Fiction Gets Snubbed

April 30, 2012April 30, 2012Leave a comment

In mid-April, the 2012 Pulitzer Prize winners were announced, covering photography, journalism, poetry, and non-fiction, but for the first time in 35 years, no award was given to a fiction writer. According to an article by Publishers Weekly, this was the first time the board did not grant an award to a fiction writer since 1977, and only the ninth time this has happened since 1918, when the prize was first awarded.

The article also mentions that the fiction finalists were Train Dreams by Denis Johnson (Farrar, Straus and Giroux), Swamplandia! by Karen Russell (Knopf), and The Pale King by David Foster Wallace (Little, Brown). Susan Larson, Maureen Corrigan, and Michael Cunningham were the fiction judges.

After researching this a little more, I could find no reason why a fiction award was not given out. Is it some sort of reflection and statement on the state of the American novel and contemporary American fiction? Maybe we’ll never know, but Larson did tell NPR that she and the author jurists were “shocked and angry” that the fiction category was not granted an award.

As for poetry, Tracy K. Smith won for her collection Life on Mars. Smith just turned 40 and currently teaches at Princeton. Her book was published by the well-known indie publisher Graywolf Press.

For a full list of the winners, click here.

A Little Treasure in Binghamton

April 28, 2012April 28, 2012Leave a comment

More and more, independent bookstores are becoming an endangered species, thanks to Amazon and some other factors. But last night, I had the pleasure of partaking in a reading at a great indie bookstore as part of the launch party for the new issue of Harpur Palate, in which my poem “After Work” appears. RiverRead Books in Binghamton is located at 5 Court Street, right in the downtown, and only minutes from the SUNY Binghamton’s campus, if you’re traveling by car. Each section of the store is fairly expansive, and they have a section dubbed “slightly used books” in which you can find some classic literature and also some more contemporary works for a cheap price.

From what I observed last night, RiverRead Books is also a vital part of the community, hosting several events beyond the Harpur Palate launch party. If you are tri-state area writer, I suggest trying to book a reading there with local writers. Last night, we had around 70 people at the reading, including many college students, but I think the bookstore also worked hard to promote the reading. If you are in semi-close proximity to Binghamton, I recommend visiting the bookstore and supporting the local business.

You can learn more about RiverRead Books by visiting its website here. To check out Harpur Palate, click here.

What Should M.F.A. Programs Be Teaching?

April 25, 2012April 25, 2012Leave a comment

Lately, I have been doing some research into M.F.A. programs, other than the one I attended, and what these various programs offer. I am doing this because more and more students I had or currently have in creative writing classes are asking me about the value of an M.F.A. and what such a degree will offer. I do think a lot of the low-residency programs are cash cows that will accept almost anyone and don’t have to worry about paying faculty full-time. But I also believe there are strong M.F.A. programs with faculty that care about the students and generally want to help them enhance their writing skills and expand their knowledge of literature. I got a lot out of the M.F.A. program I attended at Wilkes University. It certainly widened my scope of literature, and it improved my writing.

That said, I think M.F.A. programs need to consider what they are promising students. A lot of students come out of the programs hoping to immediately land full-time jobs in academia, and for the final few semesters, certain M.F.A. programs only offer a teaching track. But full-time positions at the college-level are scarce, and they’re becoming even rarer due to budget cuts across several states. It also seems like most openings now require a Ph.D. So perhaps M.F.A. programs should offer alternatives, other career choices, such as publishing, or even freelance work. There are several freelance jobs out there that can earn a writer income. Another aspect of the writing process M.F.A. programs should consider teaching more is the business of publishing and signing a contract. It is true most M.F.A. students generally want to strengthen their writing skills and learn about influential movements in their genre of study, but they also want to publish. They want to see their name in print and get a book out there.

As I was doing research, I came across a blog post that argues M.F.A. programs do not do enough to teach young writers the business aspect of publishing, especially the issue of contracts, cover letters, agent letters, etc. Because of that, sometimes young writers get swindled and sign a poor contract.

Here is a link to the blog post. The post was published in November 2010, after a story about defamed author James Frey, who was visiting Columbia and other universities and basically getting M.F.A. students to sign contracts to help him with a book packaging/marketing project. The article points out that before these students interacted with Frey, who became famous after lying about incidents in his memoir, they should have had classes on understanding publishing contracts.

The blog post serves as a reminder that a lot of M.F.A. programs should broaden their course material and give students access to information about the nature of the publishing business, especially if some students are more interested in publishing than teaching.

Harpur Palate Launch Party

April 24, 2012Leave a comment

If you’re looking for something to do this weekend, you should celebrate National Poetry Month by checking out the Harpur Palate Launch Party.

