Tag Archives: emerging writer

June 23, 2015 · 4:15 pm

Carol A. Stephen – Writing Life and Community

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Back with Carol A. Stephen with the writing life and writing community.

VAH: Are you a full time writer?

CAS: I am a retired small “a” accountant/credit professional, so I am free to write or not as I choose. Except, of course, for the compulsions!

VAH: Is writing vocation, occupation, or profession?

CAS: I’d say a vocation. I do it because I am compelled and because I have a love for language.

VAH: When the page is blank what gets you writing?

CAS: Reading other poets, finding a good writing prompt. Occasionally something will come from just brainstorming/wild-minding, but not very often. I have to read.

VAH: What is your “process” when working on a new piece of writing?

CAS: To start with, I usually have an “earworm” phrase demanding to be written down. If I have a list of words, I might just start writing in a word association kind of way and the poem may take off from there. I have a couple of projects in mind, but poems are more likely to come from specific phrases rather than just a more general theme.

VAH: Do you have a submission system or plan?

CAS: That is on my list of resolutions every year. I don’t know what holds me back, but I don’t submit regularly.

VAH: What does your typical writing day include?

CAS: Many distractions on the internet. Writing new poems takes precedence over polishing ones already written. The best poems are always the newest ones. That might be why I don’t submit as often as I think I should!

VAH: What words of wisdom do you have for the emerging writer?

CAS: Read, read, read. Try new techniques, especially those new forms that you think won’t work for you. And submit! (Yes, wisdom I should include in my own plans!)

VAH: What choices have you made regards to traditional or independent publishing?

CAS: Most of my individual published poems have been in online magazines where I’ve been successful submitting before. Of my three chapbooks, one I published myself, another was under a friend’s imprint, and the new one is published by a small press run by a poet I’ve “known” online for years. I’m a late bloomer, and not sure I want to wait the long times it takes for traditional publishing to take place. Online publishing also reaches a larger audience, even more quickly than self-publishing.

VAH: What part does social media play in your writing career?

CAS: I have a blog, where I write about literary events in and around Ottawa, Ontario, but also to showcase my poetry and my chapbooks. I’m on Facebook and Twitter and recently have become more active on Tumblr.

VAH: Do you belong to writing or author organizations?

CAS: I am a member of the League of Canadian Poets, The Ontario Poetry Society and I belong to a small poetry group, The Field Stones. I am rejoining the board of Arts Carleton Place, where I live, and I am a former member of Canadian Authors Association, National Capital Region.

VAH: Do you have any favorite online sites or blogs that you find useful or interesting?

CAS: Poetry Foundation, Academy of American Poets, Places for Writers, Winning Writers, Found Poetry Review, Ron Silliman’s blog, Bill Moyers.com, Writers Digest, and many others.

VAH:What was your writing education?

CAS: In high school we studied it as part of the English curriculum. Since 2006, I’ve taken an online course at Algonquin College, and a follow-up private course with the same instructor, as well as a 10-week Stanford course with James Arthur and later a week-long retreat with him in Lenox, Mass.

VAH: Writing conferences, retreats, seminars – any favorites and why?

CAS: The retreat [mentioned earlier] with James Arthur was a chance to work in group with some of the poets I’d met in the online Stanford class, as well as time to discuss my work one-on-one with James. I’ve participated in several weekend “master” workshops through Ottawa’s Tree Reading Series with prominent Canadian poets. These were amazing opportunities to work with some of Canada’s top poets in a small class (max 12 participants) I also attended a 5-day writing conference through Canadian Authors Association, which provided workshops across various genres, and opportunities to network that have been invaluable.

Thank you Carol A. Stephen for contributing your thoughts on writing and the writing life.

Sample Carol’s work:

Carol reading her work here.

Howe and Stephen (the light ekphrastic)

Stephen and Karkar (the light ekphrastic)

Imworld and Stephen (the light ekphrastic)

Learning to Dance (Silver Birch Press)

Waiting for Green Mornings (Silver Birch Press)

In a Moment She’ll Unfurl (the light ekphrastic)

Carol A. Stephen is a Canadian poet, poetry selector for Bywords Journal and a member of the League of Canadian Poets. She’s served on boards of Canadian Authors Association, National Capital Region (CAA-NCR), Arts Carleton Place and Tree Reading Series Ottawa. Carol coordinated CAA’s poetry circle 2008-2013.

Her poetry has appeared in Bywords Quarterly Journal, Tree Press/phaphours press chapbooks and online at The Light Ekphrastic and Silver Birch Press. Chapbooks: Above the Hum of Yellow Jackets, Bondi Studios, 2011 and Architectural Variations, Quillfyre Publishing, 2012. Ink Dogs in my Shoe, Dec. 2014 from Nose In Book Publishing, Castlegar B.C.

