THE LATEST...

 

05 • 26 • 2008

Earlier this month, I went hosted a Zeitgeist-Press reading in San Francisco in the Haight district at Cafe International. It was a memorial reading for the loss of Vampyre Mike. Among the readers were Julia Vinograd, Joie Cook, Bruce Isaacson, Whitman McGowan, David Gollub, Chris Trian, Kathleen Wood, and many others. Here's a couple snap shots:

DAVID GOLLUB


JOIE COOK

 

CHRIS TRIAN

 

I also went to see Joe Pachinko perform with his ressurected instruments at the Leaning Tower of Pizza in Oakland.

You can read his raving review here....if you're into shoddy journalism... http://www.eastbayexpress.com/music/from_trash_to_treasure_____and_back_again/Content?oid=726342

 

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04 • 01 • 2008

For April Fool's Day, this is no joke... a review written by Irene Koronas on issue #36...

POESY
issue 36
P.O.Box 7823
Santa Cruz, Ca. 95061
2008  ISSN# 1541-8162
www.poesy.org

Initially I flipped through Poesy Magazine issue 36,
and my first impressions were the juxtaposition of
photography and poetry; essay and poetry; different
type faces and poetry; the white space page integrated
with and opposite the black space page. This issue is
worth the year wait. The size, 7 ½ by 7 ½, the glossy
cover, the presentation, all lend to an intimate hold
in your hand, kind of magazine. The editors did a
fabulous job. Their respect for poetry and the poet is
evident in the formatting.

I started a list of the poems I liked best, then I
realized there were so many that it became impossible
to comment on all of them. It will have to suffice,
that I found some of the finest, grounded, simply
plain spoken poetry, not excluding what I feel is also
experimental phrasing, in a few of the poems;
“daylight snapped between black & white” or “I leave
again for Paris by way of my mother…” Then those poems
of few words, leap off the page and grab my mind, hold
me captive until I think it through; “I am the last
brut’ and the last poem in the magazine seems to be
the epitome of what this magazine stands for, or at
least part of what the magazine espouses..

“I maybe
used to have
favorite poets but they
only wrote about made up things, didn’t
have even a portion of a trashed life…”

Poesy is one of many small magazines, small presses,
that gives the public a sampling of what some poets
are trying to capture about their life and landscape,
without having to confound, us the reader.

Brian Morrisey and Erika King’s interview with the
veiled anonymity of the GPP is interesting but I don’t
agree with a lot of what the responses to the
questions were. I do agree with, “we’ve never said we
we’re, “revolutionary”…we just publish poems and get
them to as many people as possible.” that premise is
what the small press does, get the word or poem out
there and Poesy does it well.

The photography is in itself poetic portraits
portrayed in an insightful manner. Bravo to Poesy and
to all the hard working small presses. Without them
most of the poets I know would not be in print. most
of them would be lurking in a corner coffee shop
waiting for an opportunity to publish.  

Irene Koronas
Poetry Editor
Wilderness House Literary Review
reviewer: Ibbetson Stree Press

 

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03• 24 • 2008

TODAY WE POSTED two more poems on the poetry page: SAINT FRANCIS by oren wagner and WEEDS ON DONNER SUMMIT by jeanine stevens. We chose Saint Francis because Oren really hit it with this one right away in the first two lines "a half moon hangs over head like it were stolen from a
Van Gogh painting and accidentally dropped in the sky..." Jeanine amazed us with Weeds on Donner Summit. Mainly for subject content more than wordsmithing the image. Definitely check these poems out! — Brian

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01 • 03 • 2008

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Good news POESY fans! We are back up and running after our unannounced one-year hiatus! What pushed us back into play and saved POESY from becoming a burned muse in the face of a broken down editor? A spark from an email I received about a possible internship. Just when I became overwhelmed with 6,728 submissions to respond to (well maybe not that many), I received an email from a Bennington College student, Erika King, who is ready to get her hands dirty and dig in to the behind the scenes production of POESY. Erika is currently studying literature and art history at Bennington College. She has published poetry in 96Inc. If you would like to meet Erika, you can email her at erika@poesy.org . I will have more information later in the week planning our assault on the next issue. — Brian

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09 • 09 • 2007

POESY is delayed again. I don't think we will be making our Septmber cut off. I have been able to review many of the submissions received and books and begin the interviews, but to try and finish it by the end of the month will result in a rushed feel and I have always taken pride on the quality of material we have included in our publication. It is possible I could do a double issue for #36/#37, or just plain make #36 twice as big and release it in December. I will make another post as things pogress.

We will not be accepting any new submissions until after December 1, 2007.

Thank you for your understanding. There is no excuse except for spring/summer fever and a deep dive into my own poetry. I had to take advantage of the muse when she came to me. Expect a new manuscript of poems and photos after the issue is released.

Questins and comments always welcome...

Your friendly editor,

Brian

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07 • 25 • 2007

POESY was picked top magazine of May/June 2007 by the Small Press Review. The review judges from hundreds of small press mags received. I am proud to say I have been Boston editor for the last 9 years.

Doug Holder/Ibbetson Update

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07 • 02 • 2007

Hello Poesians,

I regret that I was unable to get issue #36 out to the press for the June (Summer) issue. Between going to China for two weeks and a 60 hour a week workload, it has left me little energy for Poesy lately. But here I am... I am back to my normal routine of waking up at 5 a.m. To get the creative juices flowing again to get us back on track.

I am currently reviewing submissions for #36 and August 1st I will cut off reviewing submissions for the issue #36 and anything after will be considered for #37. I know I have submissions piled up to the ceiling again, so if you have submitted already, please be patient. I am still working on whittling that down.

Thanks for letting me slide on this issue, it won't become a habit. Over the past 8 years I have been doing Poesy quarterly, this is only the second time this has happened.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

Take care,
Brian

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04 • 24 • 2007

Five more poems were posted today (Nancy Gauquier, Kristina Olson, Gerald Nicosia, Patti Sirens and Hugh Fox). I was supposed to have them up Sunday, but running a half marathon laid me up for a couple days. Check out the poems! All are inspiring to no end! In other news… I am not sure about setting up the reading posted below for the issue because I am off for China for 10 days (May 8-17) and I don't think I will have the time needed to properly set up the reading. I will keep you updated. I should be able to get more photos out of the trip. Also, the next issue is coming up fast. I will have a sort of mini-issue for June. I am experimenting with formats now and will get to the meat of the poems shortly after I can picture the issue in my head. More soon…

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MAY (TBA)
Friday, 7:00 pm
POESY ISSUE XXXV READING
(w/ possible guests: Nancy G., Eugenia Hepworth Petty,
Patty Sirens, Brian Morrisey, ellaraine lockie)
Wired Wash Café
135 Laurel Street
Santa Cruz, CA
Free.

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"LOVE POEMS FOR THE WICKED" poems by Brian Morrisey
Zeitgeist Press, 2007

“When Brian Morrisey is in a poem’s rage, the rage often writes him in the form of new combinations of images which he is simply the receptive vessel for. Such a path is the only one for a socially engaged contemporary poet. Morrisey is such a one and he’s on that path.” — Jack Hirschman, poet laureate of san francisco

www.zeitgeist-press.com
info@zeitgeist-press.com
Zeitgeist-Press
1630 University Avenue #34
Berkeley, CA 94703