Caribbean Literary Resources

DISCLAIMER: By definition, you’ll be linking to third party sites from these Links-We-Love pages. Linked sites are not, however, reviewed or controlled by Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize nor coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse); and Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse) disclaims any responsibility or liability relating to any linked sites and does not assume any responsibility for their contents. In other words, enter at your own risk.

Now, in no particular order…

Caribbean Literary Action Group is self-described as ”a working group of Caribbean writers, publishers, academics, festival coordinators and other persons from the literary sphere, with a shared interest in promoting Caribbean writing and publishing…(and the site is a) central resource for writers and publishers to gain information on publishing, marketing, distribution and bookselling in the Caribbean and to share their expertise and best practices.”

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Caribbean Intelligence appears to be a news site but they also run a writing contest which is what caught our eye.

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New finds, a Caribbean Civilization Tumblr and a site on the Legacies of British Slave Ownership.

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Papillotte Press, publisher of works by and about Dominicans.

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The group behind the lively Caribbean Adventure Series, Caribbean Reads.

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With thanks to her for her generousity to our programme, we must add Diane Browne’s Blog which is a good fit actually with its focus on Caribbean Children’s Literature. At this writing, she has a totally unsolicited featured post on Wadadli Pen.

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Groundation Grenada – a Collective developed by Malaika Brooks-Smith-Lowe and Richie Maitland to share the vision that Grenadian Society is fertile for positive change, requiring simply the necessary seeds and by extension the seed sowers.

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Anansesem has compiled picture galleries of children and young adult books country by country. The lists are incomplete but you may find something as I did that you didn’t know about. Here’s the Antigua and Barbuda list.

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Facebook page for Womanspeak, a journal of literature and art by Caribbean women

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Susumba regularly has news and interviews on not only literary events and talent but anything to with the cultural arts (with an emphasis on Jamaica).

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The Spaces Between Words: Conversations with Writers… and Caribbean Writers in particular. I may have posted this link already somewhere else on the site (it’s hard to keep up sometimes) but it’s worth sharing twice as it includes readings and audio interviews with some of the best on the contemporary Caribbean literary scene (Nalo Hopkinson to Tiphanie Yanique, Lorna Goodison to Marlon James).

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LoveAxe – A virtual summer 2012 book club whose members are Geoffrey Philp, Stephen Narain, and Kelly Baker Josephs.

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The Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) – a cooperative of  partners within the Caribbean and circum-Caribbean that provides  users with access to Caribbean cultural, historical and research  materials held in archives, libraries, and private collections. dLOC  comprises collections that speak to the similarities and differences in  histories, cultures, languages and governmental systems. Types of  collections include but are not limited to: newspapers, archives of  Caribbean leaders and governments, official documents, documentation  and numeric data for ecosystems, scientific scholarship, historic and  contemporary maps, oral and popular histories, travel accounts,  literature and poetry, musical expressions, and artifacts. One of the publications archived at dLOC is the Ma Comere Literary Journal, a publication of the Association of Caribbean Women Writers and Scholars. Archived there are issues covering a number of years 1998 to 2009. Ma Comere was the first to publish a poem of mine (Philly Ramblings 8) internationally and more recently the ACWWS hosted me at its 13th annual conference. Nothing but love for them and lots of good reading, scholarly and creative to be found; check it out.

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The University of the West Indies Press is a not-for-profit scholarly publisher of books in thirteen academic disciplines. It is particularly well known for its work in Caribbean history, Caribbean cultural studies, Caribbean literature, gender studies, education and political science. Founded in 1992, the press has over 350 books in print.

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Voices from Haiti – because often the arts provide the real insight to the soul of a nation.

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I met Zee Edgell a couple of years after I first interviewed her by email…we were supposed to be on a panel together and had a long chat instead (at the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival). I found her to be down to earth and easy to talk to. It didn’t feel at all like there were three plus decades and a world of geography and literary miles between us. Check out the Beka Lamb author online at http://www.zeeedgell.com/Welcome.html

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Elsewhere on this site, check out John R. Lee’s West Indian Literature bibliography - admittedly not complete, it’s still quite comprehensive. There’s this link to his blog, as well.

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http://danielleboodoofortune.blogspot.com – I’ve been a fan of Trini Danielle Boodoo Fortune’s poetry since I met and shared a panel with her in Barbados in 2008. Who knew she was such a delightful artist as well?

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This is the blog of children’s author Helen Williams aka Billy Elm (Delroy in the Marog Kingdom) – Beyond the Marog Kingdom - she writes about literacy issues and the literary arts.

