...I won the 2008 Maureen Egen Writers Exchange Award from Poets & Writers magazine! The official announcement is here. This is an annual contest (since 1984) that chooses one poet and one fiction writer from each "state"--or in this year's case, the District of Columbia. Previous winners include Doug Anderson, Chana Bloch, Denise Duhamel, Sascha Feinstein, Laura Kasischke, Sue Monk Kidd, Aleda Shirley, and Rebecca Seiferle.
The prize? An all-expenses paid trip to New York this October for a reading and--this is amazing--a week's worth of meetings arranged by P&W with editors, publishers, and New York poets. $500 honorarium, and an invitation to spend a month at the Jentel Arts colony in the mountains of Wyoming.
The call came on the tail end of the exhausting five hour drive home from Long Island University. Bonnie Marcus asked "so, you only have one book, right?" Coming off paying for my own hotel room, $40 of tolls, $60 of gas, and giving a reading empty-handed of copies, my response was "I barely have one book."
I offer gratitude to the judge, Frank X. Walker, and everyone at Poets & Writers. And thanks to my fellow DC poets--I hope I can do you all justice representing our city. I like to think that the "exchange" part of the award goes both ways...it's not enough to get my foot in the door at a press or two; my mission, as I see it, is to get the thriving energy of the DC poetry scene onto the NYC radar.
These are exciting days.
April 15, 2008
April 08, 2008
We Pause From Our Regularly Scheduled Poeming
...the horror of taxes (Schedule C!) has temporarily derailed my drafting. But while today's poem germinates, a couple of things:
This Sunday, at the Writer's Center in Bethesda, MD, I'll be reading poetry with Kyle Dargan. The reading starts at 2 PM, with a reception to follow; the Center (4508 Walsh Street) is accessible from the Bethesda metro, but also has a parking lot right outside.
This is going to be really fun. Kyle is an old friend from UVA days and a great poet (his second book, Bouquet of Hungers, was just published by University of Georgia). This will probably be my first time holding Theories of Falling in my hot little hands. Yes, finally...I'm told somewhere, out there, bound copies exist! So if you're in the DC area, please come out. There is much to celebrate.
Speaking of celebrations, I had a wonderful time meeting and reading with Meghan O'Rourke at the Long Island University Poetry Center last week. The drive was long (10 hours, round trip, including a haul up the New Jersey Turnpike) and no one likes to start their "book tour" sans book. But Isaac Cates was a charming host who took us out to a Thai dinner beforehand (diver scallops in red curry, mmmmm), and the students--mostly undergrads--were engaged even at this late date in the semester. I was particularly thrilled to finally meet Dan.
And on the way home, a phone call with good news that I can't tell you...just yet.
Oh, and: I'm really enjoying this new magazine, FOU. Gorgeous.
This Sunday, at the Writer's Center in Bethesda, MD, I'll be reading poetry with Kyle Dargan. The reading starts at 2 PM, with a reception to follow; the Center (4508 Walsh Street) is accessible from the Bethesda metro, but also has a parking lot right outside.
This is going to be really fun. Kyle is an old friend from UVA days and a great poet (his second book, Bouquet of Hungers, was just published by University of Georgia). This will probably be my first time holding Theories of Falling in my hot little hands. Yes, finally...I'm told somewhere, out there, bound copies exist! So if you're in the DC area, please come out. There is much to celebrate.
Speaking of celebrations, I had a wonderful time meeting and reading with Meghan O'Rourke at the Long Island University Poetry Center last week. The drive was long (10 hours, round trip, including a haul up the New Jersey Turnpike) and no one likes to start their "book tour" sans book. But Isaac Cates was a charming host who took us out to a Thai dinner beforehand (diver scallops in red curry, mmmmm), and the students--mostly undergrads--were engaged even at this late date in the semester. I was particularly thrilled to finally meet Dan.
And on the way home, a phone call with good news that I can't tell you...just yet.
Oh, and: I'm really enjoying this new magazine, FOU. Gorgeous.
April 02, 2008
Did You Think I'd Forgotten?
...Nah, just a little frantic getting reading for my reading at the Long Island University Poetry Center.
Happy April, everyone! If you're thinking of picking up a few new books to inspire you this month, Ron Slate has put together a nice little smorgasbord of poetry picks here.
On to the daily poem-ing. This will evaporate within 24 hours, to be replaced by a new draft. I'll periodically post a list of titles, as a running tally.
###
*poof*
(Was: ANTIQUITY)
###
Happy April, everyone! If you're thinking of picking up a few new books to inspire you this month, Ron Slate has put together a nice little smorgasbord of poetry picks here.
On to the daily poem-ing. This will evaporate within 24 hours, to be replaced by a new draft. I'll periodically post a list of titles, as a running tally.
###
*poof*
(Was: ANTIQUITY)
###
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