B. Z. Nidith's Boston, Fall and Other Poems

B. Z. Niditch has been a feature on Poet Hound before, check out my interview with him about his collection called Portraits Here: B. Z. Niditch's Portraits
Mr. Niditch’s book, Boston, Fall and Other Poems was published by Encircle Publications, LLC in 2008 and is based out of his experiences in Harvard and places around Massachusetts. The poems are divided into two parts, Part I is titled Harvard Square, Part II is titled Diary. The poems in both sections are beautiful and expressive while encompassing small moments around campus or on the water. Below I will share some small samples:

In a poem titled “Public Gardens” I am enchanted by the sight described by Niditch: “planting your steps/by sacks of rose petals/in public gardens,/noon day seems endless/and a friend waits up.” I can’t help but wonder what the sacks of rose petals are for while he watches his friend and ends this short poem with “for a deafened half-hour/your arms are sealed/by wheel barrels/or rose tattoos.” I like the image of “rose tattoos” of petals clinging to bare arms as they are carried. It is a moment in time that leaves me wanting more.

In “Diary” the lines begin as “By the troubled river/you write Tuesday/on footsteps of a page/the charred diary/moves to the opposite shore/of flagging remorse…” I wonder if the diary is the owner’s or has been recently discovered. Again, Mr. Niditch reveals just enough and uses interesting images such as “on footsteps of a page” to entice us to read further. The one holding the diary is looking out on the water “in regret,/watching sparrows/…on an abandoned landscape/” and Niditch continues to observe in silence “you touch the water/with your tender fingertips/in clumsiness of enigmas/and feel hatless/and anonymous/to your own signature.” This is how he concludes the poem, he ends it in a way I think we can all relate to when we are feeling sad or lost. “anonymous/to your own signature” are powerful words as they sink in. This is another poem that says just enough and leaves me wanting more of the story.

“The Insomniac” is a clever description of a sleepless night which made me smile. The entire first stanza is superb but I will give just the tail end of it: “flashlights play with you/trembling, “time out”/and the alarm clock/refuses to speak.” Any sleepless night means frequent glances at the alarm clock and the endless consternation of time passing slower and slower. Those lines are a perfect portrayal. The second stanza is just as superb but of course I can only give you a small piece: “tossing from sea beds/rolled in blankets/of deafened nights/bent over sleepy wilderness.” You can easily liken the rolling, restless slumberer to rolling in underwater “sea beds” or being lost in the imaginary “sleepy wilderness.” His words allow your imagination to run while also evoking empathy for the insomniac in the poem.

If you enjoyed this review you will be happy to know this book is still available at Encircle Publications for just under $12.00. I hope that you will enjoy these beautiful poems as much as I do and it may be in your local library, so it would be worth taking a look.

Thanks always for reading, please stop by tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

Gloom Cupboard's New Editor

Richard Wink at Gloom Cupboard is welcoming a new poetry editor on board, her name is Dorla Moorehouse and you can now submit your poetry to her at dorlamoorhouseATgmailDOTcom when you check out guidelines using the link below:


http://www.gloomcupboard.com/


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Hayden's Ferry Review Open Submissions

This journal based out of Arizona State University is open to submissions year round! Please address Poetry submissions to editor Rose Swartz and Prose submissions to editors to Brian Lee or Arijit Sen. You may send up to six poems via snail mail (be sure your contact information is included on each page) with a self-enclosed stamped envelope to:

Hayden’s Ferry Reviewc/o Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative WritingArizona State UniversityPO Box 875002Tempe, AZ 85287-5002

For further details, click the link below:
http://www.asu.edu/clas/pipercwcenter/publications/haydensferryreview/submit.html

Good luck to all who submit, please stop in next week...

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20294
“The Violet” by Jane Taylor


http://www.versedaily.org/2009/agreatwhirring.shtml
“A Great Whirring” by Bruce Snider


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Angelic Dynamo Site

Thank you, Juliet Wilson, of http://craftygreenpoet.blogspot.com who sent this link to me and I pass it on to you… Juliet says they longlist poems and allow everyone to vote on them before including them in their paper journal. When you get to the first page it says “Poetry and Democracy” which is a fabulous concept! Oh, and be sure to scroll down when you click on each link on the first page, the poems are linked under “vote.”

Check it out at:
http://www.angelicdynamo.com/


Sorry everyone, I only had time to get posts for Wednesday and Thursday so check back Wednesday, and thanks for dropping in….

