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1. At Huffington Post, an excellent interview with Cal Morgan on Harper Perennial’s place in the current state of fiction.

2. Fence has brought back their In Rainbows style pay-what-you-want subscription drive. From $1 up to whatever, you can get Fence in your home for a year. Just in time, too, for their new issue, featuring work by Anselm Berrigan, Evan Lavender-Smith, James Wagner, Allyssa Wolf, Anna Moschovakis, Elizabeth Fodaski, Thomas Doran, Debbie Yee, Rodrigo Toscano, Christina Yu, Michael Robbins, Lee Ann Brown, Heather Christle, Carl Phillips, Sandra Doller, Tomaz Salamun, Steven Alvarez, Timothy Donnelly, Jack Boetcher, Ben Greenman, Rebekah Rutkoff, Angela Ashman, Rebecca Schiff, Aurelie Sheehan, Wayne Koestenbaum, Greta Byrum, with beautiful art by Dawn Clements.

3. New issue of Rabbit Light Movies, including 29 new video readings of 31 new poets. Here’s a sample, of the radical Eula Biss:

Roundup / 21 Comments
June 1st, 2010 / 12:52 pm
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Some technical difficulties caused posts and comments to be jacked up during the weekend. They are fixed. Thanks for your patience.

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Things & Stuff

There’s a deep and abiding chasm, I think, between materialism and consumerism. It has to do with the how and the why. And also, with shame. I have a fierce attachment to my things, and I’m frequently consumed by a desire for more things. I have walked into shops and trembled. I consider myself a materialist. I am also a consumer, vulnerable to marketing tactics, but when I give in to them, I feel embarrassed. There are certain objects that mean a lot to me, but probably wouldn’t mean much to anyone else. These objects are reifications of my experience, evidence that I exist: how would I or anyone know that I went to the bazaar, figuratively speaking, if I didn’t bring back the miniature tin kettle and cup and saucer, figuratively speaking, to prove it?

I like knowing that Walter Benjamin collected so many books, but didn’t read many of them. The collecting is greater than the book.

Random / 2 Comments
June 1st, 2010 / 11:47 am

These Days I Just Want To Do Something That Makes Me Feel Something: An Interview with Sasha Fletcher

To celebrate the official release of Sasha’s exciting new book, WHEN ALL OUR DAYS ARE NUMBERED MARCHING BANDS WILL FILL THE STREETS & WE WILL NOT HEAR THEM BECAUSE WE WILL BE UPSTAIRS IN THE CLOUDS (Mud Luscious Press), he and I chewed the old question/answer…but first: publisher J.A. Tyler has graciously offered to give away a free copy of the book to whomever leaves the most interesting comment in the comment box below…

HIGGS: I wonder if you’d begin by describing your process. To me, this book seems meticulously constructed: the way certain images and themes repeat and resonate, build upon each other and then collapse or disappear or mutate, the way the final passage almost seems to encapsulate all of those images and themes. Did this book come to you as an idea first or were you just thinking on paper as you went along? Did it take years or days? Did you compose it from opening to closing or did you compose it in sections and then arrange them?

FLETCHER: The book came out of several things.

READ MORE >

Author Spotlight / 40 Comments
June 1st, 2010 / 11:39 am

What you’re doing tonight if you’re where I’m not

I’m jealous of all you New Yorkers who have the chance to hear the dazzling Josh Cohen read from WITZ tonight at the National Arts Club. 8pm. Go. Enjoy. Revel.

Events / 6 Comments
June 1st, 2010 / 9:41 am

Ok Death, that’s enough now

Louise Bourgeois, RIP, 1911-2010

Massive People / 8 Comments
May 31st, 2010 / 11:04 pm
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If you’re writing an email to a magazine inquiring as to the status of your submission, the answer is they ain’t gotten to it yet.

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The 20 Under 40 Pick ‘Em Contest is now closed due to The New Yorker‘s putting the June 7th issue online for subscribers. I’m closing it one day early to make sure we’re fair to those who submitted entries a while ago, just in case the list is included in that pay-walled content. When I can finally see a copy of the list, I’ll go through the entries and post the winner’s as soon as possible. Thanks for playing. Also, Lily’s post below reminded me to add to the prizes one tiny, unused Moleskine. UPDATE: Mike Young tells me the list isn’t actually out yet (he checked the issue online), so I’ll leave it open until the original deadline, 11:59pm tomorrow. Sorry for the confusion.

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David Rylance wrote a massive and gorgeous essay about Blake Butler’s writing.

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HAVE YOU SEEN BEGOTTEN?

I think you might like it.  Here’s the trailer.

Since the DVD of Elias Merhige’s amazing film is kind of rare now, I believe, you can watch the whole film here.  If you’re feeling like being altered now.  Happy Memorial Day.

Film / 14 Comments
May 31st, 2010 / 9:56 am