It's hot!!!!

Last night's Big Tent Reading at the Raven in Lawrence was a lovely event. About 35 people attended--a very receptive audience. Sold three books. The woman who introduced me found out about my cookbook just before and told everyone it was easy to find poets but a good cookbook author was hard to find.

One woman drove up from Topeka to Lawrence because my former cousin-in-law had recommended to her that she come. She and Mary Lou are involved in a girls' mentoring project together, and Mary Lou knew that she wrote poetry. I think we'll have a new member of the Latino Writers Collective in Topeka now.

We're in a heat advisory again. It's too early for this. We don't usually get this kind of heat until after the 4th of July. When we have to go outside, we throw ourselves into it, panting like dogs. Thank heavens for the person who invented air conditioning!

Going to hear Robert Olen Butler read tonight. That's certainly something to look forward to.

Stay cool wherever you are!

Exciting Links--At Least for Me

First of all, tomorrow Garrison Keillor reads my poem, "The Sun Grows in Your Smile," on the Writers Almanac, then on June 27, he reads "Meditation on the Word NEED." Both poems are from Heart's Migration. Here's a sneak preview of tomorrow's. And here's a sneak preview of June 27th.

Next, here's the lovely post Francisco Aragon wrote on Letras Latinas today. Francisco is a consummate encourager and supporter of writers. At the AWP earlier this year, I watched as he introduced people to each other, helped them make crucial connections, opened doors for them, made opportunities available to them--constantly! And I never saw him look as mischievously happy as when he had been able to do something kind for another writer. The world needs more Franciscos--that's for sure!

Finally, my dear friend, Denise Low-Weso, who will be relinquishing the mantle of poet laureate for Kansas to Carryn-Miriam Goldberg on July 1, sent around her final official Ad Astra broadside, and this one was about me. The Lawrence Journal-World and several other papers picked it up and ran it as an article. Denise has been a superlative poet laureate who's worked overtime to bring poetry into the everyday lives of Kansans and to showcase poets with Kansas roots. I'll be at the Lawrence Arts Center on July 1 to cheer her out and cheer Carryn in. And to read for the launch of a new anthology in which I have a long poem.

I also received the manuscripts for my Macondo workshop with Ruth Behar and Marjorie Agosin. Wonderful work by a fascinating group of writers. Of course, I'm so excited to be going to study with Behar and Agostin. I'm absolutely looking forward to Macondo!

What a lovely day! Hope yours has been just as fine.

Catching Up

Boy, have I been a neglectful blogger! I've been in and out of town and overwhelmed with work and stuff when here. So I need to catch up.

I was shocked, surprised, and thrilled to receive the 2009 Elvira Cordero Cisneros Award from the Macondo Foundation for excellence in writing and nurturing the creativity of others. I will be using the money on a spiritual retreat that I hope will help me finish the book of poetry I'm working on. This award meant that I also was accepted to the Macondo Workshop, and I am so looking forward to that at the end of July! Got my plane tickets and everything. Even joined Facebook so I could get updates, etc. My son was happy that someone had finally dragged me into the 21st century.

Another lovely surprise occurred when I was contacted by my best friend from high school, Jerri Kundiger Garretson. We hadn't heard from each other in over 40 years, but when I was in the final two years of high school, I spent as much or more time at Jerri's house as at my own and her mother was an early role model for me. Our high school class is having a reunion, and by a series of oddities, I'm back in contact and will be attending for the first time. After group emails went out, Jerri emailed me and we spent a lot of one night staying up late, catching each other up on what had gone on in our lives. It turns out she is a writer also and has her own small press, too. And as a final irony, my oldest son Niles just accepted a job near where she lives in Florida. So the chance that we'll get to meet again (even though she can't come to this reunion) is good.

My book launch for Heart's Migration was on May 29 at The Writers Place. Jason Biggers, one of my hermanos from the Latino Writers Collective, played lovely music for it. About 90 people showed up to make a wonderfully receptive audience, and we shoved good energy back and forth to each other, building it all night. And they bought books! Sold 40 that night. It was a terrific evening.

That same day, we had just found out that our first anthology, Primera Pagina: Poetry From the Latino Heartland, had taken 2nd place in the International Latino Book Awards, right after Juan Felipe Herrera's National Book Award-winning title. So Ben brought champagne to toast the Latino Writers Collective's success, as well as my book.

