Writing for the sake of writing

I've been busy with school work and getting out to promote RDRR (Dec. 3 at The Regal Beagle with Sachiko Murakami, Myna Wallin and Allan Briesmaster). I've studied a lot on the history of heavy metal magazines and have done a lot of work on this. Fun times.

It's about bloody time I wrote something on this blog. What I'm about to say next is controversial, but I'm not too sure anyone reads this blog.

I was at the Toronto Poetry Slam last night to see the return of Electric Jon as the feature. I'm just going to come out and speak my mind and say TPS has lost a step or three. In the last few months it's become overrun with aspiring rappers delivering the same thing over and over. I can't believe I'm saying this. A year and a half ago I got into a nasty online debate (I wasn't alone) with local poet Paul Vermeersch over the value of spoken word to poetry. He argued slam was full of failed rappers with big egos pretending to be poets. I told him to write about what he knew about; otherwise, shut up. At the time I don't believe he knew what he was talking about. Lately the major slam here in Toronto has become more like his description. It's probably because there is an influx of new people into the scene who have the idea it's nothing more than an a cappella rap off. I'm not putting down everyone who wants to rap their poetry. I thought a few of the more rap style poets (Relevant, in particular) were very good. But just rapping off the same cliches over and over gets tiresome after awhile. There's been a lack of originality in recent months.

Don't get me wrong. I'll continue to attend slams and support the scene. I'm not griping that I didn't make it to the second round last night. This isn't a case of sour grapes. I just feel the shows are starting to become stale. Last night some of the old guard I was hoping to see were eliminated before the show (eliminated by the draw), which was disappointing, though it's good to know nothing is fixed in the slam.

Interesting thing on Facebook

So I got one of those Facebook page suggestions that was actually intriguing. A kid in Franklin, Tennessee whose Facebook name is Jackson S., ended up with a demo from a band called Oceanship. His dad works in the record industry and was away and he and his mom listened to the demo. He decided to make it his science project. He would see how successful he could be to make a Facebook page increase the popularity of one unknown band. I wrote I found the band unoriginal and repetitive (think of Coldplay, who I'm not a fan of, playing virtually the same song over and over. I know, most Coldplay music sounds the same. But think of Coldplay if they were even more repetitive). Nonetheless, it's a very good idea for a science project. Check it out here.

I saw Sachiko Murakami read at the Art Bar tonight. I thought her book, Invisibility Exhibit was the best poetry book of 2008. I told her afterward what a fan I was of her. I'd love to have her at Rochdale Rhymes and Readings now that she lives in Toronto.

Indigo Sucks for Poetry

So I was at the Indigo in the Manulife Centre today. I was looking in the poetry section, which is small and not so organized to begin with. I could not find Sachiko Murakami's The Invisibility Exhibit. I could find absolutely nothing by Naomi Shihab Nye, whose work I'm fond of. I did purchase Souvankham Thammavongsa's Found from 2007, a book I've flipped through many times but have not owned until now. But I find it sad that at a major two-storey bookstore, poetry is so disregarded.

My take on the Governor General Awards poetry controversy

A lot has been made about Jacob Scheier winning the Governor General's Literary Award for best Canadian poetry book of 2008 with More to Keep Us Warm.

I do have issues with Di Brandt being a judge in a situation where she'd been of assistance to Scheier's fabulous book. It doesn't matter how objective Brandt is. I have no idea as to the influence she had on the jury. I can give her the benefit of the doubt, but in this situation, the doubt is there. This is a conflict of interest. We'll never know, as outsiders of the jury, what influence is there.

First of all, this is Canada, a relatively small country. It is very rare an award-eligible writer would have absolutely no connection with a very good writer who's seen as an eligible judge. We're talking about poetry, a small literary genre in a small country. Everybody in that scene eventually knows everybody.

I feel badly for Mr. Scheier. I feel people can make the arguments other poets were deserving, but shouldn't make the argument Scheier's More to Keep Us Warm was not deserving. (I'll qualify this and say I liked Sachiko Murakami's The Invisibility Exhibit the most.) It is a deserving book. I just wonder if people will dismiss him as an illegitimate winner. I feel bad as he is a first-time winner with his first book and this was supposed to be one of the greatest moments in his life, and it's racked by controversy. One of two things will happen. The expectations will be so much for his next book and he'll get the sophomore jinx or he, with his so-called "illegitimate victory," will be motivated to blow all away with his next book, proving the controversy a blessing in disguise. I'm hoping for the latter as he does not deserve the controversy surrounding this, for he is a fantastic writer.