I've Got to Stop Making Fun of My Book

Friday night's reading was really nice. I was reluctant to go at first (at one point, I asked Paul Guest to fly down to New York, dress up like me, and do my reading!). I don't know why I didn't want to read. Maybe all this time cooped up in my house writing has turned me into a major hermit. Maybe I thought no one would come.

When I got there, all that disappeared. Glenn Raucher (who runs the series at the West Side Y) greeted me warmly. The reading room was beautiful. It was the George Washington Lounge, a pristine, dark wooded room with an etching of good old George in the center. Glenn had set up a little altar on the desk where the readers sit and read. There was a vase of red flowers (don’t know what kind – I’m always ignorant about flowers), some candles, and a cute little goat statue. Glenn said the goat was to remind nervous readers to have a sense of humor about the whole thing.

Lots of friends came, including some special surprises. Sheila and Julie, both hard-working mothers of one-year-olds, had made their husbands babysit, and came bright and early. Dennis Paoli, the head of the Writing Center at Hunter College, and a prolific horror movie screen writer (check him out on the IMDB), also showed up. Lauri Shaw, an old high school friend of mine and Danny’s, was probably the biggest surprise. She was in New York from L.A. for the weekend, and took out time to see me read!

I met Matt Thorburn too. He’s a sweetheart: quiet, smart, and kindhearted. He’s taken, in care you’re wondering. I also met his darling fiancé.

At first, the idea of reading at a desk seemed strange to me, but in the end, it created a more relaxed, at-home feel. I could spread out all stuff and get comfortable. And maybe it was the whole sitting down thing, but I felt more chatty than usual. I felt like talking about the poems, the process, giving little set-ups for them. I was being a little silly too. It helped, I think: people laughed more at the funny parts, sighed at the “moving” parts. Danny gave me one note, which I agree with: I’ve got to stop dissing Epicenter! I told everyone it was the one-year anniversary of Epicenter’s release, and I was bored to tears with it, so I’d only read 4 poems from it. That would have been OK, except for the fact that I made fun of at least 5 more times. And meanwhile, it was the book for sale after the reading!

Matt was great! He had the audience cracking up. And his new poems are gorgeous. I think being in love is doing wonders for his writing! Book #2 is going to rock, and I’m sure it will get published before he knows it.

Wow! This is turning out to be a really long entry. I’m going to shut up now. The bottom line is that it was a very special night, and I pulled it off without having to pay for Paul to fly to New York and dress in drag, although I'm not against that as an option for the future.