Ongoing notes: early August 2019

[a recently-constructed fort that took up both dining room and a corner of our living room]

Don’t forget the above/ground press anniversary event next week! And you know about the above/ground press summer sale, right?

Toronto ON: Bardia Sinaee’s Odourless Press hasn’t been active for a while now, so it was a great pleasure to hear that two new publications had released: Vincent Colistro’s MOUNTAIN FOUNTAIN FONT: A Poem (2019) and E. Martin Nolan’s Trees Hate Us (2019). Appearing three years after his full-length poetry debut, Late Victorians (Véhicule Press, 2016), Colistro’s MOUNTAIN FOUNTAIN FONT: A Poem is a curious extended piece, constructed exclusively as stretches of three-line stanzas:

I look up the Wikipedia entry for daffodil, which I didn’t know

was also called the Narcissus plant, but thinking about it

the flower does bow its head to a pool of rain.

I also read somewhere that there’s a hypnotist who can hypnotize

you into Christianity, and I wonder, if that’s the case,

can they hypnotize you into Don Mancini’s

1988 film Child’s Play? The horror movies I enjoy the most are

the ones that show you a tree-fringed suburb

of some medium-sized American city, where

the lone vowel heard at night is the vocal fry of leaves,

and ask “What’s wrong with this picture?”

The ebbs and flows of the poem are interesting, in a meandering kind of way. Where is Colistro going with this? He appears to compose this as a kind of catch-all, moving naturally and quickly from point to point, furthering along in a multitude of turns and directions. As his poem continues: “I don’t want to work too hard and connecting things, / but the dinosaurs were serial killed by an inexorable, / predatory stone and it doesn’t matter // that it didn’t have sentience.”

The Ash Over the Elora Quarry Is Totally Dead

Dead over the quarry like a muted trumpet.

Dead a whole year, so I’ve had time to practice.

Swimmers all day, moon off the water at night—

that was alright. Dead a year, but I hardly practice.

I’ve stood above this gorge, pretended I run this.

That game’s run its course—how long can I take this?

E. Martin Nolan’s chapbook, Trees Hate Us, appears some eighteen months after his own full-length debut, Still Point (Invisible, 2017), and is composed “in collaboration with some trees,” writing from the perspective of the killing of Ash trees throughout North America. His is an interesting take on the Anthropocene, writing to open his “Note on the text:” that: “The Emerald Ash Borer hasn’t a real predator here. Don’t blame it for doing what it does, for being in the crates humans ship across oceans. Killed 30 million in Michigan, where it was first found. It’ll kill clear to the ocean.” I can’t think of another writer composing from the perspective of ravaged plant or tree life. As the “Note on the text:” continues:

I have watched all of my kind die around me. Dying gives them the art of poetry. Foreknowledge of death opens their language so a human can hear it. One human. Immune, I am left alone like a city tree, to converse in prose among strange maples, birches, pines and firs reluctant to share speech with a member of so plagued a species. As I live out my natural days, these poems—at least the middle bit—will bring me some small contentment. And we may yet return. The trees’ story is long and slow, despite this lightning-fast shrapnel from the human timeline.

Milwaukee WI: I received a packet of really interesting small chapbooks from Milwaukee micro-publisher Adjunct Press [see their recent '12 or 20 (small press) questions' interview here], including Zoe Cohen’s Under The Sea (as part of their “Retail Labor Series,” 2018) and Jonny Lohr’s Peak 2018 Poems (2018), but the title that jumped out at me was Alice Ladrick’s don’t read this if you already want to die. (September 2016). Composed as a chapbook-length accumulation of dark fragments, I like the roughness of her work, crafted carefully in spots, and left ragged where appropriate; I would be curious to see where further of her work might take her. Edited, published and hand-sewn by Ladrick and Lohr, Adjunct’s chapbooks are both gracefully slick and rough-hewn, managing a delicate coarseness, and the poems themselves, a liveliness that is quite refreshing. As Ladrick’s chapbook reads:

sometimes a girl in your neighborhood

freezes to death in someone’s front yard

I’ve been thinking that freezing must

be better than drowning

less panic and more drowse—the cold

hurting at first, biting everywhere and then sinking

I’d think, maybe I’ll lie down for a minute in the snow

here, or maybe slip on an icy spot and just

            not get up again

wait for the snow to feel warm and fall asleep

bundle up a pillow cradle my head in it

they’d find me blue in the morning and beautiful

a gift left by the night and held by the frost (poetry)

just to lie down and not get up again

was that bleak, im sorry I thought everybody knew

death is what we’re working up to

12 or 20 (second series) questions with E. Martin Nolan

E Martin Nolan is a poet, essayist and editor. He edits interviews at The Puritan, where he’s also published numerous essays, interviews and blog posts. His essays and poems have appeared in Arc, CNQ and CV2, among others. His long, illustrated poem about Donald Trump, “Great Again,” can be found here. His non-fiction writing focuses on literature, sports and music. His first book of poems, Still Point, was published with Invisible Publishing in Fall, 2017. Learn more at emartinnolan.com.

1 - How did your first book change your life? How does your most recent work compare to your previous? How does it feel different?

Still Point is my first book. I don’t have to write or edit it anymore. I’m still getting used to it being done. I do have some post-book poems already out there, though. They feel different because the story told in Still Point is told now, so I’m free of it. I want to do something fun now.

2 - How did you come to poetry first, as opposed to, say, fiction or non-fiction?

I began by imitating Bob Dylan and Van Morrison lyrics in high school. But I’ve always enjoyed writing prose, and non-fiction has always been there for me. I have no clue about plot, so fiction is out. I’ve always liked the music I can make out of poetry. I was counting syllables from the beginning (while I should have been counting beats—we get there).

3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious notes?

Projects are always constantly emerging, morphing or fermenting, until I decide to, and have the time to, bring them up to the front of my attention and work on them. Poetry originally comes pretty quickly, and comes when it damn well pleases. A sequence can be a steady project, and the editing stages are, like prose, about just putting in the time and hopefully working it out. Poetry can occur in increments as short as one minute. I do like to research to mine for metaphors though. This is an impossible question to answer fully, so I’ll stop now.

4 - Where does a poem usually begin for you? Are you an author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you working on a "book" from the very beginning?

I start with the single unit and that usually gets worked into a larger whole. A poem usually begins with an experience I want to capture, or with an image. Sometimes something I read about can attain an experience or image.

5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?

I enjoy readings, but generally if I’m reading a poem, then it’s done. I might drop a word or two, but it’s not a part of the process. Reading aloud to myself, of course, is.

6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns behind your writing? What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What do you even think the current questions are?

I will assume that by “theoretical concerns” you mean poem-theory stuff like formalism, experimentalism, yada-yada. “Schools” is another word for it, right? It’s impossible to not have theoretical concerns behind your writing. I know poetry through poems and their attendant theories (professed by the writers or critics later) as they were taught to me and as I sought them out. But I don’t forefront those concerns. As grist for poetry, they are usually boring. You have to be Anne Carson or something to pull off a poem about theoretical concerns.

I want beyond literature. The state of the world, and of humanity. The question of how we sustain ourselves through the current and coming global crises overshadows all. Within that, I’m most concerned with our spiritual state. Do we have it in us to rise to the occasion? Do we have the collective wisdom and strength to reverse course? Maybe history will say I’m panicking, but still these concerns make it hard to care very much about theoretical concerns. I am, however, quite happy to be proven wrong.

7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger culture? Does s/he even have one? What do you think the role of the writer should be?

