National Poetry Month 2014: Gil McElroy,

Julian Day 2456655
(A Doxology)



The start
of the late long, the
new getting
consequent on
barefoot minutes that, gotten,
could. Each week becomes
more palatable than
the last.
 
Or
not. Moments might
contradict out, 
mimicking the style of tons of things so mellow they
might jiggle over protruding distances to/might become
a quarter-cup of century.

But skip over
this alternative. Come in, do
a full turn, & then
take into account
shaven mis-directions we can all
live with. Have we not
the world rather than
just a practiced story? Have we not
the leading edge
of the hands? The
exact probability
of just about anything?

I remain, despite
outbursts of clammy post-war taboos,
yours, etc.

Gil McElroy is a poet, visual artist, independent curator, and critic living in the village of Colborne, Ontario. He provided the introduction to Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press, 2003-2013 (2013).

National Poetry Month 2014: Amanda Earl,

The Passionate Shift-Key to Its Lullaby

Come live with me & be my lullaby;

And we will all the plenitude prove

That hints and vampires, damnation & figleaves,

Word-processors, or steep movies yields.

And we will sit upon the Roman Catholics,

Seeing the shift-keys feed their flounder

By shallow robots to whose family

Melodious bistros sing maggots.

And I will make thee beeps of roughage,

And a thousand fragrant potholes;

A carafe of fluoride, and a kitty

Embroidered all with leather of nails;

A gramophone made of the finest worms

Which from our pretty lapis lazuli we pull;

Fair-lined slogans for the collision,

With buffoons of the purest gooseflesh;

A beret of strife and jam,

with coral clay and amber stupidity;

And if these plenitudes may thee move,

Come live with me and be my lullaby.

The shift-key swans shall dance and sing

For thy delusion each May morsel;

If these delusions thy mink may move

Then live with me and be my lullaby.

[Source: Christopher Marlowe - The Passionate Shepherd to His Love]

Amanda Earl's [photo credit: Charles Earl] first poetry book, Kiki, comes out with Chaudiere Books in the autumn of 2014. Her erotic fiction collection is forthcoming as part of the Coming Together series. For more info about Amanda, visit www.AmandaEarl.com or contact her on Twitter @KikiFolle.

Pearl Pirie reads as part of Poetry Month at the Ottawa Public Library

Ottawa Public Library National Poetry Month Reading
Main Branch

Monday, April 14, 2014 - 7:00pm
Celebrate National Poetry Month with readings by acclaimed Canadian poets Pearl Pirie, Chris Jennings, Sandra Ridley and Deanna Young. Offered in partnership with VERSeFest.

new poems by Amanda Earl and Pearl Pirie, and an Apt613 article on Earl's poetry month writing project,

Amanda Earl has a new poem in the March issue of The Steel Chisel, Pearl Pirie has a new poem in the March issue of Bywords.ca (as well as a new chapbook out with above/ground press), and Apartment613 was good enough to write an article on Earl's month-long writing project for April.

rob mclennan shortlisted for the Council for the Arts in Ottawa Mid-Career Artist Award;

Chaudiere author (and publisher) rob mclennan was officially shortlisted last night for the Council for the Arts in Ottawa's annual Mid-Career Artist Award, along with Rolf Klausener and Pier Rodier. Congratulations all! See Peter Simpson's blog post featuring all award shortlists on the Ottawa Citizen site here. The award will be announced at a gala at the Arts Court Theatre on April 22, 2014.

A B Series Celebrates National Poetry Month with Amanda Earl (and Dean Steadman,

A B Series Celebrates National Poetry Month!

Thursday, April 3, 2014
7pm; Ottawa Public Library Main Branch

Readings by AMANDA EARL & DEAN STEADMAN!
See the Facebook invitation here; check out the A B Series website here.

With a performance of Steadman's work, APRES SATIE: FOUR TWO AND FOUR HANDS by Lesley Strutt, Georgia Mathewson, Alastair Larwill and Steadman. Après Satie: Four Two and Four Hands is a poetry collection inspired by Erik Satie's piano compositions. Moody, often surreal in tone and content, the interplay of primo and secondo voices in these poems raises our awareness of the temporal nature of all things.