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This is a two-fer, Trini novelist Liane Spicer’s blog -http://www.lianespicer.blogspot.com - and a blog to which she and Caribbean author Carol Mitchell are regular contributors, Novel Spaces - http://novelspaces.blogspot.com. Both are good for interesting insights on the writing and publishing process.

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 - This Antigua based event (the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival) began as the Caribbean International Literary Festival in 2006; it’s attracted the best of the best from the African diaspora from far across the water and right next door. It’s usually held over a weekend in early November; book it.

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 - I love the Caribbean Literary Salon- it’s highly interactive and informative – and since joining I’ve been quite active there; including starting an online writing workshop. It’s attracted writers from all over the Caribbean and beyond, so it’s a good place to network. But it’s also a good place to stay up to speed on what’s happening on the Caribbean literary scene and to troubleshoot problems of craft, publishing, and more. The site was started, and is maintained by Anouska Kock, a freelance journalist and writer, born in the Netherlands to Dutch-Surinamese parents. She resides in Aruba.

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http://www.handsacrossthesea.net/HandsResources.htm – Recently discovered this project, Hands Across the Sea, designed to bring books to children in the region when contacted by them to discuss possible collaborations. Check them out; it’s definitely a worthy cause.

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http://poetsofthecaribbean.blogspot.com – I came across Jamaican born librarian and poetry lover Yasmin’s website (Poets of the Caribbean) via the network at CLS. I love that it celebrates Caribbean verse and especially like that she’s similarly committed to creating a listing of Caribbean Poets – I say similarly because our listing of Antiguan and Barbudan writers and John Robert Lee’s Caribbean Writers is in the same vein.

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Calabash International Literary Festival – http://www.calabashfestival.org/2010/index.htm - I attended this with a group of Antiguan writers in 2007. It’s held in St. Elizabeth and included readings from esteemed writers from all over including all parts of the Commonwealth since the top contenders for the Commonwealth Writer Prize were there as well. It was fun but a good learning and networking experience as well.

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http://allenprize.org/ - The Allen Prize is committed to the development of young writers in Trinidad and Tobago much like Wadadli Pen is committed to the development of young writers (and now visual artists) in Antigua and Barbuda. We had to big them up; we just had to…it’s so good to come across a programme like this…and a kindred spirit like founder Lisa Allen-Agostini

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http://seawoman.wordpress.com/ - This site may have originated in Barbados but it’s a valuable resource for all Caribbean writers as it regularly posts information on markets for Caribbean writers. Looking to get published? This might be a good place to start.

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http://tonguesoftheocean.org/ - This site is Bahamian in origin but covers all of the Caribbean. It’s a multi-media online literary journal with lots of stories (including my own After Glow), poems, spoken word pieces.

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http://summeredward.blogspot.com/ - This Trini sister has much love for the stories of childhood and we love her for it. Check out her site for happenings in the world of children and young adult lit, including reviews and recommendations. FYI, as a guest blogger on Summer’s site, I posted about the Wadadli Pen Project – see http://summeredward.blogspot.com/2010/08/guest-post-by-joanne-c-hillhouse.html

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http://ananseseminfo.blogspot.com/ - Related to Summer’s blog, above, this is the site started by her to nurture and promote Caribbean children’s literature. Check it out.

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http://www.caribbeanadventureseries.com – Nevisian Carol Ottley-Mitchell is part of the Anansesem team and author of the Caribbean Adventure Series. She’s lived in various Caribbean countries and currently lives in Ghana, West Africa. I came to know her, via the Internet, when on discovering this site she offered to donate copies of her books Adventure at Brimstone Hill and Pirates of Port Royal to the Cushion Club. I should add that since I was introduced to the series there’ve been some developments: The Adventure at Brimstone Hill is on Audio CD, narrated by St. Kitts’ own Dawn Mills and including music by Larry Armony. The CD can be purchased in St. Kitts at Beauty Essentials or Brimstone Hill National Park. It is also available online at Amazon.com as a CD or an MP3 Download. Book 3 of the series, based in Trinidad, has been released. For updates on this, short stories, pending contests and more, visit her site.

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http://www.geoffreyphilp.blogspot.com/ - Geoffrey Philp is a JAmerican author, who teaches at Miami Dade College and still finds time to maintain this very rich blog. It has author insights, Caribbean lit news, reviews, interviews; it’s never boring.

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http://jambooks-fiction.blogspot.com/ - This is the blog spot of Hazel Campbell, veteran Caribbean children’s writer, who provides invaluable tips on readying your work for publication, issues in Caribbean literature with an emphasis on children’s literature, and other writing news.

