It was a pretty busy week for getting back responses
from editors on my poetry submissions.
Two rejections but the good news,
three poems were accepted for publication.
A couple will publish in Mid May
and one per the email response from
the Boston Literary Magazine's
Editor-In-Chief, in Mid to late June.
I just have to share her response
as it is one that you don't often get as a writer.
Here it is copy/pasted from the email:
-----------------------------------------------
I'm so in love with "The Lake Has Not Changed" that I can't even stand it... even if the poem was bad, I'd have taken it just for the "turtle" line... but the poem is a WONDER. I LOVE it!! Thank you so much for letting us have it, it's on its way to my editor now... and thanks for sending the bio... the summer issue will be out mid to late June... thanks again!!
Robin Stratton
Read great fiction at www.BostonLiteraryMagazine.com
-----------------------------------------------
Pretty cool huh!!!
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Sylvia Poem - Hatred
Love hate they say as if
we are baking Sylvia bread,
........
the delicate insides,
and the crumbs that linger longer.
we are baking Sylvia bread,
........
the delicate insides,
and the crumbs that linger longer.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
Self Promotion - Poem Published
An Easter present I got today came in the form of a note from the editor of Barnwood Poetry Mag.
My poem "Love Solstice" has been published.
Here's the mag front page where it's listed:
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_3/Mag.html
and also a direct link to my page there:
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_18/Slais.html
I'll be looking for the check to arrive as this is a paying gig.
Smiles!
My poem "Love Solstice" has been published.
Here's the mag front page where it's listed:
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_3/Mag.html
and also a direct link to my page there:
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_18/Slais.html
I'll be looking for the check to arrive as this is a paying gig.
Smiles!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Young Son Poem
Middle Of The Night We Weep
Son, too young to fully understand
how a marriage could break.
Unlike the table full of precious
things, dismembered shards of figurines,
picked up one piece at a time by him and I
after his mother assaulted the peace,
another out of control moment of rage.
Our family photo in the pile, framework separated,
shattered glass poking into our bodies.
The marriage bond is invisible, untouchable.
He is like me,
a mama’s boy.
He wears many labels,
L.D., A.D.D., Special Ed.
His whole life
she has done
everything for him,
whacked compensation
for only gaining
five pounds
during her pregnant
veil of deception.
After my new label, single father stuck,
the trial over, instincts intact,
my actions, placed on the empty table
for everyone to see and judge,
one night, well after midnight,
he came unpeeled,
lethargic, fever shooting bullets of sweat.
I knew what to do,
give medicine, a tepid bath,
comforting words, still he cried.
He was incoherent, inconsolable,
all he wanted, was to be held close
rocked back to sleep in his mother’s arms.
Son, too young to fully understand
how a marriage could break.
Unlike the table full of precious
things, dismembered shards of figurines,
picked up one piece at a time by him and I
after his mother assaulted the peace,
another out of control moment of rage.
Our family photo in the pile, framework separated,
shattered glass poking into our bodies.
The marriage bond is invisible, untouchable.
He is like me,
a mama’s boy.
He wears many labels,
L.D., A.D.D., Special Ed.
His whole life
she has done
everything for him,
whacked compensation
for only gaining
five pounds
during her pregnant
veil of deception.
After my new label, single father stuck,
the trial over, instincts intact,
my actions, placed on the empty table
for everyone to see and judge,
one night, well after midnight,
he came unpeeled,
lethargic, fever shooting bullets of sweat.
I knew what to do,
give medicine, a tepid bath,
comforting words, still he cried.
He was incoherent, inconsolable,
all he wanted, was to be held close
rocked back to sleep in his mother’s arms.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
The Breathless Fish (poem)
.
.
she is a fish
with sea shaped gills
throughout the night
I pour water on her
my tongue can decipher
waterfall linguistics
an electric factory
with ample juice
to finally eviscerate
the reservoir inside
she swallows the ocean
when she drowns
call of tidal moon
pucker of quivered lips
saturated she wriggles
breathless on the bed
CH 2oo8
.
she is a fish
with sea shaped gills
throughout the night
I pour water on her
my tongue can decipher
waterfall linguistics
an electric factory
with ample juice
to finally eviscerate
the reservoir inside
she swallows the ocean
when she drowns
call of tidal moon
pucker of quivered lips
saturated she wriggles
breathless on the bed
CH 2oo8
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Poem Accepted for publication
Wooowhooo!!!
I got some good news today.
I got a return note from a literary journal editor today.
(copy/pasted)
______________________
Dear R Jay Slais,
Thanks for sending these my way.
Barnwood will publish Love Solstice
(sometime between now and the end of April--
i've got a backlog--i'll send an email when it's up).
To what address should i send your check?
Best regards,Tom koontz -editor
______________________
A paying gig!!
Semi-pro rates!!
I am pretty happy today after getting this note.
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_3/Mag.html
He has just published poems by Marge Piercy and Judith Moffett so I'll have pretty good company surrounding me.
Smiles!
I got some good news today.
I got a return note from a literary journal editor today.
(copy/pasted)
______________________
Dear R Jay Slais,
Thanks for sending these my way.
Barnwood will publish Love Solstice
(sometime between now and the end of April--
i've got a backlog--i'll send an email when it's up).