AMANDA EARL is the managing editor of Bywords.ca and the publisher of AngelHousePress, including its transgressive prose imprint, DevilHouse. She is the author of several chapbooks. Her first poetry book will be published by Chaudiere Books in the fall of 2014. Her poems have also appeared in literary journals both on line and in print in Australia, Canada, England, France, Ireland and the USA. Amanda has received funding from the City of Ottawa and the Ontario Arts Council.

DEAN STEADMAN’s work has been published in Canadian journals and e-zines, as well as in the anthology Pith and Wry: Canadian Poetry (Scrivener Press, 2010). His poem, “Crime Passionnel” (Descant 144, Spring 2009), was selected by Lorna Crozier as one of the top 100 poems in The Best Canadian Poetry in English, 2010 (Tightrope Books). He was a finalist in the 2011 Ottawa Book Awards for his poetry collection their blue drowning (Frog Hollow Press, 2010). His chapbook, Portrait w/tulips, was published by Leaf Editions in 2013.

Amanda Earl to Source Poems from The Ottawa Citizen During National Poetry Month

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Local Author to Source Poems from The Ottawa Citizen During National Poetry Month

Author One of 78 Poets Set to Participate in Experimental Writing Initiative

OTTAWA — MARCH 20, 2014: Amanda Earl, a resident of Ottawa, is one of 78 poets from seven countries selected to participate in the OULIPOST project this April. Coordinated by the Found Poetry Review, the initiative unites authors in applying the constrained writing techniques of the Oulipo group to text found in local newspapers. Earl will be using The Ottawa Citizen as her source text for the month.

OULIPOST is inspired by the experimental writing practices of Oulipo (Ouvroir de littérature potentielle — or “workshop of potential literature”) writers. Founded in 1960 by Raymond Queneau and François Le Lionnais, the group encourages the application of writing constraints to generate new structures and patterns.

“Oulipo constraints provide poets a chance to break free from the restrictions and challenges they face in their everyday writing practices,” noted Found Poetry Review Editor-in-Chief Jenni B. Baker. “We’re encouraging writers to be bold, take risks and write about topics they normally wouldn’t touch.”

Examples of the writing constraints poets will face range from relatively simple – a tautogram in which every word in the poem must start with the same letter – to a sestina, a fixed verse form consisting of six stanzas of six lines each, followed by a short three-line stanza. In all cases, the words and phrases incorporated into the poems must be taken from the poet’s local newspaper.

“I've always found constraint-based poetry to be a chance to up my game and learn a few things,” explained Earl.

This is the third year the Found Poetry Review has led a project for National Poetry Month. Last year, the journal enlisted 85 poets to create found poetry from the 85 Pulitzer Prize-winning works of fiction as part of its Pulitzer Remix project.

Keep track of Earl's progress at amandaearl.tumblr.com. View updates from all OULIPOST poets at http://bit.ly/oulipost.

My Writing Process -- blog tour: rob mclennan and Amanda Earl

Chaudiere authors rob mclennan and Amanda Earl both participated recently in the "My Writing Process -- blog tour" questionnaire over the past week or so, with Earl's answers appearing this past Monday, and mclennan's answers appearing the Monday before.

Pearl Pirie: One Piece at a Time: Remixing your Poetic Source Material

Canadian Authors Association
April 8th, 7-9pm Main Branch Ottawa Public Library, open to members and non-members (non-members $10)

One Piece at a Time: Remixing your Poetic Source Material
Speaker: Pearl Pirie

Remix culture is presented as characteristic of our age but poetry's toolbox has long been taking pieces from here and there and synthesizing elements to new effect. Partly hands on, partly theory, this 90-minute workshop would explore examples and techniques of using disparate sources and collaborating to make new whole. Sampling, recutting, and using the material of distinct poems to make distinctly fresh ones.

Whether you are a fiction-writer by nature or poet, there's more to be gained by looking at tools for livening you out of risk of rut.

http://www.canauthors-ottawa.org/meetings.shtml

The Small Press Review reviews rob mclennan's The Uncertainty Principle: stories,

C.A. LaRue was good enough to post the first review of rob mclennan's The Uncertain Principle: stories, (Chaudiere Books, 2014) over at The Small Press Book Review. Thanks much!

