Tag Archives: poems for ivan

01.31.18
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Porkbelly’s January News

(from our poets & authors—readings, happenings, reviews, books, and news)

Rooed by Thirst // Tina Mozelle Braziel (cover art: Kathleen Piercefield)
Feeding the Dead by M. Brett Gaffney (cover art: Mary Chiaramonte)
Found Footage by Maggie Woodward (cover: Nicci Mechler)
How Darkness Enters a Body by Sarah Nichols
My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Pray, Pray, Pray by E. Kristin Anderson (cover: Nicci Mechler)

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Rooted by Thirst (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Tina Mozelle Braziel

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My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sonya Vatomsky » @coolniceghost

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Dreamland for Keeps (Porkbelly Press, 2018) & How Darkness Enters a Body (Porkbelly Press, 2018) by Sarah Nichols » @onibaba37

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Feeding the Dead (Porkbelly Press, 2017)
by M. Brett Gaffney « blog

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Found Footage (Porkbelly Press, 2018)
by Maggie Woodward

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams » kartoshkaaaaa.com

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Pray, Pray, Pray: Poems I wrote to Prince in the Middle of the Night (Porkbelly Press, 2015) by E. Kristin Anderson » www.ekristinanderson.com

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12.31.16
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Goodbye, 2016 Bacon – AKA December News

(News, events, & good things from our poets & writers.)

Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
A Map of the Farm Three Miles from the End of Happy Hollow Road by Amorak Huey (cover image: Alexandra Eldridge)
Ghost Tongue by Nicole Rollender (Cover art: Susan Yount)
The Autobiography of a Love Not Mine, Hilda Weaver
bindweed & crow poison: small poems of stray girls, fierce women by Robin Turner (cover: Anita Olivia Koester)
Pray, Pray, Pray by E. Kristin Anderson (cover: Nicci Mechler)
inter: burial places by Billie R. Tadros (cover: Jolene Costello Hartig)
Ghost Skin by Wren Hanks (cover: Alexandra Eldridge)
Midnight Blue by Vanessa Jimenez Gabb (cover art: Nicci Mechler)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams » kartoshkaaaaa.com

  • A new interview over at Speaking of Marvels! One of our favorite pieces of advice, aside from ditching projects that suck: “Have a cat. He will love you no matter how many words you can put together.”

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My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sonya Vatomsky » sonyavatomsky.com

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A Map of the Farm Three Miles from the End of Happy Hollow Road (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Amorak Huey » amorakhuey.net

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Pray, Pray, Pray: Poems I wrote to Prince in the Middle of the Night (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by E. Kristin Anderson » www.ekristinanderson.com

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Feeding the Dead (Porkbelly Press, 2017)
by M. Brett Gaffney

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The Autobiography of a Love Not Mine (Porkbelly Press, 2014)
by Hilda Weaver

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Ghost Tongue (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Nicole Rollender » www.nicolerollender.com

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bindweed & crow poison: small poems of stray girls, fierce women (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Robin Turner

  • a micro review of Robin’s chapbook via James Brush & Via Negativa.

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Apples or Pomegranates (Porkbelly Press, forthcoming 2017)
by Anita Olivia Koester

  • Anita is winner of the Midwest Gothic Lake Prize, poetry.
  • her work received a Pushcart nomination from Shot Glass Journal.

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inter: burial places (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Billie R. Tadros

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Lost Birds of the Iron Range (Porkbelly Press, 2017)
by Amber Edmondson

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Ghost Skin (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Wren Hanks

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midnight blue (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Vanessa Jimenez Gabb

  • Vanessa will also be reading at Berl’s Brooklyn Poetry Shop on January 7th, perhaps even from her own Porkbelly Press title, midnight blue, and probably from her very recently released full-length book!

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Chen Chen

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Goodbye, 2016! See you soon, 2017.
09.30.16
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September’s Bacon

(News & happenings from/with/including/for our poets&writers)

Haunting the Last House on Holland Island, Fallen into the Bay (Porkbelly Press, 2016) by Sarah Ann Winn (cover: Angie Reed Garner)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Pray, Pray, Pray by E. Kristin Anderson (cover: Nicci Mechler)
The Girl by Donna Vorreyer (cover image: Alexandra Eldridge)
Ghost Tongue by Nicole Rollender (Cover art: Susan Yount)
What’s pink & shiny / what’s dark & hard (stack of books)

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Haunting the Last House on Holland Island, Fallen into the Bay (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sarah Ann Winn » @blueaisling » bluebirdwords.com

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Chen Chen » @chenchenwrites » chenchenwrites.com

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My Body is a Poem I Can’t Stop Writing (Porkbelly Press, forthcoming in 2017)
by Kelly Lorraine Andrews » kellyandrewspoetry.com

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams » kartoshkaaaaa.com

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The Girl (Porkbelly Press, forthcoming in 2017)
by Donna Vorreyer » donnavorreyer.com

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Ghost Skin (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Wren Hanks » tumblr

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Pray, Pray, Pray: Poems I wrote to Prince in the Middle of the Night (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by E. Kristin Anderson » www.ekristinanderson.com

  • EKA received a Best of the Net nomination for her work in TAB.