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http://www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/ - Edited by Jamerican scribe Opal Palmer Adisa (author of It Begins with Tears), the Caribbean Writer, produced by the University of the Virgin Islands is in the top tier of Caribbean literary journals. It publishes annually and as such the selection process can be rigorous; but it’s a good blend of old and new voices (including two pieces apiece of mine in Volume 18 and Volume 24). Order copies by emailing orders@thecaribbeanwriter.org

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http://www.nyu.edu/calabash/ - This is a Caribbean focussed, international literary journal out of NYU. You’ll find interviews with literary elders, reviews, poetry (including three of mine in the Summer 2007 issue), short stories and not just from the English speaking Caribbean.

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http://repeatingislands.com/ - Here’s one I check from time to time for general info on the Caribbean arts scene.

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http://caribbeanbookblog.wordpress.com/ - This one focusses on publishing trends especially for the do-it-yourselfer, and also has interesting coverage of book clubs, authors, readings etc.

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http://signifyinguyana.typepad.com/charmainevalere/- This used to be Signifying Guyana, but then blogger, Charmaine Valere, decided that she should “have the balls to put (her) name right where (her) big mouth runs.” So it’s been re-branded under her name. It still delivers interesting news, reviews, series, and perspectives related to Caribbean Literature. Check it out.

Dis ‘n Dat

DISCLAIMER: By definition, you’ll be linking to third party sites from these Links-We-Love pages. Linked sites are not, however, reviewed or controlled by Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize nor coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse); and Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse) disclaims any responsibility or liability relating to any linked sites and does not assume any responsibility for their contents. In other words, enter at your own risk.

Best of Books Antigua on facebook.

Honestly don’t know a lot about this but it seems like something I need to get to know more about: the Creative Industries Exchange.

Got some fresh news from Chosen Sounds in the email today. I’m going to share their links here not just because owner Omari Harrigan was very generous with his support of the launch of my book Oh Gad! in 2012 but because they are all-in on the support of the musical arts in Antigua and Barbuda. Find them at www.chosensounds.net and www.theyard268.com

Hard to get printed historical material seems to be available through this site.

The Museum of Antigua and Barbuda – Opened in 1985 and housed in one of the oldest and best preserved buildings on the island, this is, of course, one of the best spots for exploring Antigua and Barbuda’s history. See the old Museum site.

Want a better world for girls? Say domething, here.

You’ve heard of the TED Talks and likely seen ones (like this one by Sir Ken Robinson on how schools as currently constructed kill creativity, Tracey Chevalier’s wonderful presentation on finding the story inside the painting, and Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie’s powerful presentation the Danger of a Single Story) well this is the TEDx – TED affiliated local events – this one in Barbados.

As a space for theatrical presentations in Antigua, in fact the focal point of theatre in Antigua in the 1970s to the 1980s and also the first place where earlier in the double zeros I saw a Walcott play live for the first time, the University Centre (now the University of the West Indies Open Campus – Antigua and Barbuda) is not totally out of place on this site.

Just discovered this History of Antigua and Barbuda in Writings, Photographs, and Stories by Dr. Susan Lowes; worth checking out. And related to that, the Arawwwak project, a Columbia University project directed by Dr. Lowes.

I edited a book for this blogger, a delicious culinary book. It’s not in wide release yet; meantime, check out her blog: Sitting in a Mango Tree.

Think of it as a Trini Amazon with an artistic bent; it’s Ah Piece! – a place where you can source the creations of Trinidad and Tobago artisans, online. Now isn’t that a novel idea more Caribbean art communities should embrace?

Met Annie Paul at the Association of Caribbean Women Writers and Scholars conference in 2012. This is where she blogs on the literary arts and other things. Also had the opportunity to reconnect with well known author, literary scholar and former professor Carolyn Cooper and like Paul she is another thought provoking blogger out of Jamaica. Here’s where she stirs it up.