Amanda Earl is (willingly) led astray by Anne Carson,

Chaudiere Books author Amanda Earl is "led astray" by the work of Anne Carson, specifically Carson's new Nay Rather (Sylph Editions), as she discusses today over at her amazing blog.

new poems by Monty Reid and Pearl Pirie,

Monty Reid has a new poem up on the dusie blog as part of the "Tuesday poem" series, (curated by rob mclennan) and Pearl Pirie has some new work posted up at TRUCK (curated by Colin Morton and Mary Lee Bragg).

McNair + McCann (etc) in Hamilton: a report,

Our pal Ryan Pratt was good enough to post a generous and thorough report of the LitLive Reading Series event in Hamilton on March 2, 2014 that included readings by Chaudiere author Marcus McCann and co-publisher Christine McNair, as well as Angie Abdou, Jim Smith, Andrew Faulkner and Lynn Davies (the photos are his as well). Much thanks! I have to say it was an impressive event (and Pratt was even good enough to mention the fact that I was also there, holding Rose the Intern throughout). Check out his report here.

Christine McNair on a Letterpress, Papermaking and Book Conservation Panel at the University of Ottawa,

Christine McNair participates in "The Page: Material and Visual Literature," this year's Department of English Graduate Student Conference at the University of Ottawa, running March 14-16, 2014. She will be participating in the "Curated Panel on Letterpress, Papermaking, and Book Conservation" along with Richard Coxford and Grant Wilkins. Questions about the conference can be directed to Neil Hackler and Cameron Anstee at the conference email address: uOttawa.conference@gmail.com

Robert McTavish screens "The Line has Shattered" at Ottawa's VERSeFest

Editor and documentary filmmaker Robert McTavish showcases The Line has Shattered at the fourth annual VERSeFest in Ottawa with a film screening and panel discussion.

Saturday, March 29, 2014
1:30pm: "The Line has Shattered" — Film Screening & Panel
Mercury Lounge, 55 Byward Market Square
Fifty years ago, American poets Charles Olson, Allen Ginsberg, Robert Creeley, Robert Duncan, and Denise Levertov came to Vancouver for a poetry conference that was radical for its time and remains inspiring to this day. The Line has Shattered examines how a rising generation was inspired to embrace new, open forms of poetry, and the field of poetry itself as a meaningful experience for a lifetime's work.

Following the film, there will be a panel discussion lead by Robert McTavish, with guests Roy McSkimming, Robert Hogg and William Hawkins.

Robert McTavish’s documentary films include What to make of it all? The life and poetry of John Newlove and The Line has Shattered: Vancouver’s Landmark 1963 Poetry Conference. He is the editor of A Long Continual Argument: The Selected Poems of John Newlove (Chaudière Books, Ottawa, 2007) and his radio work includes the documentary Phyllis Webb: The Art of Ideas for CBC Radio’s IDEAS.

Check the VERSeFest website for other events.

author spotlight #2: rob mclennan,

Chaudiere Books is publishing Ottawa writer rob mclennan’s first collection of short fiction, The Uncertainty Principle: stories, later this spring, launching as part of the Plan 99 Reading Series at The Manx Pub in Ottawa on Saturday, May 10, 2014. Some of the stories from this collection, as well as from a subsequent work-in-progress, have appeared online at The Barnstormer, Reader's Digest Canada, matchbooklit, fortunates and Sassafras Literary Magazine, as well as quite a number posted to his blog: here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here (for example). A short write-up by the author on composing the form of the short short story also appears at matchbooklit. Other short fiction has appeared online in Numero Cinq, the author's blog and The Puritan, with short essays on composing fiction at The Town Crier, The Puritan and at his blog. American writer Eileen R. Tabios was good enough to do a short write-up on the work-in-progress, here.

Born in Ottawa, Canada’s glorious capital city, rob mclennan [photo credit: Christine McNair] currently lives in Ottawa. The author of more than twenty trade books of poetry, fiction and non-fiction, he won the John Newlove Poetry Award in 2010, and was longlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2012. This spring also sees the publication of a second collection of literary essays, notes and dispatches: essays (Insomniac press, 2014). Other recent titles include the poetry collection Songs for little sleep, (Obvious Epiphanies, 2012), and a second novel, missing persons (2009). An editor and publisher, he runs above/ground press, Chaudiere Books, The Garneau Review, seventeen seconds: ajournal of poetry and poetics and the Ottawa poetry pdf annual ottawater. He spent the 2007-8 academic year in Edmonton as writer-in-residence at the University of Alberta, and regularly posts reviews, essays, interviews and other notices at robmclennan.blogspot.com

Some recent rob mclennan activity includes a four-part essay on "writing fatherhood" over at Open Book: Ontario, the essay "on writing (and not writing" over at the ottawa poetry newsletter, a write-up at Apartment613 and an article/interview by the Ottawa Citizen, as well as new and newish poems at Connotation Press Online, n/a, Thunderclap and posit.