It’s not about “should be” but “can be” (to quote Matthew Tierney). A writer can be anything, and writers need the freedom to be what they become. “Should” is limiting. Most writers are far more important to the larger culture as people, as citizens, than they are as writers. That said, I think that given freedom and a decent platform, a lot of writers, enough writers, will (and should) take on a role of destabilizing received perceptions and truths, and (this is the crucial, more difficult part) of forming a moral consciousness and spiritual life that audiences can share in, and grow by. Maybe it’s romantic, and fine, but art should be a vessel for our shared humanity. What else is going allow us to share the our terribly gigantic current humanity? Consumerism?

On that, I do think to matter at all a writer has to engage the reader like any other artist. The work needs to be bright, needs to be compelling, or it’s nothing and it doesn’t exist “in the larger culture.”

8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult or essential (or both)?

Essential, if the editor is engaged (not always the case in Canlit). I’m a collaborator by nature, and the editing process is one of the rare moments when that can happen in writing.

9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given to you directly)?

Clarity is more complicated than obscurity.

10 - How easy has it been for you to move between genres (poetry to non-fiction)? What do you see as the appeal?

Poetry and non-fiction are complimentary for me. They balance each other out. Non-fiction gives me certainty, direction, purpose. Poetry lets me roam more freely.

11 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?

I don’t really have one. I write when I can, and my schedule and workload is ever-changing. Summers I write more, and can get into an everyday thing. But when teaching, it’s whenever you can snatch time.

12 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?

I try to remember that the world is crushingly terrifying in its immensity and capacity. That the world is also ending before our eyes. But also that we have pictures of Jupiter. Like, actual pictures from our technology, close-ups of fucking Jupiter. Who could be bored or uninspired in this world? What a time to be alive and privileged.

13 - What fragrance reminds you of home?

Fresh-cut early-summer grass. Burned-out late-summer grass. Olive oil, butter, onions, garlic.

14 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature, music, science or visual art?

My own experience of the world. I think that is the most important form: the self’s original relationship to the universe. But music, especially in a rhythmic sense, is also incredibly important to my writing. For a while I’ve been steadily getting more into the natural world to gather figures to witness my feelings and theories.

15 - What other writers or writings are important for your work, or simply your life outside of your work?

I just quoted Emerson in the answer above, so he’s in there. Dionne Brand was the one who told me the thing about clarity above. The ghost of James Wright works in me. But the rappers, for all their flaws, are also super important, especially, again, for their rhythms. But it’s always gotta be mostly drawn from life outside of the work.

16 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?

Write a big fat novel that gets me into Oprah’s Book Club when she’s president.

17 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you not been a writer?

I guess my day job? Teaching. Writing isn’t an occupation for me. Though I’d probably pursue some career more seriously if writing wasn’t taking up so much time. I’d dig being a religious scholar.

18 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?

It was the thing I could do well and was intriguing to do.

19 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great film?

The World of Yesterday. The Shape of Water.

20 - What are you currently working on?

Not totally sure. Maybe essays on sports or music. A book of poems about the bright lights at the end of the world. What I want to do is talk some shit in poems. I want to explore poetry as venting. I also await wonderment, terror and the grotesque. Maybe.

12 or 20 (second series) questions;

12 or 20 (small press) questions with Catriona Wright (and Emma Dolan) on Desert Pets Press

Desert Pets Press was founded in 2015 by illustrator Emma Dolan and writer Catriona Wright. Based out of Toronto, Ontario, the press publishes limited edition poetry and prose chapbooks and strives to combine exciting contemporary writing with innovative design.

Catriona Wright is a writer, editor, and teacher. Her poetry has appeared in Prism International, Prairie Fire, Arc Poetry Magazine, Rusty Toque and Best Canadian Poetry 2015 (Tightrope Books). She is the poetry editor at The Puritan and a co-founder of Desert Pets Press. @CatTreeWright

Emma Dolan is a Toronto-based designer and illustrator. In 2015 she co-founded Desert Pets Press. @emmadarkandweird

1 – When did Desert Pets Press first start? How have your original goals as a publisher shifted since you started, if at all? And what have you learned through the process?