Poetry Tips: Be a Kid

Remember when you were a kid and you’d get the bright and seriously fun idea of creating your own newspaper? Or magazine? How about exclusive clubhouses and forts? Well for this week I urge you to be a kid about poetry. Start up your own journal, chapbook, poetry magazine, scrapbook, or “community bulletin board” (refrigerators are good examples) or Official Poetry Club and see what you can do with your poems and even with poems from people you know. Get out the construction paper, scissors, glue, use your computer, digital camera, go wild! Peddle it to family members, drop it in unsuspecting neighbors’ mailboxes, e-mail it on a massive FWD: list. Create your own special something and share it, just like you did when you were a kid inviting your parents into your tiny fort or asking siblings and friends to help provide material for your newspaper. The only rule is to have fun!

Thanks for stopping by, posts for next week may or may not be available because I’m going on vacation over the weekend but I will try to have a few days covered next week…

Open Submissions: The New Yorker

That’s right, I mentioned The New Yorker, think you’ve got what it takes? If so, you may send up to six poems as an attachment and be sure your subject line on the e-mail includes your name and the title of your attachment. Don’t forget to include all of your contact information in the e-mail and be forewarned that due to volume there may not be a personal response to your submission. You can send your e-mail to:
poetryATnewyorkerDOTcom

Or you can mail your poems with a self-addressed, stamped return envelope to:
Poetry Dept.
The New Yorker
4 Times Square
New York, NY 10036

The New Yorker editors also note that poets should only submit twice per year so be sure to send only your best.

Good luck to all who submit and thanks for dropping in! Please stop in tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://juked.com/2009/06/emily.asp
“Emily as Innumerable Cigarettes” by Darren C. Demaree

http://www.brooklynrail.org/2009/06/poetry/botanical
“Botanical” by Kristen Gallagher

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Short Shots by Alan Catlin

Alternating Current features Alan Catlin’s collection titled Short Shots in their Pocket Protector Series as their 8th installment. Alan Catlin is raw and fresh in his portrayal of bar life and its characters which he divides into two sections titled “Part One: Short” and “Part Two: Shots.” Here are a few chosen poems:


Tequila Sunset

The inside of his head
a perfect tequila azul,
his wet brain soaking in
a lemon-lime emulsion;
the salt lick of his lips
white as death.


The descriptive language of this poem is superb, don’t you think?



One ski pole broken off at
the point, the other implanted
in ice, just a slight handicap
to make life more interesting
on those nights you could hear
him calling out from a mile away
as he made his way toward the bar.

An eerie poem, you can imagine any sort of man coming out of the darkness and causing goose bumps to rise on your skin with this poem.



Pink Lady

She sat on the veranda
dressed in pink lace,
sipping her cocktails as
proper as could be,
letting the cool, summer
air surround her, creating
an aura, a still life, complete
with a quarter moon overhead.
It was well known that her
table was reserved every
Saturday night all summer long.
Was some kind of local legend:
hot like fire but fragile like
porcelain or glass, creating a mood,
a space, that no one would dare violate.
In the Winter she vanishes.
No one knows where she goes.

This is another great character description and makes me want to visit outdoor cafes and imagine other people’s lives. Or, perhaps be the Pink Lady.



If you enjoyed these poems, you’ll be happy to hear the chapbook is only $3.00 at the Propaganda Press Catalog. Alan Catlin’s Short Shots is #8 in the Pocket Protector Series which means it literally fits in the palm of your hand and delivers snapshots of its characters and of bar life in palatable form. Remember that with every chapbook you order, Altnerating Current throws in a free chapbook from archives and pays royalties to their poets, a win-win for all.

Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

Marc Fitten's Indie 100

Before you lose faith that independent book-stores are headed for the end, check out this delightful blog by Marc Fitten in which his travels reveal the local independent bookshops in all of their glory. I know I fell in love with several featured stores and while this site isn’t devoted to poetry it is devoted to the home we wish to find it in. Check it out at:


http://indie100mfitten.wordpress.com/

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Poetry Tips: School's Out For Summer

For many of us, summer means vacations, breaks in attending classes, or being able to swim in the pool again. Summer also seems to be a season where there are many more events to attend and places to go, people to see, all which can be ample inspiration for poems. I keep a tiny notebook in my car now (don’t worry, I don’t write and drive) so that as I pull up to a state park or sit in traffic watching kids eating ice cream cones outside I can write down what I see to use it later. I suggest you do the same. Don’t forget your cameras either! Now is the time to get out of the house and go out into the world. Plus, you most likely have some more freedom in your schedule these days with vacation days or “call-in-sick-to-work-but-not-really-sick” days, etc. Keep some note-cards and notebooks in easy to reach places along with spare pens and pencils and you’ll be able to produce some new poems for freshening up existing manuscripts or creating new ones. You’ll also have more poems to send out to journals and on-line presses once Fall rolls around and more editors are looking for submissions. Have fun in the sun and may the muse bless you!