Awards: 3rd Prize CAA 2012 National Capital Writing Contest for Walking in Thomson’s Red Sumac. Honourable Mentions: VERSeFest, Poetry for the End of the World, 2012, Arborealis 2012 and 2008 Ontario Poetry Society, Double Your Pleasure 2013 Ontario Poetry Society and CAA’s 2008 and 2011 National Capital Writing Contest.

Recent publication: In December, 2014 her third chapbook, Ink Dogs in my Shoes, was published by Nose In Book Publishing, Castlegar, B.C. This is a chapbook of poems all containing some element of three in them. Subjects range from garden to writing process to nonsense rhymes, and some explore conceptual poetry or experiment with wordplay.

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Three by Five posts on days that end in threes.

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June 13, 2015 · 12:37 am

Carol A. Stephen – Writer Reads

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VAH: Who is your favorite literary character?

CAS: I can’t choose between Custard, the Cowardly Dragon and The Cheshire Cat.

VAH: Do you have a favorite author?

CAS: Perhaps Richard Wagamese, a Canadian First Nations author, who wrote Dream Wheels. It won the Canadian Authors Association award for fiction in 2007. I read a single line from the back cover and was hooked. Wagamese is a powerful storyteller, one of the best I’ve read. He weaves together both compelling story and First Nations customs which are fascinating. Many books I read and forget but not this one.

VAH: You’re stranded in a snowstorm, stuck on a deserted island. What books would you hope to have with you or find? Why these choices?

CAS: Poetry for sure, but not a single author. An anthology, a big one, with poets from the 20th and 21st century and a book of writing prompts, perhaps The Poet’s Companion, so that I am inspired to keep writing. Novels that have interesting older women, characters that get into odd situations but all’s well in the end. Romance optional. Humor essential!

VAH: What is the most memorable book, story or poem you’ve read? How so?

CAS: I started to say The Water Babies, by Charles Kingsley, something my parents read to me when I was a child. I always remember two characters: Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby and Mrs. Bedonebyasyoudid. I recall it as a morality tale for children, but I think even more influential would have to be A Child’s Garden of Verses, Robert Louis Stevenson. That book probably was my first acquaintance with poetry and some of the poems still stay with me today.

VAH: Do you have a favorite book, poem, or story?

CAS: I have a lot of favorite poems, but I will share this one:

“The Hush of the Very Good” Todd Boss (c 2008)

I’m not sure how I first came to this poem, but I remember hearing Todd Boss read The Hush of the Very Good online. The poem describes a kiss, a particularly good kiss, while juxtaposing it with a metaphoric small boat. The images are so vividly drawn using simple language. But it isn’t just that. Visually, it’s the unusual way the lines break, short lines clinging to the right margins, then back to the left, like waves the wake of a boat makes.

The poem asks questions, draws the reader in. It’s a poem to be read aloud, to wrap your tongue around long ohhh sounds and soft sibilants, sounds are very reminiscent of ocean and waves, the whisper of reeds, and the poem slows down, then speeds up through short words and hard consonants, b, p, d. It’s just such a lush poem to read out loud.

Next installment – Carol A. Stephen shares about her writing community.

Sample her work:

Learning to Dance (Silver Birch Press)

Waiting for Green Mornings (Silver Birch Press)

In a Moment She’ll Unfurl (the light ekphrastic)

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Three by Five posts on days that end in threes.

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June 3, 2015 · 12:41 pm

Carol A. Stephen – Writer Beginnings

VAH: Welcome to Three by Five, Carol. Do tell, why do you write?

CAS: It seems to be a compulsion really. Words, phrases, ideas come to me, seemingly at random, but they won’t let go ‘til I put them into a poem.

VAH: Why did you become a writer and when did you know or feel like you were a writer?

CAS: I hadn’t written in 25 years, but after my husband died, I began to find the poetry coming again. I decided it was time to find out whether I was really a poet or a dabbler. I first felt like a poet when a workshop leader wanted to steal one of my lines.

VAH: Ah, that sounds validating. “A poet or a dabbler.” A good question for introspection. Is there someone or something that influenced your development as a writer?

CAS: Reading other poets is a big influence. When I am not reading, I am usually also not writing. Taking workshops, trying new techniques I didn’t like at first because I didn’t understand the process. Mentors have played a big role too. They include Canadian poets Brent Robillard, (that first workshop leader), Bernice Lever, Harold Rhenisch, Barry Dempster, Roo Borson, John Barton, Phil Hall, Stuart Ross. Canadian-American poet James Arthur. Al Filreis, who teaches Modern & Contemporary American Poetry at UPenn via Coursera online and Robert Pinsky.

