A Book Saturday and the Sad Literary South

So we got back from Borders. I know, support your local bookstore. My local bookstore closes at 9:00, sadly. I didn't buy anything because I'm busy reading Bowling Alone (for the teaching), Lucky Man, and American Tabloid. But Heather bought Derek Walcott's The Prodigal: A Poem (that's right--one poem 105 pages long) and Toby Barlow's Sharp Teeth (a werewolf mystery novel...written in blank verse). Poets are funny.

I did spend some quality time reading Oxford American. Unfortunately, I didn't see anything by two of my favorite writers, regular contributors Wendy Brenner (my professor from grad school) and Jack Pendarvis. But I read some of David Payne's essay on how the publishing industry hates Southerners Maud Newton's blog tipped me off to. Reminded me of Pinckney Benedict's succinct summing up of this point. Must we fight the Civil War in letters? Though I know a writer who attended a New York writers' residency and got the cold shoulder after they found out he lived in Atlanta (for my money as hellish an urbane place as you can get). But on the other hand, we are cornpone idjets down 'ere.

Didja Know?

Remember The Elements of Style? Did you know there's a musical version. The Elements of Style the Musical! Now, you know.

An Anonymous Code

They're back, and this time it's boring. Anonymous released another computer-synthesized voice but with less of the epic feel or foreboding. This one is about...rules. The code of conduct for the February 10th protest of the Scientology hangouts in big cities like London.

Your Etiquette Advice from Some Old Books I Found

Today's etiquette advice comes from American Etiquette and Rules of Politeness 1884 (Rand, McNally & Co.):

KEEP ROOM NEAT.
If you are a visitor be careful to keep your room as neat as possible. Do not let garments lie scattered about promiscuously.

I wish I had read that before I promiscuously decorated my hotel room at AWP. This has been your etiquette advice from some old books I found.

I May Hate Myself

Aside from all the AWP craziness while in NY, we went to Koreatown and got Pinkberry. I may now be obsessed. I hear it was featured on The Hills, which makes me nauseous. But not nauseous enough to stop longing for Cap'n Crunch covered Green Tea yogurt (not pictured). I'm thinking of forming a petition, a letter writing campaign, a million strong Facebook group to get one here. If that fails, I will buy my own franchise. Or I might just write about it on my blog...

5 Random Things from AWP

1. Joyce Carol Oates was a Phi Mu.
2. There is a thing called a haibun, a prose poem ending in a haiku.
3. I made a fool out of myself trying to meet Dan Wickett of Emerging Writers Network.
4. John Irving gave me the evil eye when I recognized him coming back from the gym in his track suit.
5. One panel made me want to write a story about a dying grandmother who was hooked on meth and LSD and dreamed of her dead dog. It would end with the grandmother dying and the dog waking up to realize it was only a dream.
   

Escape from New York

I'm back from the AWP conference in New York City. And though I'd love to yammer on about the writerly goodness of it all and the cool city fun, I'm exhausted so I'll just list what I'm returning with:

1. A signed copy of Money by Martin Amis (He said he knew a "Craig"--I presume that means he doesn't want to know another one)

2. An unsigned copy of Kelly Link's Magic for Beginners (She was sick most of the conference, but I met Gavin J. Grant at the Small Beer Press table, and he was a great guy...though he kept raising the prices of his books when knew I was interested).

3. A copy of The Best of Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant (Grant said everything on the table was half price until I picked that up and then it was everything except the anthology)

4. A copy of the awe-inspiringly designed Ninth Letter magazine (My friend Eric Vrooman has a brilliant piece of satire in this issue in the form of a water bill)

5. A copy of roger, an art & literary magazine (I'll be in the issue coming out in May...I think).

Those are the goodies, kiddies. Now if only I didn't have to teach and could just read my head off...