Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading from Pi-Con 2014

A quick post--sharing the Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading from Pi-Con 2014, made into a Broad Universe podcast by the fabulous (and 2014 Pi-Con Guest of Awesome) Justine Graykin.

This is a really fabulous sampling from Broad Universe members--including humor, intrigue, fantasy, science fiction and horror. I read two of the poems from Interview with the Faerie Part One: And Other Poems of Darkness and Light at about 10 minutes in.

Enjoy!
http://broaduniverse.org/podcast/august-2014-broadpod/

My Book of Poetry is Available on Amazon!!

Yay! Interview with the Faerie (Part One) and Other Poems of Darkness and Light is available at Amazon!

I haven't even received my copies yet :-)

The link to purchase is below. It will also be searchable and purchasable by libraries and other outlets within the next few weeks.

If you (or anyone you know) reviews poetry--or poetry or fiction dealing with Celtic, dark fantasy, science fiction, or Pagan themes--and may want a review copy, let me know.

http://www.amazon.com/Interview-Faerie-Part-One-Darkness/dp/1493542869/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384793073&sr=8-1&keywords=interview+with+the+faerie

I love this cover!

One Door Closes, Another One Opens

I was really bummed out two weeks ago when I received the news that my short story/poem "Interview With the Faerie, Part I"--slated to be published this month--was not going to be. The magazine is closing up shop. I was particularly dismayed because they held the piece for a year (and no, that is not unheard of in this biz.) Also, I LOVE this piece of work. In many ways, it defines me as a writer and is a good representation of what I write.


But to put this piece of news in greater context, I was coming off several poetry rejections (I'm clearly not sending to the right markets) and going through the change of leaving my job and re-defining myself. And dealing with the aftermath of Ari's back surgery. And such.


And then I was pleasantly surprised to hear that my short story Essie was accepted for publication by Luna Station Quarterly, a market I really dig. Their mission is to, "... is to display the vast and varied talents of female genre fiction writers."


So, look for Essie in their September issue. This will qualify as my first published short story! It is also one of my relatively few forays into pure scifi--I tend to write more fantasy and magickal realism.


Yesterday, I did re-tool "Interview" a bit and send it off to another market. I am now going to refer to it as a short story, which it really is. Even though it's written in stanzas like a poem and has some rhyming elements. It's over 1,700 words. So, fingers crossed on that.

A snippet from my poem, "Interview with the Faerie, Part 1." I've begun shopping this one around, looking for a place to publish it.

The full text is LONG. 1,723 words long. Hence, the snippet.

IV.
He began:
Faeries are not all cute and innocent,
Like your people have suggested
for several hundreds of years.
We are not all female,
And harmless; with flowers for clothing
And cute, pointy ears.

We are not here for your amusement,
Or to do your bidding!
We are not about
Leaving dewdrops and sparkly dust.
Do not think you can control us…
We are not a race of beings you should trust…

At this point, to my surprise,
He pulled a small cigarette from somewhere…
(Within His breeches? Or by magic?)
And on cue, an armed dragonfly
zipped over to Him in a flurry of iridescent wings,
rubbed two legs together, and it lit.

‘Himself’ sighed and took a long draw….
Blew sweet smoke rings right in my face.
(UGH—I tried not to cough!)
“Your Highness,” I prompted
“What about the belief that Your people
Originate from the Emerald Isle?”

He raised a perfectly arched eyebrow,
Blew another puff of smoke at me,
And continued…
My people reside in Ireland, to be sure—
We have a long and colorful history there.
We defeated the evil Formorians eons ago,
And Our seed flourished in that fertile land
We were masters—and mistresses—
Until the humans set foot on Our sand.

My people and yours lived in harmony;
We took from you what we desired,
And in return shared Our magicks.
But some power-mad of your kind conspired,
with men who thought themselves “holy”
And you know what then transpired…

//end of excerpt//

Waddya think?? Comments welcome and encouraged. Whaddya think of the convention of using different typeface for the two 'voices'?