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In June: “Superior Achievement in Poetry Collection: Four Elements”

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for Superior Achievement in Poetry Collection:

Marge Simon, Rain Graves, Charlee Jacob, and Linda Addison—

Four Elements (Bad Moon Books/Evil Jester Press)

Book Cover: Four Elements

Four Elements: Bad Moon Books / Evil Jester Press

Linda Addison: http://www.cith.org/linda/
Bad Moon books: http://www.badmoonbooks.com/home.php
Marge Simon: http://www.margesimon.com
Rain Graves: http://raingraves.blogspot.com
Charlee Jacob: http://www.charleejacob.com
Evil Jester Press: http://eviljesterpress.com/main

We’ll be exploring the other nominated works in more depth throughout 2014 but I wanted to begin with the winner of the Stoker. Four Elements is a thoughtful, intriguing, brilliant and beautiful work (four adjectives, one for each element, obviously) that is a well-deserved winner.

To celebrate, I interviewed Linda Addison and Rain Graves along with Roy K. Robbins of Bad Moon Press. Congratulations to everyone involved with Four Elements!

First up, Linda Addison:

 

 

 

HWA: Do you still have the first poem you ever wrote? Would you be willing to share it?

LA: The first poem I wrote is probably in a box somewhere. I have a poem I wrote 12/19/1969.

A Message

Had man the power to always
be happy
Would he?

The power was had
And he destroyed.

It was the day after
Man was not
Birds flew in the dark sky
no where to land
There were few birds…
one flew high
sensing something
it alighted on the ground
no pretty feathers
a song choked
an inhuman fear produced.

The bird knew
there was nothing
He had watched as Man
existed
thrived
and destroyed.

The bird vanished
It was truly the End.

HWA: How does being a poet fit into the rest of your life?

LA: Poetry is a part of my life with every breath. It runs in the back of my mind like a song. When I’m not busy doing something I will write down (on paper, in my phone, etc) some words, lines that come through. When I was younger I had this concept of a river running under what we call consciousness and my poetry came from dipping the fingers of my mind into it. Ultimately I don’t see poetry separate from my life, it’s part of what makes my life.

HWA: What were your first impressions after learning about the Stoker nomination? What is the impact and import of the nomination?

LA: I was delighted and honored to have Four Elements nominated. I believed deeply in the book from the moment it was finished. It’s wonderful to be recognized by your peers.

There is the boost of attention given to finalists like interviews by HWA like this one, etc. And extra PR from having a book as a finalist leads to reviews. The author can help highlight their accomplishment by sharing the information with communities that they are connected.

With my first HWA Bram Stoker win I was invited to be a speaker at my high school graduation which was a wonderful moment for me personally.

HWA: Who are your favorite poets? Favorite poems?

LA: There’s a long list of my favorite poets, including the three authors in Four Elements with me (Charlee Jacob, Rain Graves and Marge Simon).

Some of the poets who have inspired me to write are Maya Angelou, Tom Piccirilli, Rita Dove, Edgar Allen Poe, Nikki Giovanni, Shakespeare, Alice Walker, Billy Collins, Chad Hensley, Bruce Boston, Michael Arnzen, Stephen M. Wilson, Corrine De Winter, G. O. Clark, John Edward Lawson; the list could go on for days.

Picking favorite poems is extremely difficult.

One of the latest ones that made me write is a wonderful villanelle: “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by Dylan Thomas.

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Another poem is a collaborative poem I wrote with Stephen M. Wilson in our collection, “Dark Duet” (a HWA Bram Stoker finalist) called ‘Double Helix’:

Double Helix
by Stephen M. Wilson & Linda Addison

To the naked eye
you and I may appear
different.

We spiral, though,
with the same passion
and synergy.

Each difference
skin, gender, location
brings us closer.

Our words rise, twist
from non-euclidean space
to tango in base pair step.
Constantly transposing roles
between both major groove
and minor groove.

Stripped of all external
things, your back, my bone
spin to create new shapes.

Eyes gaze at our dance,
microscopically, trying
to unravel our mysteries.

As you shift, I slide
As you twist, I tilt
As you roll, I rise.

Hybridization, our
binding, is another
word for Love.

Love of words
Love of music
Love of Life.


Next, Rain Graves:

HWA: Do you still have the first poem you ever wrote? Would you be willing to share it?

