Vermont College of Fine Arts - Summer Residency '09 - Day 2

Day 2? Oh, yikes - tornado time, metaphorically speaking!

It was the first day of workshops. Plus we heard three faculty lectures - Cynthia (DEMYSTIFYING MYSTERIES), Alan Cumyn (WHAT MAKES A GOOD STORY: A PERSONAL INQUIRY) and Louise Hawes (COMMUNION: THE PARTICIPATORY NATURE OF NARRATIVE.) Fine lectures, all three, but I have to say that Alan's was simply brilliant - tomorrow I'll write up a few notes about it. We will be talking about it for a long time - YOU MUST BUY A CD OF THIS LECTURE - truly, it's one of the best I've ever heard. Plus we had five faculty readings. And a group photo. And trips to the new bookshop. And faculty interviews by Third and Fourth Semesters. And end-of-semester reviews with students moving up. And a party for the faculty over at Martin House, thrown by the graduating class. Sampling of stupendous cakes made by Ginger Johnson. Appearance by Larissa Theule and her husband and her new baby boy - much cooing, much begging to be allowed to hold him. Plus autographing of the "yearbooks" (Yours until Niagara Falls, until 2+2=3, until the mountains tumble to the sea....in other words, UNTIL ETERNITY....oh yes, there was some singing....)

I was crazy, though, to think I could write up a coherent summary at the end of each day. Intense? Intense! Please forgive. I'll grab free minutes when I can tomorrow, but no guarantees about quality.

Cynthia Leitich Smith says I have permission to go to bed because it's late and it's been a long long day, the kind with not even 15 minute breaks. And she says if you've got a problem with that, see her.

Now, Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz - oh, my gosh, no, not yet, not without mentioning one of the highlights of the day! Leda's husband, Bob, brought THE NEW PUPPY, PIPPA, TO MEET EVERYONE!!!!!!! Much tail wagging (the puppy, not us, not Bob.) Pogo also joined in - so we had the siblings.

Margaret and Tim just walked in to the Faculty Lounge (where I am sitting and typing) and they say, "GO TO BED, JULIE!"

I obey.

Vermont College of Fine Arts - First Full Day

The green at Vermont College of Fine Arts

First impression of the day: Oh, my gosh, we're a talky and a noisy bunch! This afternoon Noble Lounge filled up with the roar of the crowd - faculty, staff, adiministrators and the whole student body. Once the microphone is tapped and people sit down and finish clapping, the temporary silence is almost deafening.

Sharon opened things up by remembering Summer 2006 when Tom Greene was "morphing out of his existence as a Program Director into being the President of a brand new college." We're are still very aware that, though VC has a long history, VCFA is a new entity - it's still exciting to think back when decisions were being made about which direction we would go.

Margaret Bechard was given a standing ovation when Sharon introduced her as the new Faculty Chair. Anyone who knows Margaret knows how lucky we are to have her here - focused, articulate and funny. My favorite from her welcoming introduction: The description of VCFA as a kind of Brigadoon for those of us who live out on the West Coast - it appears magically out of the mist every six months. Another favorite moment: Margaret reminding us that children's literature is "our passion, our responsibility and our joy."

Jess Leader wrote the lyrics for a VCFA version of The Beverly Hillbillies (substitute favorite buzz words from the Writer's Toolbox) and presented the faculty and Katie and Susannah with a new "VCFA Yearbook" called "The Hilltopper." Fabulous photos of good times over their two years in the program - plus funny bios of the faculty and parodies of the NYTimes Bestseller List. PLUS room for autographs! DP Pignataro brought the whole project to fruition, and Sue LaNeve wrote funny/sweet quatrains about each advisor. Lots of fun.

1st-semester students gathered to talk with the faculty - for those of you reading this who are alumni, do you remember how that felt? Probably a little intimidating - way too much information coming at you way too fast. But for the advisors, it's great - fresh faces, new students to get to know.

BIG THUNDERSTORM AND POURING RAIN after dinner. Very dramatic.

Tim Wynne-Jones delivered the Opening Night Lecture, all about "reading yourself seriously" by looking for moments of "genius" (not Einstein-style but Muse-style) where you were unconsciously planting the seeds for solutions to your plot problems. He talked about the writer's toolbox and about using tools as carpenters use them, "constructing a fit habitation for the mind." Favorite serious quotation: "Despite the fragility of words, you construct durable works that matter." Favorite funny moment (those who know Tim know there are plenty of these) came when Tim, discussing the idea of over-revising, said, "When you massage someone for too long, it hurts!"

Applause. More rain. More thunder. A good first full day of the residency.

More tomorrow.

Vermont College of Fine Arts - Students Arriving!

The beautiful Winooski River which runs through Montpelier....