My friend Emma and I discussed starting a chapbook press several years ago when I was enrolled in the MA in Creative Writing at the University of Toronto and she was working as a book cover designer. We’ve been friends for over 15 years, and we wanted to collaborate on something creative together. But then we procrastinated for a long time (including many months of brainstorming a name). Finally we got our act together in early 2015, and Desert Pets Press was born!

We’ve published four books so far over two seasons (Fall 2015 and Spring 2016). Our original goal was to have fun, publish people we like, and make beautiful books, and I don’t see those goals changing any time soon.

We’ve learned a lot through the process! I’m also the poetry editor at The Puritan, where I work with a big team of people who do the publicity, grant writing, event organizing etc., so it was eye-opening to be responsible for everything ourselves. The thing that amazes me most is the sheer number of emails we’ve sent. So. Many. Emails.

2 – What first brought you to publishing?

I still consider myself primarily a writer, so I came to publishing from that perspective.  I first became aware of the small press world in Ottawa when I took a workshop with you at Collected Works in 2007, and when I moved to Toronto, I learned about many other presses, both large and small. I was a spectator/consumer for many years, and I eventually found the courage (and the right partner) to participate more actively.

After completing a literature degree at Queen’s, Emma enrolled in the Book and Magazine Publishing Program at Centennial, so she was exposed to that side of things. She worked for several publishers before going freelance as a book designer and illustrator.

3 – What do you consider the role and responsibilities, if any, of small publishing?

We can only speak for ourselves, but for us it’s all about putting out work we’re proud of and that we’ve enjoyed producing. We love to support other presses by collaborating and attending their events, but at the end of the day, putting the work in and getting the books out into the world is our biggest focus.

4 – What do you see your press doing that no one else is?

I think it’s a bit unusual to have an artist and a writer working together. Emma has done an exceptional job with the design (covers, interior illustrations, etc.). We were inspired by two other small presses, Ferno House Press and Odourless Press, both of which are no longer publishing new books. I’d like to think we’ve done justice to their strong emphasis on design.

5 – What do you see as the most effective way to get new chapbooks out into the world?

I have no idea! We’re still new to this. We’ve definitely found that the majority of our sales have occurred at launches, but our Etsy store has been active, as well. Toronto boutiques and independent bookstores have also been taking notice of chapbooks and independent publications and are carrying them in their stores, and we have some chapbooks for sale at TKVO on Dundas and Type Bookstore on Queen. Chapbook creation is a collaborative process, so we also rely on our authors to spread the word through social media and their personal networks.

6 – How involved an editor are you? Do you dig deep into line edits, or do you prefer more of a light touch?

I’m still finding my editing rhythm, and so far my approach has depended on the book. For example, E Martin Nolan’s chapbook had already been heavily edited by Bardia Sinaee before it came our way. I was more involved in Michelle Brown’s editing process, but I’m also in a poetry workshop with her, so some of that editing came in the form of earlier workshop comments. Before we start on a new project,  I like to ask writers about their expectations to get a sense of what they want from me, and then I go from there.

7 – How do your books get distributed? What are your usual print runs?

We sell most of our books at launches, but we’ve sold several at Meet the Presses and the Ottawa Small Press Fair, and we’re lucky enough to have some on the shelves at Type bookstore. We also have an Etsy store, which has been quite successful this season.

For our first season of books, we did a 50 book print run, but we sold out almost immediately. This time we did 100 of each book.

8 – How many other people are involved with editing or production? Do you work with other editors, and if so, how effective do you find it? What are the benefits, drawbacks?

As I mentioned before, Bardia Sinaee edited most of E Martin Nolan’s book, but that was an unusual circumstance, and we don’t generally work with other editors. We get our books printed at Colour Code, a great local printer and a press themselves, and we’ve been very pleased with their work.

