Its strange how something can turn out so completely different than how you thought it would. And how something you werent looking forward to can unexpectedly put a smile on your face.
Last week (June 6th 11th) was my forth year working for the West Chester University Poetry Conference: Exploring Form & Narrative. An event that has become the largest annual poetry conference in the United States, with people coming from all over the world including the U.K, Greece, and Russia. The biggest names in contemporary formal poetry converge on a small town to discuss, celebrate, and even argue about poetry in todays literary world. Every year the guest list is a virtual <I>whos who</I>: R.S. Gwynn, Dave Mason, Dana Gioia, A.E. Stallings, Diane Theil, Annie Finch, and many othersincluding one of my personal favorite emerging poets Chelsea Rathburn.
Now being a young formalist poetry myself the conference was usually something that I waited for all year long. However this year, as the date got closer the more I did not want to attend.
Why? Well, being that 90% of the 300 people in attendance are repeaters (including my fellow staff members who usually return year-after-year), I was not looking forward to people constantly asking me how my year went. Especially when the last year of my life has been a slow downward spiral to nothingness. I didnt think I could mentally handle the reminder of it all. Also, the fact that I was attending a poetry conference when I hadnt written a lick of verse in close to a year just added to the sour taste in my mouth those weeks leading up to the conference.
With that said, it shames me not a bit to tell you that I was struck by an extreme sadness while driving home on Sunday having concluded the conference. In more ways than one the conference found a way to uplift my spirits, and showed me there is still plenty of beauty in the world and reasons for me to smile.
Arriving at our first reception on Tuesday night, I instantly felt welcomed and left all those worries behind. At the first inquiry of my past year, I did my best to shrug it off saying <i>it wasnt the best</I>, and moved the conversation along. Actually for that week, all my problems disappeared. Even the current issues that were bothering me seemed to fade away, being surround by staff members and the family that has become the West Chester Poetry Conference. Respected writers, old friends and new friends, all combined to make my last week one of the best in recent memory.
Not only was the conference an emotional pick-me-up, but it was an intellectual one as well. Being only days removed from the conference, I have not yet reacquired my poetry hat, but I do feel a resurgence in my desire and need to write. This year I workshopped with Tim Steele who showed me ways to unlock the meter in my poems. Also, there were great panel discussions on female formal poets, and one on the controversial new form the Paradell (a discussion that became as controversial as the form itself).
Writing this and looking at the last week has caused a mini re-evaluation of my current life. And truthfully, as much as I complain, there are some beautiful things that have happened to me recently: the conference, my road trip, new super cool friends. As I said before there are reasons for me to smile. This is a wonderful chapter in what will one day be my autobiography.
Sincerely,
William Espinet III (aka Will Trinity, aka William the Bloody)
Last week (June 6th 11th) was my forth year working for the West Chester University Poetry Conference: Exploring Form & Narrative. An event that has become the largest annual poetry conference in the United States, with people coming from all over the world including the U.K, Greece, and Russia. The biggest names in contemporary formal poetry converge on a small town to discuss, celebrate, and even argue about poetry in todays literary world. Every year the guest list is a virtual <I>whos who</I>: R.S. Gwynn, Dave Mason, Dana Gioia, A.E. Stallings, Diane Theil, Annie Finch, and many othersincluding one of my personal favorite emerging poets Chelsea Rathburn.
Now being a young formalist poetry myself the conference was usually something that I waited for all year long. However this year, as the date got closer the more I did not want to attend.
Why? Well, being that 90% of the 300 people in attendance are repeaters (including my fellow staff members who usually return year-after-year), I was not looking forward to people constantly asking me how my year went. Especially when the last year of my life has been a slow downward spiral to nothingness. I didnt think I could mentally handle the reminder of it all. Also, the fact that I was attending a poetry conference when I hadnt written a lick of verse in close to a year just added to the sour taste in my mouth those weeks leading up to the conference.
With that said, it shames me not a bit to tell you that I was struck by an extreme sadness while driving home on Sunday having concluded the conference. In more ways than one the conference found a way to uplift my spirits, and showed me there is still plenty of beauty in the world and reasons for me to smile.
Arriving at our first reception on Tuesday night, I instantly felt welcomed and left all those worries behind. At the first inquiry of my past year, I did my best to shrug it off saying <i>it wasnt the best</I>, and moved the conversation along. Actually for that week, all my problems disappeared. Even the current issues that were bothering me seemed to fade away, being surround by staff members and the family that has become the West Chester Poetry Conference. Respected writers, old friends and new friends, all combined to make my last week one of the best in recent memory.
Not only was the conference an emotional pick-me-up, but it was an intellectual one as well. Being only days removed from the conference, I have not yet reacquired my poetry hat, but I do feel a resurgence in my desire and need to write. This year I workshopped with Tim Steele who showed me ways to unlock the meter in my poems. Also, there were great panel discussions on female formal poets, and one on the controversial new form the Paradell (a discussion that became as controversial as the form itself).
Writing this and looking at the last week has caused a mini re-evaluation of my current life. And truthfully, as much as I complain, there are some beautiful things that have happened to me recently: the conference, my road trip, new super cool friends. As I said before there are reasons for me to smile. This is a wonderful chapter in what will one day be my autobiography.
Sincerely,
William Espinet III (aka Will Trinity, aka William the Bloody)
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and thanks for the pledge to buy prints! i talked to tmronin and he's sending me the files soon, so i'll get a chance to make the prints soon after!