Yaddith Times

If you live in the U.S., April is National Poetry Month! (And if you don't, it's still National Poetry Month here in the States, so feel free to join in. Please.)

Here are a few links to get you started:

What the heck is National Poetry Month, anyhow?

https://www.poets.org/national-poetry-month/home

How can I read more poetry in my Inbox, for free?

Poem-A-Day

https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem-day

Knopf Poetry Poem a Day

http://knopfdoubleday.com/knopf-poetry-signup/

(this one only officially runs through April, though poems sometimes show up at other times)

Rattle

https://www.rattle.com/

(there's a drop-down menu with a link to subscribe -- good online / print poetry magazine)


Poetry Daily

http://poems.com/about_newsletter.php

(for now, this will get you signed up for a weekly newsletter with poem links -- but soon, there will be a daily poem offered as well)


Sad confession: I subscribe to all of these. And no, I don't always get every one read every day -- but it's wonderful to have something I actually look forward to in my Inbox.

I'll be posting again this month with more links / poem sources, for both haiku & speculative poetry. Poem on!

It was actually published in very late 2017, apparently -- but I am delighted to announce that Black Wings VI: New Tales of Lovecraftian Horror (ed. by S.T. Joshi) is out from PS Publishing.

This volume of the Black Wings series includes twenty-two stories & poems (four poems this time, woo!) . TOC as follows:

Introduction S. T. Joshi
Pothunters Ann K. Schwader
The Girl in the Attic Darrell Schweitzer
The Once and Future Waite Jonathan Thomas
Oude Goden Lynne Jamneck
Carnivorous William F. Nolan
On a Dreamland’s Moon Ashley Dioses
Teshtigo Creek Aaron Bittner
Ex Libris Caitlín R. Kiernan
You Shadows That in Darkness Dwell Mark Howard Jones
The Ballad of Asenath Waite Adam Bolivar
The Visitor Nancy Kilpatrick
The Gaunt Tom Lynch
Missing at the Morgue Donald Tyson
The Shard Don Webb
The Mystery of the Cursed Cottage David Hambling
To Court the Night K. A. Opperman
To Move Beneath Autumnal Oaks W. H. Pugmire
Mister Ainsley Steve Rasnic Tem
Satiety Jason V Brock
Provenance Unknown Stephen Woodworth
The Well D. L. Myers

For more information, or to order:

https://www.pspublishing.co.uk/black-wings-vi-hardcover-edited-by-s-t-joshi-4415-p.asp

"Pothunters," BTW, is my most recent Cassie Barrett investigation. And yes, I am feeling pretty frabjous about it finding such a good home.

National Poetry Month starts tomorrow (in the USA, anyhow)!

Are YOU ready?

If not, here's a list of helpful links to take you from bad to verse. Don't get caught with your pantoums down!

What is National Poetry Month, anyhow?

How can I celebrate it?

How can I get more free poetry in my life? (Try Poem-a-Day, Poetry Daily, Rattle -- I use all of these.)

Where can I find out more about speculative (SF, fantasy, horror, etc.) poetry?


OK, that should get you started. I'll be posting more -- I hope -- on poetry all during April.

Truth in LJing: I commit poetry. Fairly regularly. I'm a member of SFPA, & the author of several collections of speculative poetry. My most recent, Dark Energies (P'rea Press 2015) was a Bram Stoker Award Finalist.

I don't usually post about crowdfunding projects, but I've recently backed one (also rare for me!) that I'm pretty excited about.

Tony C. Smith of the District of Wonders podcasts is doing a Kickstarter for a new SF/F anthology.  It's entitled Everyone: Worlds Without Walls.  Its stated goal is to:

explore and celebrate how we are greater together – and, conversely, the need to tear down walls of ignorance, prejudice, and injustice.

The TOC for this one is international, diverse, & impressive -- and will expand as stretch goals are met.   Dr. Amy H. Sturgiseldritchhobbit will be writing the introduction. At this point, there are 21 writers involved!

With 10 days to go,  the project's original goal and one stretch goal have been met.  Pledge levels range from the extremely reasonable -- which gets you a e-copy of the anthology -- to more generous amounts for additional rewards.

All details, including that expanding TOC, can be found here.

(Full disclosure: I am backing this, but I am not one of the writers or otherwise involved with the project.)

I don't make a habit of posting about -- or participating in -- crowdfunding projects.

However, the Lovecraft Arts & Sciences Council in Providence, RI is trying to get that city a statue of its literary native son -- using no public funds whatsoever. Only a page on Generosity by Indiegogo, which opened for donations about two months ago.

No, there is no statue of H.P. Lovecraft in Providence.

Yet.

