My new chapbook, Awash, released today as part of Pure Sleeze Press' summer drop

My latest chapbook, Awash, dropped at 1 a.m. from Pure Sleeze Press, alongside chaps by John Dorsey, Jason Ryberg, Scott Laudati, and Tony Brewer! A very limited edition. Collect them all at

puresleezepress.bigcartel.com.

Poems in Awash:

Faithwalking
Darshan
Shaktipat
Bilateral Heart Moon Resolution
Aura
Beacon
Hunger
A Wait, A Final Fall
Deluge
Critical Condition
A Superior Stimulant
But for Now
Potential Energy
Selkie

ISBN: 979-8-88596-400-5. 

So much gratitude to Jonathan S Baker, K Arizona, and Antoine Ball of Pure Sleeze.

Maries County Advocate article about our recent reading in Belle, Missouri

So grateful to John Dorsey for sending me this article from the Maries County Advocate about our April reading at Barb's Books in Belle, Missouri.

Video of that reading is available for viewing here.

Video: Young, Chernin and Burroughs live in Belle, Missouri, hosted by John Dorsey at Barb's Books, 4/22/2023

If you missed our reading Saturday 22 April at Barb's Books in Belle, Missouri, here's video. Thanks so much to my co-features Scot D Young and Shelley Chernin, our host John Dorsey, and of course the Osage Arts Community. 

 

Scot begins reading around the 9 minute mark; Shelley, around the 32-minute mark; and yours truly, around the 57-minute mark. An open mic (featuring Agnes Vojta, Ray Swaney, and Steven Bridgens) follows.

 

I read the poems "Loveshot," "Slipping Backwards into Blue Eden," "From Genesis to Exodus," "Revolutionary Sentiments" (a cento comprised of phrases culled from James Baldwin's Another Country), "Faith Without Works Is Dead," "A Hierarchy of Needs," "Through a Glass Darkly," "Dog Day," and "Lens."

 

 

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes Pocatello Wildflower by John Dorsey

Crisis Chronicles Press is thrilled to announce the publication of our second title of the year, Pocatello Wildflower by John Dorsey. Pocatello Wildflower is a monumental sequence of around 350 original poems created by Dorsey through a process of erasure using selected works by undersung Idaho poets as source material. 

 

Pocatello Wildflower is c. 380 pages, 4.25" x 7", perfect bound paperback with cover art by Elena Samarsky.  Shipping on 14 February 2023. ISBN 979-8-88596-992-5. Available for $15 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA.

Select US or Elsewhere

In the U.S. $15.00 USD International $22.00 USD

 

John Dorsey lived for several years in Toledo, Ohio. He is the author of numerous collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw's Prayer (Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory, (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015) Being the Fire (Tangerine Press, 2016), Shoot the Messenger (Red Flag Poetry, 2017), Your Daughter's Country (Blue Horse Press, 2019), Which Way to the River: Selected Poems 2016-2020 (OAC Books, 2020), Afterlife Karaoke (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2021) and Sundown at the Redneck Carnival (Spartan Press, 2022). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the Stanley Hanks Memorial Poetry Prize. He was the winner of the 2019 Terri Award given out at the Poetry Rendezvous. You may reach him at archerevans@yahoo.com.

Six-Pack of Events Coming Up [Edit: Make that Seven]

Paying bills and tying up as many loose ends as possible today, then hitting the road tomorrow. Looking forward to a lot of great events in the next couple of weeks:

 

10/1-2: Western Maryland Independent Literature Festival in Frostburg, MD,

10/4: Poetry Night at Sitwell's in Cincinnati, OH,

10/6: I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing, Appalachian anthology reading in Hamilton, OH,

10/8: Uncloistered Poetry Live - October (John Dorsey book launch) in Toledo, OH,

10/8: Oktoberfest at Serendipitous Sound in Monroe, Michigan,

10/9: Dorsey, Clevenger and Borsenik at Mac's Backs in Cleveland Heights, OH,

10/15: I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing, Appalachian anthology reading in Coshocton, OH.

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes Maple Leaf Zen by John Dorsey

Crisis Chronicles Press is thrilled to announce the publication of our sixth title of the year, Maple Leaf Zen by John Dorsey, on 3 October 2022. Maple Leaf Zen is a brilliant sequence of 124 original poems created by Dorsey through a process of erasure using selected works of the late New Orleans poet Everette Maddox as his source material.

Maple Leaf Zen is c. 140 pages, 6"x6", available in perfect bound paperback as well as a special limited edition (only 10 copies!) signed & numbered case bound hardcover. Cover image courtesy of @MapleLeafNOLA on Instagram.

