Thursday, June 28, 2007

DMQ Review, apwn and 8 things about A

TPM has officially re-opened to submissions today — I'm the monitor on duty (as in, tropical lizard) for the August issue.

The current issue (#40), edited by Michael Spring, has exquisite poetry by Sara Backer, Jéanpaul Ferro, Alex Grant, Ona Gritz, klipschutz, Judy Kronenfeld, Dorianne Laux, Glenna Luschei, Linda Pastan, Elisha Porat, Eric Paul Shaffer, Susan Varnot, Ross White, and Gerald Yelle. Check it out if you haven't already.

Recent acceptance and a half:

DMQ Review accepted two poems, (fear) of being watched and Tessa Fishes in Her Backpack for a Banana for their next issue. Am doing a particularly happy dance because it's a sure sign that persistence pays — have been sending them work for so long that thinking about it already gives me Alzheimer's.

     Submission date: 3 May 2007
     Reply date: 24 June 2007

• Two oldish poems, Washing of the Feet and Bali in Retrospect have been accepted in the Auto/Biography issue of Asia and Pacific Writers Writers Network [apwn]. The site is still down, but it should get back up soon. Special thanks go to Ivy for the invitation.

8 things about A:

Liz tagged the battery charge (as in, assault) into denying some things about herself —

1. A isn't always late. She actually arrives early for dental appointments, 14-hour plane trips, business lunches and other painful operations.

2. A isn't wearing a wig. It's her real hair — which she has neglected to cut in more than a year.

3. Despite what he says, A isn't obsessed in stealing food and drink from the husband. It's only natural to covet edibles that are on other people's plates/pizzas or in their mugs/wine glasses.

4. A isn't going to stop sleeping with her goosedown pillow just because it stinks of geese and sometimes finds a way of pricking her neck with one of its many quills.

5. A isn't about to trample silly earthworms when they come out during rains. She would rather starve inside her house than find earthworm gut and glory under her shoes.

6. Because A isn't right-handed, she can make it painful for righties to watch her wield a can opener.

7. A isn't serious about wanting to be a librarian or postal worker anymore. Ever since they abolished the use of rubber stamps, these are dreams that have passed on with that era.

8. A isn't going to admit in public how much she spent some nights ago buying organic biscuits and other treats online for her pooches. She is, however, willing to admit that her mother made her do it.

And A hereby tags Kate, Old Nick, Ivy, Sharon and Jude.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

New Six Little Things issue & Contemporary American Voices

The Summer 2007 issue of Six Little Things is now up with terrific line drawings by Brian Pera (you gotta love that huge fly!) and prose poems by Tania Casselle, Mary DeNardo, Philip Huang, Dan Piepenbring, Sarah Fran Wisby and —erm—

Recent acceptance-that-isn't-really-an-acceptance:

Will be appearing in the February 2008 issue of Contemporary American Voices — under L. Ward Abel, who was kind enough to invite me to appear with him. Thanks also goes to the editor, Lisa Zaran for waiving the rules — since I'm hardly USDA-approved prime beef.

Even though guidelines say the Features are by invitation only, they're also open to unsolicited work. Check 'em out

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Six Little Things, Eclectica and Ware Poets Commendation

Gosh. With the heat, a lot of stuff have been coming up like flies. Am in the process of trying to swat everything down to ground. I still owe a blog call to tons of people — in the meantime, a thousand apologies. Am throttling the muse or whatever it is that's supposed to help me write daily. Day 13 of Round VII today at 30:30. Pure hell. But I did get some reading bliss from the new stuff up at sidebrow. They sent me a rejection some months before... what they publish is like way out of my league, but it never hurts to try.

Recent acceptances:

Six Little Things has accepted my VII.13 poem with the opening line: Menstruation is clean again for their "X Is the New Y" issue, online on June 21. Really thrilled by this since it is one of my favorite 'zines.

     Submission date: 18 May 2007
     Reply date: 10 June 2007

• My June 1st poem, Say Good-bye to Baked Alaska has been accepted for publication in Eclectica. This will mark my (yikes) 12th appearance there. Have already admitted to the poetry editor that their quarterly word challenge has become an addiction for me. She was quite amiable about it. She doesn't know I drink, too.

     Submission date: 1 June 2007
     Reply date: 11 June 2007

Recent publication:

Received my copy of Other Poetry (Series II, No. 32) this morning. It's a glossy UK-based magazine filled with 60+ pages of fab poetry and 20+ pages of poetry book reviews. Finding the €15 inside was such a treat... though, because it was for one of my driving poems, I'm not sure if it's meant to get me off the streets by paying for my bus fare. Hee.