I spent most of today at the all-day faculty meeting - seven hours (!) of discussion about not only procedures and policies (which any institution has to handle) but also about plans for the future, which are so exciting for us! This is where the thrill of our new independence as a college of fine arts - unique in this country - really comes into play. The vision people have - and I mean everyone connected with VCFA - of our role as a national center of the arts is just so invigorating. Sorry - I don't mean to get too corny - I just am impressed by this faculty and how, after a day-long long meeting, we come out even more energetic than when we went in about what this place can mean to our students.

Our alumni graduate assistants are all here now and busy (very) getting material ready. It's quite a talented bunch: Cheryl Coupe, Katie Mather, Nancy Flood, Debbie Gonzales, Sharry Wright, Stephanie Greene and Ann Jacobus. They work their tails off during the residency and make all the difference in the world in how smoothly things go during the day. Lots of sharing of news about new jobs, writing projects, families - lot of hugs, too, which is no surprise to anyone who's ever been to one of our residencies.

It's almost time for dinner, the sun is shining, students are arriving, and tomorrow morning will start with a focus on incoming students - the "newbies." What I see sometimes in their faces is terror and uncertainty, and what amazes me is how quickly the camaraderie kicks in. I've always told people that for me, grad school in creative writing was 33% about reading (and reading and reading and reading), 33% was about pushing myself and my writing, and 33% was about making good life-long friends who cared as much as I do about intellectual curiosity and creativity. A growing sense of community can do a lot for your confidence.

That adds up to 99% - the extra 1% is a mystery still to me. Like the Big Bang - there's proof to support it, I know it happened, I don't quite get it, and I still feel like it's a miracle. Something happens in graduate school (at least it happened to me) that can't quite be explained. A certain creative chain reaction begins.

More tomorrow as the introductions and gatherings begin. Time now to end the day with a good meal and laughter.

Vermont College of Fine Arts Summer Residency '09

I flew out to Montpelier from Seattle today - time for the intensely wonderful, intensely creative, intensely berserk Summer Residency of the Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA /Writing for Children and Young Adults program! Some of my best friends in the world are here on the faculty - they are talented, warm, hilarious, generous, supportive -in addition, they are committed to teaching. It's just a pleasure to see them twice a year for our on-campus gatherings -- listening to their lectures every six months is a privilege. Then there are lectures by students in the graduating class, and readings by faculty, graduate assistants, grads and scholarship winners. On the 16th, Margo Lanagan will be here to talk with us about her new book, Tender Morsels. On Saturday the 18th, we have a special all-day symposium on Good vs. Evil, with invited guests Nancy Werlin, Stephen Roxburgh and Deborah Noyes. And then there's the daily discussion of pieces submitted for workshop - I honestly am eager to get started. Students begin arriving on Friday, and by Saturday we are in full swing.

I'm going to post brief summaries of each day's lectures and readings here at The Drift Record. Come back each day through the 21st to get an idea of what's happening here in the loveliest and littlest state capitol in the nation, as well as to get an idiosyncratic interpretation (mine) of what is being talked about and discussed in the world of kids book writers. If you're wondering whether or not getting an MFA is worth your time, maybe this ten-day journal will convince you....? If you want more information about the VCFA program, just click here. And feel free to email me, too, with questions about the MFA in Writing for Children - my email is on the main page of the blog, under the photo of 19th-C Parisians drifting around.

Poetry Friday: The Glorio of Rome

Statue of Babuino w/Bird

The Glorio of Rome

Because the Pincio is not the Pinch-ee-o
but is the Peen-cho, and because our mouths
must make that e then o, we sound like small rondini
peeping, we sound like piccolo uccelli, see?
Noi amiamo - si, we love - those long-voweled birdy-o's
in their umbrella pines, they way they make us crazy,
make us weep above the plaza of the still-here Roman popolo,
and make us want to swoop from Via Veneto
right down to Rick's Place in the crumbling Pio
chirping Peep, peep, peep, Bernini-o!

I wrote that when I was over in Rome as a graduate student.My good friend, the poet Rebecca Hoogs, is over in Rome right now as Co-Director (along with poet Johnny Horton) of the University of Washington's Creative Writing/Rome Program for the summer. She's sending wonderful photos back via Facebook. Here is one that captures the extraordinary blue of a Roman sky. I've never seen this shade of blue in the sky in any other part of the world.

Rome is definitely a city for poets. Voglio andare a bella Roma ora!! (Grande sospiro....)

Before you head off to more of Poetry Friday, here are two more photos Rebecca sent:

A dry goods store, probably near the Campo de Fiori.
What happens to colors in Rome - is it the light?

Last but not least, Johnny eating gelato and looking much more severe than he really is:

Poetry Friday today is being hosted by Tabatha Yeatts over at
The Opposite of Indifference.

