Poem: Gunfight In Manhattan

I’m a little slow in announcing this, but my poem “Gunfight In Manhattan” has been published in the online journal My Favorite Bullet. The poem is a part of my upcoming collection Rumsfeld’s Sandbox and follows the publication of other poems in the collection. Those poems include: “Battlefield Confession” “Cigar” “Life” “Love And War” “Old…

Happy New Year

If you’ve been wondering about the silence on this side of the Web, I guess now is the time to break it. I would like to say Happy New Year to my loyal readers and say that it’s been a great holiday for me – but I’m just as glad it’s over. I will soon…

Poetry Video: the giant by Kate Greenstreet

Poets are getting more creative in how we promote ourselves. I’m glad to see it. I think this is going to be something we see more and more of in the future. Kate Greenstreet has moved us forward into the 21st century with this poetry video. I see these efforts only getting better: the giant…

Breadcrumb Sins: Featured Writer, Guess Who

A few days ago I discovered a new poetry journal in the form of a blog. This appears to be the latest trend in online publishing and one I welcome and admire. The blog format is the perfect online format for ongoing publication and suits the journal just fine. I was impressed with Breadcrumb Sins,…

The Nuts And Bolts Of Zukofsky

After reading 12-1/2 chapters of “A” by Louis Zukofsky, I’m convinced Zukofsky must have been a lunatic. Only such a person could have spent an entire life on a work such as “A”. I’m sure “A” has some literary value, but in large part it is a mad rambling. Zukofsky has the ability to make…

Why I Love My Wife

My wife is a great woman. When I ask for chicken broth she brings it to me. And she does other things too. But I needed chicken broth last night and she made me the best cup of broth I’ve ever had. Thanks, wife. I’ve been fighting a cold now for three days. So no…

Zukofsky’s Ballade

Yesterday I announced I was reading Louis Zukofsky’s “A”. The poem is decidedly written in the mode of free verse – most parts of it anyway. But imagine my surprise when, at the end of Part 8, I’m reading along and happen upon a Ballade. Right in the middle of the poem. Zukofsky was a…

Understanding A Poet’s Purpose

To what extent do you make an attempt to understand a poet’s purposes? Or should you? I suspect that many readers do not take the time to understand a particular poet’s poetic, or weltanschauung, before delving into a reading experience. But I think in many cases, they should. I recently had a copy of Louis…

To/From – The Dual Nature Of Free

Free is a word that gets used a lot. Politically, everyone wants to be free. Economically, people want free goods and services. Or free money. And poetically, some of us like free verse. Some people give away sex for free. To anybody. Isn’t that gross? But what I’ve noticed when people use the word ‘free’…

When I Come Home, The Video

Yesterday, I posted a poem I wrote recently, a habit I don’t want to start, but I thought I’d share the video of me reading it today for the second Friday Video installment. The poem is titled “When I Come Home.” I hope you enjoy it.