My most recent trip out of town was to Iowa City for the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses Midwest Book Fair at the University of Iowa. This meant we got to spend time with Joseph, my youngest son (with whom we stayed). The Book Fair was wonderful. Sold books, made connections with lots of people and organizations, even found a new LWC member. If they have it there again next year, we'll definitely go. We had dinner with Stephanie, one of Joseph's friends (with whom he's going to London later this summer), and we made our usual trip to Kalona, a small town near Iowa City that's predominantly Amish and Mennonite. We're addicted to the cinnamon rolls of the Kalona Bakery, and we bought handmade presents at a wonderful crafts store.

I came back to tons of emails, as usual, even though I try to use an out-of-office message when I can't check email daily. While wading through the junk and demands and messages I really wanted, I found a message from the permissions person for The Writers Almanac, saying Garrison Keillor wanted to read two of my poems on the show--"The Sun Grows in Your Smile," June 23, and "Mediation on the Word NEED," June 27. I was almost as speechless for a minute as when I got the phone call from Olivia Doerges, the sweet-voiced director of the Macondo Foundation, to tell me about the Elvira Cordero Cisneros Award. I need to find a better response to recognition than just going dumb!

I'm reading briefly from Heart's Migration this Friday at the Lenexa City Hall for Latino Arts Bravissimo! (where my books and the Collective's books have been on display) at 7:30 pm. Then, on Thursday, June 25, I will be reading at The Raven Bookstore in Lawrence for the Big Tent Reading Series with Peter Wright at 7:00 pm. On July 1, I will be reading at the Lawrence Arts Center in Lawrence for the launch of Imagination and Place: An Anthology and the turnover of Kansas poet laureates (from Denise Low-Weso to Carryn-Miriam Goldberg). Come and join me at any or all of these times and places! Should be a lot of fun.

I'm knitting a special shawl on commission, untangling some incredible grant convolutions, writing a new grant, researching an essay for a book on High Plains poets, writing (or should be) several reviews, writing analyses of a novel and two short stories for clients, trying to dig my house out from under its load of chaos, working on book promotion, and--when I can steal a moment--reading the correspondence between Denise Levertov and Robert Duncan (a wonderful Mother's Day gift from my youngest).

My peonies and irises are gone. The roses are almost spent. Missouri primrose, elder, dahlias, zinnias, lilies, daylilies, sage, and petunias are blooming away. I saw a woodpecker and a flicker the other day among our usual flocks of birds. Saw lots of lovely herons on the drive from Iowa. And thus spring moves into summer here in Kansas City.

Tercera Pagina, Latino Writers Collective Reading Series, Ends With Fiction Anthology Launch

Xanath Caraza reads one of her mystical stories.

Natalie Castro Olmsted reads a story about growing up Mexican-American in Wichita, KS.

Jason Biggers reads poetry about the Juarez murders and the death of teenaged friends.

Juanita Salazar Lamb, husband Bill, Sofiana Olivera, husband Tim

The new Latino Writers Collective fiction anthology,
Cuentos del Centro: Stories From the Latino Heartland

It was a dark and stormy night--well, actually it was. Monsoonlike torrents of rain, heavy thunder and lightning, and tornado watches and warnings. Still, we finished our third annual Latino Writers Collective reading series, Tercera Pagina, on a high note, celebrating with advanced copies of our new fiction anthology, Cuentos del Centro: Stories From the Latino Heartland. Two of our long-distance members who appear in the anthology, Juanita Salazar Lamb from Houston and Natalie Castro Olmsted from Wichita, drove up to Kansas City to read at the event. Some of our audience members came from as far away as southern Colorado. In spite of the dangerous weather, over fifty people turned out to celebrate the end of our most successful series ever and the birth of our second book. And the news, received just before the reading began, that LWC had achieved our official federal 501(c)3 status finally.

So, while the sky turned black, lit by strobelights of lightning, and the wind roared around the old stone castle of The Writers Place, we partied. Dramatic and funny readings, good wine, lots of delicious nibbles, a fascinating mix of people, and the first copies of our gorgeous new books.

This series was our biggest-to-date, and right after it began, we had grant funding pulled due to the economic crisis. We decided we'd make it work anyway. Calamities like this kept striking at each individual event in the series also, yet each event was more successful than the other successful ones we've had in past years. No one has any fingernails left, but we've got big smiles. Almost 1500 people turned out for various events in the series this year. And this was the year we brought the wonderful Sandra Cisneros to Kansas City.

