Big Poetry Giveaway 2014: Three Books & One Lit Mag

I have been looking for an excuse to post for a while, so Kelli Russell Agodon's Big Poetry Giveaway 2014 was the perfect thing to bring me back to the ranks of blogger. Giving someone else a book they might never have otherwise picked up is a real thrill. If you'd like to participate this year, check out this post on Kelli's blog for more info. Comment with your email on this post if you'd like to be in the drawing for any of these books. If you already have one of these books, write the titles in your comment so I won't include you in those drawings.

Sever the Braid by Jessica Server (Finishing Line Press)

What folks are saying about this amazing chapbook:

Though it's Server's first chapbook, it's not out of place on my bookshelf among poets like Jennifer Maier, Terrance Hayes, and Jim Daniels. Her poems are deliberate, tight, and brilliant in the sense that not only is her voice perfected, but she captures moments from the past, makes them visceral, as if I can reach out and hold them. —Alison Taverna

...Jessica Server shifts between rich depictions girlhood and womanhood through various lyrical narratives and portraits. We meet an uprooted child, a world traveler, a novice baker, a Jewish faith seeker, among others, weaving a non-linear tale of a woman with a wild and thoughtful heart that overflows with a sensual song. —Laura E. Davis

Braiding the Storm by Laura E. Davis (Finishing Line Press)

Braiding the Storm by Laura Davis is an afternoon with a best friend who knows all of our secrets, and makes us consider the world—even the everyday tangle of bed sheets, bitten fingernails, and dishes in the sink—as completely new, and brilliant.
—Mary Biddinger

A tender, tough poet's heart, sweet with moments chosen and delivered, here, creates a nourishing gift from the grit of life. Ms. Davis invites us to "Slice the day." This is a world where "The Centipede" takes / the shape / of a leach / a black salamander / a small oil spill / opalescent. I look forward to her next collection, wondering where she might turn her thirty-something poet's being. —Karen Lewis

Hemming the Water by Yona Harvey (Four Way Books)

This amazing debut collection won the the Kate Tufts Discovery Award. I recently purchased a copy and I can't put it down.

How to make a form when there is no form? Nothing you can count on? Hers is not an easy art—nor is it harmless. She sets out to accomplish an impossible task, Hemming the Water. Music is the only thing she can turn to, and poetry is the exquisite stitch that turns the forces against us to our advantage. Read this book again (there is not one predictable line!) to appreciate even more its fierce elegance, and the joy of its triumph. —Toi Derricotte

This poetry remembers the Devil is make-believe until he knocks at your loved one’s door. This poetry watches a baby’s heartbeat turn into a bomb with the gentlest nudge of alphabet. This poetry insists on sewing thimbles and mountains into the same tight pocket. Take this poetry. And read .—Douglas Kaerney

Weave Magazine Issue 10!

This is Weave's biggest yet! Within its pages, you'll experience everything from high school sororities to life as a caveman. Moving poetry, fluid prose, and enthralling nonfiction will have you hooked from page one. We're honored to have had the chance to publish so much extraordinary writing and artwork. This issue features work by Kelli Russell Agodon, Michael W Cox, James Pouilliard, Valerie Loveland, Eunice E. Tiptree, M.E. Silverman, Laura Madeline Wiseman, and more. See the full contributor list here.

Be sure to comment at the bottom with a way to contact you if you're a winner. If you already have any of these books, simply let me know in the comments and I won't include you in those drawings. 

And the Big Poetry Giveaway Winners Are...

Congrats to the winners of my Big Poetry Book Giveaway! This year I had a record 26 entrants. Using a Random Number Generator, I selected the winners to receive the prizes in the order they appeared on the original giveaway post. Without further ado, here's this years winners.

Congrats to Amanda Hash, commenter number 3 and winner of my chapbook, Braiding the Storm (Finishing Line Press, 2012). Amanda will get her copy in September when the book is released.

Congrats to Andrew Ty, commenter number 23 and winner of D. Gilson's forthcoming chapbook Catch & Release (Seven Kitchens Press, 2012). His chapbook should be available in late spring. 

