Sunday, October 29, 2017

what a Blast at the Fall Festival


     It seemed like Winter, as least as far as South Carolina goes. The temperature barely reach 50 degrees Fahrenheit. I was inside but the door was open to the large room. but I sold well, made some new friends, some of whom shared friends with me!

    It was a fantastic time. If anyone wants a signed copy of either book, let me know! 

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Interesting reactions to a poem from class tonight


    Some of the best things in a classroom are unplanned. We had some time at the end of poetry class, and I added Yeats' "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death". As I read, I paused now and then to point out the poignancy and despair of the situation. The speaker has nothing to live or to die for. He is trapped between forces that he cannot control and is in a war that does not matter to him. After class a student and I spoke about how the poem touched u as we left the building. In class the discussion equally as moving.

https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/irish-airman-foresees-his-death

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX3PS4bvL78

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Fall Festival 2017----29 October



   This will be a fantastic event! I have been at a few events with Jennifer David Gerdes in her old location. This summer I had a signing at the new one and it was superb! I will have many copies of both books and am looking forward to meeting people. If you cannot come, contact me to see how you can obtain a signed copy of either book!  Or even both! 

Friday, October 20, 2017

https://www.facebook.com/events/499145763778009/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%2222%22%2C%22feed_story_type%22%3A%2222%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22null%22%7D&pnref=story

This promises to be a great festival I will be there with both books!

Monday, October 16, 2017

Richard Wilbur, RIP


    America's second Poet Laureate, Richard Wilbur, has died. He twice won the Pulitzer Prize. The obit below shows his interesting background and gives a glimpse of his fine poetry. Although I have read some of it, now I want to read more. I had not known that he was a combat veteran of World War II.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/15/obituaries/richard-wilbur-poet-laureate-and-pulitzer-winner-dies-at-96.html?hpw&rref=obituaries&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well

     And a link to some of his poems:

     https://www.poemhunter.com/richard-wilbur/poems/

Friday, October 13, 2017

Review of "Accents" in Jasper

Perceptive review (again) from Jonathan Butler in the Jasper magazine of Accents. It is extremely nice to see that he gets what I was trying to say.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10214197058662046&set=a.3964603195127.171614.1281784341&type=3&theater

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Indie Author Day in Aiken, Sat, 14 October

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Sunday, October 8, 2017

Tom Petty, RIP- Belated Remarks


     Among the many excellent things about the late Tom Petty was how good songs were matched with equally good videos. He breathed new life into rock and roll, while putting his own personal stamp on the genre.

    He always seemed to have fun. The Travelling Wilburys showed that, and his Buried Treasure show on Sirius X
M's Deep Tracks was a place where he shared the music he enjoyed. Never one to be vain, Tom played all sorts of music by other artists. It was a peek into his mind, and the show was fun.

     A colleague and friend of mine came to tom's house in Malibu for several months to teach high school English to Tom's stepson  (I believe he was recuperating from an injury). My friend said that Tom and the entire family was very gracious to her and treated her as one of their own. They did not have to do that, but it shows the kind of person he was.

    For the song below, I chose "The Last DJ". Long gone are the radio stations where you could call the DJ, and where the DJ could play what he or she wanted. There might be some of the latter left, but they are a rarity. We are better off playing the music ourselves.

    Tom, we will miss you. Give our best to Roy and George. Thanks for everything!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOd3tan59BE

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Back in Aiken Saturday, 14 October

     I have been invited back to this event, and am very excited! I will have both Accents and Places and Times available. This time I will also debit my two



https://www.facebook.com/events/1281118908684020/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%223%22%2C%22ref_newsfeed_story_type%22%3A%22regular%22%2C%22feed_story_type%22%3A%2217%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22null%22%7D

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Time to Learn Tanka

    The best thing about being a poet is writing poetry. A close second would be having friends who are good poets, who inspire, persuade, even cajole you. One of them asked me to write some tanka. So I will do my best. I had been thinking about some of these forms already. Now is the time.

"Priestdaddy" by Patricia Lockwood

         I know some authors who write memoirs. In my opinion, it's a tricky genre unless the author is gifted, because unless the reade...