Pirates, Paintings, and Poems
Poet of the High Seas. My solution to wanderlust is to join a pirate’s crew. I don’t think I’ve ever gone two years without at least a long road trip.
[ARCHIVED FROM JULY 2020 as I began to find work arounds for my pandemic disappointments.]
I promised you a blog with book recommendations, but 2020 continues to hold surprise after surprise. For example, the eye patch I’m wearing is the result of a surgery gone wrong, but I’d rather focus on the good news of 2020. Never fear, book reviews are still on the way!
First, a recap of reasons 2020 should have been a banner year for me. The Writers Place announced its closing for the pandemic just a week before my poetry reading on March 20. Every reading cancellation is sad, but this one meant more than usual to me. I had just received a 2020 Fantastic Ekphrastic Award from The Ekphrastic Review, and saw that as an opportunity to begin a whole round of ekphrastic (based on art) readings, moving on to a salon in April and a fall lineup at libraries. For the first time, I would be reading only ekphrastic poems and showing the art that inspired them.
On top of that, I met co-reader Mike James through Shawn Pavey’s new poetry book, Survival Tips for the Pending Apocalypse. (See, I did manage to slip in a book recommendation.) Shawn asked me to write a blurb, and I was delighted to be a part of his 5-star book. I immediately wanted to know more about Mike James, based on the amazing Introduction he wrote for Sean’s book. (Mike has published 14 books of poetry, so head to Amazon and check him out.) Mike and I became Facebook friends, book swappers, and correspondents. I was looking forward to meeting him, then…wham! Friends from Virginia were also coming. Goodbye, plans!
But here’s good news for those of you not attending our live reading. Shawn still has copies of the signed and numbered limited first edition of Survival Tips for the Pending Apocalypse available through his site. https://squareup.com/store/shawn-pavey-poet
Free shipping on all orders!!!
Zoom to the Rescue!
A big thank you to The Writers Place for finding several new ways to celebrate literature and allow our shows to go on. Like other arts organizations, The Writers Place still has bills rolling in for employees, rent, supplies, yada, yada, whether we can meet or not. We don’t charge for Zoom attendance, so any help you can give now will help us make a comeback in 2021. Donations accepted here
When we chose July 23 as the make-up date for our Zoom poetry reading, I didn’t expect to need a pirate’s patch. If you don’t believe my pirate story, host Maryfrances Wagner offers an alternative explanation. Just keep in mind that she also offers me the use of one of her foils for pirate training. Believe what you want.
It’s particularly delightful to hear when an audience laughs during my readings. It still surprises me how different gatherings will find different phrases amusing. It also tells me to pause a few seconds or they won’t hear the beginning of the next line. Zoom readings are eerily silent. But Zoom does have advantages, in addition to being “the best we can manage.” My friends from Virginia who were planning to come in March could still attend. Posting the video to YouTube allows friends outside the U.S. or those who simply couldn’t make the real-time session to enjoy it. I’m up first, followed by Shawn Pavey and Mike James. Please sit back and enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecizc-1ODME&t=20s
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Stay safe and well and read, read, read!