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Ghost Tongue (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Nicole Rollender » www.nicolerollender.com

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Apples or Pomegranates (Porkbelly Press, forthcoming in 2917)
by Anita Olivia Koester

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My Own Strange Beast (Porkbelly Press, forthcoming in 2017)
by Melissa Atkinson Mercer

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A Map of the Farm Three Miles from the End of Happy Hollow Road (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Amorak Huey » amorakhuey.net

  • Amorak’s chapbook Insomniac Circus (Hyacinth Girl Press, 2015) reviewed in KR Online‘s September micro reviews.

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What’s pink & shiny / what’s dark & hard (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
Sarah B. Boyle » www.impolitelines.com

  • Sarah’s long poem “Darling of the Wolf God” is September’s featured writer on Aspasiology. There are several responses to the poem (including one by Sonya Vatomsky), which is a pretty neat feature of the site.

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08.31.16
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August Bacon

(News & happenings from/with/including/for our poets&writers)

Haunting the Last House on Holland Island, Fallen into the Bay (Porkbelly Press, 2016) by Sarah Ann Winn (cover: Angie Reed Garner)
My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
bindweed & crow poison: small poems of stray girls, fierce women by Robin Turner (cover: Anita Olivia Koester)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Pray, Pray, Pray by E. Kristin Anderson (cover: Nicci Mechler)

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Haunting the Last House on Holland Island, Fallen into the Bay (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sarah Ann Winn

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A Map of the Farm Three Miles from the End of Happy Hollow Road (forthcoming, 2016)
by Amorak Huey

**poems from Huey’s Porkbelly Press chapbook.

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My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sonya Vatomsky » sonyavatomsky.com

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bindweed & crow poison: small poems of stray girls, fierce women (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Robin Turner

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Chen Chen » chenchenwrites.com

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams » kartoshkaaaaa.com

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Pray, Pray, Pray: Poems I wrote to Prince in the middle of the night (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by E. Kristin Anderson » ekristinanderson.com

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07.31.16
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July’s Smokin’ Hot Bacon

(News & happenings from/with/including/for our poets&writers)

Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
How to Leave a Farmhouse (Beth McDermott, cover: Nicci Mechler)
Rooed by Thirst // Tina Mozelle Braziel (cover art: Kathleen Piercefield)
My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams » kartoshkaaaaa.com

  • We All Have to Keep Our Heads, Sara’s newest micro chap of poems, is out from Ghost City Press!

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How to Leave a Farmhouse (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Beth McDermott

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Rooted by Thirst (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Tina Mozelle Braziel

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My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sonya Vatomsky » @coolniceghost

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Chen Chen » chenchenwrites.com

  • Chen’s “Playing in the Square” received a Best of the Net nom from TheThe Poetry.

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Ghost Tongue (Porkbelly Press, 2016) forthcoming
by Nicole Rollender » nicolerollender.com

06.30.16
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June’s Crispy Bacon

Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Everything I Own by Angela Just (cover: Nicci Mechler)
hiku [pull] by James A. H. White (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Rooed by Thirst // Tina Mozelle Braziel (cover art: Kathleen Piercefield)
My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Pray, Pray, Pray by E. Kristin Anderson (cover: Nicci Mechler)

All the good news (we’ve heard about) from our contributors:

Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams // kartoshkaaaaa.com

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Ghost Skin (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Jennifer Hanks

  • Jennifer’s chapbook Prophet Fever (Hyacinth Girl Press, 2016) was just released. (Her chap from Porkbelly is forthcoming as of this writing.)

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hiku [pull] (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by James A. H. White

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Everything I Own (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Angela Just

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Rooted by Thirst (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Tina Mozelle Braziel

  • a blog interview at Live Your Poem with Irene Latham, in which she says things like “We plan to burn lines of poetry into walls of our house.” Yesssss.

Emerson claims that “Colleges and books only copy the language which the field and the work-yard made.” That rings true to me, especially when I discover words like “rock-bar” and “squarings” that feel so invigorating. Lately, I’ve been thinking about the term “sistering” which means nailing one board against another for additional strength. Such concepts and words recalibrate my perspective of what makes a home, what it means to claim a place as our own. And that feeds my writing. // more

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My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sonya Vatomsky // @coolniceghost

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Chen Chen // chenchenwrites.com

“Except let’s not hold off on the giant cake. & let’s not hold off on being

irreversibly in love. Happiness needs no preparation or warrantee
or reason. I’m ready to say that. I’m ready to watch any romcom/action
combo where two people topple tyranny, fall in love. I’m ready
for the movie where four people topple tyranny, fall in love,

& make consensual arrangements to keep it open.
Or six people just stay in & become best friends. Or seven
billion people befriend themselves…” | more

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Pray, Pray, Pray: Poems I wrote to Prince in the middle of the night (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by E. Kristin Anderson // @ek_anderson

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06.11.16
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Poems for Ivan (Sara Adams)

Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)

 

