Literary News presented by SmokeLong authors and staff
Thursday, July 03, 2008
A Review and CONTEST for A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness: Four Chapbooks by Four Women
A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness: Four Chapbooks by Four Women
Published by Rose Metal Press
A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness: Four Chapbooks by Four Women is a triumph for flash fiction. This is not your typical anthology, with one story per author. While those are good too, A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness provides a richer experience. Each author--Amy Clark, Elizabeth Ellen, Kathy Fish, and Claudia Smith--explode onto the page with an entire album of flashes. And as with any album, you'll discover a favorite "song," you'll learn the versatility of the artist--their range. You'll play the album again and again and learn the order of the songs, memorize the lyrics.
Each artist in A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness has a different voice, a distinct style. The book starts out with Kathy Fish's chapbook "Laughter, Applause, Laughter, Music, Applause." It's a wise choice for the lead. Kathy's flash is concise, surprising, and she has a gift for using words that will amaze you. Amy Clark's chapbook, "Waiting," follows. Amy takes more time with her work--her flashes tend to be longer, the timeframe more drawn out. Speaking of time, Amy likes to play with the concept. Many of her stories switch between the past, present, and future tense, which makes for an interesting read. Next up is Elizabeth Ellen with "Sixteen Miles Outside of Phoenix." Elizabeth's work is intimate. She gets right in there and gives you what she's got. Many of her stories focus on relationships and that tumultuous concept called love. Claudia Smith, the winner of Rose Metal Press' first annual chapbook contest, anchors the team with "The Sky is a Well." Claudia has a knack for nailing titles, and her writing is exceptionally eloquent. Like Kathy Fish, childhood is a common theme in her work, and often, her stories illustrate how the world can be a dangerous place for girls.
If you're a fan of flash fiction, A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness is a must-have. But if you're a fan, you already know this. You already know what it feels like to hold such a precious item in your hands. And you know that opening the cover for the first time is akin to that flutter you get during a hot kiss. If you're new to flash, this collection is a great introduction to the form. The stories within are engaging, thought-provoking, strong. They will force you to pay attention, to look closely, and deeply, at the subtleties of life. Like music with metaphor, the stories will demand you listen.
Interested? You can order A Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness here, or, you can try and win a copy by entering the "My Own Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness Contest." Details are as follows...
WIN A COPY OF A PECULIAR FEELING OF RESTLESSNESS
In the comments section of this post, share your own "Peculiar Feeling of Restlessness." Be creative. You can write fiction, non-fiction, poetry, lyrics, etc., and interpret the theme widely. The ONE RULE is your entry must not be longer than ONE LINE. And please don't be clever and write three pages without any punctuation. One line, with a reasonable word count.
Deadline: Friday, July 11th
Judge: Kathy Fish
Winner Announced: Monday, July 14th
Labels: Amy L. Clark, Claudia Smith, Elizabeth Ellen, Kathy Fish, reviews
posted by Kelly Spitzer at 7:40 AM 9 comments
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Top Ten Page Views for May 2008
Almond moves back on top again, and I'm sure that's due at least in part to Microsoft's pervy search engine results, but whatever. Lots of stuff from the anniversary issue appears here as well, and it was a huge traffic month: over 90,000 page views, our highest-traffic month ever. Can't complain about that!1. (2) Pornography by Steve Almond (6/15/05)
2. (5) Ten Very Short Stories by John Leary (3/15/07)
3. (NR) The Folk Singer Dreams of Time Machines by Matt Bell (6/15/08)
4. Disease Relics by Blake Butler (6/15/08)
5. (NR) Paper Mouse by Bob Arter (6/15/08)
6. (NR) The Bone Orchard by Randall Brown (6/15/08)
7. (NR) We Decided to Make Porn by Brian Allen Carr (6/15/08)
8. (NR) Ethnic Lego Girls Carry Spears by Heidi W. Durrow (9/15/07)
9. (1) The Cockroach by David Barringer (3/15/08)
10. (NR) Memento Mori by Rosanne Grifeth (6/15/08)
One thing I really notice about the top ten is that a number of these pieces were highlighted in various blogs recently: Matt Bell's piece was featured by Dan Wickett here, Dogzplot here, and in Matt's own blog here (along with links to every other story in the issue); Matt and Blake Butler were featured by Josh Maday here; Blake is also featured by Keyhole Magazine here (as are Rosanne Griffeth and Shellie Zacharia), and in his own blog here; Randall Brown's piece appears on his blog here; and Rosanne, in addition to the Keyhole feature, is featured by The Angler here, Carolina On My Mind (the blog of the artist who illustrated the story) here, Dew on the Kudzu here, and in her own blog here.
Labels: Blake Butler, Bob Arter, Brian Allen Carr, David Barringer, Heidi W. Durrow, John Leary, Matt Bell, Randall Brown, Rosanne Griffeth, Steve Almond, Top Ten
posted by Dave Clapper at 2:34 PM 1 comments
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
In Profile: Thomas White
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing SmokeLong's own Thomas White for the Writer Profile Project. Read what he has to say about the journal, his latest passion, his taste in books, his bed and breakfast, and more. Plus, find out who the cute pup is in this picture. Click here.
posted by Kelly Spitzer at 9:00 AM 0 comments
Monday, June 16, 2008
stats for issue 20
Here are the stats for issue twenty:
 | Issue Twenty (live from 3/15/08-6/14/08) 3/15-3/31: 45649 page views 4/1-4/30: 78549 page views 5/1-5/31: 83898 page views 6/1-6/14: 36151 page views Total Issue 20: 244247 page views |
Wow. That's crazy how level that is. (Issue 19 had 244134 page views.) A whopping 0.05% increase in page views over the last issue. I'll be fascinated to see what the numbers look like come September—I'd normally expect a double issue like this to generate a lot more traffic, but our numbers have traditionally taken a dip during the summer, so... it'll be interesting.
