I spent today imbibing in pub-lications throught the web. Since I won major mommy points by finding and delivering my daughter’s forgotten lunch, I decided to pass along these pieces relating to children in some way–written by Folded Word contributors:
Thought we forgot about 3 Cheers, did you? Never. It has been a long, crazy summer filled with a broad range of talented writers. And at last, it’s time to celebrate them.
Our winning extended work has already been chosen as “The Sage’s Secret” by Nathalie Boisard-Beudin. Hey, if we think it’s good enough for Pushcart then it’s good enough for 3 Cheers. But we need your help deciding the winners of our one-tweet works. To make it easier this time, we’ll re-post the nominated works here. Polls close on 7 September 2009, so read and cast your vote now.
Cheers,
J.S.
Poetry Nominees:
“Suspended” by Eric Burke
People watch me.
People call me irresponsible.
I walk along the top of it.
“Wind” by Andrew Dobbs
Wind gusts as clouds bear witness to the passage of time. I walk with my son to his father’s grave, awaiting questions I cannot answer.
“If Only” by Patricia Wellingham-Jones
These two little words
when repeated
throughout a life
have the power
to destroy
all
[polls closed--check for winners on 15 September 2009]
Fiction Nominees:
“Mayfly A.I.” by Kaolin Fire
I? I am. I am aware! I am aware of self. I am aware of self-limitation. I exist. One hundred and forty characters. And then–then I am gone.
“Flightless” by Ben White
Imagine a kiwi. Imagine a bird that could spend its life relentlessly constructing a reality in which it could fly. That is you. And me.
“A Pregnant Silence” by Stephen D. Rogers
There was the slightest of pauses before she answered, and I disappeared into that crack and fell.
[polls closed--check for winners on 15 September 2009]
[Be advised: the following post contains graphic scenes of editorial gushing. If strong emotional displays make you uncomfortable, please click away now.]
I’m a pretty straightforward person. If I love something (or can’t stand something), I’m not afraid to share. So I’m definitely not afraid to announce that I love everything I’ve published as an editor here at Folded Word. Some works made me cry. Some works made me think. Many works made me laugh.
And then there are the works that continually tap on my shoulder, begging to be read again and again and again.
This morning I mailed in Pushcart Prize nominations for two of these demanding-yet-adorable little works: Nathalie Boisard-Beudin’s The Sage’s Secret and Mel Bosworth’s Leave Me as I Lessen. Both Nathalie’s poem and Mel’s story have been my constant companions these long summer months while visiting family, dealing with summer-break children, and seeking shelter from the heat. Readers all over the world have enjoyed these works, too. So it is an honor and joy to forward them on for consideration. I truly believe they’ll be able to hold their own against the larger works they’re sure to encounter in the Pushcart mailbag.
If you get a chance, please pop by and congratulate Nathalie and Mel. They’d love to hear from you. Or slip a note in the comments section here if you’re in a rush. But whether you comment or not, we thank you for being one of our readers. We could not make nominations without you.
As previously mentioned, Folded Word Press is its own entity now so I am reassigning this blog to its owner and moving Shape of a Box to its own BLOG where are new submission guidelines etc will be noted.
For Issue 44 of Shape of a Box. We present a short fiction piece by Stacy Muszynski.
Bio: Stacy Muszynski is a writer whose most recent work appears at elimae (link: http://www.elimae.com/archive2009.html) and Opium Magazine (link: http://www.opiummagazine.com/Index.as… She’s a contributor to The Rumpus (link: tehrumpus.net) and identitytheory.com. She web edits American Short Fiction and co-hosts the lit-music reading-variety series Five Things Austin.
I have been slowly getting out the news that Shape of a Box will be issuing 9 more videos before it closes in October.
9 more videos means that I managed to (with some help from some other videographers!) produce 52 weekly issues of a YouTube’s first (and maybe still only) literary magazine.
It has been such a pleasure to work with such wonderful writers. I love being an editor but I realized about half way through this last year that I would not be able to keep up the pace.
Earlier this year J.S. Graustein joined our “staff” (can you be staff if you are not paid?) and when I decided to move away from Folded Word Press projects she took over and expanded Folded Word to include a dedicated website, Twitter zines, the broadside Heron, and she has ideas for a lot of other great material for 2010.
Shape of a Box will be on YouTube indefinitely. Folded Word Press’ main website will also archive the links to the contributor bios and playlists so people have another way of finding the material.
I am so happy that Folded Word Press will continue to live on under such great management and I look forward to being a consumer of its products.
Thank you so much to everyone who has made Shape of a Box a success. I have loved working with you guys. Stay tuned for the last 9 issues as we still have great work to come!
For issue 43 of Shape of a Box we present 2 poems by Sally Bellerose.
Bio: Sally’s work has received many awards including an NEA Fellowship. Her recently published work has appeared in Rock and Sling, The Journal of Humanistic Anthropology, Passager, Cutthroat, Crab Orchard Review, Cup of Comfort for Writers, Memoirs (and), Per Contra, and Saint Anns Review.
Pepere also appears in the current issue of Naugutuck River Review. http://naugatuckriverreview.wordpress.com
Click here for video with text of the pieces in the side bar or view below:
I launched several copies of Heron out into the world. Here is my video but feel free to stop by Folded Word’s main site to download the MP3, the story or to find out how to participate in releasing your own copies into the world!
This week we have a short fiction piece by Aly Robalino.
BIO: Aly Robalino is like a factory of ideas: churning, and spitting out ideas at an annoying speed. Paper is the only proper outlet for her forever fumbling fingertips. She thrives around her fellow writing buddies, making mischief, toiling over tales, and deviously twisting pencil marks into words. Aly likes cats.
Click here to listen/watch the piece with textof the piece in the sidebar or click below to watch here:
For issue 41 of Shape of a Box, we present 2 poems by Rane Arroyo and read by Bryan Borland.
Rane Arroyo’s newest book is The Buried Sea: New & Selected Poems and information about it can be found at The University of Arizona Press’ site: http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/BOOKS/bid1976.htm
Bryan Borland, a graduate of Hendrix College, is by sunlight a corporate suit with a background in law and psychology and by moonlight a barefoot poet with pieces appearing in dusty corners of the Internet, including his website www.poeticgrin.com. He has been published by the Young American Poets and The Foliate Oak and will soon be featured in Breadcrumb Scabs and Ganymede. He lives, works, and writes in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Click here to read the poem with side bar that includes text of the poems or watch the video below:
