Strange things happen in June

Had you told me even a couple of months ago that I would be submitting an illustrated sonnet to an actual magazine, like I did just now, I would have laughed. But the older I get the more I have to just shrug and remember: Never say never. I actually did have a couple of poems published in a tiny, long-dead journal back in the mid-nineties, so I suppose it isn't entirely impossible that someone might want to publish more of my poetry. Which I seldom write, but now and again the urge seizes me. Even less frequently do I have an urge to share this stuff, but this is what happens when you spend a lot of time alone. Now we will see what they say. If anything.

That out of my system, I plan to work on a couple of stories I abandoned when I started the edits on Love Minus Zero, back in early 2008 (doesn't that seem like a long time ago?). I'm also looking into teaching creative writing and to that end am submitting a workshop outline to the Alexandra Writers Centre by the end of June as well as taking a one-day course at Mount Royal College later this month, Principles of Adult Learning.

That's the theory, at least. Of course, there are a lot of attractive diversions out there. And the weather is beautiful; it's not even snowing. This is how kids feel at the end of the school year. Restless. Distracted. Unfocused. Preoccupied. Oh, well. That's June for you.

Fictionistas in my future?

It looks that way, judging by Thistledown's new fall catalogue. The info about Nothing Sacred is here, on page five:

http://www.thistledownpress.com/images/2009fallcat.pdf

So I'm thinking that "Western Canadian co-author tour" mentioned in the Publicity and Marketing section would be a trip with the Fictionistas program. A number of Western Canadian publishers send women authors with new books on a series of joint readings. Sounds good to me. As I was telling my sister last night, I found doing out of town readings last fall was kind of a lonely experience. I could understand why Dylan Thomas had those eighteen straight whiskies that night. But yes, having a group would be fun. We'll see what happens.

Looking forward to lunching tomorrow with my friend Jan Markley, whose first middle grade novel, Dead Frog on the Porch, is forthcoming from Gumboot Books this fall. Yeah! Will we have eighteen straight whiskies? I doubt it, since I don't think they serve whiskey at Boca Loca. Besides, whiskey seems to have a narcotic effect on me; history has shown that it's not good for me to drink it.

Ahem. Okay. All for now.

Edmonton; Preorder

Although I did not win this year's CAA Exporting Alberta Award (that honour went to Karen Bass' young adult novel Run Like Jager) I had a swell time reading and schmoozing with the Alberta branch crowd, as I always do. The readings were excellent and I'm sure the judges had a tough time picking a winner. Also fun was our morning at West Edmonton Mall. That is one big mall, no joke.

Here's Nothing Sacred's debut in the Chapters Indigo catalogue. ISBNs and everything -- I didn't just dream it:

http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/35/search?sc=Lori+Hahnel&sf=Author

Lovely. Now you can preorder as many copies as you wish.

Off to check out Lillian Gish and a young Ronald Colman in 1923's The White Sister. What's this, you say, a silent movie? Where is Bruce, then? Off at a conference in Colorado. Yes, a chance for me to indulge my bizarre cinematic tastes. Which reminds me, it so happens that Errol Flynn's 100th birthday falls on the weekend of Cub-o-Rama later this month. Really must work out some kind of event for that. Hmmm.

Alberta Views review

I was very pleased to see Candace Fertile's review of Love Minus Zero in the new (June 2009) issue of Alberta Views. Mostly a very good review, too -- even better. I don't think they usually put their reviews online and they've not yet got the June issue up on their site, but what the hell, here's a link to them, anyway:

http://www.albertaviews.ab.ca/

Even if they hadn't reviewed my book, I'd have to say I love them. I've been a subscriber for close to ten years. They are one of the few voices on the other side of the political spectrum in Alberta -- as publisher Jackie Flanagan put it at a conference a few years ago, they are "Alberta Retort". You gotta like that.

Revisions, Edmonton

Wrapped up revisions to Nothing Sacred and handed them in today. That do feel good. I guess the next step in the process will be proofs and getting the promo wheels turning, but those things are a little ways off yet. The next thing I want to do is write a short story -- a new one. Perhaps all new. I have a couple of embryonic ones that were abandoned at early stages for various reasons, so I'll have a look at those, but I may just write something new. After working the last couple of years on things that I wrote as long as nine years ago, I'm looking forward to doing something new. It's a little scary, actually, but scary in a good way.

In the meantime, getting ready to go up to Edmonton Friday to read at the Canadian Authors Association Exporting Alberta Award presentation. I have no idea who else is reading, but looking forward to hanging out with my Alberta CAA friends again. After a visit to WEM the next day, we dash back to the town of cows so that Bruce can fly to Colorado Sunday for a conference.

Listening to a new CD I got -- The Verdix Live at The Black Bull Lounge, March 31 / 79. Thirty years on, I'm amazed at how good it sounds. I'd forgotten how tight and high-energy they were. Apparently there's going to be a launch party for the disc here in August sometime. It might be good to go to that. Or it might be distressing to see how old all those people have grown.

In the meantime, out to take the dog to the vet for a shot. Don't let anybody tell you the writing life is not glamorous.

Rebel with an orthotic

Yep, that's me. My long and varied career in retail / public service has provided me with all kinds of things: an aversion to crowds, fodder for my fiction and the biggest heel spur my podiatrist has seen in thirty years of practise. Yeah! We're number one! So I had my feet casted today (not as bad as it sounds, as I am kind of foot fascinated. A little bit of artistic license and it was kind of fun. Ahem). And then I pick up my orthotics in a week or two. What next? Bifocals? Support hose? Christ.

In other news, I am nearing the end of revisions for Nothing Sacred. I'm beginning to fantasize about doing some freefall writing when I'm done. Which is my default mode of creation and something I felt I was doing wrong until I went to a freefall workshop and realized that's what I've always done. Is there another way?

Okay, next project: freefalling on foot casting. I'll tell you, that next book is going to be a doozy.

"Blue Lake"

I was very pleased today to get my contributor copies of the new issue of The Antigonish Review (Number 157, Spring 2009). My piece, "Blue Lake", is one I read at this year's Writing in the Works event and as I told the audience that night, has had kind of a crazy history. First sent it out into the big world in July of 2004. After seven rejections it shortlisted in PRISM's 2005 fiction contest. Four more rejections and then it was at long last accepted by The Antigonish Review last summer. And they're a market I've been trying to crack for a good eight years or so. So I have to say, it's quite satisfying to me that the little sucker is finally seeing the light of day.

I'm also in the excellent company of Dave Margoshes, Rosemary Griebel, Robyn Sarah, Travis Lane and many others. Looking forward to digging in later.