Happy 4th of July tomorrow!

Michael Bierut's Notebooks

If you love notebooks in general, and love notebooks filled with observations and sketches (not confessions and angst) in particular, go read Michael Bierut's archived post titled "26 Years, 85 Notebooks" over at DESIGN OBSERVER: WRITINGS ON DESIGN AND CULTURE. "No fancy Moleskines for me," says Mr. Bierut. For the first few years, he re-designed the covers, but now he just numbers them. A photo of 72 of them is posted above. Hurrah for the lowly but practical, affordable, hard-working marble-covered composition book. Here's another photo of the notebooks. Aren't they beautiful?


DESIGN OBSERVER is one of my favorite websites. I never fail to fall hard & deep when I visit (and when something pulls me back to the real world, hours have passed....) And these people love Princeton Architectural Press books the way I do. When you have an hour (or two or three) check the PAP catalogue. It is full of strange and wonderful books, especially the titles about design and popular culture (I'm saving pennies -lots of them - for Katherine Harmon's new book, THE MAP AS ART. )

A.B C. Jeu D'Esprit.

Quick note: I'll keep these poems up for my Poetry Friday contribution!


There's no stopping a double abecedarian. It's like a rickety old roller coaster (not like a Great America version - no, it's definitley Coney Island's Cyclone, circa 1940.) Tricia over at The Miss Rumphius Effect set the challenge, to write a single abecedarian, and the example given was one of single-word lines. I have trouble with that, coming up with single-word lines that spell out a story - the narrative doesn't hold and it ends up sounding forced. I'll try to come up with one before the end of the week. Meanwhile, here are my own results - Double ABC's - A-Z down the left hand side, Z-A down the right.




ON THE WRITING OF THE DOUBLE ABECEDARIAN

Alphabet poems doubled aren't E-Z.
Basically, you have to go A to Z, B to Y,
C to X, etc. And you hit that X,
Don't forget, coming and going. That's raw
End a line with a V? English words don't end with V.
Figure our next what ends with U. Ugh. I mean U-
Gh. Some letters are just
Headaches.
I guess for
Jugular-vein, you've got the final Q.
Kills me every time, trip-trap
Little goat, the big troll is singing, O!
Meanwhile, the easy ones like D and N--
nice, numerous, dull, dim.
On the other hand, I love every opening vowel:
Plump a-e-o's, i's thin, u's thick.
Quick, jump over the Q. Find a DJ or a raj
Ready to help you solve the mini-
Situation with the final J. Then look for a bush
That burns, and see if you can find a dog
Under the table. By the time you get to an ending F,
Very late in the game, you'll have committed the
Worst possible mistakes & gone mental, you'll have had
X slap you down twice, you'll go to bed with that ABC
Yacking away inside your head, you'll be ruined, you'll be gob-
zacked. Gob-sacked? Gob-smacked? As in l-m-n-Oh, Mama.

----------------

A NIGHT ON THE TOWN

A man goes into a bar with a donkey. A small jazz

Band is playing, and the man says, “Hey, my donkey

Can play Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue on a sax.

Drinks on the house if he can’t.” “No way,”

Everyone in the bar says. A woman named Bev

Finds the donkey a sax, but the real sax player, Lou,

Gets annoyed. “Any idiot knows you need a clarinet,”

He says, “for Gershwin’s opening glissando.” Everyone agrees.

“I’m not sure,” says the donkey. He and his owner confer.

“Just get me outta here,” the donkey whispers, “P.D.Q.”

“Keep your shirt on,” says the man, who has his hopes up.

“Look,” he says to Lou, “how about Bernstein on a cello?”

“Maybe I Feel Pretty…?” calls out another man.

“No, no, no,” says his date. "Play Dance in the Gym!"

“On a cello?” everyone snorts, and she begins to yell.

“Please get me outta here,” whispers the donkey again. “Quick.”

“Quickly,” corrects the man. “it’s an adv. not an adj.”

“Right, I stand corrected. But I really think I….”

Suddenly the bartender, a big guy with tattoos, says “I wish

The donkey knew some early Louis Armstrong.”

“Under the circumstances,” the animal concedes, “if

Virtually everyone in the bar will sing along, I’ll be fine.”

“Woody Allen should be filming this,” says the drummer. “And

Xavier Cugat should be the bandleader. That's basic."

“Yeah, or maybe Spike Lee and Calloway." "Calloway?" "Cab.”

“Zubin!” someone shouts out. “Spielberg and Zubin Mehta!”

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Like I said, they go where they go. Jeu d'esprit.

(I can't believe I found that photo of donkeys in a bar. The internet was made for poets!)

