Publications
Can’t knock my hustle.
The Tidal Basin Review will publish my poems The Blues Almanac and Education in an upcoming edition.
My micro-fiction piece Anniversary recently appeared in One Forty Fiction. Click here to read it, and leave a critique there if you feel compelled to do so.
Finally, the online journal A Handful of Dust will publish my poem Hello, My Name Is sometime in the future.
Things are looking up.
My poem Live on the Sunset Strip appears in issue 1.2 of Mythium, the journal for contemporary literature and the diasporic and indigenous cultural voices of writers of color.
Mythium is the brainchild of award-winning author & educator, Crystal E. Wilkinson and visual artist/poet, upfromsumdirt (Ronald Davis). I appreciate the chance to contribute to this issue, which also includes work by skilled wordsmiths such as Nikky Finney, Ruth Ellen Kocher, and countless others. It is a great read, from cover to cover. (If you get a chance, check out the cover of this issue of Mythium by clicking here – hands down the coolest cover concept I’ve seen out of a literary journal in long time.)
On a personal note, seeing this poem published makes me extremely happy. Live on the Sunset Strip is a tribute to the late Richard Pryor – those who are fans of his humor know the title matches the title of one of Pryor’s stand-up concert movies. I wrote the first draft of this poem shortly after his passing in 2005, and that draft was epically horrible – crap formed out of good intention and fandom, but too wordy and clumsy to be a sustainable piece of literature. I’ve tinkered with this poem off and on for years and finally got it to the point that I felt comfortable enough to have other human beings read it. And those people were the staff at Mythium, who thought enough of it to publish this work. I am so happy to have something penned out of pure emotion and admiration come to life on the page.
So fellow writers keep your heads up – sometimes it takes longer than expected, like five years…or more…but when you get to the destination and arrive at the precipice of your unblemished creative vision , there is no sweeter feeling.
Be good.
The Broken Plate is a literary magazine produced at Ball State University featuring poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. The magazine accepts submissions from writers around the world while continuing to devote pages to the work of Ball State students. The Broken Plate is beginning an exciting new phase in its growth toward a more diverse representation of the creative community.
I'm happy to mention that my poem Instructions appears in the 2010 edition of The Broken Plate. Acutally, I am truly blessed to be the very first poem appearing in the journal this year. Not often have I had the chance to be page one in a literary journal. Thanks to the editorial staff of this impressive journal for the opportunity to contribute.
First published in The Shine Journal, my Pushcart-nominated poem Tell Me Lies in a Dead Language is now up on the poetry blog Salamander Cove. This is poem touches on the subject of domestic violence and is loosely based on my interactions with a female friend in the past who dealt with this issue.
This is my second engagement on Salamander Cove, and I am happy and honored to have a chance to appear on there again. Take a sec and read Tell Me Lies…, along with all the other fine works on the blog – I guarantee that you can spend several hours reading these poems without feeling like you wasted a single minute.
Respect my grind. I will have work in upcoming editions of The DuPage Valley Review, Talking Stick, mythium and also on the poetry blog Salamander Cove. Details forthcoming.
The Shine Journal publishes some of the very best in creative work in the world. This print anthology contains a variety of earlier works representative of the spirit of The Shine Journal.Without the ongoing wonderful words and visually beautiful contributions TSJ would not what it is today. This is the first of many annual anthologies.
Who you will find in this book (in no particular order): Adrian S. Potter, Avis Hickman-Gibb, Boris Glikman, Mary Kennedy Eastham, Tory Brannigan, Amy George, R.S. Pyne, Moana Rawlins, Thomas Healy, Edward D. Nudelman, Elizabeth Stassinos, Arnold Emmanuel, Fionnuala Kearney, Carole Brier, Jim Harrington, Carol Bevan-Bogart, Shelly Wiseberg, Terry McKee, Cheryl Williams, P. Marcille Sibley, Moana Rawlins, Gary Beck, Hugh Aaron, Wayne Scheer, Alison Watt Jackson, Pat St. Pierre, Richard O. Walker, Jr., M.D., Jimetta Carpenter, Jan Green, Ray Succre, Oonah V. Joslin, Ravi Bedi, Rhonda Parrish, Justus Humphrey, John Young, Millicent Jackson, Sandra Anfang, Catherine DiCairano, Suzanne Wargo, Maureen Radoncic, R W Daddario and Peter Schwartz.
http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fStoreID=2886249&fMode=edit
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/the-shine-journal-anthology-volume-one/8344159
My poem Tell Me Lies in a Dead Language appears in The Shine Journal Anthology.