But there will be, if enough advocates of the weird want there to be. It's a well-planned endeavor, featuring the work of a local artist who will be paid fairly. For more info about the Lovecraft Providence Statue Project (and a spooky video!), check here. Or here. And if you can, please consider helping. I have.

The Science Fiction Poetry Association’s 2015 Halloween Poetry Reading site is up, and expanding day by day. Edited by Liz Bennefeld & Shannon Connor Winward, this annual online tradition offers atmospheric art & horrifying poems for the haunting season.

With a couple of exceptions, most of the poems are read by their creators – who also share snippets of information about the poems themselves, as well as web sites or blogs where more work awaits discovery.

This year, I finally managed to hold my mouth right long enough to contribute a reading to this project! Listen to my long measure poem “Wind Shift” (and many other spooky verses!) here.

I just got a boarding pass for Mars.

Nope, not the trip – just the boarding pass, for NASA’s InSight lander due to launch in March 2016. All names submitted & approved will be inscribed on a chip which actually is headed to Mars with the lander.

It’s all free, but unfortunately I just found out about this -- & today is the last day to register. If you’re a fellow Mars-o-phile & reading this before 11:59 PM ET, you can go here for all the information.

See you – or your name, at least – on Mars!

Through some conjunction of right-turning stars that I am still unable to explain, I’m going to be Poet Laureate at NecronomiCon Providence, August 20-23. Since this one is in honor of H.P. Lovecraft’s 125th birthday-- doesn’t he look great for his age? -- I’m particularly thrilled.

Here’s my (current) schedule of panels, readings, & other activities, cribbed from the official website :


THURSDAY – August 20 – HPL’s 125th Birthday!
5:00 to 6:15pm – OPENING CEREMONIES – the First Baptist Church in America, 75 N. Main St. 02903 OPEN TO GENERAL PUBLIC (free)
Special Guests of Honor, including Ramsey Campbell, Leslie Klinger and Poet Laureate Ann Schwader, will welcome attendees and officially commemorate Lovecraft’s anniversary in this historic Providence landmark.
(I’m reading a specially written poem for this. Cross tentacles for me.)



SATURDAY – 1-2:15pm
SHE WALKS IN SHADOWS NO MORE – Grand Ballroom, Biltmore 17th Floor
Many of the most unique and powerful voices in weird fiction belong to women! Although once looked upon incorrectly as a white man’s genre, weird fiction has a long tradition of women writers, and that tradition continues today. Join us in celebrating these talented authors, and find out why they write Lovecraftian fiction.
Panelists: Caitlín Kiernan, Ann Schwader, Lois Gresh, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Anya Martin
Moderator: Faye Ringel

Saturday – 4:00-5:15pm
POETRY WORKSHOP – Renaissance Room, Biltmore 17th Floor
A special session welcoming of all poets and aspiring poets, led by Thomas Broadbent and Starry Wizdom, with our Poet Laureate Ann Schwader and several other remarkable eldritch scribes. Come together and share in the creative process or just enjoy the beautiful company.


SUNDAY

AUTHOR READINGS – L’Apogee, Biltmore 17th Floor.
Session Two: Lois Gresh and Ann Schwader (Note: session runs 10-11am)

POETRY READINGS – L’Apogee, Biltmore 17th Floor
Poetry circle (Note: session runs from 11am to Noon)
This session will be led by our Poet Laureate Ann Schwader, poet Adam Bolivar, and our own in-house muses Thomas Broadbent and Starry Wizdom, but feel free to bring some of our own favorite poetry to share

Sunday – 1-2:15pm
NAMELESS RHYMES – Omni 2
Poetry was an important part of Lovecraft’s life and “weird poetry” is a growing trend today. There are many writers who dabble in the poems of the weird and still more who make it their singular creative focus. What is the history of weird poetry, and what makes a poem weird? Our panelists debate this issue and what it means to write weird poetry in the 21st century.
Panelists: Ann Schwader, Fred Phillips, Thomas Broadbent, Derrick Hussey, Charles Danny Lovecraft, Adam Bolivar
Moderator: Jason V. Brock


Sunday – 2:30-3:45pm
LOVECRAFT AS SCI-FI WRITER – Garden Room, Biltmore 2nd Floor
Often, Lovecraft is described as being the innovator of weird science fiction because of his use of science in his stories. How does Lovecraft compare to other science fiction writers? What impact, if any, has Lovecraft had on the science fiction genre?
Panelists: Jason V. Brock, Leslie Klinger, Robert M. Price, Ann K Schwader, William F. Nolan
Moderator: Brian Callahan


There’s still time to join the Providence Pilgrimage, too. I’m told that single-day tickets and general passes are still available, here.