The paperback (979-8-88596-996-3) is available for $12 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA. 

Paperback: US or Elsewhere?

In the U.S. $12.00 USD International $17.00 USD

The special limited edition signed & numbered case bound hardcover (979-8-88596-995-6) is available for $40 directly from John Dorsey. Email him at archerevens@yahoo.com to get yours while supplies last.

Meet the author:

10/3/2022 at Truman State University, Kirksville, MO

10/8/2022 at Uncloistered Poetry Live - October, Toledo, OH

10/9/2022 at Mac's Backs-Books On Coventry, Cleveland Heights, OH

John Dorsey lived for several years in Toledo, Ohio. He is the author of several collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw's Prayer (Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory, (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015), Being the Fire (Tangerine Press, 2016), Shoot the Messenger (Red Flag Poetry, 2017), Your Daughter's Country (Blue Horse Press, 2019), Which Way to the River: Selected Poems 2016-2020 (OAC Books, 2020), Afterlife Karaoke (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2021) and Sundown at the Redneck Carnival, (Spartan Press, 2022). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the Stanley Hanks Memorial Poetry Prize. He was the winner of the 2019 Terri Award given out at the Poetry Rendezvous. He may be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com. 

[Photo of John Dorsey by Jeremy Proehl.]

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes 47 Poems by Victor Clevenger

Crisis Chronicles Press is very happy to announce the publication of Victor Clevenger's latest book, 47 Poems, on April 7th 2022. We are offering this volume in two formats: perfect bound paperback and (while supplies last) a limited edition (47 copies) signed and numbered case bound hardcover. This excellent collection takes inspiration from Richard Brautigan's seminal novel Trout Fishing in America and features a foreword by John Dorsey.

47 Poems is 50 pages, 6x6". Front cover collage by Victor Clevenger. Available from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA. 200 total copies in print. UPDATE: The limited edition hardcover is now sold out, but you can still order the paperback.

Choose Format / Location

Paperback (in the US) $10.00 USD Paperback (elsewhere) $15.00 USD

A special book release event occurred on April 7th 2022, 6 pm Eastern, at the B Side Lounge in Cleveland Heights. This event featured readings by Victor Clevenger, John Dorsey, Nicole Hennessy, Russell Vidrick and John Burroughs.

Victor Clevenger spends his days in a Madhouse and his nights writing. Selected pieces of his work have appeared in print magazines and journals around the world; they have also been nominated for the Best of the Net and the Pushcart Prize. He is the author of several collections of poetry including Sandpaper Lovin’ (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2017), A Finger in the Hornets’ Nest (Red Flag Poetry, 2018), Corned Beef Hash by Candlelight (Luchador Press, 2019), A Wildflower in Blood (Roaring Junior Press, 2020), and Scratching to Get By (Between Shadows Press, 2021). He and American poet John Dorsey run River Dog. You can reach him at crownofcrows@yahoo.com.

 

 

April 7th: Poets John Dorsey, Victor Clevenger, Nicole Hennessy, Russell Vidrick & John Burroughs read at the B Side Lounge

I am very much looking forward to reading with poets John Dorsey, Victor Clevenger, Nicole Hennessy and Russell Vidrick on April 7th at 6 p.m. Eastern at the B Side Lounge in Cleveland Heights. Crisis Chronicles Press will debut Victor Clevenger's new book, 47 Poems (inspired by Richard Brautigan's Trout Fishing in America), at this event.

More info: https://www.macsbacks.com/event/poetry-reading-john-burroughs-victor-clevenger-john-dorsey-nicole-hennessy-russell-vidrick.

Many thanks to Suzanne DeGaetano of Mac's Backs Books on Coventry, who helped make this event happen and who will be on hand to sell the authors' books.

What's Happening?

The past several months have been a whirlwind. Where to begin?

Several dear friends have passed away recently: Kay Easterling (November 10th), Helen Shepard (December 26th), Haymond Holcomb (January 25th), William Merricle (February 5th), and Jake Pavlica (February 12th).  Also during this same time my partner lost her aunt and my cousin lost her partner. My deepest sympathies go out to all who loved them. And then February 8th was the fifth anniversary of Geri's passing. This all on the heels of so many other losses in recent years. I would like to say more about some of these, but such words are difficult for me at the moment.

While I'm here, though, I will update you on what else has been going on in my life (some of which you may already know if you follow my social media posts).

