AUTHOR AUTEUR: A PHOTO SHOOT

Moi digs her latest publisher: Shearsman Books for upcoming SILK EGG: Collected Novels (2011). Only a publisher with wit, style and grace would allow traditional author photos not to be so ... traditional! To wit, they needed an author photo and I proposed, and they accepted, a performance-based shot based on Moi as Thetis rising from the sea (uh, as flowed through into Galatea's fountain) whispering to Achilles as he plays draughts with Ajax:



Okay, love 'em both. I also ended up whispering later in Ajax's ears:



The fountain of course is based on the brilliant Exekias' amphora of Achilles and Ajax at Draughts, Black Figure Ware Amphora, Greek, 540 BCE:



So what was I whispering? Not actually game advice -- just that I'm in with two poems "The Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon" and "Sacred Time" in OCHO 30 (love that segue, don't you?) published/edited by Didi Menendez. GO HERE for mine and stellar company provided by Bob Hicok, Nick Carbo, David Krump, Sam Rasnake, Favia Tamayo, Letitia Trent, Grace Cavalieri, Cheryl Townsend, Andrei Guruianu, Peggy Eldrige-Love and Christine Klocek-Lim!

What's also cool about this issue of OCHO 30 is the bio section where poets were asked to identify their favorite poet and why. My answer:

[My] favorite poet is Philip Lamantia whose faith and generosity [I] continuously strive to deserve.

I also like Letitia Trent's answer. Her favorite is Barbara Guest

"who knew that everything is strange if you look at it the right way."