Gene Twaronite's Blog, page 4

Writing Workshop

I will be offering a free writing workshop on Friday, Jan. 26, from 2-3 PM, at Woods Memorial Library in Tucson. https://pima.bibliocommons.com/events/6579f6a5eb28943d007bd4ef

Make writing come alive with this interactive PowerPoint presentation of selected short readings accompanied by illustrations and a discussion of the creative writing and publishing process. Fables are one of the oldest kinds of storytelling. Simply put, a fable is a brief tale meant to illustrate a moral. Like all fables, The Family That Wasn’t is written in simple language readily understood and appreciated by people of all ages and backgrounds. Fables give us a chance to find humor in the human condition. Best of all, they are fun! Whether you are a poet or fiction writer, the fable can help you explore new ways to write your poems and stories. The program runs about 40-45 minutes and is suitable for audiences ranging from middle grade to adult.

Bio: A former Writer-in-Residence for Pima County Library, Gene Twaronite’s work has appeared widely in books, literary journals, magazines, and anthologies. He is the author of twelve books, ranging from collections of poetry, short stories, and essays to the young adult novel, My Vacation in Hell. His collection of children’s stories, Dragon Daily News: Stories of Imagination for Children of All Ages, includes some of his stories that first appeared in Highlights for Children and other magazines. His first picture book, How to Eat Breakfast, was recently published by Lyric Power Publishing in Tucson. Gene has an MA in Education and is a retired Senior Instructional Specialist for the University of Arizona. 

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Write Me a Poem

about the death of an old dog
dying alone by the side of a road,
growling softly as he thinks of
that calico cat he so despised
and loved to chase,
remembering the last stroke behind his ears
by the homeless old woman
who lived in the underpass.

My chatbot muse pauses briefly,
then out pours a poem
about a quantum pooch
who exists in two places at once
chasing calico electrons
from one end of the galaxy to another
trying to imagine something called
physical touch,
perfectly metered and rhymed,
with exactly the right number
of clever metaphors,
and enough emotive juice
to make you think you
really feel something.

First published in Ponder Review, Volume 7, Issue 2 (a publication of the low-residency MFA in creative writing at the Mississippi University for Women

How to Eat a Poem

Advance Reviews for The Family That Wasn’t

“Poet Gene Twaronite knows that words are powerful stuff. They can shape our experiences and relationships in ways we can’t predict—until adventure strikes. John Bazukas-O’Rielly-Geronimo-Li Choy- Echeverria, or B.O.G.G.L.E. for short, has a problematic family. If home is where the heart is, he wants a new home… and soon. It’s not easy having a Venusian for a sister. And there’s his weird zither-playing brother, his busy trash collecting mom, his job-exploring father, his family-secret carrying grandmother… and then there’s Uncle Vinnie–don’t even get me started on THAT guy. But when he gets his way, John finds that “you can never really lose your family completely. Even when they’re gone, they’re still there inside you, for better or worse.” In this deceptively simple fable about words and wonder, family and fiasco, John learns that creating a new and improved family may have unexpected consequences.”

-Heather Severson, Tween Services Librarian, Pima County Public Library

“We all lose family members, yet as is often said, beloved members of your family never die as long as you remember them. But what happens if you write them out of your life? If you lose your memory of them? In The Family That Wasn’t, young John has had enough of his crazy family and decides to write a perfect family for himself instead. In the process he loses all memory of his real family, and all connection to who he really is. Here is a story of finding your true family, finding yourself, finding acceptance, and finding love.”

Susan Shell Winston, Author, Singer of Norgondy and Editor at NewMyths.com

Now available at these booksellers https://books2read.com/u/b5wA5A

Two Poems

The Burping Seal

A lone Tupperware with sky blue lid,
it lives on in my kitchen, a reminder
of all it once held—loving leftovers
of Mom’s greasy kugel or kielbasa,
mincemeat cookies, coleslaw or apple pie.

Its skin is worn soft from fifty years
of washing and handling. Back and forth
it went from her place to mine. I see
her sturdy hands placing morsels into its mouth 
like a mother bird feeding its young.

The only piece of hers I still own, it is
a talisman of other days, though its lid
has long lost its patented burping seal.
But like a person, a product is
much more than a slogan.  