After a couple of years of having a ton of poetry events canceled (or not scheduled at all) due to the pandemic, I have a lot more things on my 2022 calendar. I emceed an in-person Ekphrastacy program on February 17th at Heights Arts and I have about twenty more poetry events confirmed (so far) for the rest of this year, beginning with a March 12th reading at Visible Voice Books with visiting poets Austin Davis (from Arizona), Brooke Nicole Plummer (Michigan) and Tim Heerdink (Indiana). (Click here to see the full event list, which is still being updated.)

My eighteen-year old granddaughter moved in with us on February 1st.

Also in February, I finished writing my first chapbook since 2017, You Can't Trust It to Remain, which will be published by Between Shadows Press on April 1st.

I'm serving on Heights Arts' Heights Writes Community Team and Lit Youngstown's Fall Literary Festival planning committee. And I still help maintain the northeast Ohio literary calendar at clevelandpoetry.com (I have another list of events I plan to add to it today).

Two of my poems appear in the new anthology I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing: Ohio's Appalachian Voices (edited by Ohio Poet Laureate Kari Gunter-Seymour).

Crisis Chronicles Press has gotten super busy again, working on publishing at least ten books in 2022 (after only publishing two in 2020 and one in 2021). It was a big deal to me to get William Merricle's Contempt of Gravity published in January before he passed away. When I got sick for three weeks in December and had difficulty working, I feared that it might not get done in time.

It also feels huge to have finally published Lisa Cihlar's Before the Next Ice Age. She first submitted it to me (with a different title) in December 2014. Talk about a long journey to publication. But once I finally received her perfect cover art in November, the process sped up and that became our second book of the year.

I'm currently working on our next three titles: Arroyo Chamisa by Alex Gildzen (due out in March), 47 Poems by Victor Clevenger (April 7th) and Ouroboros by Chansonette Buck with art by Jillian Mardin (April 22nd).

After that, Crisis Chronicles and I will team up with Tohm Bakelas and Between Shadows to put out a huge collection of poems by Kent Taylor.

Then later in the year (and likely into 2023), Crisis Chronicles plans to publish works by Brandon Johnson, Christopher Franke, Chris Howey, John Dorsey and Judith Mansour.

And well, I could keep going. There's always more. But I think I'd better stop writing this and get back to work.

I'm grateful for you.

Richard Brautigan with a Switchblade: A Review of John Dorsey’s Poetry

— by Nelson Gary:

 

The hoo-ya! energy of the here and now streams as John Dorsey’s lines in Triple Threat and Afterlife Karaoke. The insights in these books are sharp and funny. Dorsey is Richard Brautigan with a switchblade. The moves of Outlaw Poetics are here in terms of subversion, but as is frequently the case in this movement, there are elements of academia, the establishment. In terms of line arrangement, indentation, Vladimir Mayakovsky haunts a significant number of the lines of Triple Threat and Afterlife Karaoke. The variable foot of William Carlos Williams is certainly in step in these volumes. The well-read Alec Silverman told me he thought Dorsey’s poetry was reminiscent of Robert Frost’s. While he might be right in his analysis, I myself entirely disagree. Dorsey may be Richard Brautigan with a switchblade, but unlike Frost, he never chased his family around with an ax for making too much noise when he was writing. 

 

I know John a little, not well, but well enough to know he never did or would do anything like what Frost did. One thing that Dorsey and Frost share in common is they are all-in all the time (or as much possible) to write poetry. For all these luminous names mentioned, Dorsey’s poetry is most informed by Todd Moore and Charles Bukowski, the godfathers of present-day Outlaw Poetry. Moore, whose father ran with Dillinger, never earned an MFA in Creative Writing, but he spent his working life as a librarian and teacher; he had a life of books: God rest his soul with his guts to be read in his books. I was fortunate enough to write the essay about Moore for The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry.

 

I got to know Moore after he gave a glowing review of my award-winning Cinema. It was the first I had ever heard of Moore, The Chiron Review, and Mayakovsky (Todd mentioned him in writing about my work). Over the years, I developed a friendship with the Outlaw Poetry godfather, and we remained tight until he died. There is a considerable amount of material in Pharmacy Psalms and Half-Life Hymns—for Nothing (Mystic Boxing Commission), my upcoming book, about him. After ordering the Dorsey books from poet-publisher John Burroughs’ Crisis Chronicles Press, I communicated with Dorsey on a great many subjects. One of them was Todd Moore. He said that Moore was a “father figure” to him. Because I knew Moore well, what I can say, with neither doubt nor reservation, was that Todd would have loved these books by Dorsey, been proud of them as the godfather of present-day Outlaw Poetics.

