Reading tonight

Quick blurb on the reading tonight. Issue 6.2 of In/Words was released today and it looks fantastic! A whopping 36 pages - our largest issue ever! Featuring writers like Sarah Sheffe, Eric Marsh, Donna Sturmanis, Peter Gibbon, Cameron Anstee and so much more. I encourage everyone to get a copy of this issue and come out to the Open mic tonight at the Avant-Garde Bar, at 133 and 1/2 Besserer St, across from Les Suites Hotel in downtown Ottawa. The show gets underway at 8.

RIP

Just got word of a death in the Ottawa literary community. Poet/small press advocate Riley Tench died yesterday of a heart attack. I'd never heard of him until this morning, but seeing as he's from Peterborough (my hometown) and contributed to the Ottawa lit community (as well as being a human being) my thoughts go out to the family. I'd love to read some of his poetry (and if anyone actually reads this blog could they direct me to some?). RIP Riley.

Couplets regarding the end of the world

An old poem I've been coming back to lately and edited tonight (thanks to a bottle of wine):

I was asked once what I would do
should all life end tomorrow.
I considered all the drugs,
the skydives, the obvious
pleasantries one needs an excuse to do
and blew them all away as
candles wavering at the impatient
souffle from the birthday girl.

Instead I did my best
to compose

couplets regarding the
end of the world

smeared on white pages
with messy black ink

for the birthday girl to read
as the light clicks out.

Mentors

I was thinking earlier today about the importance of mentors in life. So far, in terms of writing, I've had two - my high-school writer's craft teacher, Joe Webster, and the editor-in-chief of In/Words slash canadian lit prof Collett Tracey. Joe always pushed and encouraged (such is the mandate of the teacher, n'est ce pas?); the support was always reassuring and in conjunction with the subject matter in that course was responsible for swaying me from the field of engineering. Collett has brought to light the invaluable yet overlooked niche of canadian literature and the dire need to not let the literary past be forgotten; too many valuable texts are going out of print and too many people are doing nothing about it. Authors are being forgotten; some who should be known will never be appreciated. An unfortunately small number of people will never get the joy of reading Dudek or Souster, though millions will have read the literary atrocity that is Dan Brown. The onus is on us to preserve canadian literature and celebrate it, not let it dwindle into canonical insignificance.

Inaugural post

Promo post: submission for the new issue of In/Words have been compiled and it looks the strongest (and biggest) issue yet. Available this Thursday - launch at the Avant-Garde Bar that night. Visit the website for more details. Also available this thursday - new chapbooks by esteemed poets Cameron Anstee and Amanda Besserer. Make sure to have a copy!