rob mclennan: six short short stories and an essay,

rob mclennan has six short, short stories from his forthcoming The Uncertainty Principle: stories, (Chaudiere Books, 2014) now online at matchbook, alongside a short essay on composition.

Ground Rules launch: a report,

On Saturday, December 7, 2013, we celebrated the publication of the first title in our Chaudiere Books re-launch at The Manx Pub. Thanks so much to David O'Meara and The Manx Pub for hosting the event, and Sean Wilson and the Ottawa International Writers Festival for their sponsorship, and ongoing support. Lovingly hosted by myself, we launched Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press 2003-2013 [see ordering information here] to a packed house with readings by contributors Marilyn Irwin, Stephen Brockwell and Sharon Harris. We even had copies available of the limited-edition chapbook I simply began: above/ground press at 20 [an interview with rob mclennan] (Ottawa ON: Apt. 9 Press, August 2013), a lengthy interview with myself on the beginnings and history of the press that Cameron Anstee conducted [read an excerpt of such here], as well as the previous above/ground press anthology, Groundswell: the best of above/ground press 1993-2003 (Fredericton NB: Broken Jaw Press, 2003).

Marilyn Irwin has been doing quite well lately, from her 2013 Diana Brebner Award win to poems in this year's issue of New American Writing. Part of her reading included a new poem longer than a single page (as she said during her reading, anyone familiar with her work would know exactly how shocking an idea like that is). Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good picture of her (but hopefully someone else did).

Stephen Brockwell, while reading from his reprinted chapbook, Impossible Books (the Carleton Installment), included in the new anthology, was good enough to read a poem in the anthology by Stephanie Bolster. Brockwell's chapbook was an earlier work-in-progress excerpt (one of two such fragments of the same work produced through above/ground press) from what has newly appeared as The Complete Surprising Fragments of Improbable Books through Toronto's Mansfield Press. Notice, too, if you skim the crowd behind this photo of Stephen Brockwell, you can catch glimpses of Brian and Pearl Pirie, Cameron Anstee, Ben Ladouceur, Christine McNair and Monty Reid, among others.

Toronto writer and artist Sharon Harris read from a scattering of works, including her "more fun with 'pataphysics," originally produced by above/ground press as an issue of STANZAS and reprinted in the anthology, as well as a number of pieces from a couple works-in-progress. Harris is originally from Sarnia, Ontario, and read a couple of poems composed on and around her hometown (including some stories that don't seem restricted to those from Sarnia, and could easily be Ottawa Valley stories).

Writer, book conservator, designer and new co-publisher Christine McNair, who is also my lovely wife, designed and produced the book (which is absolutely gorgeous). If you can imagine, two weeks plus earlier, she managed to approve cover stock for the anthology from her hospital bed in the midst of a thirty-seven hour labour. We were enormously happy that she was able to be on hand for the event with our other co-production, two-and-a-half-week-old Rose, making this the baby's first public outing (basically, her first non-baby outing) and first literary reading. We suspect there might be many more such readings in her future!

If you were unable to make the event, fret not; the entire reading was recorded, and will be posted come spring as part of the first Chaudiere Books podcast. Expect to see at least one more Ottawa launch with different readers around the same time, and schemes are cooking to see launches in Toronto, Montreal and even Calgary. Have you joined our Facebook group yet, to keep apprised of updates? And of course, we will be announcing our Indiegogo campaign in the New Year, as well as our 2014 forthcoming titles. Stay tuned!

Marcus McCann on the véhicule press blog

Chaudiere Books author Marcus McCann has a poem reprinted on the véhicule press blog as part of their Sunday poem feature, selected by Carmine Starnino.

Now available! Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press 2003-2013

Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press 2003-2013
ed. rob mclennan

poetry / $24.95
ISBN 978-0-9783428-7-6

Working out of Ottawa, poet and publisher rob mclennan's baby, above/ground press, marks a second decade of the production of broadsheets, chapbooks, magazines, and anthologies that trace out the best shapes of the best of contemporary Canadian (and, increasingly, international) poetry. From the span of that second ten of years, he has compiled this book of traceries: a selection of work by writers ranging from the likes of the late Artie Gold, and Robert Kroetsch, to the living derek beaulieu, Rachel Zolf, Eric Folsom, Natalie Simpson, etc., all collected here as representative of a decade's aesthetic count.
    from Gil McElroy's "Introduction: An Integral"