VAH: What do you remember about your first story or poem?

CAS: I actually have the first poem I wrote as a teenager in high school. It was written in March 1963, or so my file copy shows, has no title, and is a rhyming poem. I don’t remember whether it was written for class or just on a whim. But the second one seems to be a riff on The Daffodils by William Wordsworth.

VAH: And do you have a favorite piece you’ve written to date?

CAS: My favorite poem always seems to be among the most recent of my poems, although Jammin’ on the 16 is one I like because of its sound and the way it feels on the tongue. It’s an Ekphrastic poem, written to pair with a painting by Dina Karkar on The Light Ekphrastic, Nov. 2012:

Jammin’ on the 16

Fire foregrounds the hot yellow burn—
orange teases rouge, the blue rise
on red, these curves

letters shape, shift, notes lift—
a spider-weave ripple of sound riffles
ground-wave to octave

foreground to ground, form
re-form, each iteration:
music. the poem. the music.

Words stack, staccato: they wrap
rap, finger-snap, bebop, toe-tap tap tap
rebop, trombone, scatting a sax

A long hot lick—
the jazz. the jazz. fire-brick
crimson razzmatazz.

– Carol A. Stephen

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Three by Five posts on days that end in threes.

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May 28, 2015 · 11:28 am

Introducing Carol A. Stephen – June’s Three by Five Featured Author

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April 1, 2015 · 2:42 pm

Three by Five Schedule Update

Three by Five has really taken off this year. The author interview series that highlights a different author or indie publishing professional with five questions (usually) over three – five days during a month has filled up 2015! During this year, you’ll find the following authors highlighted here:

Currently in March is Laurie Kolp. Coming in April is poet Rebecca Foust. In May, Poet and Novelist Mariah E. Wilson. In June, Canadian Poet Carol Stephen. In July, Novel and Memoir author Matthew Pallamary. In August, Poet and Non-fiction author Bernadette Geyer. In September, Hiatus. In October, Fiction and Non-fiction writer Sam Slaughter. In November, Novelist and cinematographer Chase J. Jackson. In December, Memoir author Kelly Kittel. Then, welcoming in 2016, January’s Three by Five will host the 2015 Runner-up and Honorable Mention for this year’s Emerging Writer Prize, Caroline Zarlengo Sposto. The February, 2016 Three by Five featured author will be the 2016 Winner of the Victoria A. Hudson Emerging Writer Prize. In March, Poet Ronnie K. Stephens will lead the rest of 2016. In April 2016, Science Fiction & Fantasy author Edward McKeown.

Don’t let the schedule deter you if interested in being highlighted in the Three by Five interview series. Additionally, occasionally the schedule is open to change in order to highlight an author with a book publishing during a specific month.

Three by Five interviews publish on days that end in three every month. Find out what why an author writes, what inspires them, who they read, and what their writing life is like. Discover their work and maybe find a whole new author to follow and enjoy.

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March 12, 2015 · 12:08 am

After SFWC – Kristen Falso Capaldi

Last month, Kristen Falso Capaldi, the recipient of the Victoria A. Hudson Emerging Writer Prize 2015, spent a weekend in San Francisco at the San Francisco Writers Conference. Read about her adventure at the conference. On her blog, she writers:

“Many writers will attest to this: It’s hard to say “I’m a writer” without feeling like some kind of fraud. It’s so much easier to say I’m a teacher, a baker, candle-stick maker (well, maybe not the last one). And while none of us should be in it for the rewards, rewards certainly don’t hurt.

So when I received the exciting news that I won the Victoria Hudson Emerging Writer Prize, I was just a bit more than ecstatic. Winning this scholarship to attend the 2015 San Francisco Writers Conference meant a great deal to me. “Yippee!” I shouted to no one in particular. “I am a writer-albeit in a mostly unpaid-wallpapering-my-house-with-rejections kind of way- but I’m a writer.” After four days jam-packed with eye-opening and inspiring sessions, where I met cool, interesting people who are toiling away at a plethora of amazing projects, I declare that nobody should be afraid to admit to being a writer. In fact, get a t-shirt or a tattoo. Get both.”

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February 23, 2015 · 12:32 am

Kristen Falso-Capaldi – Three by Five Interview Part III

Welcome to the final installment of an interview with Kristen Falso-Capaldi.

VAH: What does it mean to you to have been selected as the Victoria A. Hudson Emerging Writer Prize winner this year?