Poems for Ivan is a journey through the language, mausoleums, and barbed-wire-lined tracks against the backdrop Ukraine, via trains and walking and food. Ivan is the guide at first, it seems, but that isn’t all. The more beer consumed, the deeper the journey goes. With roasted meat and sharp sticks, through intimate conversation, packs of dogs and lights in the distance, Adams keeps you walking with her narrator and Ivan, racing through this cluster of poems and re-reading—you’ll likely devour it in one sitting as we did, just to find out how it ends, go back for more and share it. If it ends, that is—look for more of her work; you will not be disappointed. (Porkbelly Press, 2016) » more info

about the poet

Sara Adams is a Montessori teacher in Portland, Oregon. She has work in literary magazines such as tNY Press’s Electronic Encyclopedia of Experimental Literature, and/or, Shampoo Poetry, and DIAGRAM. She co-wrote a full-length New Translation of Twilight with Greg Petrovic, which is available at www.fredwardbound.com. Links to publications and contact info at www.kartoshkaaaaa.com.

cover & art

The cover is inkjet printed on premium matte paper. It’s trimmed down to just under 6 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches, and bound by hand.

Artist:
Nicci Mechler » portfolio
“Mausoleum Candles”
gouache on paper, 9×12 inches

05.31.16
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Bacon in May, May Bacon (Contributor News)

My Heart in Aspic by Sonya Vatomsky (cover: Shannon Perry)
What’s pink & shiny / what’s dark & hard (stack of books)
The Eighth Phrase, LB Williams (open edition cover)
Set the Garden on Fire by Chen Chen (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Dry Spell by Patrick Kindig (cover: Nicci Mechler)
Poems for Ivan by Sara Adams (cover: Nicci Mechler)

 

My Heart in Aspic (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sonya Vatomsky // @coolniceghost

  • An interview with Sonya on My Heart in Aspic over on Speaking of Marvels. Things mentioned include bilingual poeting (writing), language, cauldrons, beakers, “folk medicine” vs “actual medicine,” a grandparents’ kitchen, bearings, and teeth. Always teeth.

If you ever look up how to brew kombucha at home, you’ll find instructions so obsessed with cleanliness that it borders on the absurd. Clean everything with bleach! You’re going to die! And so on. Meanwhile, my grandparents made kombucha in their tiny USSR apartments where I guarantee you there was an insufficiently sterile environment and, well, people have been making kombucha in Russia and China for ages before that as well. There’s a lot of scholarly work being done that indicates much of our “folk medicine” vs “actual medicine” beliefs originate in the willful exclusion of women from science. And both love and grief are feminine-coded emotions. At its root, My Heart in Aspic is really about me getting my bearings after a sexual assault, and that period of my life felt very feminine, in a weird way. I’m non-binary, and that was the single time when I briefly truly felt like a woman.

  • You can find some of their new work in issue #12 of Fuck Art, Let’s Dance! (Nostrovia Press, May 2016). And, you know what? You can listen to it too. An excerpt from “Mourning Hair, Don’t Care:”

… it’ll be better this time or at least
it’ll be different and we’re somewhat
optimistic because who isn’t when
the wind goes warm and one’s chest
opens up and anticipation runs
impulse control off the road…

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What’s pink & shiny / what’s dark & hard (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Sarah B. Boyle // @pyrrhicspondee

  • An interview with Sarah on  What’s pink & shiny / what’s dark & hard at Speaking of Marvels. Things mentioned: secrets, art, accomplice vs ally, abortion, lacunae, persistence, and the importance of good teachers.

As to when I finally wrote about the abortion–god I’m so slow. I’m consistently writing about things that happened about 5 years prior. (Aside from these heartbreaking little prose poems I’ve been writing about teaching, which seem to pour out of me unfiltered and within hours of the events that prompt them.)  I suspect I need the distance to turn things into art–into an object outside myself that I can manipulate. // more at Speaking of Marvels

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The Eighth Phrase (Porkbelly Press, 2014)
by L. B. Williams // letterstovirginiawoolf.com

…this is a small book but it is dense with the poetry of one coming of age against the polyglot sounds of a great city. Do not let the size of the book deceive you. The imagery is almost narcotic and the phrasing speaks directly to the soul. L.B. Williams has fashioned a fantastic book of poems from her memories as well as her fine poetic technique. // more at Quill & Parchment

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Set the Garden on Fire (Porkbelly Press, 2015)
by Chen Chen // @chenchenwrites

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Dry Spell (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Patrick Kindig // pdkindig.wordpress.com

  • His micro chapbook was just released! Fresh off the press, all these poems: DRY SPELL.

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Poems for Ivan (Porkbelly Press, 2016)
by Sara Adams // kartoshkaaaaa.com

  • Though it’s not due out until next month, Sara’s micro chapbook received this awesome blurb review:

Sara Adams’ Poems for Ivan is a modern version of Persephone’s tale. When she leads you down the “black, barbed-wired path” of Ukraine past gangs of wild dogs or into the underground monastery, you can’t turn away. You will want to linger with Ivan in the dark magic of this book.

— Janeen Pergrin Rastall, author of In the Yellowed House, Objects May Appear Closer and co-author of Heart Radicals.