Edited by rob mclennan, with an introduction by Gil McElroy, Ground Rules features writing from the second decade of one of the most active micro publishers in Canada, selected from a series of hundreds of publications lovingly edited, produced and distributed by editor/publisher rob mclennan. A follow-up to Groundswell: best of above/ground press, 1993-2003 (Broken Jaw Press, 2003), Ground Rules includes a wide range of work by Artie Gold, Mark Cochrane, Suzanne Zelazo, derek beaulieu, Stephanie Bolster, Amanda Earl, Nathanaël, Lisa Samuels, Rachel Zolf, Sharon Harris, D. G. Jones, Julia Williams, Eric Folsom, Gregory Betts, Natalie Simpson, Aaron Tucker, Monty Reid, William Hawkins, Emily Carr, Cameron Anstee, Helen Hajnoczky, Marilyn Irwin, Stephen Brockwell, Robert Kroetsch and rob mclennan.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Artie Gold, “doublet”

Mark Cochrane, “Rotator Cuff at 33 1/3,”

Suzanne Zelazo, “SUIT”

derek beaulieu, dream poem for dieter roth #1
derek beaulieu, untitled #3

Stephanie Bolster, “Night Zoo,”

Amanda Earl, "ivre,"

Nathanaël, “what exile   this”
STANZAS magazine, volume 1, issue #29

Lisa Samuels, "The Museum of Perception”
STANZAS magazine, volume 1, issue #33

Rachel Zolf, "the naked & the nude”
STANZAS magazine, volume 1, issue #40

Sharon Harris, “more fun with 'pataphysics”
STANZAS magazine, volume 1, issue #43

D. G. Jones, standard pose

Julia Williams, MY CITY IS ANCIENT AND FAMOUS

Eric Folsom, NORTHEAST ANTI-GHAZALS

Gregory Betts, The Cult of David Thompson

Natalie Simpson, The writing that should enter into conversation

Monty Reid, cuba A book

William Hawkins, the black prince of bank street

Emily Carr
]
& look there goes a sparrow transplanting soil
                    ]            [3 eclogues]

Cameron Anstee, Frank St.

Helen Hajnoczky, A history of button collecting

Marilyn Irwin, for when you pick daisies

Stephen Brockwell, Impossible Books
(the Carleton Installment)

Robert Kroetsch, Further to Our Conversation

rob mclennan, The creeks,

In August, 2013, Ottawa's Apt. 9 Press published the limited-edition chapbook (click to read the excerpt - I simply began: above/ground press at 20 [an interview with rob mclennan]) a lengthy interview with rob mclennan on the beginnings and history of the press conducted by Cameron Anstee.

to order: add $5 for postage, and paypal (here) or cheque to Chaudiere Books, 2423 Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa Ontario Canada K1H 7M9

Ground Rules / Chaudiere Books article on Ottawa Tonite!

Ottawa writer and blogger Brendan McNally was good enough to do a short write-up on the Chaudiere Books re-launch and tomorrow's book launch at The Manx Pub over at Ottawa Tonite. Thanks, Brendan! Here's hoping we see as many of you as possible at tomorrow's event!

Anita Dolman at The TREE Reading Series, December 10, 2013

Ottawa poet, editor and fiction writer Anita Dolman reads at The TREE Reading Series on December 10, 2013 alongside Peter Richardson and Mike Caesar as part of the "local lights" feature. Her work has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies (see her bio on the TREE website here), including The Peter F. Yacht Club, Decalogue: Ten Ottawa Poets (Chaudiere Books, 2006) and as an above/ground press chapbook. above/ground press also published her translation of Two Dutch Poets in March 2013. See her "12 or 20 questions" interview here. Her essay, "A little less inspiration, please," was posted as the first in the "On Writing" series on the ottawa poetry newsletter.

Sharon Harris interview on CHUO-FM89 this Wednesday at 5pm;

Tune in to Click here Wednesday at 5 pm, on CHUO-FM89 for an interview with Toronto poet Sharon Harris, reading alongside Ottawa poets Marilyn Irwin and Stephen Brockwell at Saturday's launch of Ground Rules: the best of the second decade of above/ground press 2003-2013 (Chaudiere Books) at The Manx Pub, 5pm.

Click here is a one-hour interview-based program broadcast on CHUO-FM89 (and at www.chuo.fm) Wednesdays at 5 p.m. It deals with the arts, socio-political issues and community events.

NEW! Listen to archived editions of the show. Click on "CHUO On Demand": http://chuo.fm/show/click-here

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