RG: Unfortunately, I do not have the first poem I ever wrote. I’m not even sure when that might have occurred, but my guess would be junior high school. I did a lot of song writing and poetry back then. If I could find it, I doubt I would share–teenage angst and all that.

HWA: How does being a poet fit into the rest of your life?

RG: Poetry is my life. Verses are constantly running through my head, whether mine, or some other poet, modern or classical. I taste it in the air, walking through a lavender field, or smell it in a Redwood forest. I dream of fantastical things that conjure intense images, fueling inspiration for poetry. And whenever I drink wine, I am drinking bottled poetry. If you are asking out of practicality–how I fit it into my lifestyle–no poet was ever practical about such things. I will discreetly interrupt dinner with friends to find a napkin to scribble it on, or type it into my phone via the privacy of a bathroom break, if the mood strikes. I suspect very few of my friends know some of my best work was written in their bathrooms on the sly.

HWA: What were your first impressions after leaning about the Stoker nomination? What is the impact and import of the nomination?

RG: There is always so much controversy over the Bram Stoker Award Nominations. I am thankful and happy at the recognition; all poets ever hope for is that someone will ‘get it,’ and do so in their lifetime. We (or at least I) do not grope for that recognition through awards, but often do so through our peers and readership. Since other professionals in the field vote on the award, I guess you could say it is a recognition of sorts, by our peers. I have never been a member of the HWA, but I support the idea of the organization, and I support the idea of the Bram Stoker Awards.

The award for the poetry category has brought an awareness to the evolution of the dark poetry genre that might not have happened within the horror community without it. People now have a list of books that won for over ten years, and whenever people ask me where to start in reading horror poetry, I point them to it. There was some talk many years ago about removing the award for poetry, when the cost to produce the banquet and awards was too high… I protested the removal greatly, and I am very glad it has carried on. It has given notice to a genre that one could argue did not exist on paper 20 years ago, despite the fact that dark poetry has been published for hundreds of years, and by classic poets that are required reading in today’s school systems.

HWA: Who are your favorite poets? Favorite poems?

RG: This is always a hard question to answer, because there are so many, and my choices for current reading always pop into my head, along with Tennyson, Dante, Keats, Poe, and many others. Donald Sidney Fryer is one of my all time favorite living poets; his gift for verse and tradition is beautiful. He wrote us a fantastic introduction for THE FOUR ELEMENTS, though we only used a blurb. Clark Ashton Smith is another favorite, but more for nostalgia, as I love the worlds he could create. Daphne Gottlieb writes excellent work, Lucky 7 (a Def Poetry Jam artist), as well as my cohorts, Charlee Jacob, Linda Addison, and Marge Simon. Charlee’s work is explicitly dark and cerebral. Michael Shae was also an excellent poet, though many did not know him as such. My absolute all time favorite poems are “The Lady of Shalott,” and “The Lady Elaine” by Lord Alfred Tennyson. Essentially they are the same poem, though “The Lady Elaine” is much more dark and explores the reason behind “The Lady of Shalott” in a much more in depth way that answers the question of why. I also love T.S. Elliot’s “The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock.” It reminds me that youth is ever fleeting, and to take chances in life.


Finally, Roy K. Robbins of Bad Moon Books:

HWA: First off, have to ask: was wrangling 4 different poets more or less of a challenge than one (or than herding cats…)?

RKR: No, it could have been, but Rain “rode herd” on the entire process and acted as a “clearinghouse” for all four of the ladies. All were a delight to work with.

HWA: Do you have a ‘favorite’ poem from Four Elements?

RKR: WOW, tough one, but probably “The Time Drifter” by Marge Simon.

HWA: Considering the rich history of Horror (or dark) poetry (reaching all the way back into history through Poe and continuing on in the present day), how do you see the future of Horror poetry shaping up? Any surprises in store?

RKR: I think that things run in cycles and I’m sure horror poetry will be no exception. I do feel that more and more authors may begin to “dip their toes” into the art.

HWA: What were your first impressions after leaning about the Stoker nomination? What is the impact and import of the nomination?

RKR: I was delighted. Not for myself but for the ladies. Although I have never met Charlee, the other ladies are delightful in person. I think to win a Stoker in poetry is quite an achievement as there are not many working in the field and they are all stellar.
Thanks for the opportunity to chime in.


Congratulations, again, to everyone involved!

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