Also to be celebrated is the fact that our first anthology (poetry), launched at the end of last year's series, has been named a finalist for three national book awards, coming in second in one (the 2009 Eric Hoffer Book Award in Poetry), and we're still waiting to hear results from several others. So the new baby on the block has a lot to live up to, but we think it will surpass its older sibling.

So, with our diehard fans who braved the elements for us, we had a terrific fiesta, and all the good times drove the storm away. We all left the building late to find clear night skies outside. One last little grito of joy here.

More recognition for the Latino Writers Collective

Just found out that the Latino Writers Collective's poetry anthology, Primera Pagina: Poetry From the Latino Heartland, came in second in the poetry category for the Eric Hoffer Book Award. They had over 1,000 entries, so we're celebrating tonight.

Add that to finalist for the USA Book News Book Award and finalist for the ForeWord Magazine Book Awards (won't know if we won or not until BookExpo America), and we're on a roll!

Report on Sandra Cisneros' Visit to Kansas City

Gabriela N. Lemmons introduces Sandra Cisneros Thursday, April 16.

Sandra Cisneros holds up photo of herself when she first wrote The House on Mango Street.

I'm late getting up any coverage of Sandra Cisneros' visit to Kansas City. Mainly, it's because of a continuing overload of work and deadlines. But I don't want to let too much time go by without scribbling a few lines about what was a phenomenal experience, both for me and for the Latino Writers Collective. And for that matter, for Kansas City!

Kansas City loves Sandra. There's no doubt about that. Over 800 people turned out at the Central Library (a huge refurbished bank with marble halls and wood paneled offices) to hear Sandra talk about the books she's currently working on and read from the new preface to the 25th anniversary edition of The House on Mango Street, as well as a wonderful excerpt from a new book talking about the pivotal role libraries played in her life and success.

Sandra Cisneros shows audience photo of her late parents.

Later during the long, stimulating question and answer session, the dialogue ranged from the need to write down the stories of the people we love or someone else will write them without knowing the truth to how to balance one's desire for creative success and one's need to serve the community to "female agency." ("Do you mean feminism?" Sandra asked as the audience roared in approval. "Well, yes, I'm a feminist.")


After the standing ovation that she had truly earned, she sat for hours and signed books, giving so generously of herself when she was very tired. Every person who came through the line that snaked around the entire interior of the library to the entrance, got to talk to her as long as s/he wanted, was allowed to hug her and have a photo taken with her. And she gave the same consideration to the ones carrying their old books as to the ones with the new edition just purchased at the table run by Rainy Day Books--and just as much to the young people carrying no books and asking her to sign their flyers of the event. I have seen and brought in a lot of writers and speakers, some very famous, and I have never known anyone to give so much of herself to her audience and fans.





The next day was the same as she spoke to over 200 high school students at the Plaza Library and then spoke to each individually as they lined up as everyone had the night before, even though there were no books for sale. I watched those kids, many of whom had come in with sullen faces or trying to look blasé and cool, walk away starry-eyed and full of ambition and hope.



Later that evening, she spoke and read in Spanish to new immigrants on Southwest Boulevard, giving a dramatic performance from her novel, Caramelo. And again, she ended by speaking and listening to each of the 60-some attendees with exquisite focus and attention on every one of them.


It's no wonder that Kansas City loves Sandra Cisneros-- and wants her to come back. I've been receiving emails and phone calls ever since from people wanting to know when she will appear again. Word is circulating quickly around the city about this remarkable visit. In talking with the Library folks, who also want a return visit, we decided that next time we'd have to get an even bigger venue just to hold all the people who will show up for la Sandra.

Also, as the Latino Writers Collective has learned, Sandra is a true mentor of writers. She has given much encouragement (read: a real push) to members to apply to the Macondo Workshop. She has said she will help us bring in other great Latino writers. She has shown real interest in our work in the community and in our books.

Phenomenal visit, phenomenal writer, phenomenal speaker, phenomenal woman. One of a kind.

(Photos copyrighted and courtesy of Oscar Pedroza.)

New Chapbook From Cherry Pie Press, Pale Leaf Floating By

http://cherrypiepress.blogspot.com/2009/04/new-chapbook-pale-leaf-floating-by-gaye.html