in love is like riding a bicycle. Bicycles, as in a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. These poems are almost entirely about falling in love, getting let down in love and even love for her family and the college where she teaches (Niki Giovanni teaches at Virginia Tech and was one of the professors who taught the kid who went on the killing spree). This book is fun and light, without the familiar references to Tupac and Thug Life. She mostly stays away from her political and social commentary and just focuses on the human heart. It's kind of like a box of chocolates from a serious poet.
Disquiet : Julia Leigh -Finally, something really disturbing. This short, almost novella of a book deals with an absurdly wealthy and weird Australian family dealing with a stillborn death at their family estate in France. High points? Putting the dead baby in the fridge to keep it from spoiling. The father of the dead child nursing from the mother who is just shy of being out of her mind. Oh, and they have two absolutely unlikeable other children who seem to torment everyone within a square mile (including an oblivious, distant grandmother who doesn't always understand what they're saying to her). It's a well-written book that deals with a serious subject without flinching. It's life, death and moving on. Loved it.
Bicycles : Niki Giovanni -I'm a fan. I've dug her poems since I first read "Quilting The Black-eyed Pea." The title references a couple of different ideas. Bicycles, as in falling in love is like riding a bicycle. Bicycles, as in a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. These poems are almost entirely about falling in love, getting let down in love and even love for her family and the college where she teaches (Niki Giovanni teaches at Virginia Tech and was one of the professors who taught the kid who went on the killing spree). This book is fun and light, without the familiar references to Tupac and Thug Life. She mostly stays away from her political and social commentary and just focuses on the human heart. It's kind of like a box of chocolates from a serious poet.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
unbowed.
I'm back to sending my book out. I guess I'm sick of looking at my current wall of rejection letters and need to add a second coat. This time, I'm focusing on publishers who say they don't mind if you don't have an agent. I don't mind, if they don't mind...
The current project is working out okay, though the urge to jump ship is ever present. I have a really, really fine idea, but one thing at a time. I said I'd do the snakes next.
Here's where I'm shipping to on Monday:
Absey and Company
Academy Chicago Publishers
Aspicomm Media
Baycrest Books
Contemporary Press
The current project is working out okay, though the urge to jump ship is ever present. I have a really, really fine idea, but one thing at a time. I said I'd do the snakes next.
Here's where I'm shipping to on Monday:
Absey and Company
Academy Chicago Publishers
Aspicomm Media
Baycrest Books
Contemporary Press
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Not making a big deal out of this...
I just completed my second letter to my grandmother.
I am lousy about keeping in touch. Part of it is self-imposed exile. Old friends, family, most of them get I've taken a big step back. It really has to be this way, if not for them, but for me.
I'm not fond of telephones and besides, the reception at my house sucks. So, I've been trying to write a bit lately. I've sent a bunch of e-mails to my family, mostly babbling about this whole house buying thing. It's just noise to let them know I'm alive, that I'm doing something. I'm also writing my grandmother. I figured it was better than a call. She's in her 80s, isn't computer literate, as far as I know, and probably doesn't get much mail.
Two letters... I figure if I can try to read 100 books in a year, two books a week, the least I can do is send one letter a week. I don't expect her to write back. Maybe it's kind of outreach blogging.
I am lousy about keeping in touch. Part of it is self-imposed exile. Old friends, family, most of them get I've taken a big step back. It really has to be this way, if not for them, but for me.
I'm not fond of telephones and besides, the reception at my house sucks. So, I've been trying to write a bit lately. I've sent a bunch of e-mails to my family, mostly babbling about this whole house buying thing. It's just noise to let them know I'm alive, that I'm doing something. I'm also writing my grandmother. I figured it was better than a call. She's in her 80s, isn't computer literate, as far as I know, and probably doesn't get much mail.
Two letters... I figure if I can try to read 100 books in a year, two books a week, the least I can do is send one letter a week. I don't expect her to write back. Maybe it's kind of outreach blogging.
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