Props to editor Pamela Tyree Griffin for the work she puts in over at The Shine Journal.
The Poetics Noire is the result of an intimate relationship between art and words. It is the direct descendant of passion, struggle, and triumph. Coming at a time when people are hurting more than ever and asking, "how far have we actually come?" This book is about the reclamation of life at its purest form. To some it may just be a culmination of pages but to us, this project is the joining of experiences documented for the masses. The opportunity to transcend race, creed, sex, or any other division placed on us by society is readily available within every line. Welcome to Volume I.
http://www.amazon.com/Poetics-Noire-I-ebook/dp/B002Z13UFO
http://www.amazon.com/Poetics-Noire-Britany-Elise-Rickett/dp/0615308937
Proud to say I am a member of "The Poetics Noire Family." My poem Survival Tactics appears in this anthology.
Props to sister Britany Elise Rickett for having the drive and vision to see this project through from inspiration to publication. Impressive.
My poem If Love is a Big City, Lately I've Considered Relocating recently won the Third Annual Burning the Midnight Oil poetry contest over at The Write Helper! Big thanks to the Amy Harke-Moore for creating and judging this contest opportunity.
You can check out If Love is a Big City, Lately I've Considered Relocating on The Write Helper’s website by clicking the link below:
http://www.thewritehelper.com/id65.html
I was also given the opportunity to write a short profile about my writing on The Write Helper's site - you can read it here:
http://www.thewritehelper.com/id66.html
I better run and take this rare opportunity of Sunday afternoon free time to get some writing done. Be good…
The second issue of Interrobang?! is now online, and you should check it out. Trust me.
Interrobang is a web and print ‘zine for the arts based in Providence, RI. The second issue features a wonderful mixture of poetry, fiction, and art. And if you happen to visit Interrobang online, you could also take a moment to read my experimental piece called A Condensed History of Anger, with Footnotes.
My poems Hello Songs and I Hate Poetry are numbers 1 and 3, respectively, on today's postings at http://salamanderpoems.blogspot.com.
Salamander Cove is a blog for poets to connect with other poets, read one another's poems, and share the joy of creating with words.
Big thanks to the editor of this blog for sharing my work with the blogosphere (my God, how I hate that word).
I'll have new poems appearing in upcoming editions of HEART, Exact Change Only, Talking Stick, Working Title Two, Switched-On-Gutenberg, and Poetics Noire in the near future. The drought is over. Details forthcoming.
Seasonal Affective Disorder. It is not just a three word phrase to describe the melancholy feeling that the snow covered, insanely frigid, daylight deprived winter months bring. It is also the title of a newly published poem of mine.
Seasonal Affective Disorder appears in the Winter 2009 edition of Main Channel Voices, a print literary magazine based out of Winona, MN. Lucky for me (being the attention whore that I am), the editors chose my poem as one of the sample poems that can be viewed online – click here to read it. After that, look around at some of the other fine works in this edition, and maybe even contemplate buying a copy of Main Channel Voices.
Stay warm, if you can. :)
Stone's Throw, a literary magazine based in Montana featuring writers and artists from around the world, is now online. My poem Prophecy is one of the works featured in this edition. Big thanks to poetry editor Tami Haaland for giving my work a chance to shine in this publication. Click here to read Prophecy, then check out the rest of the great literature and photography in Stone’s Throw.
The inaugural issue of Ourboros is online and desperately waiting for you to read it. Don't disappoint it.
Ourboros is an online poetry and art journal that showcases new, emerging, and established poets and artists who are passionate about art and craft. If you take a peak, I think you will agree it is a fine looking online review with innovative poetry. Among the work in this issue is my poem Truth. Check it out when you need a literary fix…
Been writing poetry like a madman. About halfway done with my second poetry manuscript, tentatively titled the truth handbook. Hard for me to work on the second book when I have yet to find a publisher for the first one, but I have to push on.
