Vanessa Shields's Blog, page 38
May 14, 2021
Poem 134 – Dear Hafiz & PEP & AWISC!
Dear Hafiz
You make it seem so easy
Like the words & nature & your heart & your pen
are collected & connected in one sustained & precise moment
Like flow is inevitable & if you move a sofa or tilt your head
you find poems alive & giddy & open-palmed – daring you to catch them
But deeper because you know a poem needs never to be caught
A poem is not a bandit
A poem is your soul’s mirror & you understand
how choosing to look changes everything &
You stare like you were born to stare at beautiful things
& write about them I can hear you whispering…
It is easy when easy is a handful of sand & you are the hand
& the wind & the lapping lips of the shore
when you are the poem & the poet
TONIGHT – POETRY PARTY! 10:30PM!
Remember when we used to go dancing…and we wouldn’t show up at the bar until 11pm…and the dance floor didn’t fill up until midnight?! Remember how our muscles could move like liquid all night? Well, let’s tap into that magic tonight as we head to the Planet Earth Poetry reading with our friends out in Victoria! You can wear your jammies!
Join our poetry party that begins with an open mic and then is followed with me reading and sharing. I can’t wait to engage with you!
If you’d like to read at the open mic, you have until 3pm EST time and 12pm PST today to sign up.
The link to enter the zoom will be available at 10:15pm EST/7:15PM PST.
Everything you need to join the open mic and join the zoom is RIGHT HERE IN THIS LINK!
THANK YOU!
Thank you to everyone who joined us at the Palimpsest Press Spring Book launch last night! Congratulations again to my fellow published writers: Tolu Oloruntoba, Margaret Christakos and Nathaniel G Moore. Thank you to host Jim Johnstone, to publisher Aimee Parent Dunn.
To purchase any of the fine Palimpsest Press books, including those celebrated last night, please CLICK HERE.
SUNDAY, MAY 16, 2021
The All Write in Sin City gang, Sarah, Irene and Kim, will post our conversation about Thimbles this Sunday! OOOO! I’m so excited to share this with you! Here’s a sweet teaser!
To view the full episode, please visit their Youtube Channel or their website!
And be sure to stick around and watch and listen to the many other episodes they’ve compiled. Prepare to be inspired!
NEXT THURSDAY’S EVENT W/ MARGO WHEATON!
Wherein poet Margo Wheaton and I read our poetry and have a grand conversation about the process of writing about family, home, place and identity.
Please pre-register for the zoom event! There will be open chat and Q & A as well!
Poetry & The Family
Thursday, May 20, 2021
Time: 7pm EST/8pm ATL
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_0jwxSVYiRK-rOoIfNo_6wwAfter registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
May 13, 2021
Poem 133 – Sapphic Voltas & Spring Launch Tonight!
Sapphic Voltas
What if today I give worry a fiddle?
Let finishing plunder & instead diddle?
Deep laugh at pain & embrace the middle?
Release the riddle
I got this great book entitled: Poetry 101: A Crash Course in Poetry by Susan Dalzell. Today’s poem is written in Sapphic meter. “…attributed to the poet Sappho, this meter consists of three lines of eleven syllables and a final line of five syllables.” (pg. 22) A volta or turn, “occurs in the ninth line [of a sonnet]. It introduces a new idea into the poem’s narrative or argument.” (pg. 38)
[image error]Palimpsest Press Spring Book Launch Tonight 8pm!
I’m so excited to share words with Margaret, Tolu, Nathanial and Jim at tonight’s Palimpsest Press Spring book launch! There’ll be poetry, prose and proud writers! You can still register today! The event starts promptly at 8pm! See you then and thank you for your support!
Tomorrow night: poetry w/ the west!
Tomorrow at 10:30pm Windsor-time, I’ll be sharing poetry with the folks in Victoria, BC at Planet Earth Poetry! An open mic starts the reading, followed by a featured reading by yours truly! If you’re up for some late night poetry, join us! If you’re in the Pacific time zone – we’ll see you at 7:30pm!
This a zoom event. No preregistration is required.
Here’s the info to join us at 10:15pm EST/7:15pm PST:
Want to sign up for the open mic? LINK HERE
May 12, 2021
Poem 132 – Even when
Even when
Even when you have everything you need the voice turns to hand & holding
a dull kitchen knife – like the one you use to sshhhllllttt open the Amazon box – cuts you wide then points inside to that writhing worm of envy slick & shiny teeth biting at the cold air wall of being caught This the voice slimes This
Yesterday, my comparison monster reared her scraggle-tooth face. She’s still here…spreading her wings of envy and flapping them at my face. I’m looking at her. Watching her. Giving her space to exist. I’m preparing some poetry to submit, and tomorrow and the next night I’ll be reading and talking with other writers. It all makes me nervous and emotional and contemplative and my monsters come out. The process of deciding what poems to read before a reading is important. I want to be prepared. I want to read what my heart and mind wants to read. I want to be able to speak passionately and confidently about the work, the words, the meanings…but always, precisely as I’m beginning this process, my courage slips out the back door and goes for a long run. The monsters move in. I have to go to battle for my work. I’ll handle it. But this is where I’m at. Today. If you’re here too or ever have been…here’s a hand. My hand. Nobody’s free of the monsters.
TOMORROW 8PM!
Palimpsest Press Spring Book Launch!
REGISTER HERE!
With Margaret Christakos, Nathaniel G. Moore, Tolu Oloruntoba, and Vanessa Shields.
Hosted by Jim Johnstone.
May 13, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_A3mt8lITSBWAYePM55x13g
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
May 11, 2021
Poem 131 Watch & Listen & Howl & Launch!
watch & listen
golden-headed dandelion bends gracefully to peer at poisonous bindweed
canada thistle in all her prickly pride gazes kindly at thirsty nutsedge
even bustling buckhorn plantain stares plainly at heat-loving crabgrass
weeds trees & herbs liverworts mosses & creepers
millions of living watching millions of living in observational feasts
an infinite exchange of paying attention
& listening too
oh yes the plants listen well
I imagine the gurgling flow of water through roots & the sensual sucking of sunlight
into yearning leaves leaves a plant soul quaking in ecstasies of story
such magic such divinity such integrity for holding the other
Howl Interview tonight! Plus fundraiser!
Do give your ears and mind the gift of HOWL, a fine radio hour dedicated to literary arts hosted by the great Valentino Assenza. For years now, Valentino has been lifting up on radio waves the words of writers from across Canada. As the CIUT FM fundraiser pushes for donations and support this week, lend your ears and pocketbooks their way!
My interview with Valentino airs tonight during the HOWL slot from 10m- 11pm. If you’ll be in dreamland at that time, no worries. We’ll post the interview soon. However, the fundraiser is all week, so tune in and give if you can.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO LIVE STREAMING ON CIUT 89.5FM!
Palimpsest Press Spring Book Launch This Thursday!
This is a pre-registration event! Please register to join the zoom webinar in order to participate!
With Margaret Christakos, Nathaniel G. Moore, Tolu Oloruntoba, and Vanessa Shields. Hosted by Jim Johnstone.
May 13, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_A3mt8lITSBWAYePM55x13g
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
May 10, 2021
Poem 130 – Boomerang & This Week’s Virtual Tour Events
Boomerang
This particular fear
is a boomerang
I’ve thrown her
with all my might
bid her good riddance
willed her to Mars
yet she persists
propulsions a return
so graceful & spectacularly
stunning I mistake
her for awe welcome her
in an embrace
when she settles
I feel her grip
& understand my fault
my power shrinks
This particular fear
is a boomerang
will she shape shift
into a kite?
is it up to me to
give her the opportunity
to change…& discover
the sky as freedom
in permanent leaving?
VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR EVENTS THIS WEEK!Palimpsest Press Spring Book Launch This Thursday!
Have you registered for our upcoming spring spectacular book launch with the Palimpsest Press family?
With Margaret Christakos, Nathaniel G. Moore, Tolu Oloruntoba, and Vanessa Shields. Hosted by Jim Johnstone.
May 13, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_A3mt8lITSBWAYePM55x13g
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Featured Reading This Friday!
Join me and the poetry family of Planet Earth Poetry in Victoria, BC! This Friday, at 10:30pm EST, Planet Earth Poetry has its weekly poetry event that includes an open mic! Would you like to share some of your poetry too?
All the info you need to join us as poet or supporter, is HERE ON THE FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE!
I look forward to sharing poetry with you!
Mama likes to tease you…All Write In Sin City Interview Teaser!
Oh, I had such a fun time talking with the All Write In Sin City podcast gals, Irene, Sarah and Kim! They’ve put together an excellent teaser trailer for the upcoming full-length conversation which airs on Sunday, May 16th, 2021!
All Write In Sin City is a podcast (turned Zoom video!) about writers, their books, their process, their lives! Become a fan by discovering all the incredible writers they’ve already talked with HERE ON THEIR WEBSITE!
Thank you!
May 9, 2021
Poem 129 – in every woman, a mother
in every woman, a mother
a woman loves
immaculate
her womb holds life
conceived in the glories
of generations past
in unity with her own
extraordinary magic
beyond the wounds
from yesterday’s villains
a woman leaps – flailing gracefully
into the open mouth
of labour’s bulging face
she chooses birth
on the sun-lifted dawn
of each fresh day
belly hard with
hope or human or both
a woman is a mother who loves
immaculate in her infinite conceptions
gushing tenderness like stardust
Happy Mother’s Day!
To all the mothers loving their babies made of skin, fur, pages, plants, music, art! Take this day to do what you love with those you love – near or far!
The breakfast meal for a hard-working mother! Thank you, husband! 
Today I will be reading and working, enjoying the flow of those around me taking great care of me!
May 8, 2021
Poem 128 – Booty Elegy & Thimbles Book Tour Events
Booty Elegy
Since birth round & plump
Proud skin hills for shaking
Hands did cup said rump
& squeezed in ecstasy’s quaking
Weight loss gradually strains
Of the padonkadonk story
Only the padonk remains
Goodbye big booty glory
New muscles tight & serious
A curious shape holds space
but(t) still can dance delirious
Any time any place
VIRTUAL TOUR EVENTS NEXT WEEK!
PALIMPSEST PRESS SPRING BOOKS LAUNCH!Thursday, May 13, 2021
8pm via Zoom – registration link below!
Celebrating the Spring authors launching their books from Palimpsest Press!
With Margaret Christakos, Nathaniel G. Moore, Tolu Oloruntoba, and Vanessa Shields. Hosted by Jim Johnstone.
May 13, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_A3mt8lITSBWAYePM55x13g
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Featured Reader at Planet Earth Poetry Reading Series!
Date: Friday, May 14th, 2021
Time: 10:30PM EST | 7:30PM PST
Via Zoom
Click here for Zoom link. *Zoom link opens that evening right before it starts!
May 7, 2021
Poem 127 – Haiku for Flower
Haiku for Flower
fuchsia petals hang
some stand like legs poised to dance
the fall is graceful
It’s Friday! That week flew by like a flock of hungry geese. Did it feel fast to you as well? My eyes are heavy and my limbs are tight with wanting to sleep. But, here we go. Into another day!
MAY EVENTS to remember…!
TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2021 – HOWL RADIO INTERVIEW BROADCAST CIUT 89.5FM
To listen to the live broadcast, CLICK HERE.
THURSDAY, MAY 13, 2021 – PALIMPSEST PRESS SPRING BOOK LAUNCH
8pm via Zoom – registration link below!
Celebrating the Spring authors launching their books from Palimpsest Press!
With Margaret Christakos, Nathaniel G. Moore, Tolu Oloruntoba, and Vanessa Shields. Hosted by Jim Johnstone.
May 13, 2021 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/…/reg…/WN_A3mt8lITSBWAYePM55x13g
FRIDAY, MAY 14, 2021 – PLANET EARTH POETRY READING SERIES
Time: 10:30PM EST | 7:30PM PST
Via Zoom – Vanessa Shields as Featured Reader
Click here for Zoom link. *Zoom link opens that evening right before it starts!
THURSDAY, MAY 20, 2021 – POETRY & THE FAMILY W/ MARGO WHEATON, HALIFAX POET
Virtual Reading & Discussion with Vanessa Shields and Halifax poet Margo Wheaton on the art of writing poetry about family, home and place.
Time: 7pm EST | 8pm ATL
You are invited to a Zoom webinar.
When: May 20, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Thimbles: Poetry and the Family
Register in advance for this webinar:https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0jwxSVYiRK-rOoIfNo_6ww
May 6, 2021
Poem 126 – Ghazal on Isolation
Ghazal on Isolation
“…continue the shine in vivid isolation…” Agha Shahid Ali
another dawn tugs on my skin
begging me awake in birdsong
my cold shoulder longs
for the tongue of yesterday’s chorus –
the extended version of a ballad I didn’t know could end
ghostly alive in such vivid isolation my mind is a silk slip on a fraying clothesline
& the light throws wind like weighted
answers to questions I’m too cowardly to ask
how much longer can I go without our swelling bodies pressed against a hotel window?
this duel with Alone – when will it cease tuck its pistol in the deutzia & surrender our
touches?
Inspired by my friend and poet Margo Wheaton (with whom I am sharing a virtual book tour event on May 20th!) who writes ghazal poems, I took a stab at writing one this morning. I cheated a bit by adding a lonesome word on an extra line…
Here’s a definition of ghazal.
If you’d like to join Margo & I as we discuss our new books and the choices we made when writing our poems, please register for our Zoom webinar on May 20th!
When: May 20, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Thimbles: Poetry and the Family
Register in advance for this webinar:https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0jwxSVYiRK-rOoIfNo_6ww
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
HOWLIN’ w/ Valentino!
Last night, I zoomed it up with host of CIUT’s 89.5FM Howl Radio show, Valentino Assenza – a weekly show dedicated to bringing writers together in lively, important conversation.
We had an incredible conversation about poetry, our Nonna’s, Italy…and I’m pretty sure we committed to a organizing a tour Canadian-Italian poets in Italy! Bravo!
Our conversation will air on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 from 10pm – 11pm as part of the CIUT week of fundraising! Do tune in! Grazie, Valentino!
May 5, 2021
Poem 125 – Go At It Gannet
Go At It Gannet
“…I found my book White Magic in the cadavers of abandoned drafts, and I resurrected them…” from ‘The Craft of Writing’ by Elissa Washuta, LitHub, May 4, 2021
I must go at it gannet:
increase my courage force exponentially
rage lovingly at the white-sea page before
diving
into it
subjecting myself to the enormous danger of exposition
I must rely on my body to handle with graceful willingness
the possibilities of breaking
then feast on the cadavers of my past & resurrect
what has been buried for decades…lifetimes
what remains – excavated with curious care
RESEARCH: Thank you, Charis, for showing me the gannets zooming in the Western Bay sky yesterday. If you’ve never seen a gannet, please WATCH THIS VIDEO.