For Poetry Friday: Getting Stretched

First things first: I want to wish Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician and physicist, a Happy Birthday. He was born on June 19, 1623, and he would have been 386 years old today, if he had made it. He's the author of this lovely line: "Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from mistaken conviction." That's a very generous attitude, don't you agree? I've thought of it many times over the last eight years. So, Happy Birthday, Monsieur Pascal!
I hope that when I'm 386 years old,
I'm as convinced of man's basic desire to do the right thing as you were.

Now then: Poetry Friday! I admit to feeling a little like an old Slinky lately - with my stretch wearing out, and the poetry stretches over at The Miss Rumphius Effect getting harder for me to complete. Read what the assignments were by clicking on the links, and follow them to see what other people wrote. At least getting nudged keeps me writing, and it might do the same for you....so thanks for that, Tricia.

1. This week, we were asked to "generate a list of rhyming words inspired by your surroundings and then write a poem inspired by them." Here's mine:

WHAT DAY DOES

Quiet in the house, not a sound.
It's all moonglow, though mallow whispers from a pitcher
near the sink. Then Day comes. She turns Night around--
the flowers shout and the stunned house, which her
chirrups fill, begins to spin-- Day makes the tea tins
tremble, she makes the thin-bowled silver spoons clink
on the counter, she makes the cups shake and the dog blink
and cockatoo whistle in his cage. In fact, Day wins
the day and keeps on winning all day long until, once more,
Moon knocks like at neighbor at the back porch door.



2. Last week the stretch was to write a poem based on a folktale, fairy tale or legend. I chose to set a fairy tale mood rather than to use one speific fairy tale figure.

COUNTING SONG

Three gold coins,

three wishes wished,

three magic seeds

and three magic fish,

three bad guesses,

three real tears-

now the sea is salty,

now the seeds are years,

now the threes are doubles,

now the doubles one,

now the world is spinning

'til it comes undone.

Now you are a changeling,

now you are a haunt,

now you're hardly here at all

and now you're not.

Now you're just the wind

as it moves through trees,

and I can hear you counting--

One, two, three....

3. And the week before that we had to write poems "based on food." I got a double dactyl from that (well, double dactyl meter anyway - I didn't add in the six-syllable word in the next to the last line. This one goes out to Lang and her husband, the owners of Mandarin Chef in Seattle's University District, on the Ave. just north of 50th Ave. NE. They serve delicious food, and they are such nice people.

Higgelty pigglety

Mandarin Cheffery

uses some spices,

some garlic (and how....)

Even when I'm in the

Great Land of Noddery,

I am still dreaming of

Lang's hot kung pao.

Oh, yum. They do make their kung pao very HOT HOT HOT! You'll find Poetry Friday today over at Carol's Corner. Thanks, Carol.

Poetry Friday: Happy Birthday, Mr. Sendak!

Today, I just want to say Happy Birthday to the most wonderful Maurice Sendak, who turned 81 on Wednesday, the 10th. He's a national treasure. Many happy returns of the day, Mr. Sendak!

Here is a little ditty (how I love ditties, the littler the better) from Chicken Soup with Rice, in honor of the coming of summer:

In June I saw a charming group
Of roses all begin to droop.
I pepped them up with chicken soup.
Sprinkle once, sprinkle twice,
Sprinkle chicken soup with rice.

You'll find the Poetry Round-up this week over at Critique de Mr. Chompchomp (I can't believe I just typed that name. Chompchomp -that's a wild thing of its own, isn't it?)

Poetry Friday: A Poem from Book Titles

This was fun. The challenge was to create a poem from real book titles, no filler, no connective tissue, nothing else, just the book titles. Here's my response (and if you feel like adding a book-title poem in the comments, be my guest.) Don't miss Tricia's version, titled "Nobody's Fool" over at The Miss Rumphius Effect - it's wonderful. The only rule: you have to provide the titles and authors of the books you use. If you can link to a Book Title Poem you've posted, that would be great.

Naked

What's really wrong with you? Eating Chinese food naked,
walking naked, praying naked, dancing naked
in front of the fridge, dancing naked
at the edge of dawn, under the naked
sky....On the other hand, I've seen a lot of people naked,
and they've got nothing on you.

* * *

Books Used:
Naked by David Sedaris
What's Really Wrong with You by Thomas Griner
Eating Chinese Food Naked by Mei Ng
Walking Naked by Alyssa Brugman
Praying Naked by J. Francis Stroud
Dancing Naked in Front of the Fridge by Nancy J. Sipes
Dancing Naked at the Edge of Dawn by Kris Radish
Under the Naked Sky by Denys Johnson-Davies
On the Other Hand by Rachel White Adams
I've Seen a Lot of People Naked and They've Got Nothing on You by Jake Steinfeld

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Poetry Friday is hosted today by Sara Lewis Holmes over at READ WRITE BELIEVE. Go on over, see what people are offering up today.