Most of my life in the past six weeks or so has revolved in some way or another around writing. Which is a good thing.
On Saturday, September 13, I attended a really interesting, informative online class sponsored by Write Or Die about Small Press Publishing. Since that is likely the path I will take with my short story collection, I thought it would be a good class to take. The instructor basically went through how to market your work if you get published with a small press. It was the best $25 I’ve spent on a class in a long, long time. She was quite knowledgeable, very upfront about some of the mistakes she made, some of her vulnerable areas in decision-making (especially about spending money on advertising/promotion). It was a dream class for me, for certain!
On Thursday, September 18, I caught one of Kari Gunter-Seymour’s Spoken & Heard presentations, this one with Georgann Eubanks and Denton Loving reading from their latest poetry collections. I love both of these individuals and hold each in high esteem personally and professionally. The reading was magical, of course, especially the end, where they traded off poems about the same subjects. I also had the opportunity to “chat” a little with a writer (in-between poems), whose work Denton introduced me to earlier in the year, JD Isip. If you get a chance, you should definitely check out all three of these folks.
My next class, on Thursday, September 25, was sponsored by Accents Publishing and was led by my friend Jay McCoy, whose poetry I have adored forever. We started at Hindman together way back when. The name of the class was “Crossing the Line,” and it dealt with lineation, enjambment, etc. Jay is a masterful instructor. I learned lots that night, including how to write a “box poem.” I like to write the “8×8,” which is eight lines with eight syllables per line. Lots of great information in this class, too. Many thanks and much appreciation to Accents Publishing for offering it and to Jay McCoy for doing such a great job teaching it.
I went back over to Speedwell to spend some time writing at The Orchard Keeper again from October 3-7. I finished a project while I was there. I spent a lot of time trying to spruce up my “Duran Duran memoir,” Chasing After Rainbows, as Denton helped to connect me with someone working to become a book coach who needs one more book to complete her certification. And she’s willing to work with me to teach me some things about marketing the book. There are certainly no guarantees, but it’s exciting work and a great learning process.
I went to my second Salvation South Poetry Circle on Wednesday, October 8. Annie Woodford was our guest. I know Annie and love her and her poetry. She has a new poetry book out, too, Peasant. It was a great meeting. I have a couple of drafts going from it, but everything I’m focusing on right now is related to the memoir. There’s a lot of work to make it the best I can possibly make it before submitting it to the book coach. I love working with that group, though, and I’m so glad Jean Dowdy nudged me to join back at Hindman this summer. Andy Fogle, the group leader and Poetry Editor for Salvation South, is so energetic and knowledgeable. I really like him. And he’s so talented, too. He has a reading coming up this Saturday on Google Meet. I’m really looking forward to it, too.
The next day, I had two events. In the afternoon, I had the Zoom with my cohorts from Jill McCorkle’s class at Table Rock. It’s always good to see and hear everyone’s work from there. I ducked out early, though, so Russ and I could go to the Johnson City Poets Collective’s annual Pub Crawl. I got to read a poem I write on the theme of “Obsession/Fascination.” I, of course, wrote about Duran Duran – a poem entitled, “Cherry Ice Cream Smile.” As I mentioned, Russ went with me. Sarah Jane Gilliam, one of my friends from Hindman was there. She sat with us. And I got to see T. Alan Holmes, Michael Cody and his wife (Leesa), Larry Thacker, Jesse Graves, and Lacy Snapp, among others. It was a great night. I didn’t place in the contest, but people were either singing Duran Duran or asking who they were when I finished, and either way, that was a win!
Then, this past Saturday, October 11, I was at an all-day festival selling books. Tales from the Front Porch was in its second year, in Lebanon, VA. It was slow traffic, but still a lot of fun talking to the other book vendors there. Alex Gordon, Terry Shaw, Danita Dodson, and others made the day a pleasure in the bright sunshine under the covered area the town has updated since last year. (As a side note, it was really cold that morning and I wore a cashmere sweater I can fit into again that was purchased on the 2013 UK/European Excursion in Salisbury, England. I felt like a rock star!) At 5:30 p.m., I took to the stage and read the three ghost stories I’ve had in the true ghost story anthologies from Howling Hills Publishing. It didn’t sell any of my books, but it was a lot of fun. I also got to see my dear friend Sandra Childress and her family while they were visiting from Amherst, Virginia, that day. Many thanks and much appreciation to Jerry Sword and Shane (whose last name I can’t remember), for all their hard work in making the event happen!
Here’s to the next four weeks of writing and writing-related events/activities!
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