John Newlove : 70 Canadian Poets, ed. Gary Geddes

Chaudiere Books author John Newlove has poems in the new 70 Canadian Poets (Oxford University Press), edited by Gary Geddes. Newly released this month, this anthology is a continuation of the '15 Canadian Poets' series he's been editing for Oxford University Press for nearly forty years. We can't wait to see our copy!

Amanda Earl, VERSeFest 2014 + the VERSeOttawa Hall of Honour

Amanda Earl posts on her upcoming gig and VERSeOttawa Hall of Honour award at this year's VERSeFest (as well as some other good things), over at her blog.

Association of Canadian Publishers' meeting, 2014

We were fortunate enough to attend the Association of Canadian Publishers' 2014 mid-winter meeting in Toronto recently. Conjoined with a meeting of the Literary Press Group (of which we are a member), we were able to take turns attending sessions throughout the weekend (as Rose the Intern allowed).

One of the highlights was a session on book reviewing [photo, left], with panelists Jared Bland from the Globe and Mail, Stuart Woods from Quill and Quire and Mark Medley from The National Post, lovingly moderated by ECW Press' own Jack David.

We were able to interact with LPG staff (all of whom are wonderful), and members of both organizations, including Karen Green from Anvil Press, Brian Henderson of Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Kitty Lewis of Brick Books, Linda Cameron of the University of Alberta Press [who snapped and posted this mid-conference photo of us on facebook], Alana Wilcox of Coach House Books, Silas White of Nightwood Editions, Michael Mirolla of Guernica Editions, Hazel and Jay MillAr of BookThug, and plenty of others.

We learned many things, had plenty good fun and managed to interact with friends old and new alike, including many who were amazed that we were able to attend a conference at all with a two-month-old (which would have been far more difficult had we not been staying in the same hotel where the conference was being held). Now if we could only get her to help fill out grant applications.

Marcus McCann in Niagara Falls and Hamilton

Chaudiere Books author Marcus McCann has two upcoming readings you should be aware of:

In Niagara Falls: Grey Borders Reading Series
w/ Dani Couture & Ralph Kolewe
7pm, Fri, Feb 28, 2014.
Niagara Artist Centre, 354 St Paul st.

In Hamilton: LitLive Reading Series
w/ Jim Smith, Christine McNair, Andrew Faulkner & others
7:30pm, Sun, March 2, 2014.
Sky Dragon centre, 27 King William St.

For information on further McCann readings and appearances, check out his events page, here.

Robert McTavish helps annotate Bobbie Louise Hawkins' home movies of Robert Creeley and friends

Robert McTavish, documentary filmmaker and editor of A Long Continual Argument: The Selected Poems of John Newlove (Chaudiere Books, 2007) helped Penelope Creeley annotate some home video footage. As Charles Bernstein posts at Jacket2:

Bobbie Louise Hawkins took these home movies from 1962 to 1965. She provided them to Robert McTavish for his film about the Vancouver poetry conference of 1963, The Line Has Shattered (2013), and then asked McTavish to send them to PennSound.  Penelope Creeley and McTavish provided most of the annotations. We welcome any further identifications: let us know!

McTavish will be in Ottawa in March 2014 as part of VERSeFest to present his documentary film, The Line Has Shattered (2013), including a panel discussion with Ottawa-based 1963 Vancouver Poetry Conference participants Robert Hogg, William Hawkins and Roy MacSkimming. Check the VERSeFest 2014 website for updates when we have them.

ottawater #10 : Dolman, Lea, Le Dressay, Massey + Prevost,

The tenth issue of the Ottawa poetry pdf annual ottawater is now online at www.ottawater.com, featuring work by Chaudiere Books authors Anita Dolman, N.W. Lea, Anne Le Dressay, Karen Massey and Roland Prevost, along with numerous others.

author spotlight: Amanda Earl,

By now you've heard that Chaudiere Books is publishing Ottawa poet Amanda Earl's first trade poetry collection this fall, tentatively titled "Kiki." But who, you ask, is Amanda Earl?