Congrats to Kathleen Kirk, commenter number 10 and winner of the latest issue of Weave! 

Congrats to Donna Vorreyer, commenter number 4 and winner of the first issue of Adanna! 

Poetry book GIVEAWAY to celebrate National Poetry Month!

Welcome to the 3rd Annual Big Poetry Book Giveaway! This event is in honor of National Poetry Month and was started by poet Kelli Russell Agodon. If you want to participate and have questions about the process, check out Kelli's FAQs.

If you're new to Dear Outer Space, here's a little background on me and my blog.

I'm Laura. I'm a poet, writer, editor, and educator. I live in San Francisco where I teach poetry in the public schools for Poetry Inside Out and California Poets in the Schools. I'm also the founding editor of Weave Magazine, a biannual literary publication.

My chapbook, Braiding the Storm, is coming out in September 2012 by Finishing Line Press. If you'd like to be included on my mailing list, sign up here.

I write about a lot of things on Dear Outer Space. I like to interview other writers, review books, tell you about my day or upcoming readings, discuss hot literary topics. I like making lists. I love spreadsheets!

I love a good sandwich, preferably one with cheese and condiments. I'm an extroverted homebody. I'm originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I miss my hometown.

My writing process changes a lot. My natural process involves me drafting something by hand and then forgetting about it for months, discovering it, typing it on my computer, putting it in a folder, forgetting I wrote it, rediscovering it months later, revising, eventually sending it out for publication. Sometimes I have spurts where I write five poems in a day. When I'm more disciplined, I write about one poem a week. In order to help improve by writing habits, I'm going to try to write a poem a day for NaPoWriMo.

I like a tidy workspace. I'm hopelessly disorganized. I lose things often. I'm learning to not care about losing things often.

Finally, I love giving things away!

onto the...FREE POETRY BOOK GIVEAWAY!

One - Chapbook!

The first book in the giveaway is my forthcoming debut chapbook, Braiding the Storm (Finishing Line Press, 2012). I'd call this a coming-of-age collection of poems. A revolution of sorts. Here are links to a couple poems that are in the collection, to give you a taste. This chapbook will be published in September, so the winner will receive a copy in the fall. 

Two - Chapbook !
The second poetry chapbook I'm giving away is called Catch & Release (Seven Kitchens Press, 2012) written by my dearest and most awesome poet friend, D. Gilson. Catch & Release is the winner of the 2012 Robin Becker Prize. This fierce collection of poems grapples with the home, sexuality, religion, family, culture, and class. I can't recommend it highly enough. This book comes out this month, so I should be able to mail it right away.

Weave is awesome!

Three - Lit Journal!
We only need to give out two books, but I'm offering a third chance to win! The third giveaway is a copy of issue 07 of Weave Magazine! This issue features poems from Noelle Kocot, Mary Stone Dockery, Iris Jamahl Dunkle, and Lawrence Wray, and includes fiction and nonfiction pieces as well. Copies are currently available.


Four - Lit Journal!

I realized I have an extra copy of the first issue of Adanna: A Journal for Women, about Women. Great first issue of a lovely journal featuring poems (and other genres) by Yours Truly, Molly Spencer, Sarah Sloat, and Carol Berg, among many others! This will be sent to the winner once chosen.

RULES!

There will be four winners total, two getting one of the chapbooks, the third getting Weave Issue 07, and the fourth getting Adanna Issue 01. Each entrant will receive a number based on the order of their comment. During the week of May 1st, 2012 I will randomly choose four winners from the entrants in the comments section using a random number generator.

This drawing is open from now through ALL OF APRIL - which is National Poetry Month!

TO ENTER, please leave your name and email address in the comment section by midnight (Pacific time), APRIL 30th, 2012 in the comment section of this post.  It's that simple!

So excited to share these books with new readers! What are you waiting for? Go comment!