Spiritual

A magic word
my brother
wanted to hear,
for now he says
I’m no longer
going to hell,
as if to
speak of
intangible things
made my
sinful body
suddenly
transfigure into
pure spirit,
speaking in
ineffable
tongues.

First published in One Art: A Journal of Poetry https://oneartpoetry.com/2023/11/10/two-poems-by-gene-twaronite/

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Watch Trailer for The Family That Wasn’t: A Fable

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The Family That Wasn’t: A Fable

Revised Edition Oct. 2023

All poets are storytellers, and one of the oldest kinds of storytelling is the fable. They can be found in the literature of most countries and are a prominent part of the folklore of many cultures. Fables have been passed down both written and orally throughout human history.

Simply put, a fable is a brief tale meant to illustrate a moral. It can be written in either prose or verse. Many of us, when we hear the word, immediately think of Aesop and talking animals. But not all fables have talking animals. Many fables feature people or inanimate objects. They are simple by nature and easily understood by people of all ages and backgrounds. They give us a chance to find humor in the human condition and address larger social and cultural problems. Best of all, they are fun!

So I would like to share with you my exciting news about this revised edition of a book I first wrote and published in 2010. At the time I wrote it, I thought of it as a short novel for young readers. But after hearing so many adult readers over the years tell me how much they enjoyed it, it dawned on me that my little book is really an absurd fable that audiences of all ages can enjoy. It’s the tale of a thirteen-year-old boy who … well, I’ll just let this advance reviewer tell you:

“We all lose family members, yet as is often said, beloved members of your family never die as long as you remember them. But what happens if you write them out of your life? If you lose your memory of them? In The Family That Wasn’t, young John has had enough of his crazy family and decides to write a perfect family for himself instead. In the process he loses all memory of his real family, and all connection to who he really is. Here is a story of finding your true family, finding yourself, finding acceptance, and finding love.” Susan Shell Winston, Author, Singer of Norgondy and Editor at NewMyths.com

To order a print copy of this revised edition, go to Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CM2553GJ. (Please ignore the publishing date shown by Amazon, which is the date when first published.) An ebook will also be available soon at Amazon as well as most book outlets. Meanwhile, you can order an ebook at the following outlets: https://books2read.com/u/b5wA5A

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Coming Soon

I’ve decided to reissue my book The Family That Wasn’t (originally published in 2010) in a revised edition. Though I’ve tweaked the text a bit, it’s still the same great story. Originally I set out to write a short novel that would appeal to middle grade readers. All the wonderful comments I’ve received over the years, however, have made me realize it’s more of an absurd fable that readers young and old will enjoy. True, the main character is a thirteen-year-old boy named John Boggle, but there are some equally strong adult characters as well, all playing out their parts in this wacky adventure odyssey. Stay tuned for more details!

A word about the new cover. It was my first attempt at using AI. Actually, it took about a hundred tries, in which I gave my AI image generator various prompts on the image I wished it to create. What do you think?

PS – The text, however, is still all created by my very own AI (Absurd Intelligence).

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Remnants

I stare at the photograph
of a bare-chested 18-year-old
trying to look brutish,
crouching as if
ready to pounce,
projecting his masculinity
lest the image fade.

Our cells are no longer the same,
but he still lives inside me,
staring out from
his secret chamber,
where in one corner
is a small table
where he prays
and gazes upward
at Jesus in agony—
a votive candle flickers.

What would we say
to each other now,
sixty years later?
Would he scoff at
the weak, wrinkled creature
staring back at him
or ask me to
join him in prayer?
And if I refused,
would he try to
wrestle me into belief?

Would he see only
the frayed edge
of the fabric,
never to feel
the rich texture
in between?

First published in Hawaii Pacific Review https://hawaiipacificreview.org/2023/10/02/remnants/

A Life From Writing

The Pima County Library asked me to write about my experience as a Writer in Residence. The three months went by all too fast, and I found it deeply rewarding though exhausting. And I was inspired by the many local writers I met who shared their precious work and dreams with me. Here’s my post   https://www.library.pima.gov/blogs/post/a-life-from-writing-reflections-of-a-writer-in-residence/