KFC: I am beyond excited to be the recipient of this year’s Emerging Writer Prize. It means so much to me to be recognized for my writing ability and to be able to attend one of the best writer’s conferences in the country.

VAH: Any goals for the conference?

KFC: I’d love to find an agent for my novel, but I’ll feel fulfilled with advice and critique on my pitch and the first page of my manuscript.

VAH: Kristen it was great meeting you at the conference. I hope it the experience was all you hoped for and you have good luck with the agents you spoke with.

Let’d get back to writing. When the page is blank what gets you writing?

KFC: Sometimes there is nothing scarier than a blank page; that said, I just write. It’s like jumping into the ocean when I first get to the beach. If I think about it too much, I’ll never get to ride the waves. I just jump in and write without worrying too much about where the story is going. I know from past experience that I will end up with a messy first draft that I can then edit into something I’m not embarrassed to show to someone else.

VAH: What is your “process” when working on a new piece of writing?

KFC: I often just think of a first line and start writing. I very rarely outline, though I sometimes make notes about where the story is going if I get a brainstorm and have to stop for the day. I try not to abandon stories, though I might work on two pieces at once (usually different genres, like a screenplay and a short story). If I hit a spot of writer’s block, I try to write through it or jump to another piece I’m working on.

VAH: Do you have a submission system or plan?

KFC: I try to send as much of my work into the universe as I can. I send my stories to literary journals and contests, and I’m currently pitching my novel to agents. One of my students told me recently that she doesn’t enter contests because it makes her sad when she doesn’t win. Sure, you can’t fail if you don’t try, but you can’t succeed either.

VAH: What does your typical writing day include?

KFC: I get up every morning at 5:00 a.m., feed my cat, Scout, and feed myself, then I sit down and write for about 45 minutes before I have to get ready for work. I often don’t get time to write again till the following morning, so I try not to fret too much about what I’m writing – I just get the words out. It may not seem like a lot of time, but in a year and a half, I’ve written a generous handful of flash fiction, two screenplays, seven short stories, a final draft of a novel and a first draft of a new novel.

VAH: What words of wisdom do you have for the emerging writer?

KFC: Make writing a priority. This is something I didn’t do for many years, and it’s no surprise I got very little accomplished. Once it became important to me, I saw a huge change in both my craft and my confidence. Another piece of advice I’d give is to experiment with various genres. This is something I tell my high school creative writing students. For example, poetry and flash fiction teach us to be powerful in a small amount of words, script writing helps us focus on dialogue and visualize movement, and memoirs are great for helping us find pearls of truth buried in the subconscious.

VAH: Thanks Kristen for taking time out of your busy schedule for Three by Five.

Find Kristen on:

Kristen’s web site.

Twitter.

“ You always stop writing eventually,” my inner voice said. “Wouldn’t you rather make cheese…I’m going to make some coffee now. It’s very early, and I’ve got lots to say before I leave for work.”

Kristen Falso-Capaldi is a writer, musician and public high school teacher. The latter position has led her to believe she could run a small country if given the opportunity. She is the singer and lyricist for a folk/acoustic duo Kristen & J, she has finished a novel and has co-written a screenplay, Teachers: The Movie, which was an official selection for the 2014 Houston Comedy Film Festival. Kristen’s short story, “Of Man and Mouse” was published in the December 2013 issue of Underground Voices magazine, and several of her micro-fiction pieces have received accolades in various contests. Kristen lives in a small town in northern Rhode Island with her husband and cat.

Three by Five publishes on the days that end in three.

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February 18, 2015 · 11:17 am

Readers – What Would You Add?

In 2011, No Red Pen: Writers, Writing Groups & Critique was published just in time for that year’s San Francisco Writers Conference. Now I’m looking at completing a revised 3rd edition. I’m interested in what readers of No Red Pen think was missing in the original book or what could use a little more depth of discussion. Now’s your chance to let me know by using the feedback form below.

Additionally, I have a survey that asks about individual experiences with writing groups and critique. Please take a few minutes and give your thoughts and opinions by participating in the Creative Writing Critique Experiences.

Thanks for your feedback and for participating in the survey.

While you’re at it, have you signed up for the newsletter yet?

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February 13, 2015 · 12:03 am

Kristen Falso-Capaldi – Three by Five Interview Part II

Welcome to the second installment of an interview with Kristen Falso-Capaldi.

VAH: Kristen, do you have a favorite literary character?

KFC: There are so many, but I love Scout from To Kill A Mockingbird. I love how Harper Lee captured the perfect blend of innocence and precociousness in creating the character. I even named my cat after her. A close second would be Jay Gatsby, because I can’t help but feel bad for the guy, and I so want things to end differently for him every time I read the novel.