I have yet to learn how to control my muse, so I have not written much fiction lately, but hoping that will change soon. Obviously I let that NaNoWriMo goal slip past me. I didn’t even feign trying. I didn’t even sign up. My bad. I’ll get ‘em next year.
My poem Hello Songs, winner of the Poetry Society of New Hampshire’s August 2008 contest, was recently published in The Poet’s Touchstone.
My poem Tell Me Lies in a Dead Language, which appeared online in The Shine Journal, has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize – click here for proof. Yay! I consider being nominated a huge honor, so big thanks to editor Pamela Tyree Griffin.
My poem Prophecy will appear in the online journal Stone's Throw, a literary magazine based in Montana featuring writers and artists from around the world. Sweet. Thanks to poetry editor Tami Haaland for the chance to contribute.
My poem Seasonal Affective Disorder will appear in Main Channel Voices, a literary journal based out of Winona, Minnesota. This is my second chance to be part of this “dam fine” publcation, and I definitely appreciate the opportunity.
Well, it’s past 10 PM. Time to write. Such is the life of an insomniac creative. Be good…
I will have a poem in the new print edition of If Poetry Journal titled Invocation of the Muse. I’m excited about this one because it will be my first published prose poem. Click here to see a list of contributors for this edition of If – it looks like it will be a great read.
I also found out my poem An Abundance of Scarcity will appear in an upcoming edition of inscape. inscape is the literary journal published annually at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. The publication, which premiered in 1972, features poetry, short fiction, creative nonfiction and visual art. Happy to have this chance to contribute – big thanks to poetry editors Michelle Lassiter and Leif Anderson or the opportunity.
The Talking Stick 17: Vanishing Point is now available for purchase. My poem Minnesota and my flash fiction piece False Hope appear in this edition of The Talking Stick, a Minnesota literary journal published annually by The Jackpine Writer's Bloc. It is an excellent read, filled with some interesting poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction from emerging and established Minnesotan writers.
You can read all about the talented writers who have contributed to this issue of The Talking Stick by clicking here, and/or purchase your own copy by clicking here.
The newest issue of Bent Pin Quarterly is online, and my poem The Insomniac’s Lullaby is amongst the fine work featured in it. Click here to check out my latest published piece, then look around at the rest of Bent Pin Quarterly. The interesting bait on this journal’s hook is its philosophy – rather than giving each piece its own separate page, BPQ puts two or three works of a similar tone or subject matter on the same page, allowing them to rub together and create friction, fire, confusion, or whatever. Cool idea, and I’m glad to be a part of this issue.
My poem Tell me Lies in a Dead Language is now online at The Shine Journal. You can read it by clicking here. Big thanks again to editor Pamela Tyree Griffin for the chance to “shine” in her publication.
This poem deviates a little from my usual style (it’s more disjointed and less direct), but it tackles a tough subject – spousal abuse. This poem’s appearance in The Shine Journal is timely given that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
The Shine Journal was voted by the Writer’s Digest Reader’s Poll as one of the “Best Websites for Writers.” It also placed in the top ten of the 2007 Preditors and Editors poll. After reading Tell me Lies in a Dead Language, take some time to look around this month’s issue of The Shine Journal and enjoy the diverse, exceptional poetry and flash fiction. You’ll enjoy it. Trust me.
My flash fiction piece What Is Between Us is now online at miniStories. You can read it by clicking here. Oh, and once again, this is another piece that failed as a poem, but through revision became a decent flash fiction piece. Seems to be a pattern – I’ve had several of those this year so far.
The person who posted it online declares that What Is Between Us “ explores the tensions and inextricable connections woven through the ties that bind us.” Word. :)
miniStories is mnartists.org's quarterly flash fiction competition. This literary series is coordinated by Electric Arc Radio's Geoff Herbach (author of newly released novel, The Miracle Letters of T. Rimburg, published by Three Rivers Press), and it showcases previously unpublished short stories by Minnesota writers. These winning short-short stories are selected by authors, editors, and publishing industry veterans from across the country. Winning miniStories are published on mnartists.org and in the e-magazine access+ENGAGE .
I’m happy to be a part of this round of miniStories and was energized by the miniStories reading that I participated in on July 27 – it was electric. I hope I get a chance to contribute again to miniStories. Which means I have to get off my butt and finish my submission for the next round, since it’s due by the end of September. Be good…