IanLeTourneau.ca

How to write pithily (from Slate).

Been way busy with wedding. Now that that’s over look for more regularity next week. I’ll have a wedding photo posted plus all kinds of stuff.

Yesterday, I drove into Edmonton to interview for a great job with the Writers Guild of Alberta. Should know by the end of the week. Needless to say, I’m hoping I can make the move to the City of Champions.

Here’s a great link to the CBC story about the awarding of the Bulwer-Lytton literary prize, which seeks the worst opening line to a novel. The winner’s line:

Detective Bart Lasiter was in his office studying the light from his one small window falling on his super burrito when the door swung open to reveal a woman whose body said you’ve had your last burrito for a while, whose face said angels did exist, and whose eyes said she could make you dig your own grave and lick the shovel clean.

I’d also like to remind you that you can leave comments now without registering or logging in.

I always wanted people to be able to comment and I meant to disable the “You must register to comment” restriction, but forgot where on my dashboard that option was. Now it’s been disabled, so you should be able to comment freely.

(Thanks, Eric.)

…from where I returned today. We had a great stay, landing on Sunday and getting back late this afternoon. We stayed in the middle of downtown and walked around a lot. I must rest blisters on feet now. But first, the list:

I found a great used book store, where I limited myself to 5 books. (Very hard to do. I thought of putting one back but if you buy 5 then you get 20% off, a deal which I couldn’t resist.)

Poems of Akhmatova, translated by Stanley Kunitz.
Field Guide, Robert Hass.
Praise, Robert Haas.
Nights and Days, James Merrill.
Invisible Listeners, Helen Vendler. (Critcism, not poetry.)

Sherry also found a uncollected works of Stevie Smith, with a letter inside the front and back covers written by Stevie Smith. A chatty letter that seems authentic.

Here’s a few I bought new:

Field Marks: The Poetry of Don McKay. Ed. Meira Cook. (Uninspiring selection and introduction.)
Without Title, Geoffrey Hill.
Collected Poems, Donald Justice.

And then, here’s a list of the books I bought at a book warehouse, called the Book Warehouse, full of remainders:

Clasburyon, Mark Abley.
Notes Toward a Family Tree, John Barton.
Drivers at the Short-Time Motel, Eugene Gloria.
The Speed of the Wheel is Up to the Potter, Sandy Shreve.

Each of those cost 99 cents. And the gem, the hidden treasure found in the endless bins of remainders:

Unmarked Doorways, Peter Trower. (Just $5.99)

I interviewed David Hickey about his new book, In the Lights of the Midnight Plow, and other poetic things in June for Northern Poetry Review. It’s just been posted. Check it out.

You can buy his book from Biblioasis. You should ’cause it’s good. Here’s a few tour dates I plucked off the site:

August 3rd: David Hickey will launch his book In the Lights of a Midnight Plow in Windsor, TBA.

August 4th: Mike Barnes and David Hickey will read at the IV Lounge series in Toronto

If you live in any of these places, you’d be a fool not to go. My only question is: when’s he coming to Edmonton??