The Harvest Begins, and Things to Come

Labor Day is behind us, the days are a little cooler, and the harvest is starting to come in, both literally and metaphorically.

My yield includes a few poems recently published online.

The first is "Along the Potomac," which appears in the current issue of Able Muse. I would like to take this opportunity to thank editor Alex Pepple for including me among much better-known poets.

The second and third are two poems, "Nocturne" and "Elegy", which appear in the current issue of Innisfree Poetry Journal, graciously edited by Greg McBride.

Finally, The Poetry Section of New York blog The Awl, edited by poet Mark Bibbins, features my poem "The Vikings". No football team is explicitly cited.

In other news, this blog will be introducing a couple of changes. The first will involve interviews and guest blog posts. Later this month, first up will be Henry Perez, author of the thrillers Killing Red and Mourn the Living. My second guest will be Sue Guiney, author of the novel Tangled Roots and the soon-to-be-released novel A Clash of Innocents.

The second change will be my occasional commentary on literary topics other than my own publications and events.

Before long I also plan to provide a small report on what I did during my summer vacation.

You may want to keep checking in.

Round-Up

These posts usually mention only one topic at a time, but a lot of news has come in over the past few days.

This post therefore lists several items in a round-up, not to be confused with one of the brand names of the herbicide glyphosate, which looms large in controversies surrounding genetically modified organisms in agriculture.

This round-up should engender less controversy, but perhaps a certain amount of interest.
To wit:

1. Literary agent Robin Mizell interviewed me last Friday on her blog Treated & Released. She graciously gave me a considerable amount of valuable online real estate to discuss The Best Mariachi in the World/El Mejor Mariachi del Mundo as well as work that is very much not for children.

2. My poem "Dachshunds of Buenos Aires" appears in Issue 55 of legendary literary magazine Gargoyle. After many years of trying, I have managed to place a poem there. Still, I have to live the rest of my life knowing that I may never come up with a better title for a poem.

3. My poem "Lullaby for the Bereaved" appears in the Winter Issue of Able Muse. Come for my poem, and stay for work by many fine poets as well as a tribute to the late Turner Cassity.

4. I have begun discussing revisions of my one-act play "Dig" with members and affiliates of CurvingRoad in London as we begin the long journey toward a June engagement at a venue to be named nex month. I am a bit intimidated by the whole thing, but there is no choice but to press on and learn something.

5. I am even now starting preparations for next May's Book Expo America. The time for my signing has not yet been determined, but I have put in for a slot and will make the information known as soon as possible.

The last few days have also included rejections of both prose and poetry, including one of my two circulating book manuscripts, but those are much less enjoyable to discuss.