About Me

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Assistant Professor, William Paterson University of New Jersey, United States

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

ATM

I just received copies of ATM, my new chapbook of poems just out from Horse Less Press. I had more fun while writing these poems than I've had writing anything else. Thanks to Jen Tynes and Horse Less Press for putting it out, and thanks to Shawn Huelle for a very nice cover design. I love it! If you want a copy, you can buy one here

Sunday, October 10, 2010

The Equalizer

Here's a great new e-compendium of contemporary poets culled and arranged meticulously by Michael Schiavo. You can either subscribe to The Equalizer by sending an email to the address below, or you can read the installments by downloading at one of the links. Readers are encouraged to forward it to other readers and upload the files on their own websites.

My poems appear in 1.1 and some will appear in a later installment. These poems are from "Minimum Heroic," my new full length book.

The Equalizer 1.1:
Summer Block, Jim Behrle, Macgregor Card, Mark Bibbins, Emily Anderson, Aaron Belz, Don Share, Cody Walker, Christopher Salerno, Amick Boone, Adam Clay, Buck Downs, Stephanie Anderson, Owen Barker, and CAConrad.

If you’d like to sign up for The Equalizer mailing list to receive sections as they’re released throughout October 2010, please email theunrulyservant (at) gmail (dot) com.

The Equalizer 1.1 available via HTMLGiant and Maureen Thorson.
The Equalizer 1.2 available via HTMLGiant and Maureen Thorson.

look for 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5 soon!

Friday, May 07, 2010

Where I'll Be (updated)

Reading
Sunday, May 9th, 8-11pm
*Waxroth Reading Series* (715 Washington, Durham, NC)
Jon Leon, Joe Fletcher, Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Friday, May 14th,
*Yardmeter Editions* (Brooklyn, NY),
Elisa Gabbert, Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Saturday, May 15th,
*TBA* (Philadelphia, PA),
Elisa Gabbert Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Sunday, May 16th,
*Cheryl's Gone* (Washington, DC),
Elisa Gabbert, Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Sunday, May 23rd, 7 pm
*Flanders Gallery* (302 S West St. Raleigh NC)
Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli, Matvei Yankelevich

Friday, April 30, 2010

So and So Magazine To Publish Poetry Reviews

NEW FEATURE: So and So Magazine!

So and So Magazine is seeking review copies of new books and chapbooks of poems for macro/micro reviews on the site. While we can't guarantee all books will be reviewed, we hope to get to the ones that strike us and promote the new and noteworthy.

Send all review copies to:

So and So Magazine
Eds. Chris Salerno and Chris Tonelli
Box 8105 Tompkins Hall
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, NC 27695

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Nazim Hikmet Poetry Festival (This Weekend!)

This Sunday, April 18th, I'll be hosting a Poetry Workshop at the 2nd Annual Nazim Hikmet Poetry Festival. I'm really looking forward to it. The festival and workshop are both free and will take place at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center, Cary NC. Poetry Workshop: 1-3 PM. Talks and Readings: 3-6 PM.

From the Nazim Hikmet Poetry Festival website:

During the Festival, you are invited to participate in an afternoon Poetry Workshop (free) hosted by Christopher Salerno. Festival Workshop members will work with a general prompt to sketch out a draft of a single poem using a basic set of poetic techniques that we will discuss and develop during the session. Participants will be encouraged to read and share aloud their efforts.

The meeting will be an opportunity for participants to discuss their work in a casual atmosphere. Following the workshop, a follow-up meeting will be held for those interested in polishing their work further in a more concentrated workshop setting. Selected poems from the workshop will be published on the festival website.

All festival attendees (16 and up) are encouraged to attend the workshop, as there is no requirement or expectation of “skill” level whatsoever. We’ll meet in the spirit of Nazim, who celebrated life at all turns with a lyric grace and an utterly human poetic voice.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

AWP Post Mortem


Left Denver less than inspired by the panels and more than inspired by the people (one exception: The Networked Poetry Classroom (Chris Hosea, Eric Baus, Dorothea Lasky, Mathias Svalina, Michelle Taransky). Much useful and applicable tips on using computers and digital media in the creative writing classroom.

PEOPLE AND PRESSES:

My generation of poets and small press innovators continue to wow me with their generosity, independence, brilliance. What an amazing "class." If you happen upon this blog and haven't heard of the following small presses, I definitely recommend: the new Birds, LLC, Brave Men Press, Forklift Ohio, Flying Guillotine, Slash Pine, Black Ocean, Octopus, Letter Machine Editions, Immaculate Disciples, Coconut, Cannibal, No Tell Motel, DoubleCrossed Press, Harp & Altar, Factory Hollow, Horse Less Press, Sixth Finch, Sir, Ahsahta, Rope-a-Dope press, and the list goes on. Solid citizens, these people. I was glad to meet those I hadn't yet. And to see their books, many of which are handmade, hand-bound--some even sewing books right there at their tables. Awesomeness of the highest degree.

And, of course, on a personal note, my Mississippi Review Poetry Series editors and advisory board folks were the sweetest people and best promotors I could ask for. So nice to finally meet them.

PANELS:

Admittedly, I only attended 5 or 6 panels. But, why do so many panels promise in their descriptions to assert some NEW way or approach to a stagnancy only to spend the entire time just pointing to that stagnancy? Enough punting already.

I'm as career-conscious as the next guy, but let's actually break new ground.

If we're lucky enough to get our Art of the Blurb panel accepted for next year's DC AWP, you better believe that we will move the discussion forward.

Anyway, the theme from the half-dozen panels I attended, coupled with several of those whose descriptions I glossed in the catalogue, seemed to add up to one overarching message:

We're now in a time of fragmentation, hyperactivity, and, well, suck. A dearth of good work (both primary and critical) coupled with a wealth of new. That there has been (another) "wrong turning," or general degradation of something worth preserving seemed to be the backdrop of many a panel. And, as usual, folks are suspect of the new modes and sensibilities. I understand some of this...

