July 13th, 2010 / 4:42 pm
 Events

How To Make Your Next Reading More Interesting (Even If Your Work Really Isn’t)

1) Wear a mask. We all do. There is nothing to hide but hide itself.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lQsZ4BVZGs&feature=related

2) Get yourself a posse. They will give you the self-confidence you need to howl.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXx5K6gfQBw

3) Stand between two plants. Sip water. Indirectly tell a roomful of Prairie Home Companion fans how awful it is to be rich and famous. They will laugh. At almost everything. And for a moment, they will be rich and famous too.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDbesQQi9yc

4) No pussyfooting. Get vertical.

Now get out there and chase that damn dragon! There’s one in my garage too.

27 Comments

  1. July 13th, 2010 / 5:10 pm Sean—

      The laughs in the Collins readings are the centrifuged essence of douche bag. Jesus.

      That reading needed a rowdy drunk and a foam bat and a bullshit detector.

  2. July 13th, 2010 / 5:41 pm jon—

      every tony hoagland reading i’ve been to has had the same problem. i was always pretty disinterested by him, but the last reading i saw made it dip a bit into straight dislike. poetry readings in general seem hella forced to me far too often. the weird structure and pacing of it.

  3. July 13th, 2010 / 9:10 pm Sean—

      The laughs in the Collins readings are the centrifuged essence of douche bag. Jesus.

      That reading needed a rowdy drunk and a foam bat and a bullshit detector.

  4. July 13th, 2010 / 9:41 pm jon—

      every tony hoagland reading i’ve been to has had the same problem. i was always pretty disinterested by him, but the last reading i saw made it dip a bit into straight dislike. poetry readings in general seem hella forced to me far too often. the weird structure and pacing of it.

  5. July 13th, 2010 / 11:55 pm joseph—

      Reynard it appears as though you’ve linked me to a serial killer…I appreciate the link regardless.

  6. July 13th, 2010 / 11:59 pm joseph—

      apologies to whoever that is if they see this, or to any serial murdering HTMLG commenters, I didn’t mean to sound derogative

  7. July 14th, 2010 / 1:38 am Tadd Adcox—

      I’m kinda in love with the lady in the first video. Just sayin.

  8. July 14th, 2010 / 3:13 am reynard—

      pickin up what you puttin down

      httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmexLJNKVXw

  9. July 14th, 2010 / 3:55 am joseph—

      Reynard it appears as though you’ve linked me to a serial killer…I appreciate the link regardless.

  10. July 14th, 2010 / 3:59 am joseph—

      apologies to whoever that is if they see this, or to any serial murdering HTMLG commenters, I didn’t mean to sound derogative

  11. July 14th, 2010 / 5:38 am Tadd Adcox—

      I’m kinda in love with the lady in the first video. Just sayin.

  12. July 14th, 2010 / 6:14 am J. Bradley—

      5. Practice. We can only trip and fall over your stuttering so much..

  13. July 14th, 2010 / 7:13 am reynard—

      pickin up what you puttin down

      httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmexLJNKVXw

  14. July 14th, 2010 / 7:48 am john carney—

      What about people who stutter every day of their lives? They presumably shouldn’t do any readings, eh?

  15. July 14th, 2010 / 7:51 am Steven Augustine—

      Billy Collins: the Nomosexual Laureate.

  16. July 14th, 2010 / 7:54 am Steven Augustine—

      You are either a master of the fine art of deadpan or

  17. July 14th, 2010 / 10:14 am J. Bradley—

      5. Practice. We can only trip and fall over your stuttering so much..

  18. July 14th, 2010 / 11:48 am john carney—

      What about people who stutter every day of their lives? They presumably shouldn’t do any readings, eh?

  19. July 14th, 2010 / 11:51 am Steven Augustine—

      Billy Collins: the Nomosexual Laureate.

  20. July 14th, 2010 / 11:54 am Steven Augustine—

      You are either a master of the fine art of deadpan or

  21. July 14th, 2010 / 4:24 pm Janey Smith—

      I wore a mask when I encountered you on the street yesterday.

  22. July 14th, 2010 / 8:24 pm Janey Smith—

      I wore a mask when I encountered you on the street yesterday.

  23. July 14th, 2010 / 8:40 pm reynard—

      question answered

  24. July 14th, 2010 / 9:27 pm mimi—
  25. July 15th, 2010 / 12:40 am reynard—

      question answered

  26. July 15th, 2010 / 1:27 am mimi—
  27. July 15th, 2010 / 5:16 pm This Week: Which Famous Writer Do You Write Like, One-Hit (Literary Wonders) & More | Lit Drift: Storytelling in the 21st Century—

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