Am doubly thrilled to discover that Sharon's got a poem here, too. Yay, a drinking buddy!

A Ware Poets Competition commendation:

Also got my copy of the Ware Poets Open Poetry Competition 2007 results today — stating that my sonnenizio, In Memoriam has been Commended and will be included in the anthology. Will give them another try next year... I have a feeling that their competition secretary brings me luck. It was her £10 check that made me win the 2006 Frogmore Prize, after all — she had to issue me one when my entries arrived something like a month late. Did some mental fist-shaking at Italian postal service, but it seemed to have been for the best. And she's never forgotten me because of it.

And one of the nicest book mss rejection:

Two Ravens Press did say no, but I thought it's worth sharing because (1) they have such quick response times for a book publisher and (2) they actually send personal rejections explaining why and why not. A lot of small presses wouldn't even bother, I think. Check them out!

     Proposal snailmailed: 5 May 2007
     Show of interest e-mail: 10 May 2007
     Decision e-mail: 11 June 2007

Sunday, June 10, 2007

Caffeine Destiny and Radiant Turnstile

Just a quickee update. Am sooooooo behind everything. Have got a brick wall of stuff to do and a hard time getting through it.

Caffeine Destiny is indeed back to life and is interested in publishing my two recently 30:30-ied poems, Possessions and Ceremonial Spoon in their next issue (July 2007). Thanks to Sarah who blogged about them — she's got a poem in the current one, too.

     Submission date: 16 May 2007
     Reply date: 7 June 2007

Recent publication:

The first issue of Radiant Turnstile is out, out, out!!! It has poetry by John Grey, Jeannine Hall Gailey, Jeff Walt, R.T. Castleberry, A.D. Winans, Steve Davenport, Lyn Lifshin, Larry D. Thomas, Bryce Milligan, Dale Wisely and Stella Brice. The editor was so kind to invite me along.

Cheeky guidelines page, too. This just tickled me pink: For contributors more comfortable with a 9 month response time, contact your local obstetrician.

And a reminder

for the women out there: Mslexia has a call for poetry/prose on the Mirror Mirror theme. Deadline is on 15 June 2007. Overseas contributors get to send via e-mail. Response is something like 4 months.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

It never pains but it roars...

... or something like that anyway. Four acceptances in less than 36 hours. It's rather Twilight Zone to me.

Thieves Jargon said aye to my poem, Fishing dead bodies in water. You gotta love this 'zine — beautiful layout and the poems are 100% weird meat (my cuppa blood). The current cartoon is a riot, too. Even though it's quite self-explanatory, the Italian caption adds so much more Paf! to the whole thing: "Premetto che non mi ha fatto male ma mi ha incuriosito" = "Before anything, I have to say that I wasn't hurt, just intrigued." I thought initially that the editor was referring in some way to that when he wrote that my poems intrigued him pleasantly. He admitted not knowing Italian and I seriously doubt my stuff could ever pack such a kick.

     Submission date: 8 May 2007
     Reply date: 29 May 2007

After some negotiation, Smiths Knoll has accepted my poem, And Why Shouldn't I Cry Over Seinfeld? for their Autumn 2007 issue (#41)... which means I get another one-year subscription — which is the whole point I've been pestering them for one whole year and taking the rejections like a donkey. My multiple selves are going wheeee!

They've got a quick turnaround rate, too. A fortnight tops. After years of sending them work, I confirm this with zeal.

     Submission date: 7 May 2007
     Reply date: 18 May 2007
     Confirmation e-mail: 30 May 2007

Tipton Poetry Journal has accepted my poem, Heritage and the Gorilla Suit for their Summer 2007 issue (#6). I really enjoyed my print copy of the 'zine and thought I'd try with them again. Hope to see a lot of fellow bloggers in this issue!

     Submission date: 27 May 2007
     Reply date: 30 May 2007

• And last but not the least, I sent some photos to Siren on a gamble and... wooohooo! They'll be using some in their 5th issue (due out in September 2007). Am quite electrified!

To top it all

as Agatha Christie said: "I'm a sausage machine, a perfect sausage machine."
Which means I've finished my 7th round in 30:30 today.
Won't bother posting the whole list of poems... just the idea makes my eyes drop dead. Will go for another round on June 1st, but for now I'm putting up my feet. Maybe. The husband has just offered me a data-entry job to do tomorrow, saying: "Darling, it's so boring that I know you're going to love it." How can I refuse?