Literary Roundup! Jake's Rocks Style

This post won't have much to do with Jakes Rocks, except to mention that someone found my blog by searching for "Allegheny National Forest Jakes Rocks," which is pretty cool I think. If you've never been to Jake's Rocks, it's better seen than than described, but I'll give it a go. Basically, it's a trail with really big rocks. Big, huge rocks that you can climb in, up, on, between, alongside, and under along with the beautiful trees and addictive mossy scent of Pennsylvania's forests. I went there as a kid with my family. That was also the first time I saw a wild bear. The second time is a funnier story that I'll save for another time.

Before I get to the roundup, I have something confess. I'm lonely. I've been lonely for a good few months now. I've actually progressed beyond lonely and wandered into forlorn, embracing my solitude in a not-so healthy way and become hermetic, reclusive, and withdrawn (thanks Thesaurus.com).

I've been in San Francisco for a little over eight months and I only feel at home in the apartment. When Sal leaves for work, I get really sad and anxious because he's my best - and only - friend here, at least the only friend I see on a regular basis. He's so supportive. I've told him it will just take time.

I try to make plans with new friends, but most of the time I flake out. Sometimes because this city is just too much. Sometimes because I want to be around people who already know me well. Who I can be a total mess with. Who I don't have to leave the apartment to see. So, if you are a new friend of mine from the San Francisco Bay Area, maybe you'd like to come over and watch a movie with me? My couch is comfy and we have a big television.

Now that I got that out of the way, on to some way cool word-related stuff!

Sweet Lit accepted a poem of mine yesterday, which is awesome. What's also awesome is their chapbook series. Scroll to the bottom and read the descriptions. Love it. Also, last April's issue has a really moving Letter from the Editor.

Kelli Russell Agodon is spearheading the Big Poetry Giveaway 2012. I participated last year and I will this year too. It's really fun and a great way to give someone a book they might never have bought otherwise.

Three book reviews to check out: Full of Crow reviews Karen Lillis' Watch the Doors As They Close, a novella from Spuyten Duyvil; Fiddler Crab reviews Iris Dunkle's Inheritance (Finishing Line Press 2011); The Scrapper Poet, Karen J. Weyant, reviews Amanda Reynolds’ Heinz 56 (Main Street Rag, 2012).

There are SO MANY poems I want to share! I'm just going to link each poet's name, so click click click. You won't be sorry. Onward, linkitivity!

• Robyn Campbell
• Iris Dunkle
• Sally Rosen Kindred
• Dorianne Laux
• Sandy Longhorn
• Catherine Pierce
• Susan Slaviero
• Sarah J. Sloat

The 2011 Best of the Net is up. Check out the whole thing. Worth it.

I want to go to there. Sadly, I cannot. You should though, if you can.

Some interesting ripples caused by the VIDA Count. Good did a byline count for more mainstream publications that are popular with the "millenials," a generation of which I am happily not a part. Michelle Dean shares her two cents over at The Rumpus. That article lead me to this essay by Rebecca Solnit. Both are must-reads.

I went through my bookshelves this week and discovered that I own much fewer books by male poets. I decided to read two books at once, one by a lady-poet and one by a gentle-poet. I'll let you know how it goes.

Finally, I share a great video from this post over at The Storialist, aka Hannah Stephenson. Watch her write a poem in fast-forward. It's kind of revolutionary.

The Big Poetry Giveaway 2011!

I just found out about The Big Poetry Giveaway 2011 and I'm stoked to participate. Thanks to Marie for posting about it on her blog AND for giving away such cool subscriptions.

For those of you who are new to the project, you can check out the details at Kelli Russel Agodon's blog Book of Kells. I will be giving away two subscriptions and two books.

• Subscription to Weave Magazine
• Subscription to A cappella Zoo
• Noelle Kocot's Bigger World
• Nicolette Telech's (Title Released Soon!)

If you want a chance to win, simply comment on this post anytime during the month of April. During the first week of May, I will use a Random Number Generator to pick the winners.

I love doing this kind of thing; it reminds me of when Bitch had their call for subscriptions and I gave away three. It's great to put a book or magazine in the hands of someone who might not have found it otherwise.

In other National Poetry Month news, I'm participating in the Poem-A-Day Challenge and you should too! Today's prompt: what got you here - now go write a poem!