 

There are more than a few standout poems in both of Dorsey’s volumes. “I Want to Murder the Moon” from Triple Threat is a howl against nature for allowing divinity to touch the skin in transcendental experiences. At the end of this poem, Dorsey remarks, “The night is slow / like bloody murder.” These lines inform much of the terrain both books cover. Dorsey writes about the slowness of life that can be violently stultifying internally relatively often in the pages of these volumes. There are lines that jump out at you with the humor of Brautigan, such as the following: “Alice was a finger fucking champion” in the poem “The Rabbit Hole Conspiracy.” “Jimi Hendrix of New Paltz, New York” conjures images of a hustler in a simultaneously cruel and empathic way: “Stars burn / for your albino eyed street hustle / like a Hudson Valley rent boy.” In these poems from Triple Threat, there are mentions of sex, violence, and drugs, even if the violence is only toward that “punk,” the moon, “for bringing divinity / on our skin.”

 

What I loved most about Afterlife Karaoke, which is dedicated to poet Jack Hirschman, is the “Trailer Park Songs” that unify the poem cycle and the elegy for Scott Wannberg, an Outlaw Poet I may have known even better than Todd Moore. I strongly recommend both these books of John Dorsey’s, mostly, of course, for the poetry, but also for the beautifully assembled layout and design by John Burroughs’ Crisis Chronicles Press. The front cover art of Afterlife Karaoke by Steven B. Smith is positively magnetic. What I love most about Dorsey’s work (and these are not the first books of his I’ve read), is its Nirvana-like energy, a band he refers to more than once in these volumes, and his ingenious black humor and and meaningful empathy about the “quiet desperation” (Thoreau) of the multitudes.

 

Buy John Dorsey's Afterlife Karaoke.

Buy John Dorsey's Triple Threat.

Buy both together and save:

Buy Both and Save

In the USA $16.00 USD Elsewhere $28.00 USD

 

 * * * * *

Nelson Gary's works include XXX (Dance of the Iguana Press), Cinema (Sacred Beverage Press), A Wonderful Life in Our Lives: Sketches of a Honeymoon in Mexico (Low Profile Press), and Twin Volumes (Ethelrod Press). His Pharmacy Psalms and Half-Life Hymns—for Nothing will be published by Rose of Sharon Press in 2021. Gary's poems and prose have been published in numerous journals, magazines, anthologies, and newspapers, including The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry (Thunder's Mouth Press), Los Angeles Times, and Desert Sun. Gary, a former professional tennis player and instructor, was the Sports Editor at the Santa Monica Mirror. He read at Lollapalooza in 1994, had a residency with Ivan Neville's All-Star Band at The Mint, recorded his poetry with Elliott Smith ("Coast to Coast") on the latter's album From a Basement on the Hill. At Heroin Times, his journalism helped thousands, if not millions, of people addicted to opioids and their loved ones find recovery. Gary is a Beyond Baroque Fellow and has facilitated two writing workshops there. He has a bachelor's degree in English from California State University of Northridge and a master's degree in Forensic Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes Afterlife Karaoke by John Dorsey

Crisis Chronicles Press is back (and catching up)! From May 2019 through September 2021 we only published 3 titles. But now we have at least three titles coming out between now and the end of 2021. Here's the first:

Crisis Chronicles Press is very happy to announce the publication of John Dorsey's new poetry chapbook, Afterlife Karaoke. Dorsey is widely esteemed as one of the best poets in America and his work is unique and essential. He has dedicated this book to the late, great Jack Hirschman.

 

Afterlife Karaoke is 32 pages, perfect bound, 6" x 6". Contents include "A Dry County," "Easy on the Eyes," "A Chicken Strip in the Shape of a Seahorse," "Walt Disney and Richard Branson Will Meet Again at Freedom Mausoleum," "For Scott Wannberg, Gone 10 Years" and so much more. ISBN: 978-1-64092-951-7. Front cover art by Steven B. Smith. 150 copies in print.

 

Afterlife Karaoke is available for only $10 (includes postage) from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA. 

 

Join us for the Afterlife Karaoke release party on October 16th, 4 p.m. at The Attic, 1791 Adams Street in Toledo, Ohio, where John Dorsey will also be joined in reading by esteemed poets from around the country.

U.S. or Elsewhere

United States $8.00 USD Elsewhere $12.00 USD

 

John Dorsey lived for several years in Toledo, Ohio. He is the author of several collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw's Prayer (Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015), Being the Fire (Tangerine Press, 2016), Shoot the Messenger (Red Flag Poetry, 2017), Your Daughter's Country (Blue Horse Press, 2019), and Which Way to the River: Selected Poems 2016-2020 (OAC Books, 2020). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the Stanley Hanks Memorial Poetry Prize. He was the winner of the 2019 Terri Award given out at the Poetry Rendezvous. He may be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com.