Monday, May 28, 2007

In Posse Review and 10 Ars Poetica quotes

Wheeeeee!! Issue 23 of In Posse Review is now online with body poems by Kelli Russell Agodon, Kevin Minh Allen, Ivy Alvarez, Lana Hechtman Ayers, Brendan Babish, Stephanie Berger, Edward Byrne, Jeff Crandall, Jehanne Dubrow, Justin Evans, Jeannine Hall Gailey, Bob Guter, Kathryn Hunt, Donald Illich, Wayne Johns, Collin Kelley, Jared Leising, James Lineberger, Michael Lynch, CR Manley, Gary L. McDowell, Amy NewmanMartha Silano, Sarah Sloat, David Trame, Gary Winans and the AA battery. Quite excited to see a lot of familiar names on the roster and just plain delighted to be part of this issue — it's simply exquisite.

10 Ars Poetica quotes tag:

Kate tagged me into listing 10 favorite quotes pertaining to poetry and the writing of it. These ones, I find, reflect my experience —
The solitude of writing is also quite frightening. It's quite close to madness, one just disappears for a day and loses touch.
             — Nadine Gordimer

                         • • • • • •

I am trying to invent a new way of moving under my dress....
             — C.D. Wright, "Crescent" (from Tremble)

                         • • • • • •

Poetry is not the most important thing in life... I'd much rather lie in a hot bath reading Agatha Christie and sucking sweets.
             — Dylan Thomas

                         • • • • • •

I want many hands, hands that have come and gone,
hands that no longer exist except in cutting short a life line.

I would like to say I just want one hand — to name it my own.

But it's so dark in this doorway and so full of infinity.


             — Ada Limon, "Thirteen Feral Cats" (from Lucky Wreck)

                         • • • • • •

Writing in English is the most ingenious torture ever devised for sins commited in previous lives.
             — James Joyce, in a letter (5 September 1918)

                         • • • • • •

Failure concentrates the mind wonderfully. If you don't make mistakes you're not trying hard enough.
             — Jasper Fforde, The Well of Lost Plots

                         • • • • • •

Writing is a lot like sex. At first you do it because you like it. Then you find yourself doing it with a few close friends and people you like. But if you're any good at all... you end up doing it for money.
             — Anonymous, from the internet

                         • • • • • •

I must hurry or I will lose these poems.
Why did I make such a mess of my life?

I am Robinson Crusoe saving things
From the wreck,

Except there isn't any wreck
Nor any island,

Only my unhappiness with all the words
That have to do with 'thinking'.


             — Robert Rehder, "The Symphony" (from The Compromises Will Be Different)

                         • • • • • •

I never drink while I'm working, but after a few glasses I get ideas that would never have occurred to me dead sober.
             — Irwin Shaw, The Paris Review (1979)

And last, probably nonsensical, but which tickles the hell out of me is:
Some men love ruled paper, because they can write athwart the lines, and some take the fly-leaves of their friends' books. But whosoever writes on cheap sermon paper full of hairs should write far away from the woman he loves....
             — H.G. Wells, Certain Personal Matters
I'm tagging Old Nick, Sharon, Ivy, Rachel and Jude.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

The unofficial Press 1 mascot and ANON

On behalf of the Press 1 staff, I want to thank everyone for their great support (and wooooohooooo, button pressing). We're quite thrilled that a lot of people have taken a healthy liking to it. Mwuaaaaaaaah!

To encourage more button pressing, I have crowned the niece as Press 1's unofficial mascot. Giggle garbanzo diet. She, too likes pressing buttons — irrelevantly whether you say not that or don't.

Recent acceptance:

ANON accepted two poems, Where the hourglass and My Real Intention Was To Take The Bucket for an upcoming issue.

Absolutely delighted over this — ANON is such a classy print journal teeming with great poetry (with a preference for the surreal and dark). Really love their anonymous submission protocol, too.

Rather longish response times, but I think it's worth it —

     Submission posted: 29 January 2007
     E-mail reply: 22 May 2007

Recent publication:

Just when I was wondering if it was going to push through, I received my copy of Obsessed with Pipework (Issue 38, Spring 2007). Really thrilled with it! The poems make my mental hamster go round and round — wonderful mixture of minimalist stuff, narratives and the weirdly convoluted.

Old copies may be read online at the Poetry Library.

Their response time is something like 3 weeks via e-mail. Based on my record (1), time between acceptance and publication is one year and two months. That surprised me as well. Time flies and all that and I never noticed. In the meantime, the niece has learned to pronounce shark and my hair hasn't stopped growing.

And now that I've put my hair in the spotlight

Thanks to Ivy, here's what it would love to wake up to in the morning. Or even this.