Junot Wins the Pulizter Prize

I just saw Junot on the Colbert Report and through that I found out he was recently awarded the Pulitzer Prize. I am so excited for him and I am thrilled that he showed the world that nerds not only come from midwestern America or India. We exist everywhere. We burrow ourselves in the nooks and crannies of every city.

I met Junot a while back during my undergrad years and when we went to have lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant in downtown, he was very down-to-earth. We were just two Latinos from the neighborhood talking about the illest MC's hitting the airwaves. I felt like I was speaking to a cat from the hood, someone from the corner. In honesty, he was dope. Back then, I was too young to understand boundaries, yet he was kind to call me out on my shit. He's always been that way, truthful and I have always been indebted to him for that and for his support.

So, after hearing about this great award, I am utterly thrilled for him and I urge everyone to check out his latest novel, "The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao."

Poem Published in Brainbox

Please check out one of my newest poems, "Fathers" which was recently published in the latest issue of Brain Box. You can check my poem here.

According to the Editor's Note of the first issue, "In putting these pages together, we sought out those whose work possessed brilliant realness. non-academic genius. deviant humor. beautiful decay. awkward moments. dark places. too-bright places."

I strongly urge everyone to submit work to them.

Poems Published in Slab

Two of my poems where published in the third issue of Slab. The issue features work by Allen Gee, Jennifer Weathers, Michele Battiste, Radames Ortiz, Allison Joseph, Maureen Tolman Flannery, Carissa DiGiovanni and many more. I urge everyone to submit to this wonderful literary journal. For submission guidelines, visit here.

"The Dead" an animated poem by Billy Collins

The Dead - Billy Collins Animated Poetry

At the Beginning

There is a voice burrowed inside, telling me to begin. "Just start," it echoes. I close my eyes and listen to the birds outside my window. Listen to the soft gurgle of the computer. Sunlight filters in, a blurred fan breathes on me. I usually enjoy beginnings but this is unlike the others. There is a sense of terror. A plane soars. Buses spew exhaust on commuters, waiting in the relentless afternoon. The erratic schedules, the congested streets, the joggers like leopards, running. No one will ensure my writing becomes fruitful. If I succeed or fail it won't matter to anyone. The universe is indifferent. "Just start," it grumbles. Patience wears thin. I've already begun.

We Are The Web

Micheal Wesh, a digital ethnographer and professor at Kansas State University, explores the nature of Web 2.0 and the impact of the internet on communication. I post this video because he points out that we need to redefine our relationship to the written word. In an age, where text is no longer linear but fluid, "movable," "flexible," society will have to redefine its relationship to form and context. We must reevaluate our principles and definitions of aesthetics, identity, and information ownership.

How does this affect poetry? Poetry will have to evolve if it is to remain a relevant art form. But how does a poet go about accomplishing this? I pose more questions than answers because as much as I love poetry, I feel that it may be a dwindling art. I do however, believe that there will be future poets who embrace Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 and out of the ashes of print-based media, poetry will rise again like a phoenix, scorching our web browsers, mobile phones and other devices with its ability to adapt to new forms of distribution, new themes and subject matter. Perhaps, there will be epic poems composed using wikis, sonnets delivered as text messages, hypertext poems, etc. I know there are poets already experimenting with these techniques and new way of writing. I just hope that it continues and the thing we love also evolves, perhaps becoming Poetry 2.0.

Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us

Steampunk in the NY Times

From BoingBoing: "The New York Times fashion and style section has a nice piece today on the aesthetic influence of steampunk on fashion and art." You can read the NY Times article here.

Poems Published in Hayden's Ferry Review

Two of my poems were recently published in the Spring issue of Hayden's Ferry Review.

Contributors include: Jeffrey Angles, Nick Bacon, Daneen Bergland, Craig Blais, Katherine Bode-Lang, Anna Bogatin, Jacob Boyd, Jericho Brown,Eric Burger, Ryder Collins
Katy Didden, Kasandra Duthie, Bruce Fulton, Ju-Chan Fulton, Phillip Gardner, Sarah Gerkensmeyer, Radames Ortiz and many more.

6 a.m.

It's 6 a.m. in L.A. Back home, it's 8 in the morning. I warned my friend, Mando of my inability to sleep early. I think he thought I was joking. I've been up throughout the night. I've seen the sun rise far too many times. Insomina feels the same in any city. It's a feeling of desperation and yearning. I hope to fall asleep soon.

Arrived in L.A.

I am finally here in L.A. I arrived Monday night. My initial thoughts are that people here are a lot more talkative than back home. While waiting for my luggage I decided to smoke a cigarette outside. Immediately, I met a young Philipino woman named Rita. She too was on my flight. Apparently, she is studying design at a school in London and is just visitng her old college mates. She was nice and suggested I give her a call if I wanted to hang out in West Hollywood. This doesn't happen back home. People there are too closed off sometimes.