Harpur Palate is a journal run through the graduate English program of SUNY Binghamton. Its past issues have included new and established voices, including Sherman Alexie. This event will feature readings by four contributors to the new issue, including William Cordeiro, Anna Catone, Benjamin Nadler, and I, as well as the winner of an intern-sponsored writing contest.

Refreshments will be served, including wine, cheese and cracker platters, and desserts including a chocolate fondue fountain. This event will be held at RiverRead Books in downtown Binghamton, on Court Street. It starts at 7 p.m.

Blogs as Literature?

April 22, 2012April 22, 20129 Comments

Recently, the editors of the New York Times posed an interesting question on their blog, Paper Cuts. Are blogs literature? The question was posed in response to the latest book by the Portuguese novelist José Saramago’s entitled The Notebook, a collection of blog posts he created from September 2008 to August 2009, encouraged by his family and friends. According to the Times, The Notebook is mostly a collection of mini essays, shorter than most journalism articles. By the end of their blog post, the editors answer their own question by stating that no, blogs are not literature. They base their conclusion on a belief that most blog posts are “too topical” and “too fleeting” to count as literature. Their write-up concludes by stating Jose gave up on blogging after about a year because he started a new novel and wanted to dedicate all of his time to that.

A lot of the blogs I have come across offer interviews with other writers, blurbs about various readings, and responses to magazine and journal articles, and of course, politics. But are there any well-known writers out there that use a blog to post sweeping, riveting narrative essays or short stories? Are there poets out there that post finished work on a blog? I have always hesitated to do so because I am more interested in sending that work off to journals, and some editors will not touch a poem if it has appeared anywhere else, including on a blog.

But as blogging continues to grow in popularity, will how we blog change? Will writers use this particular medium to post drafts, revisions, and finished products of a longer work? Will they gather various blog posts and publish them as a collection that will be considered “literature?” The experiment did not work for José Saramago, but could it work for another writer one day?

Does Facebook Make Us Lonely?

April 19, 2012April 19, 20122 Comments

The Atlantic just published a thought-provoking article regarding the impact of Facebook and whether or not it is making us lonely. Check out the article here. The article begins with the story of the death of Yvette Vickers, a former Playboy playmate and B-movie actress who starred in Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. She would have been 83 last August, but no one knows how old she was when she died. According to the coroner’s report, she lay dead for about a year before a neighbor noticed cobwebs and yellowing letters in her mailbox. The former actress’ mummified body was found with her computer still turned on, and the article reports that Vickers was not part of any local community group and no longer had a close circle of family or friends. Instead, she only stayed in touch with fans and friends she made via the Internet.

The article goes on to propose that Facebook and social media provide a false sense of community and connection, and though some people may feel they are more connected than ever due to Facebook and similar sites, statistics show that is actually not true. The article states, “A 2010 AARP survey found that 35 percent of adults older than 45 were chronically lonely, as opposed to 20 percent of a similar group only a decade earlier. According to a major study by a leading scholar of the subject, roughly 20 percent of Americans—about 60 million people—are unhappy with their lives because of loneliness.”

The article also points out all of the negative impacts of loneliness, including memory loss, obesity, and hormonal imbalance. Some of the key evidence used to promote the article’s main thesis comes from a study done by Moria Burker, who was a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon. She said the most destructive use of Facebook is what she labels “non-personalized use,” meaning scanning your friends’ status updates and updating the work of your own activities via your wall. The article summarizes Burke’s research by stating, ” It’s a lonely business, wandering the labyrinths of our friends’ and pseudo-friends’ projected identities, trying to figure out what part of ourselves we ought to project, who will listen, and what they will hear. According to Burke, passive consumption of Facebook also correlates to a marginal increase in depression”

Personally, I think Facebook and other social media have their positives, especially for writers. It sure makes promotion easier, but the issue of constant self-presentation is not healthy and it can indeed lead to a feeling of disconnect, or perhaps ego. As the article points out, humans should not have to worry about waking up and immediately deciding which aspect of themselves to present to the world, which they now do via updating their Facebook status or Twitter.

I am fortunate enough to live with a wonderful girlfriend and to be part of a circle of friends and writers who I see nearly every weekend. Social media can never replace the benefits of true face-to-face interaction and real time community. Face-to-face interaction is also one of the reasons I love teaching. I allows me to interact with people daily and connect with them.Unfortunately, though, I think some folks, hope to find community and interaction solely through social media and the Internet, and as The Atlantic points out, that can have dire consequences on one’s physical and mental health. Yvette Wickers is a sad example of that.

National Poetry Month Readings

April 17, 2012April 17, 2012Leave a comment

I’m happy to announce that I’ll be taking part in two big readings for National Poetry Month. The first will take place this Thursday, April 19 at the Library Express Bookstore. It starts at 6:30 p.m. I’ll be reading with local poets Scott Thomas and Dawn Leas, as well as John Amen, author of three collections of poetry and editor of the award-winning journal The Pedestal Magazine. The event is free and open to the public, and we will have books for sale.