Labels: issue 20, issue stats, SmokeLong Quarterly
posted by Dave Clapper at 10:07 AM 0 comments
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Happy birthday to us!
Today, we celebrate our 5th birthday with a special double issue. Included in this issue:
Issue Twenty-One (June 15, 2008): Paper Mouse by Bob Arter «» The Folk Singer Dreams of Time Machines by Matt Bell «» The Bone Orchard by Randall Brown «» Disease Relics by Blake Butler «» We Decided to Make Porn by Brian Allen Carr «» The Baby Drop-Off by Natascia Casey-Dean «» The Cougar by Dave Clapper «» Anointed by Myfanwy Collins «» Sister Earth by John Colvin «» Soap by Katrina Denza «» The Interpretation of Light by Murray Dunlap «» The Hole by Ashley Farmer «» Repair Man by Kathy Fish «» In the Kitchen She Wakes by Stefanie Freele «» American Gothic by Scott Garson «» Lobster Girl by Alicia Gifford «» Pen and Notebook by Natalie Goldberg «» Memento Mori by Rosanne Griffeth «» BiC by Steven Gullion «» Parting by Evelyn Hampton «» Tuesday by Lindsay Hunter «» Waiting on Lombard Street by W.P. Kinsella «» Johnny by Nance Knauer «» Like Swimming by Jeff Landon «» Feeling Sad by Darby Larson «» Alone With Cooper by Ellen Meister «» The Angel's Visitation by Corey Mesler «» South Dakota by Mary Miller «» California Fruit by Meg Pokrass «» Home Made by Bruce Holland Rogers «» Handful of Dirt by Jim Ruland «» Steam City Girl by Paul Silverman «» Sugar by Claudia Smith «» The 13th Toast by Amy Sparks «» Gathering by Kelly Spitzer «» Tiny Shadows by Maryanne Stahl «» Double-Exposure by Thomas White «» Epistemology by Joseph Young «» Why This Isn't a Good Story to Tell by Shellie Zacharia «» Liquid by Michelle Zellers «» Real Estate by Bonnie ZoBell «» Interviews: Bob Arter «» Matt Bell «» Randall Brown «» Blake Butler «» Brian Allen Carr «» Natascia Casey-Dean «» Dave Clapper «» Myfanwy Collins «» John Colvin «» Katrina Denza «» Murray Dunlap «» Ashley Farmer «» Kathy Fish «» Stefanie Freele «» Scott Garson «» Alicia Gifford «» Rosanne Griffeth «» Steven Gullion «» Evelyn Hampton «» Lindsay Hunter «» Nance Knauer «» Jeff Landon «» Darby Larson «» Ellen Meister «» Corey Mesler «» Mary Miller «» Meg Pokrass «» Bruce Holland Rogers «» Jim Ruland «» Paul Silverman «» Claudia Smith «» Amy Sparks «» Kelly Spitzer «» Maryanne Stahl «» Thomas White «» Joseph Young «» Shellie Zacharia «» Michelle Zellers «» Bonnie ZoBell «» Cover Art "Five Years of SmokeLong" compiled from art by Marty D. Ison, Robert Dornberg, Malina, and Rebecca Gullickson «» Letter From the Editor Labels: Issue 21, SmokeLong Quarterly
posted by Dave Clapper at 9:55 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
news and such
Huge congratulations to Mary Miller for her forthcoming collection Big World. I can't wait to read it.
This week on Five-Star Literary Stories Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's story Half A Yellow Sun is reviewed. This beautiful story originally appeared in Beverly Jackson's Ink Pot (where I was once an editor) and then later in Zoetrope.
Labels: Beverly Jackson, Mary Miller
posted by Myfanwy Collins at 6:16 AM 0 comments
Monday, June 02, 2008
Top Ten Page Views for May 2008
Well, Almond's "Pornography" is back on top again. I think I always sort of knew that at least part of its page views were coming from folks who weren't necessarily looking for a good story to read. Now that we have our referrers being tracked, it's become a little clearer that that's the case. In looking at the top referrers for "Pornography," seven of the top ten referrers are searches for "Porno" on various different Microsoft search enginges. Ah, well. I hope that a few of them get over their disappointment at not finding pud-pulling material long enough to give it a read. It's a hell of a story.1. (2) Pornography by Steve Almond (6/15/05)
2. (1) The Cockroach by David Barringer (3/15/08)
3. (5) Ten Very Short Stories by John Leary (3/15/07)
4. (4) Trestle by Matt Briggs (3/15/08)
5. (6) Scrape by Utahna Faith (3/15/08)
6. (3) Worried & Wondering by Aaron Burch (3/15/08)
7. (7) We by Patricia Parkinson (3/15/08)
8. (8) Dead Dog Rising by Kate Hill Cantrill (3/15/08)
9. (NR) The Last Stop by Jenny Halper (3/15/08)
10. (9) Last Fall by Katherine Grosjean (3/15/08)
Expect a shake-up next month, as our birthday issue goes live in a hair under two weeks, so there'll be lots of new content to read.
Labels: Aaron Burch, David Barringer, Jenny Halper, John Leary, Kate Hill Cantrill, Katherine Grosjean, Matt Briggs, Patricia Parkinson, SmokeLong Quarterly, Steve Almond, Top Ten, Utahna Faith
posted by Dave Clapper at 11:47 AM 0 comments
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