9– How has being an editor/publisher changed the way you think about your own writing?

I’m not sure it’s changed the way I think about my writing, but it’s certainly increased my respect for publishers and all the tough work they do. Before Desert Pets Press I didn’t fully realize how much attention has to go into each stage of the process (editing, layout, design, etc.), so I hope I’ll be more understanding when my own books are going through production.   

10– How do you approach the idea of publishing your own writing? Some, such as Gary Geddes when he still ran Cormorant, refused such, yet various Coach House Press’ editors had titles during their tenures as editors for the press, including Victor Coleman and bpNichol. What do you think of the arguments for or against, or do you see the whole question as irrelevant?

Still working out my thoughts on this question! I haven’t published my own work yet and have no plans to do so soon (but a part of me would love to have Emma create some illustrations for my poems, so we’ll see).  

11– How do you see Desert Pets Press evolving?

We’re content at the moment, but we’ll probably try to start publishing more books a season (3 rather than 2), and we’d like to start printing some broadsides. We’re hoping to attend more book fairs (Expozine, Brooklyn Art Fair, etc), as well. I don’t anticipate Desert Pets Press ever expanding into a full trade press. We’d like to keep our scale small and our ideas big.

12– What, as a publisher, are you most proud of accomplishing? What do you think people have overlooked about your publications? What is your biggest frustration?

We’re still babies in the publishing biz so just getting our chapbooks into the world has been our greatest accomplishment. Blissfully free of bitterness and frustration…perhaps that happens later.  

13– Who were your early publishing models when starting out?

As I mentioned earlier, Ferno House Press and Odourless Press were our main models. They both created some beautiful, intelligent books. Spencer Gordon and Bardia Sinaee have also been helpful sources of information about making and distributing the books.

14– How does Desert Pets Press work to engage with your immediate literary community, and community at large? What journals or presses do you see Desert Pets Press in dialogue with? How important do you see those dialogues, those conversations?

We collaborate with several other small presses. In the spring, we co-ran our launch with the excellent Emergency Response Unit, and we’re hoping to work with Metatron and words (on) pages on some events/readings/launches in the next year. I’m also an editor at The Puritan, so we have close ties with those folks.

These connections are absolutely vital to our existence, and we support other presses by attending/publicizing events and trading/buying books. We got into publishing because we wanted to create something for a community, and we are continually inspired by the ingenuity of the Canadian literary world.

15– Do you hold regular or occasional readings or launches? How important do you see public readings and other events?

We’ve held two launches/readings so far, both at Reunion Island Coffee, and they were magical. It’s so gratifying to see the authors read and share their work. Public readings are important for publicity and sales, but even more important for celebratory purposes. No one is making any money from these books. It’s a gift economy, an exchange of creative energy, and we want to nurture this connection by bringing people together in person.   

16– How do you utilize the internet, if at all, to further your goals?

Selling online has been a big help because it allows us to reach more people. We’ve had lots of sales all over Canada and the US (and even New Zealand!). Posting on social media has been our main method for getting the word out about our projects and events and getting people excited about what we’re doing.

17– Do you take submissions? If so, what aren’t you looking for?

We’re not taking submissions at the moment.

18– Tell me about three of your most recent titles, and why they’re special.

Moon Bones/Silver Tooth by Brooke Lockyer is our first fiction chapbook. A flip book with two covers/stories, this chapbook delves into the dark heart of childhood. The writing is compassionate, sad, subtle, and gorgeous.

Foreign Experts Building by Michelle Brown is silly on the surface, but don’t let that fool you. These poems are anxious and death-obsessed. Plus, the chapbook features some gorgeous animal illustrations.

Poems from Still by E Martin Nolan features spare, haunting poems about two post-industrial cities, New Orleans and Detroit. These poems will also appear in E Martin Nolan’s full-length collection, which is coming out in fall 2017 with Invisible Publishing.  

12 or 20 (small press) questions;