 

[Author photo by Dianne Borsenik.]

Other New Books I've Picked Up in Early January 2021 (and a review)

Memorabilia by A.S. Coomer [2019, 11:11 Press]

Orange Alert: essays on poetry, art, and the architecture of silence by Kazim Ali [2010, University of Michigan Press]

The Invisible Waterhole by Joe Kidd [2020, JKSB Media]

The Prettiest Girl at the Dance by John Dorsey [2020, Blue Horse Press]

The Far Mosque by Kazim Ali [2005, Alice James Books]

Wooroloo by Frieda Hughes [1998, Harper Flamingo]
 

The first of these I've finished reading is John Dorsey's. I left this brief review of it on Goodreads:

Victor Clevenger, in his introduction to this wonderful new collection of poetic vignettes, calls it "quite possibly [John Dorsey's] greatest work to date." I have to agree. That's saying a lot when you consider we've read a stack of Dorsey books and loved his work for years. Boy or girl, I'm pretty sure you're gonna love taking a spin or two (or more) around the ballroom floor with The Prettiest Girl at the Dance.

Lunch Bucket Brigade

After a past twenty-four hours that has been disturbing on multiple levels, at least something good came in the mail: these recent publications from the Lunch Bucket Brigade, a DIY publisher based in Toledo, Ohio.

A Stocking Stuffer for Socialists by Dan Denton

Department Stores by Craig James Ackerman

The Lunch Bucket Brigade #1 (feat. work by Dan Provost, Tom Cline, Victor Clevenger, John Dorsey and Emmanuel Ojeikhodion)

The Lunch Bucket Brigade #2 (feat. work by Ed Werstein, Jason Ryberg, Akinwale Akindayo, Michael Grover, Cindy Bosley and John Dorsey)

Check out the LBB store at https://noduckstudios.com/store.

Poems forthcoming in Gasconade Review and Common Threads

I am honored that three of my 2020 poems appear in this new issue of the Gasconade Review, edited by John Dorsey and Jason Ryberg. The poems are "Flagging," "Dissecting Me" and "Random Rules." I wrote all three for an Ekphrastacy program that Heights Arts hosted in February. During that exhibition, the poems were displayed next to the art works that inspired them. But The Gasconade Review Presents: Strange Days, Stranger Nights will mark the first time they've appeared in a publication. Buy it here.

I am also thrilled that my poem "I Am Not Ready to Die" (written this summer) will soon appear in the 2020 issue of Common Threads, edited by Steve Abbott and published by the Ohio Poetry Association. A copy of this annual journal is included in your O.P.A. membership (which is a very affordable $20 and comes with other perks as well). So please consider joining if you haven't yet.

What's Up with Crisis Chronicles Press?

People keep asking me what's up with Crisis Chronicles Press. Here's the short answer:

Our 2019 titles so far

1) EVENTS: A) We'll be in Kansas City this weekend (October 11-13) for Fountainverse: KC Small Press Poetry Fest. B) On November 23rd, we will team up with NightBallet Press to present readings by our Class of 2019 authors during Streetlight Imaginations with Crisis Chronicles & NightBallet at the South Euclid-Lyndhurst branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library. C) I am also hosting (at least through March 2020) the Poetry+ reading series on the 3rd Tuesday of each month at Art on Madison in Lakewood, Ohio.

2) BOOKS: It's hard to believe we published 5 wonderful books (by John Dorsey, Mindi Kirchner-Greenway, Elaine Schleiffer, Cat Russell and Nicole Hennessy) in the first four months of 2019 and we haven't published a new one since (I've been too busy with a million things). But over the summer several of our recent titles did go into second printings. We still have eight books in our committed-to-publishing queue. We intend to publish three of them (So Marvelously Far by Nick Gardner, Ode to Horatio and Other Saviors by Carolyn Srygley-Moore and Alex in Movieland by Alex Gildzen) by the end of 2019. We'll space the final five out over the course of 2020.

3) SUBMISSIONS: In the past week I've written to dozens of people declining their unsolicited submissions. Technically we haven't even been open for submissions in years, though I sometimes bent that policy for a project I just couldn't pass up. For a while (years?) I flirted with (and at times seriously considered) the idea of reopening submissions after I got caught up. But I never caught up. Now I'm becoming more and more inclined just to wrap up the press for good after I complete my current commitments.

It's been an incredible ride. I've had the honor and privilege of working with some fantastic writers and people. And it's not over yet. Eight phenomenal books are coming. I hope you love them as much as I do.

Meanwhile, there's still time to complete your collection at http://ccpress.blogspot.com/.

Gratefully yours,
John