Archive for March, 2010

Sean Thomas Dougherty. BOA Poet.

BOA poet Sean Thomas Dougherty will be interviewed tomorrow on Cleveland, Ohio’s 90.3FM. He will be interviewed by popular NPR personality Dee Perry in honor of Sean’s Thursday night (4/1) reading at the Cleveland State University Poetry Center. The radio show starts at 1PM.

The interview can be heard online at: http://www.wcpn.org/WCPN/an/30178

Sean’s reading at the Cleveland State University Poetry Center will begin at 7:30 pm. The reading is on the Cleveland State University campus, Main Classroom 134, 1899 East 22 Street. He will be reading with poet Jeffrey McDaniel.

For more on the reading visit [Cleveland State University Poetry Center]

p.s.) Sean will be joined on Dee Perry’s show by The Cleveland Orchestra’s Music Director Laureate Christoph von Dohnányi and spoken word artist/punk icon Henry Rollins. Quite a mix!

The ceremony will held at the Grand Gallery of the National Arts Club, 15 Gramercy Park South in New York City. It will start at 7PM and is free and open to the public. 13 other PSA awards will be given as well.

For more about the event visit: [100TH ANNUAL PSA AWARDS CEREMONY]

Craig Morgan Teicher. Journalist and BOA author.

BOA authors aren’t just poets and fiction writers. They are also teachers, mentors, journalists, reviewers… and a whole bunch of other things unrelated to literature. Whether it’s literary or not, we love authors who are engaged in the larger world. Getting involved with your community – whether it’s on a local, national, or international scale – is the best way to effect change. The surprise result is that such engagement also deepens ones writing.

Craig Morgan Teicher’s new book, a collection of adult fables titled Cradle Book, will be released in May. In addition to being a stellar poet and fiction writer, Craig is active in the literary community through his journalism, reviewing, and teaching. He is the poetry editor of Publishers Weekly, a contributing editor of the literary journal Pleiades, and a Vice President on the board of the National Book Critics Circle. He also teaches at Pratt Institute and Columbia University. In short, Craig is out in the world!

His latest article for Publisher’s Weekly addresses an issue that publishers think about a lot. Book reviews. Every year, BOA sends out roughly 1,000 review copies of our books. So, obviously, we think they’re important. But still, it’s crucial to constantly appraise the situation and ask: Who publishes reviews? Who reads them? Do they sell books? Help authors? Are “good” reviews always more helpful than “bad” reviews? What do we mean by “good” and “bad” reviews anyway? Why do we love reviews so much and how do they help everyone involved?

Craig tackled this complicated issue for Publishers Weekly with the help of some publishing professionals. Their answers shine light on the issue of reviews and show that, while there are no “right” answers about the usefulness of reviews, there are lots of reasons to appreciate them:

Read Craig’s article here [What Poetry Reviews Are For (And Up Against)]

Kazim Ali. BOA poet.

BOA poet Kazim Ali (The Fortieth Day) has written an illuminating essay on the poetics of Lucille Clifton. The essay first appeared in Barn Owl Review and is now posted in its entirety at Delirious Hem. It will also appear in Kazim’s upcoming book, Orange Alert: Essays on Poetry, Art and the Architecture of Silence, which is forthcoming from University of Michigan Press.

The essay begins:

“Lucille Clifton is known as a poet of simple and clear diction, informed by trickster sensibility, and is as facile with the cadences of King James as she is with Black vernacular. Though she is often seen as a prophet-figure taking Blakean dictation, her poems are marked not only by spiritual gravity but by the humbler attentions of a working poet utilizing the various tools of poetic craft. Clifton has often discussed her roots as a poet in poetic form. Her mother Thelma used to write poetry in iambic pentameter and would go so far as to criticize young Lucille’s poetic attempts (in free verse) saying, “Oh honey, that ain’t a poem” . Clifton also cites Yeats, Aiken, and Sanchez—another poet who marries colloquial oral speech to received form and poetic meters—as influences.”

Click here to read the rest of [adam and his mother: Lucille Clifton's Prosodic Line]

Join us as we celebrate the publication of

the A. Poulin, Jr. Prize-winning debut poetry collection

Beautiful in the Mouth

by Keetje Kuipers

The night will include two additional BOA poets—

Cecilia Woloch and Dan Albergotti

—who will read from their own fantastic books of poetry.

Bonus Prize: The first 15 guests to buy a book will also take home a free bottle of wine!

