Today, I'm the Windshield

61º ~ cloud cover, forecast calls for storms, welcome spring's unsettled skies

I love Mary Chapin Carpenter, and today's title might only make sense if you know her song "The Bug." The chorus begins, "Sometimes you're the windshield; sometimes you're the bug." Today, I'm definitely feeling like the windshield, which is a nice change after spending several weeks as the bug.

Yesterday afternoon, I had the great pleasure to guest lecture at the University of Arkansas Community College - Morrilton. Friend and fellow U of Arkansas grad, Lyndsey Daniel, invited me to appear in her Intro to Poetry class. These are my favorite types of appearances as a poet: smaller group, time to talk with the audience, less formal, &etc. I had a fabulous time, and I hope the students did as well. They were bright and engaged and asked all kinds of fantastic questions. Many, many thanks to the students who purchased copies of Blood Almanac. I know how precious money can be to students, and I'm honored that you chose to part with yours for a copy of my book. Many thanks to Lyndsey as well for making it all possible.

Other great windshield news: I spent the weekend sending poems out into the world, and I was rewarded by an awesome acceptance from Connotation Press. Kaite Hillenbrand, the poetry editor, emailed to let me know that the editors chose to accept all four poems that I submitted, and again, I'm humbled by such generosity and support. If you haven't checked out this online journal yet, now's the time to do so. I chose to submit to Connotation Press after a Facebook friend posted about her publication there awhile back. What intrigued me about the journal is its focus on bringing together many art forms. Their Mission Statement says it all:
"Connotation Press: An Online Artifact exists to publish and promote the finest art and artists available, and to provide a place for a wide variety of art to flourish. From the printed to the spoken word, from the auditory to the visual arts, from the tactile to the cerebral our primary purpose is to provide the best possible showcase venue for the arts and artists that we publish, and to do everything in our power to attract and keep the largest audience possible to experience them. For too long the arts have been segregated: poetry magazines, fiction magazines, photography magazines, and while we respect these single-focus outlets, we believe there should be a place where all art can coexist. Connotation Press: An Online Artifact is that place."

In the shower this morning, I was thinking about this gift of having all four poems accepted by one journal and I wondered briefly if this was happening more (I had three in a row like this last Spring) because online journals have more "pages" with fewer expenses. So, I looked up my history of having multiple poems accepted. Turns out, it's fifty/fifty. Not sure what any of that means, but I hope the editors know what an extra boost to the confidence it is when more than one poem is accepted at a time.

I'm forever indebted (and hopelessly devoted) to all those who read and publish poetry in a world that often places little outward value on the arts.