VAH: What about a favorite author?

KFC: Tim O’Brien, author of The Things They Carried because I’ve never read anyone who could make death by land-mine explosion sound magical and heavenly. I’m also going to go with Fitzgerald, because his description of New York City seen from the Queensboro Bridge gives me chills every time I read it.

VAH: Well, you’ve got me curious to go read Tim O’Brien now. What is the most memorable book, story or poem you’ve read?

KFC: I’m a huge fan of Ursula Le Guin’s short story, “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,” Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World” and Barry Lopez’s “Emory Bear Hands’ Birds” because all three stories are fantastic and impossible with deeper meanings that we could discuss forever. I guess you could say I like magical realism.

VAH: And Do you have a favorite book, poem, or story?

KFC: I would say The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, because he writes about war in such a poetic way, he makes me want to cry. My favorite poem is actually the lyrics to the Simon and Garfunkel song “America,” because Paul Simon managed to capture so much longing in so few words. Plus, he briefly makes the moon a third character in the narrative, and that’s just cool.

VAH: Which reader are you – always finish what you started or put it down and move on if you don’t like it?

KFC: I have to finish everything, even if it’s awful. I think it’s because I’m an English teacher and I feel like a fraud if I don’t finish every book I start.

VAH: For a long time, I was the same way. I felt like I betrayed someone by not completing what I was reading. Now though, time compels me to move on!

Find Kristen on:

Kristen’s web site.

Twitter.

Three by Five publishes on the days that end in three. Return for more with Kristen Falso-Capaldi then.

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February 11, 2015 · 12:16 am

2015 Emerging Writer Prize Winning Essay

“WOULDN’T YOU RATHER MAKE CHEESE?”

MUSINGS ON WHY I WRITE, AND WHY I CHOOSE TO DO IT SO EARLY

by Kristen Falso-Capaldi

2015 Victoria A. Hudson Emerging Writer Prize Honoree

5:00 a.m. is cold and dark. Trust me on this. In deepest January, when the wind outside is warning me about the bitter walk to the car, I just want to cover my head and snooze. I do snooze, but only once. At 5:09 a.m., I am up. I write. Everyday.

I was a writer before I even knew how to write. My childhood was filled with plot twists and dialogue contrived for imaginary friends, dolls and neighborhood kids, the unwitting stars of my theater. I began a novel after college, then another in my late twenties. In my thirties, I finished a third, then stopped writing for years while I nursed the wounds of rejection. I wrote a few short stories, song lyrics, kept a journal. But most of the time, I was doing other things — making jewelry and practicing yoga and learning to make cheese. Really, my mozzarella was epic.

I loved talking about writing. “Someday, when I have the time,” I said. “I will write. I’m a writer, after all.” Talking, as they say, isn’t doing.

About a year ago, something happened. I spent the summer of 2013 focused on changing careers. My job as a public high school teacher was taking its toll. As I sought out the perfect opportunity for an ex-PR-professional-turned-educator, I dug into the recesses of my laptop, hoping to uncover a half-decent resume. I found, instead, a number of fictional pieces I’d left for dead.

This is where I found Blake, the protagonist of novel number four, while he grieved his dead wife. And Catherine, the teenager who came to work at a factory in the summer of ’87 and left the men there spellbound. And Henry, a weak middle-school teacher who turned into a manly TV character for one day. They were all there, their stories broken off by imaginary ellipsis. They needed me.

The job market was as dry as the Sahara, but I was too busy writing to feel badly about it. By the end of August, I finished a first draft of novel number four and completed three short stories. I was going back to my classroom, but I needed to write.

Just like talking isn’t doing, needing isn’t wanting. I’d been at this place before. I accepted I probably wouldn’t fit writing into my life once the school year got rolling.

“You always stop writing eventually,” my inner voice said. “Wouldn’t you rather make cheese?”

But guess what? When you truly want to do something, you find a way to fit it in.

It turns out I wanted to write. It also turns out 5:09 a.m. is when I can fit it in. 365+ early-morning writing sessions later, I have written several short stories and micro-fiction pieces, four drafts of my novel, a first draft of a new novel, two screenplays and a generous handful of song lyrics.

I write because I can no longer picture my life without it. The rewards have been small, but encouraging. Henry, the weak middle-school teacher was introduced to readers in the December 2013 issue of Underground Voices magazine, and a screenplay I co-wrote received an official selection at the Houston Comedy Film Festival. So, I keep trying and hoping that someone will want to know Blake and Catherine and all the others who haven’t even been born yet.

I’m going to make some coffee now. It’s very early, and I’ve got lots to say before I leave for work.