thinking about poetry

I found this old (2004) conversation between ABC reporter Ramona Koval and Robin Robertson: poet, author and editor, (left)  on the ABC Arts site this week, when I was researching Judy Johnson’s work for the review I’m writing.

Mortification: Writers’ Stories about their Public Shame sounds funny, sad and tragic all at the same time. The conversation talks of the ritual humiliation of writers at their book launches, particularly poets. Robertson explains why the arts is particularly prone to humiliation:

People think about it a lot and work very hard within it,but for almost no reward. It’s a conjunction of high-mindedness and pitifully low income that is sort of funny, especially when it’s brought out into the public space. I mean, these people have been working for years and years at their manuscripts and they finally get them published, and read to a public audience who are often completely indifferent. It’s close to tragedy but also very close to comedy, and it’s something that I’ve noticed because I’ve been involved as a publisher for many years.

and Ramona Koval’s observation:

A lot of these shameful incidents occur in bookshops. There’s Rick Moody’s reading in Washington where his mother and a friend of his brother were the only ones in the audience. I think he says, ‘Only one member of the audience hadn’t expelled him from her womb.’ Why do people persist with these things? It happens over and over again—nobody comes to the bookshop. How many times have you seen an author sitting behind a desk with a whole lot of copies of their own book, and nobody there, nobody wanting to discuss it with them? You can’t really do very much other than sit there and wait expectantly, can you?

You can read the whole conversation HERE

John Leonard Press will launch Jan Owen’s new book of poems, the new and selected Poems, 1980-2008 at the Australian Poetry Centre (St Kilda) on May 25th. More details at zestermag
In fact, there’s a full day planned at the APC that day which might worth checking out.

Went along tonight to the launch of Diane Fahey’s latest book, The Mystery of Rosa Morland, a book of crime fiction/poetry or poem/novella published by Clouds of Magellan.

I’ve admired Diane’s work for a long time and we met a long time ago, when we both had residencies at Varuna near Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. Tonight, Diane read from various sections of the book which is set on New Year’s Eve in 1900 on a train travelling from London to Edinburgh. Part Agatha Christie, part ‘fin de siecle fantasy’, I can’t wait to read it.

Attended the launch tonight of the first book by young Melbourne writer Brigitte Lewis, a poetic verse novel no less inspired by the poetry of Dorothy Porter, but taking it in a new edgy direction.  Brigitt talked about trying to write the lesbian scene into the mainstream of Melbourne life and launch was accompanied by some stunning photographs and a video montage as well.

The nice thing is that, a while ago now, I taught Brigitte at school and worked with her in a writing group we had there. It was fantastic to see some of that extraordinary energy and commitment she had then coming to something like fruition tonight.

There’s a gorgeous website about the book HERE.

Sydney poet Brook Emery let me know about a book launch this weekend; detail below, sounds like it could be a good one if you’re in the Melbourne area on Sunday.

Book Launch

Sunday 23 September
4pm

J – Studios
100 Barkly St
Fitzroy North

Wine – Music – Free Entry – all Welcome

Poets Union Young Poets Fellowship Holders

Ivy Ireland, Incidental Complications
(to be launched by Brook Emery)

Ivy Ireland writes with poise, grit, depth and vision, negotiating the
shifts between the scientific and the subjective vernacular.

Nick Powell, of Fallen Myth
(to be launched by Jennifer Harrison)

Nick Powell displays a lyric sensibility on the edge of the surreal, a
romantic, pastoral bent tempered by realism and irony.

(MC: James Waller)

Nick and Ivy are terrific poets – forget the young. Their books are
striking and they are both great readers. It will be a good launch and
you’d be very welcome. Hope to see you there.

Went to the launch last weekend of Kevin Brophy’s latest book, Mr Wittgenstein’s Lion, probably one of the last books to come out of the Five Islands Press stable.

It was a kind of bitter-sweet launch; it’s a fine looking book and judging from the poems Kevin read (I haven’t finished it yet) has some good work too.

However, it was also the farewell to Ron Pretty, who is heading back up Wollongong way after a stint in Melbourne. Sadly too, it’s the end of Five Islands Press as we know it and that void will be hard felt by Australian poetry. It will be a challenge for the new Australian Poetry Centre to take up where Ron and Five Islands Press have been.