However, one look at the poems, titles, editions of many of the entities I've named above and I think it's fair to say the opposite is probably true of new poetry. I brought home a dozen new titles from many of the above presses, and I'll be digging in directly.

Tuesday, April 06, 2010

Heading to Denver for the AWP Conference.

Excited about the Denver AWP trip. Going to do a reading (Historic Falcon--see previous post for my upcoming readings) with some buds and solid poets, and then a book signing Friday at the Mississippi Review table (from 1:30-2:45). That should be an interesting experience.

Anyway, I just finished submitting a panel proposal for next year's AWP conference in D.C.

The title? "The Art of the Blurb."

That's right. It's time The Blurb got some rhetorical attention. It's a full fledged genre. The panel, should it "make," will consist of myself, John Gallaher, Chris Tonelli, Mary Biddinger, and Janet Holmes. Our goal is to cover all bases and perspectives (publisher, reader, author, blurber, etc).

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Where I'll Be

Reading
Friday, March 26th
*Indy Week Poetry Prize Reading*
Flanders Art Gallery, (Raleigh NC)
7pm

Reading
Thursday, April 8th, 2010
*Historic Falcon*
Mercury Cafe, 2199 California Street, (Denver, CO)
Poets include: Julia Cohen, Brian Foley, Elisa Gabbert, Kate Greenstreet, Dan Magers, Justin Marks, Linnea Ogden, Christopher Salerno, Kim Gek Lin Short, Sam Starkweather, Janaka Stucky, and Chris Tonelli.
6:30-9:00 p.m.

Book Signing
Friday, April 9th
*AWP Conference Book Fair, (Denver, CO)*
Signing will be held at the Mississippi Review table.
1:30-2:45.

Reading
Friday, May 14th,
*Yardmeter Editions* (Brooklyn, NY),
Elisa Gabbert, Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Saturday, May 15th,
*Wooden Shoe Books* (Philadelphia, PA),
Elisa Gabbert Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Reading
Sunday, May 16th,
*Cheryl's Gone* (Washington, DC),
Elisa Gabbert, Christopher Salerno, Chris Tonelli

Monday, February 22, 2010

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

The So and So Series #36

Poetry from Ana Božičević * Brian Howe * Amy King

Designs by Brent Francese

Saturday * February 20th * 8pm * Morning Times * 10 E. Hargett Street * Raleigh, NC



Ana Božičević emigrated to NYC in 1997. Stars of the Night Commute (Tarpaulin Sky Press, November 2009) is her first book of poems. Her fifth chapbook, Depth Hoar, will be published by Cinematheque Press in 2010. With Amy King, Ana co-curates The Stain of Poetry reading series in Brooklyn. She works at the Center for the Humanities of The Graduate Center, CUNY. For more, visit nightcommute.org.





Brian Howe is a freelance writer, poet, and multimedia artist living in Durham, NC. His poems and sound art have appeared in many print and online journals, including Drunken Boat, Fascicle, Effing Magazine, McSweeneys.net, Octopus, Soft Targets, and Cannibal. He's the author of three chapbooks: Guitar Smash (3rdness Press), This is the Motherfucking Remix (with Marcus Slease, Scantily Clad), and Foreign Letter (Beard of Bees). His videos (with Ashley Howe) have screened at various NC festivals and showcases. He does a lot of his multimedia jams here: http://glossolalia-blacksail.blogspot.com/.





Amy King's most recent book is Slaves to Do These Things (Blazevox), and forthcoming, I Want to Make You Safe (Litmus Press). She teaches English and Creative Writing at SUNY Nassau Community College. For information on the reading series Amy co-curates in Brooklyn, NY, please visit The Stain of Poetry: A Reading Series (http://stainofpoetry.com) and http://amyking.org for more.





Brent Francese graduated with Bachelor's in Architecture in 2005 from NC State before the turning economy allowed him to explore a variety of creative of avenues. Using a strong graphic background, Brent currently designs logos, blogs and other stand alone graphic art pieces. When he's not working on graphic design or architecture he's playing drums with several local bands in the Raleigh, NC area. He lives with his wife Jessie and two dogs Tahoe and Denali.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

So and So #35 This Saturday 1/16 at 8pm

Poetry from Lily Brown * Michael Ford * Joshua Marie Wilkinson

Designs by Shane Smith

Saturday * January 16th * 8pm * Morning Times * 10 E. Hargett Street * Raleigh, NC






Lily Brown's first book, Rust or Go Missing, is forthcoming from Cleveland State University Poetry Center in fall of 2010. She lives in Chicago and in Athens, where she is pursuing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Georgia.





Michael Ford often writes poetry with the help of a calculator. He wishes he could add without one but can’t. He hopes that all of the counting and addition that goes into his poems is doing some good in the world. He thinks that 89 is a better number than most, and his current project is a series of 89-line poems. He is the author of two books of poems, Carbon (Ugly Duckling 2006) and Olympia Street (Trembling Pillow 2008). He no longer lives in New Orleans.





Joshua Marie Wilkinson's new collections are The Book of Whispering in the Projection Booth (Tupelo 2009) and Selenography (Sidebrow 2010) featuring Polaroids by Califone's Tim Rutili. He lives in Chicago and Athens, GA.





Shane Smith is a graphic designer living in Raleigh, NC. He graduated with a BFA in Illustration from East Carolina University. He was recently featured in Print Magazines Regional Design Annual, representing Raleigh with 2 logos. When not designing for the man, he plays with kittens, reads books at 25 words a minute, and gets serious about making people laugh at Dirty South Improv in Carrboro.