There has been some nice press about this reading. Go Lackawanna ran a story recently about it and all of the literary events the Library Express has hosted. Check it out here. WVIA’s ArtScene radio program also ran an interview Scott, Dawn, and I did with Erika Funke. You can listen to the interview here. It is the second link on the page.

The second reading I’m doing for National Poetry Month will take place on Friday, April 27. It is the launch party for the new issue of Harpur Palate, in which my poem “After Work” appears. I’m reading with three or four other poets whose work also appears in the issue. That event will begin at 7 p.m., and it will take place at RiverRead Books in Binghamton New York. It is also free and open to the public.

That store is also hosting Christine Gelineau this Friday at 6:30 p.m. She is a fantastic poet, and if you are in the area, you should check out her reading.

Beyond National Poetry Month

April 12, 2012Leave a comment

It is April again, the one month of the year when schools and other institutions care about poetry and invite poets to give readings, lectures, or workshops. About a year ago, I was asked to write something regarding National Poetry Month for the blog/website The Write Life, which is run through the Wilkes University M.F.A. program. An idea for an article came to me after I saw that Oprah had dedicated a whole issue of her magazine, O, to poetry for April, highlighting mostly mainstream poets such as Billy Collins and Mary Oliver. The magazine drew some debate and criticism, including an article written by David Orr for the New York Times. The main point of my article was to weigh the pros and the cons of National Poetry Month and to stress that poets and poetry lovers need to look beyond National Poetry Month in terms of getting people to care about the genre. This involves teaching workshops in the community, sharing work of other poets at readings, and blending poetry with other art genres. The article was first published a year ago, but it is still relevant.

You can check out my article here. Let me know what you think in terms of looking beyond the month of April and getting people to care about poetry for more than 30 days a year.

American Poet

April 9, 2012Leave a comment

I just finished a novel that I want to recomend. It is entitled American Poet, written by Jeff Vande Zande, who started out writing poetry but now focuses on fiction. The novel centers around Denver Hoptner, a recent college grad frustrated with his hometown of Saginaw, MI, as he struggles to find a job with his B.F.A. in poetry. Anyone who graduated college with a fine arts degree can probably relate to the protagonist’s sense of isolation and doubt.

The novel is loaded with well-crafted scenes that anyone involved in a writing community can relate to. One of my favorites is an open mic scene that spans a few pages and includes a writer who insists on being called Coyote and howls after every poem. I am sure most of us have suffered through open mics just as painful, if not more so. In another memorable scene, Denver is interviewed by a bank manager for a teller position, and the manager pokes fun at his B.F.A. in poetry, saying the poetry stuff is a real “head scratcher” to most people. The employer’s comments follow a moment in which Denver tries to explain to the banker a course he took in scansion, making chopping motions in the air with his hands to try to explain dividing poetic lines into feet and leaving Denver to comment, “The face he made suggested he was trying to figure out what mental disorder I might have.”

The story also highlights father/son relationships, specifically the relationship Denver has with his blue-collar father, which evolves as Denver changes for the better throughout the novel. The book also cautions against writing programs that breed writers who care solely about publishing credits rather than building community and supporting other writers.

I am writing a review of the book that will eventually appear over at PANK. When the review is live, I will post a link on here. Until then, you should check out the book, which is available here.

Ordering a Manuscript

April 5, 2012April 5, 2012Leave a comment

The other day, acclaimed poet Patricia Smith visited Keystone College for a reading. Before her performance, a student asked for advice on the order of poems in a manuscript. Her advice was unique and challenged my notion of how to structure a book of poems. Time and time again, I have been told that you should place your strongest poems in the beginning and the end of the manuscript to start and end the book with a bang. But Smith offered different advice, that you should place your strongest work in the middle of the manuscript because it is by that point you really want to keep and maintain the reader’s attention. You should think of a manuscript like a short story or novel, with rising action, a climax, and resolution. That climax should happen in the middle of the book.

She said this is especially important when you have a collection that does not follow a narrative arc or particular thread. Perhaps more importantly, she advised to simply follow your gut and trust your own familiarity with the poems to decide where to place them.

Her advice was also useful to me because I have until the end of the summer to make major changes to my full-length collection of poems before Unbound Content and my editor begin the layout process. So, I have been questioning the order of the poems, now that I have a limited window to change it. But, like Smith said, I am going to trust my own gut and instincts on this.

I am curious what the process of manuscript creation and the order of poems has been like for other writers. Is there an easy solution?

Brian Fanelli

Poet. Educator. Horror Blogger.