This past summer was one of my busiest in years. I was at Bookapalooza in Haliburton Highlands and had a great time. Small book fairs like this are great opportunities to chat with people face to face. And talk about my favourite thing—books. Linwood Barclay was the featured speaker.
LATEST NEWS: But now fall is here and it’s been busy. In case you missed it… my poetry book, The Weeping Degree: How Astrology Saved Me From Suicide was published by Wild Rising Press, Colorado this summer. The book launch party was at The Staircase, Hamilton, September 21, 2024 and we had standing room only. I was more than thrilled. Thank you so much again, those of you who came out. I so appreciate it. The Staircase staff were amazing, and they even put my name in lights! There are so many things competing for your time nowadays, but for writers a book launch is something years in the making, and an opportunity to see friends, family and readers face to face, something we so rarely do in these Netflix days. I was thrilled to be supported by some of the members of my writers’ group, the WWRITERS: Women Writers Recklessly in Transit. Once again, the launch was a communal effort. Janet Turpin Myers, a wonderful comic novelist and author of The Last Year of Confusion, was a brilliant MC who set just the right tone. The interviewer was reviewer, blogger and local author, Ruth Edgett, who came up with some poignant and provocative questions.
I’ve been in full on marketing mode all summer, punctuated by moments of tech hell, (brought to you by Mercury Retrograde for those astrology enthusiasts) and I had to learn a lot of new skills, that I’m still learning. Good writers are now their own marketers; we may not like it, but that’s modern life. So, it has been a very busy time. Few moments for writing, but lots of sharing, posting, and talking about books.I felt a great sense of urgency about bringing out this book and I’m now glad that I listened to my intuition.
Historical sexual abuse cases continue to dominate the news. In the last week alone more has come out about, Sean Diddy Combs; then there’s the horrific rape case in France, the victim Gisele Pelicot was drugged and trafficked by her husband for years, but she is now emerging as a feminist hero. As disturbing as these stories are, that they are coming out is a sign of greater cultural healing and a profound global shift. Hundreds turned out in a rally against sexual violence in Paris, France with placards that read: “La honte change camp.”—the shame changes sides. Yes we are definitely in the #youtoo era.
I had several people disclose to me at my launch, and I was touched and honoured by their trust in me. Telling someone is often the first step toward empowerment. It’s important to remember that men get sexually abused as children too.
ART, BOOKS AND CULTURE: In terms of my own reading and watching, I’ve been listening to the podcast: Brave New Women hosted by the French therapist and interviewer, Cecilia Poullain, whose voice could melt butter. Wonderful stories of women doing interesting things. She is probably one of the most compassionate interviewers I’ve ever heard.
I’m bracing myself to start, Women in Blue about women police officers who are hired to solve a series of sexual crimes in a hyper misogynist 1970s Mexico. (I love anything about Mexico, having lived there while my mother was ill.)
As for books: I’m rereading, Dear Life by Alice Munro.
Yes, Alice Munro.
More of this anon.
EVENTS: On the agenda, I’m planning an online event mid-October roughly titled The Weeping Degree, Poet Kelly Watt in Conversation with Astrologer Michael Zizis. For those of you who couldn’t attend the Hamilton launch in person and are interested in some of the astrological themes in the book, such as-- where is trauma indicated in a chart, how does Pluto transform a person's life, etc., I will give a reading, followed by a conversation with Michael and Q and A.
November 3rd, I’ll be reading as part of a vernissage of fine art done by former students at Schiller College, Chateau de Pourtales, Strasbourg, France. February 6th, 2025, I will be the featured poet at the Poetry Mesa Poetry Reading Series at Café Murmullo in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. My wee book is about to go on a podcast tour, so I’ll be posting more listening events to follow.
As always, I believe reading and writing can be transformative. They advance consciousness and healing in the world.
Sadly HA&L: Hamilton Arts and Letters Magazine is closing. Once again, I’m grateful to Paul Lisson, who published my work when no one else would. Gracias, Paul. And in thanks to him, I will close with his generous cover blurb:
What do dead girls need in the afterlife? They need the poems of Kelly Watt so that the daffodils will return to run rampant over the ground with their crazy yellow hope.
--Paul Lisson, poet and editor of HA&L, Hamilton Arts & Letters Magazine.
Thank you for reading.
Commentaires