Ocelopotamus

I’ve been meaning to mention for ages now that I have a poem in the latest issue of the Chicago poetry journal After Hours … and I’ll be reading it in public this Friday night.

I’ve always been really bad about actually submitting my poems for publication — I always think, here I am fussing around preparing submissions when I could be writing more poems. (And of course, getting poems published in magazines requires a lot of tenacity and perseverance even for poets who already have extensive publication credits, or so I was once told by a certain then-future poet laureate of the Land of Lincoln.)

So … this is actually the first time I’ve had a poem published in a literary journal through a formal submission process. Big milestone for me! Pat me on the head.

My poem is called “We Are Always What We Are Not,” and is the title piece for a group of poems (maybe a chapbook, eventually) that I’ve been working on for a couple of years now.

The Winter 2008 issue (#16) of After Hours is available by mail order … you can order a single copy for $8 or subscribe for $14 (which gets you both issues for the year and saves you $2, Scrooge McDuck). Ordering info is on the Subscribe page at the After Hours site.

Also, I personally have seen it on the stands at Women & Children First Books here in Andersonville, so if you’re in the hood, you can pick up a copy next time you’re in there.

Even better, you can hear me read this particular poem at the After Hours reading this Friday night, May 2nd, at the DvA Gallery. I, Dave Awl, will be featured along with several other contributors to the issue:

Daniel Godston
Bronmin Shumway
Mary Blinn

I’ve performed with Daniel Godston at Molly Malone’s, so I can attest to the fact that he in particular rocks (he punctuated his poetry reading with some expert trumpet playing that night!) and I’m looking forward to reading with him again.

The evening is part of DvA’s first Friday of the month poetry series, hosted by Charlie Newman.

Here are all the specs:

After Hours reading, First Friday series
Friday, May 2, 2008
8 – 9:30 pm
DvA Gallery
2568 N. Lincoln, Chicago

Oh, and it’s free, you cheapskate.