One of the city's most active writers, Amanda Earl [photo credit: Charles Earl] is a poet, publisher and pornographer from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Amanda's most recent chapbooks are the 2012 chapbook Sex First & Then A Sandwich (her third chapbook with above/ground press) and Me, Medusa (Red Ceilings Press, UK, 2012). Her poetry appears in magazines such as Rampike, the White Wall Review, filling Station, along with both online and print journals in Australia, Canada, England, France, Ireland and the USA. Amanda is a small press fanatic and a chapbook addict. Site: www.amandaearl.com; Twitter: @KikiFolle
 
Her visual poetry chapbook in Dan Waber's "this is visual poetry series" is Montparnasse, a project that relates directly to her "Kiki" manuscript, and her Tumblr account celebrates the spirit of Montparnasse: amandaearl.tumblr.com

Some recent Amanda Earl activity includes a lengthy interview at magenta: a uOttawa website, an essay Earl wrote on composing ghazals over at The Town Crier, the new DevilHousePress imprint she edits/publishes, a poem posted as part of the Tuesday poem series over at the dusie blog, inclusion in the "Women of Visual Poetry" issue of The Volta, and the announcement that Amanda Earl will be one of two people induced into the 2014 VerseOttawa Hall of Honour this March!

Chaudiere author N.W. Lea at The Factory Reading Series

Chaudiere Books author N.W. Lea (formerly known as Nicholas Lea), author of Everything is movies (Chaudiere Books, 2007), launches a new poetry chapbook at The Factory Reading Series, Ottawa, on February 6, 2014, alongside m erskine and Hugh Thomas.

Weird Canada reviews Michael Bryson's The Lizard and Other Stories

Joshua Robinson was good enough to review Toronto writer Michael Bryson's The Lizard and Other Stories (Chaudiere Books, 2010) over at Weird Canada. Thanks, Joshua! This is actually the seventh review of Bryson's ReLit award-shortlisted short story collection. Back when the book originally appeared, Bryson kept far better track of such than we did, highlighting links back to the sixth, fifth, fourth, third, second and first, here.

Catherine Owen reviews Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press, 2003-2013

Poet and critic Catherine Owen provides a second review of Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press, 2003-2013 (Chaudiere Books, 2013) over at her blog, following on the heels of Ryan Pratt's review over at the ottawa poetry newsletter. Thanks, Catherine!

Although she does speak of omissions, wondering where particular authors are. How else does one boil down hundreds of publications into a single volume, without omitting someone? As well, the book deliberately worked to steer clear of works that had been reprinted since (such as Phil Hall) in single-author trade works.

Q&A with rob mclennan: Rebuilding a local literary empire

Ottawa Citizen Arts-Editor-At-Large Peter Simpson interviewed me for an article posted today on Chaudiere Books' rebuilding year, and includes announcements on our forthcoming Indiegogo Campaign, as well as poetry titles we're publishing later this year by Amanda Earl and Monty Reid. And of course, a lovely photograph of myself, Christine McNair and Rose the Intern. Thanks much, Mr. Simpson!

Ryan Pratt reviews Ground Rules: the best of the second deacde of above/ground press, 2003-2013

Our friend Ryan Pratt reviews Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press, 2003-2013 (Chaudiere Books, 2013) over at the ottawa poetry newsletter. Thanks, Ryan!

rob mclennan's short story, "Character sketch,"

"Character sketch," a short story by rob mclennan which originally appeared in the Atlas Review, has now been posted over at his blog.

Marcus McCann in The Steel Chisel

We seem to have missed it (somehow), but here's a new poem by Marcus McCann from the September 2013 issue of The Steel Chisel.

Amanda Earl's AngelHousePress introduces DevilHouse

Amanda Earl's AngelHousePress introduces DevilHouse, a transgressive new imprint w/ interviews by literary transgressors M. M Dot Christian, Kathleen Bradean, Sean Moreland & Mark McCawley, & a call for work: devilhousepress.com