To what address should i send your check?
Best regards,Tom koontz -editor
______________________
A paying gig!!
Semi-pro rates!!
I am pretty happy today after getting this note.
http://web.mac.com/tomkoontz/Site_3/Mag.html
He has just published poems by Marge Piercy and Judith Moffett so I'll have pretty good company surrounding me.
Smiles!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Friday, March 7, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Kick me
Yesterday, one of those super suckified days, started out with six more inches of snow over night. Oh, how I love shoveling the two foot mound of snowplow jism blocking my exit from the drive. 6:30 am, puffing and huffing to build a bigger mountain on the sides. Did I say how sick I am of winter yet? Ah… ya. So I kick the gerbils, throw em some seeds, and off I slide. A steering-wheel-gripping hour later, I arrive to find out they hadn’t plowed most of our parking lot at work. My second set of cold, wet feet where found walking inside.
Am I happy to be there? Well, I didn’t even get that thought thought when littlebossman calls me in his office and shuts the door. Uh-oh. It appears bigbossman shoved a hot poker up his rear first thing this morning, and twisted it a bit. So littlebossman, in his wide eyed (but kind as he could be) way, needed to transfer some heat. From there, we were all taskmasters most of the day trying to bail us out some, so bigbossman could go home tonight satisfied and forget about us for a day or two and figure out who his next probing victim may be.
I always have to have a plan, being of the single parent kind, raising kid1 and kid2. Planning is crucial. Shortly after the closed door affair, a “Mandatory” meeting notice blings into the email box, scheduled for the late afternoon. “ Attend or else”… gulp. Another problem. Surprise, today is kid2’s every other week counseling session and because of doctor’s busy schedule, it’s earlier then normal this week. So I summon my best groveling skills up from my gut and call him to cancel/re-schedule with 8 hours notice. Thankfully, he was cool about it (not cool would be a $135 charge for missing the appointment) and rescheduled for the weekend morning. So what, we are up to like 9am now, what will happen next? The phone rings. It’s the ex’s social worker (the ex is in jail again, got DUI #2, then failed a blow test, part of her sentencing a month later - daahh) so social worker lady says she is calling on psyco ex’s behalf to tell me I am on her visitation list for tonight 7-10PM, and wondered if I would bring the kids down too. Let’s see, do I want to go to a downtown Detroit jail tonight (or ever) ? NO! Sorry social worker lady, the kids won’t be seeing their mom there today or any day, you can tell their mom that. That is one humiliating degradation, lifetime memory nightmare, I choose not to put them through. “Goodbye”.
I stayed in my little box and typed furiously as much as I could the rest of the day – besides attending two meetings – and we survived that meeting at the end of the day. The day’s bright spot… my lovely daughter, kid1, had dinner just about ready when I got home. Of course, I couldn’t eat right away as tonight was phone conference meeting night with Korean and Mexican customers. Thankfully, the meeting was a short and friendly one. FOOD!!! It was delicious, spaghetti and home made garlic bread. At least it didn’t snow again last night. A new day… full of opportunity!
Am I happy to be there? Well, I didn’t even get that thought thought when littlebossman calls me in his office and shuts the door. Uh-oh. It appears bigbossman shoved a hot poker up his rear first thing this morning, and twisted it a bit. So littlebossman, in his wide eyed (but kind as he could be) way, needed to transfer some heat. From there, we were all taskmasters most of the day trying to bail us out some, so bigbossman could go home tonight satisfied and forget about us for a day or two and figure out who his next probing victim may be.
I always have to have a plan, being of the single parent kind, raising kid1 and kid2. Planning is crucial. Shortly after the closed door affair, a “Mandatory” meeting notice blings into the email box, scheduled for the late afternoon. “ Attend or else”… gulp. Another problem. Surprise, today is kid2’s every other week counseling session and because of doctor’s busy schedule, it’s earlier then normal this week. So I summon my best groveling skills up from my gut and call him to cancel/re-schedule with 8 hours notice. Thankfully, he was cool about it (not cool would be a $135 charge for missing the appointment) and rescheduled for the weekend morning. So what, we are up to like 9am now, what will happen next? The phone rings. It’s the ex’s social worker (the ex is in jail again, got DUI #2, then failed a blow test, part of her sentencing a month later - daahh) so social worker lady says she is calling on psyco ex’s behalf to tell me I am on her visitation list for tonight 7-10PM, and wondered if I would bring the kids down too. Let’s see, do I want to go to a downtown Detroit jail tonight (or ever) ? NO! Sorry social worker lady, the kids won’t be seeing their mom there today or any day, you can tell their mom that. That is one humiliating degradation, lifetime memory nightmare, I choose not to put them through. “Goodbye”.
I stayed in my little box and typed furiously as much as I could the rest of the day – besides attending two meetings – and we survived that meeting at the end of the day. The day’s bright spot… my lovely daughter, kid1, had dinner just about ready when I got home. Of course, I couldn’t eat right away as tonight was phone conference meeting night with Korean and Mexican customers. Thankfully, the meeting was a short and friendly one. FOOD!!! It was delicious, spaghetti and home made garlic bread. At least it didn’t snow again last night. A new day… full of opportunity!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
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