Poem Up at Right Hand Pointing, and a Review

My living/dining/music room, taken by me.

A poem I wrote when my husband was away and I was lonely is now up at Right Hand Pointing (please scroll down to find it). I wrote about this poem here. I’m especially fond of it. The ending might be seen as clichéd, but I think it is dramatically effective, and the earlier part conveys the sorts of creepy thoughts and the feeling of emptiness that loneliness can engender. So many thanks to Editor Dale Wisely and the other editors who saw fit to include it in this issue.

Before we get to the review, I realize that in my last post, I forgot to mention the artistic backgrounds in Poetic Sun. I find them effectively evocative and in keeping with a synergistic approach to art that seems to me characteristically Chinese, though I’m basing this only on my personal friendships. At the same time, I also like the Spartan clarity of Right Hand Pointing, which leaves the poems to shine alone, albeit on a warm background and framed with mysterious pointing hands that seem consonant with the dry wit of the editor’s introductory “Note.” I see the contrast as just another reminder that the many ways of doing things well enrich our world.

And NOW, a Review:

Two Poems Up at Poetic Sun, and a Review

Self-Portrait, Vincent van Gogh, 1889. Musée d’Orsay. Wikimedia Commons. PD.

I am happy to announce that my poems, “Where the Machine Can’t Go” and “Mother and Child,” are now up in Issue 3 of Poetic Sun (please scroll down to pages 28-30). Many thanks to the editors. As I said in my previous post about these poems and Poetic Sun, the site features compelling emotional story-telling that is well-worth checking out, so you know what to do.

I would just add that “Where the Machine Can’t Go” went through a lot of revision, as I was sending it out and wondering how I could stop the rejections. I really liked the poem and felt it had something to say, but this blinded me to its lack of clarity. Also, I had decided after reading some more formal poetry by a poet I particularly admire, that I should try to use form more too, but unfortunately this led to syllable-counting and awkward lineation. I am happy with the more natural form I finally chose, and have resigned myself, at least for now, to writing freer verse, except when explicitly tackling a formal scheme (I recently wrote a pantoum, for example).

In fact, overall, I have decided to embrace the types of poetry I write naturally and not to worry if they’re not fashionable. But I’m still a little worried that this is a reflection of my limitations as a poet, or of my not having gotten an MFA (five degrees ought to be enough, gosh darn it). As Kurt Vonnegut says, “So it goes.”

The other poem in Poetic Sun is about cats, as I said in my post about its acceptance. Although some of the language bothers me (is it ever OK to use the word “amidst”?), the ending is strong, and I like what it says about single moms.

My cat, Merlin, taken by me.

And now, A Review:

We end our views and reviews of this show.

My Other Kindle Vella Story, and a Review

Digital book cover for “The Pussy Hat,” on Kindle Vella. Photo: Harrison Haines, Man with Rifle. 17 June 2016. Pexels. PD.

In my last post, I talked about publishing my fantasy story, The Pool of Good Purpose, on Kindle Vella. I also published the story above, The Pussy Hat, which is a feminist horror story. I wrote about this story here, when it was accepted by What the Writers Wrote podcast. Unfortunately, What the Writers Wrote stopped producing podcasts before they had my story up. This is the third time I have had something accepted and the publisher went defunct before they were able to publish my work. It is annoying. I know life happens, etc., but when I am left hanging, I can’t help but feel these people are akin to those who adopt animals only to return them when they turn out to require attention and money.

Anyway, this is why the story is now available on Kindle Vella. As I said in the previous post, it is about a young man whose girlfriend leaves him and her pussy hat behind. He develops an obsession with the hat, and later with anti-feminism of the type that throws around terms like “alpha” and “cuck” a lot. Soon, these pursuits generate a monstrous comeuppance.

I invite you to read and enjoy. As I mentioned in my last post, the first three episodes are free, so you have nothing to lose. Cheers.

And here’s A Review:

Fantasy Story Up on Kindle Vella, and a Review

Image credit: OpenClipartVectors. Dragon styled in homage to the Chinese tradition. 9 Oct. 2013. Wikimedia Commons. CC0 1.0.

Amazon’s Kindle Vella is available to readers, and I have two stories on it. The first is The Pool of Good Purpose. It is a fantasy story about two lovers separated by war who are reunited, in a way, by the magic of the pool. It is experimental, because I imagine multiple courses the man might pursue to solve his problem, but in the end all of them come together.

The first three episodes of all stories are free, and after that you can decide whether or not you want to pay for tokens to read the rest, so you have nothing to lose. Just click on the name of the story, above, and the link will magically convey you to a world of dragons and enchantment.

But first, A Review:

BEST Poem Up at Angel Rust, and a Review

Photo credit: Bruce Bisping, Old Style Cash Register and Canned Goods in a Butcher Shop in New Ulm, Minnesota. October, 1974. Wikimedia Commons. PD.

I am happy to see my poem, “BEST,” remixed from text on a can of Bush’s best chili beans, up at Angel Rust Magazine. Once again, many thanks to the editors. For more information about my can poems, hit the “Can Poems” category below this post. I discussed the poem here.

I am looking forward to reading more of the work in the first issue of Angel Rust, the more so because I notice that my poem is in the fine company of works by fellow poet, visual artist, and editor of Sonic Boom, Shloka Shankar. I always enjoy her work, which is at once varied and focused on bodying forth the speaker’s inner life by mixing fragments of expressed emotion with images that blur the line between the outside world and the speaker’s inner state. Her mosaics are often composed from remixed text and often mix in visual imagery as well.

So I encourage you to hit the links, read the poetry and other offerings, and let me know what you think.

In the meantime, here is another Review of For All Mankind: