Marly Youmans's Blog, page 157

The House of Words (no. 2)

2. To Persist or Not to PersistHey, there's a reason that most books are not about writers! Oh, there may be a coming-of-age novel now and then—covering that period of a writer's life when he or she is not yet a writer, and therefore packed with homely and interesting non-writer events. Often these are events (or people--parents, often--those people who love us and attempt to save us from the

The House of Words (no. 1)

The House of Words: On Writing and PublishingIn which Marly-and-friends answer questions that readers and writers young in the craft often ask, with musings on persistence, giving up, luck, doing what you want to do, home and the writer, print publishers, the internet, and other topics of interest…1. Print publishing: persisting and giving upMuch in the print publishing world is random. Good

Mike-diary: On the Markets

Dispatches from IndochineI have just eaten a durian.For the morally correct among you, those who view your stomach as your servant and not your master, this statement will be meaningless. But from the gastronomes who read this there may be frank envy. You see, the durian is perhaps the most storied of produce. Large, spikey, it is a Jupiter among the tree-fruits. And like Jupiter it is the

A second scrumptious book with Clive Hicks-Jenkins

The Book of Ystwyth will be the most splendiferous poetry book on the planet come May! Until then, it's definitely The Throne of Psyche, thanks to a scrumptious jacket by Clive Hicks-Jenkins himself. The Book of Ystwyth is profusely illustrated, with poems by the late Catriona Urquhart, writer and dear friend of Clive's, as well as Dave Bonta, Callum James, Andrea Selch, Damian Walford Davies,

Reminder: pre-order discounts ending soon

If you are a discount shopper and want to purchase The Throne of Psyche, know that pre-order prices for both the hardcover and paperback will be evaporating soon! Thanks for supporting my place in the world of books by reading here and by reading and purchasing my books. Book information via amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Throne-Psyche-P...

C.R.A.S.H. Japan

Artist Makoto Fujimura, who has one foot in the states and one in Japan, suggests this group for disaster relief donations.

The words, the world, the birthday--

Today my mother is 82. I know that I said she would be 83, but it turns out that she is a mere sprat of 82. Math was never my strong suit, I fear. She is hosting my eldest son for his spring break and weaving on her big new loom and doing I-don't-know-what. Probably she has been spending a good deal of time cooking for Ben.In her honor I have written a Precious Wentletrap poem, "The Fool Thinks

"Elegy for Japan"

"This 17th Century masterpiece by Tawaraya Sotatsu of Matsushima has now become, in my mind, an elegy for Japan." --Makoto Fujimura Click to see a larger image. Freer Gallery of Art.

March Madness

I must be feeling a little jaded...THREE HAIKU FOR THE PRESIDENT'S MARCH MADNESS PICKS*Japan, firefighters,Libya, rebel fighters--Spring inspiration.Salamander, coldOn a stone that gathers moss...All around, March fires.Obama-san's spring:What a social calendar!Stance: "above-the-fray."***from The Huffington Post:The president's bracket is fairly safe, with two 1-seeds and two 2-seeds advancing

Wroth, wroth with Ted Hughes

Dear, dead, evidently-irresistible Ted Hughes, there I was sailing along, enjoying your unscabbarded lines, the force of your word-twisting, your leaps like a salmon who tosses up rainbows. And you broke it! You broke my reading! Why on earth did you write that poem? No, no, I know why. Not a good reason. But why did you keep it?With luck, I shall be an old woman in the future. Ideally, I shall