When: Friday, April 9^th at 8pm

Location: D’Vine Winery

1660 Champa Street

(just one block from the main conference hotel!)

[Free admission and open bar]

Keetje Kuipers. BOA poet.

“Plastic Beatitude”, by Laure-Anne Bosselaar, was featured by the Writer’s Almanac blog on March 23rd, 2010.

The poem is from Bosselaar’s 1997 book, The Hour Between Dog and Wolf.

In his foreward, Charles Simic describes Bosselaar’s work as “an authentic poetic voice, one serious enough to be heard at the end of this long and brutal century.” The book captures the lives of “lost souls running,” speaking of eccentric, vibrant people, who lived in Europe in the midst of and the fallout from the World Wars.

An Exerpt from “Plastic Beatitude”:

Our neighbors, the Pazzotis, live in a long
narrow canary-yellow house with Mrs. Pazzotti’s old
father, their 2 daughters, their husbands, 4 kids,
a tortoise shell cat and a white poodle.

Read the rest of the poem featured on The Writer’s Almanac here.

6x6x2010

In 2008, BOA and Rochester Contemporary Arts Center got together to put on Postcards in Jazz. The event featured BOA poet Wyn Cooper reading from Postcards from the Interior (BOA, 2005) along with a jazz combo featuring musicians Chris Azzara, Dave Blask, Jeff Campbell and Mark Kellogg. It took place during the Rochester International Jazz Festival which brings together some of the world’s best jazz music for a weeklong celebration.

The event was so much fun – we’re going to do it again! This year’s event (tentatively titled Jazz is Poetry) will feature BOA poet Sean Thomas Dougherty reading from Broken Hallelujahs (BOA, 2007) as well as his forthcoming collection, Sasha Sings the Laundry on the Line (forthcoming, 2010). He’ll be teamed with

Intern Liz Mullins and Peter Conners

Last Friday, I attended Traditions and Translations: A Celebration of Japanese Culture at the Memorial Art Gallery as part of BOA Editions. That’s me (Intern Liz Mullins) sitting next to Peter Conners, editor. We sat in the foyer of the gallery amidst others selling pertinent wares– traditional Japanese paintings, kimonos and sake, of course– as event participants browsed.

It was my first outing as a BOA intern and it didn’t disappoint. We were there from 2-5PM with several books of poetry by asian artists or in translation, as well as much of Lucille Clifton’s work. Some of our books found homes. A local artist whose studio is just down the hall from our office picked up something. One woman bought a copy of Blessing the Boats for an ill family member. Many simply stopped to look and ask questions.

The afternoon passed leisurely. Some told us about their experiences making origami, or learning about bonsai. Others leafed through our books and inquired about new manuscripts from established BOA authors. I managed to meet both the Director of the MAG, Grant Holcomb, and the Vice Chair of BOA’s Board of Directors, Boo Poulin.

Grant Holcomb enjoying a BOA book

Needless to say, I felt honored to be able to attend an event like this one, even if I only got as far as the atrium.

Intern Liz Mullins and BOA board member Boo Poulin

Woman’s silk kimono with rose motif (Taisho period, 1912–26)

All day today the Rochester Memorial Art Gallery will be hosting Traditions & Translations: A Celebration of Japanese Culture. The event is a chance to learn more about Japanese culture and how it has influenced our lives. It includes workshops on origami, Japanese woodblock prints, garden design, anime films, a textile demonstration, and much more.

BOA has been asked to set up a table at the event to showcase some of our translated books and other select titles. We will be there from 2-5PM with an array of poetry books, information about the press, and our big BOA smiles. Come over to the MAG, say hi to us, and learn a few new things about Japanese culture!

[Traditions and Translations: A Celebration of Japanese Culture]

Sharon Bryan. BOA poet.

The blog Book of Kells is offering a copy of Sharon Bryan’s Sharp Stars in honor of the upcoming National Poetry Month. Here’s a short description of the contest take from Being Poetry.

“Kelli Agodon has started a wonderful celebration of National Poetry Month on her blog Book of Kells. The premise is simple – poets give away a book at the end of National Poetry Month to two different people who have left comments on their blog. If you’re interested in taking part in this project, go to this post to learn more. The goal is to share our favorite poets with others as well as to visit different blogs and see who others are reading. There is also a benefit for those who participate as it will bring people to your blog and share your work and/or the work of a favorite poet with them. You simply comment on this post, and if you’re chosen, I’ll send you a book.”

Fire up those keyboards and good luck!