After smoking my cigarette, I went to get my luggage and I met up with Mando. We then got into his Thunderbird and bolted out onto the freeway. He immediately took me to Hollywood Blvd and we had dinner at Miles Diner. The food was okay and a bit pricey but I expected it since it was in a tourist part of town. By that time, the time difference started to affect me. So, we came home to his apartment in Pasenda.

The freeways here are amazing. There are so many beautiful trees and the roads curve like snakes in a valley. There are tunnels, sharps turns and the freeway ends into a normal street. I enjoyed the fact that there wasn't much construction like at home.

Finally, we arrived to his apartments which use to be an old hotel and is next to the Stanely. The woodwork is amazing and they still kept the old lobby intact. It reminds me of the hotel in "The Shinning." I'll be alone tomorrow and plan on checking out Pasenda and perhaps learn how to navigate the subway. I hope I continue to meet interesting people. I am terribly excited.

Six Word Memoir

My
throat
stripped
of its
whirlwind

*tagged by anita

The six word memoir rules are:
write your own six word memoir.
post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you’d like.
link to the person that tagged you in your post.

A Writer's Goldmine

I found this wonderful resource for free online writing courses. There are a great variety of courses including writing basics, language and grammar, creative writing, writing for business, and technical writing.

For those interested in learning the nature and elements of poetry can check out this link.

Poems Published in Neonbeam

Two of my poems were recently published in the Neon Beam 2008 issue. You can download the .PDF here or you can order a print copy from Lulu.


Featuring fiction by:

Jo Thomas, Christopher Nosnibor, T.N.T. Blakemore, David Byron, Bruce Hesselbach, Marie Lecrivain, Sarah Dodd, Kevin Brown.

And poetry by:

Steve De France, Barry G. Gale, David McLean, Rodney Nelson, Ronnie M. Lane, Duane Locke, Radames Ortiz, John Grey.

Plus an interview with author of the contest-winning "Hybrids", David Thorpe.

Thanks for the continued support and I urge everyone to submit work to them.

All Their Stanzas Look Alike

Excerpt from Thomas Sayers Ellis' poem "All Their Stanzas Look Alike"

All their literary journals
All their car commercials
All their bribe-spiked blurbs
All their stanzas look alike
All their favorite writers
All their writing programs
All their visiting writers
All their writers-in-residence
All their stanzas look alike
All their third worlds
All their world series
All their serial killers
All their killing fields
All their stanzas look alike
All their state grants
All their tenure tracks
All their artist colonies
All their core faculties
All their stanzas look alike

Read the full poem on this website and listen to Thomas Sayers Ellis read this poem at Poets.org

Poem Published in the Facebook Review

According to their profile, "The Facebook Review, the first and only Literary Review that uses Facebook as its means of publishing, of marketing, and of editing. We are essentially an online magazine with the (titular) difference of location. All we want is to publish the best work by Facebook members and to do so free-of-charge, free-of-cost, and completely within the confines of the Facebook network and software environment."

This is such a wonderful and original concept. Another great aspect of this review, is that each new issue is edited by the contributors of the previous one. The editors call it the "Editorial Train" and it provides the opportunity for readers/contributors to get involved in the process of compiling the next issue. Therefore, each issue is a surprise and a delight to read.

They published one of my poems in this month's third issue and I will be helping to select the work that will go into the fourth issue.

Here's what you can expect in this month's issue:

Poetry by Alison Brandenbury, Zachary German, James Autio, Radames Ortiz, Tolu Ogunlesi and many more.

Fiction by Michael Collins Morton, Andy Riverbed and others.

I encourage everyone to submit and support this new type of journal. It's a wonderful example how writers can take advantage of social networking websites. You can visit the site here to review the submission guidelines.

*You will need a facebook profile to view this journal.

Poems Published in U.S. Latino Literature Today

My poems "Alleys" and "Saturday Night Cruising" was published in "U.S. Latino Literature Today," an anthology that offers a vibrant collection of poetry, fiction, essays, and drama by established and emerging contemporary Latino American writers.

The collection includes the refreshing and exciting voices of Junot Diaz, Sandra Cisneros, Luis Rodriguez, Pat Mora, Luis Omar Sailnas, Radames Ortiz, Carolina Monsivais, Jimmy Santiago Baca and many, many more.

The text book will be adopted by several major universities in Texas and will be taught in Mexican American courses.

You can order the book from the publisher Pearson/Longman on their site and on Amazon. It is a true honor to share the pages with such wonderful established writers.