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by on Monday for another featured site…

Albatross Open Submissions

You can send between 3-5 poems, not exceeding 200 lines, with all of your contact information on each page via snail mail with a self-addressed stamped envelope included to the following address:

Albatross
Editor Richard Smyth
2 South New Street
Bradford, MA 01835

You can also E-mail by pasting poems into the body of the e-mail with your name in the subject line and head your e-mail with your contact information to: rsmythATanabiosispressDOTorg

There are many more details included if you click on the link below:
http://www.anabiosispress.org/guides.html
Good luck to all of you who submit, please stop by tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://english.chass.ncsu.edu/freeverse/Archives/Winter_2008/poems/M_Manning.html
Maurice Manning’s “The Rainy Night in Kentucky”

http://www.fringelit.com/poetry/dreamtalk.html
William James’ “Dream Talk”

Thanks for clicking in, please check in tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

The Bones of Saints Under Glass by Jeff Fleming

Jeff is the editor of nibble, a poetry magazine, and his current collection of poems titled The Bones of Saints Under Glass is published by Alternating Current and is filled with sentimental memories, abstract moments, and life lessons learned through his family members. The cover is also done by Hosho McCreesh, whose poetry has been featured on this blog before as well and I thought it worth mentioning. Jeff Fleming’s poems keep me in my seat and I am happy to share several of them with you:


The Bones of Saints Under Glass

I am hiking,
booted feet

covering much ground
over small hills.

There is no trail before me
but a rough, jagged path

flows out behind,
slowly disappearing

as the plants I’ve crushed
stand upright again.

I stop, near a cluster
of yellow flowers,

because of something
bleached white,

a long-dead bird,
now only bones.

I’ve come upon
this tiny,

hollow skeleton
cradled in the space

between two
small shrubs

and what comes
to mind

is the bones of Saints
under glass.


I thought it appropriate to include the poem which inspired the title of the collection. I think the ending lines are beautiful and demonstrate the delicate, fragile nature of Mr. Fleming’s discovery in the woods. I also love that the trail disappears behind him as he blazes his own path just as any traveler must make his own way in life.



The Youngest One Stopped

This morning, I yelled
at my kids
so loud my throat hurt.

I could tell you why,
write it all
down, but so what?
It wouldn’t matter,
not to you
and certainly not to them.

What matters is
the oldest
started crying
and the youngest one
stopped.


Many households have seen this happen and I like poets who include real-life anecdotes in their collections. We can all relate to this in some way and smile at the result.



Every Saturday Night

I called the police
after three days
because I thought
you’d gone off
on another bender,
but they never
found you.

I have nothing
but a few clothes
and your old car.

No body to bury,
no grave to visit,
no ashes to spread,

just an ’87 T-bird
with a cracked
windshield, a busted
taillight and a rearview
mirror that falls
on the floor
with every good
bump in the road.

I take the car
out every Saturday
night and drive
until it runs
out of gas,

then I sit at the side
of the road –
headlights burning
small holes in the night –
until the battery dies.

This poem is full of mystery since we don’t know who he is referring to. Friend? Girlfriend? Parent? Relative? Newspaper article? We are left just as lost as the poet who only has the car and its pitiful state left as evidence of what may have happened but remains empty of answers. It’s a fascinating poem that leaves me wanting more.



My Only Companion

It’s all darkness here
and clouds.
The road runs south,
away from you,
and my only companion
is the never-ending rope
of power lines rising
and falling lazily
from one massive steel
tower to the next –
like robots –
and I expect any moment
they will seize
my truck and fling
me into a nearby
cornfield, I will
roll over and over,
steel bending,
glass shattering,
until we become
a tight ball
rolling through
the heart-
land of America.


This poem is another one we can relate to but takes on a morbid tone that makes it interesting. The hypnotic way power lines rise and fall and then lead the poet into imagining the towering poles to be robots yearning to snatch up his truck and fling it and the people inside into wreckage across a cornfield is a striking image. It’s a poem that can crawl inside your head and wait for your next road trip to reappear inside your mind and I like that.


If you enjoyed these poems you can seize a copy of The Bones of Saints Under Glass for $5.00 through Alternating Current which will also throw in a bonus copy from archives. Remember, poets receive royalties and it is rare to find a small press who is able to pay the poets they publish so please visit Alternating Current to learn more about them. Alternating Current also encourages everyone who receives their chapbooks to review them on blogs, web-sites, etc. to spread the word about their poets and poetry in general.
That is pretty generous and amazing, isn’t it?

Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

Poetic Asides at Writer's Digest

Poetic Asides by Robert Lee Brewer provides writing prompts, interviews, on-line seminars and all kinds of wonderful information. Check it out at:

http://blog.writersdigest.com/poeticasides/

Thanks for dropping in, please stop in tomorrow for another featured poet…