It’s a little known secret that while I don’t cook (well), I do watch cooking shows and troll cooking sites like this one: Tastes Like Home.

http://womenspeak.tumblr.com/ - This is a space for women to share their stories, embrace their power, and celebrate their womanhood. It’s also a space of vulnerability and pain where the struggles and sacrifices are spotlighted. It’s an inclusive space, constantly updated with information and prompts designed to engage the reader in the process. Also, it’s 100 percent Caribbean. Check it out.

http://www.antiguapublib.org – This is the homepage for the national library of Antigua and Barbuda. The book listings seem incomplete and the site in general doesn’t seem to have been updated in a while, but it seems to be a good portal to research resources, teaching aids and such.

http://islandstyle.typepad.com – Okay, so this site isn’t strictly literary but the blogger (an Antiguan) does have an engaging style and occasionally posts excerpts of fictions. But mostly it’s about fashion…and what’s wrong with that?

http://danielleboodoofortune.blogspot.com – I’ve been a fan of Trini Danielle Boodoo Fortune’s poetry since I met and shared a panel with her in Barbados in 2008. Who knew she was such a delightful artist as well?

 - Youths Speak Out is the outcome of a one week workshop I co-facilitated at the Youth Department during the schools’ Easter Break 2011. A gathering of opinionated and articulate young people, ranging in age roughly from 14 to 19, it was a purpose driven exercise in equipping young people of Antigua and Barbuda with the tools to speak their truth and giving them a forum to do just that. They put the nuts and bolts of the blog together themselves, I was merely a guide.

http://sheroxlox.tumblr.com - I heart this blog by feminist activist Amina Doherty.

Amina photo part of the She Rox Lox series byZIA Photography.

http://www.creativecaribbeannetwork.com – Like the name says this is  network of creative people.

http://www.darkwaves.com/sfch/writing/ckilian/ - I thought this link might be useful to others trying to jump start their writing (and specifically novel writing). Ok, at this posting, I’ve only read the section on ‘Reading a Contract’ but having been through a few book contracts myself, I thought the information would be useful to other writers trying to make sense of it all. This is another link of writing prompts.

http://merrick.library.miami.edu/digitalInitiatives/cwsi/date.html - The Caribbean Fiction Writers Summer Institute ran from 1991 to 1996 at the University of Miami. I (JCH) had the opportunity to participate in this programme in 1995 as a participant in the fiction  workshop led by Olive Senior. It was during this summer that I started work on the Boy from Willow Bend. It was a life changing experience learning from, sharing with, experiencing literary brothers and sisters from the Caribbean; rare and delightful company indeed. This link will take you to audio recordings of writers who participated in this programme including over the years Mervyn Morris, Geoffery Philp, Zee Edgell, Earl Lovelace, Lorna Goodison and so many others. My reading can be found at Programme 13, 1995. Take your time, browse the archives and enjoy.

http://www.antiguanice.com - Before Wadadli Pen ever had its own site, it had a page on Antigua Nice, the country’s local online hub, thanks to the generousity of Colin and Alison Sly-Adams.

http://antiguastories.wordpress.com/about/ - The Friends of Antigua Public Library is interested in collecting oral histories; some of them are posted here. Do you have a story to share? I’m sure they’d like to hear it.

http://www.karibbeanexpressions.com/  – This site promotes Caribbean talent. ‘Nuff said.

http://www.youtube.com/user/BendWillow - My You Tube link; mostly The Boy from Willow Bend online ad (and a few other vids) so far.

http://www.markbrownart.com/ - Mark Brown is the extremely talented Antiguan artist and art teacher who has generously donated his time to coordinate the judging of the visual arts portion of Wadadli Pen, added in 2010.  Check out his Angel in Crisis series of images.

Permit me to mention this other artist, Barbadian artist Sheena Rose, whom I had the opportunity to profile for my former Zing column Creative Space – http://sroseart.tumblr.com/

http://www.youtube.com/user/WayneBowen - Stilll  on You Tube, I have to mention Jamaican Wayne Bowen’s vid uploads. I actually had the opportunity to collaborate with other writers from the region (including Bowen, who is also the director of the vids) on creating these for the Caribbean Family Planning Affiliation.

http://www.searchantigua.com/ - Ken Shipley was a God send with the first Wadadli Pen website. Here’s his site chock full of all things Antiguan and Barbudan. Including this listing of Antiguan and Barbudan writers.

As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is
written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing
Nude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it,
check out my page on Amazon, WordPress, and/or Facebook, and help spread the
word about Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep
up with future updates. Thanks.

The Carnival Zone

Ok, so this post has nothing to do with Wadadli Pen or writing, but I couldn’t let Carnival in Antigua pass without doing a Carnival post (this piece was written pre-Carnival, right on the eve of Carnival); here’s hoping we all had a good time but didn’t forget ourselves in the Carnival Zone.

Is there such as thing as the Carnival Zone? A Zone where we find ourselves saying to business associates, I’ll call you after the season? As if the season (not Summer, mind, but the Carnival season) represents one huge time out. Actually, it’d be interesting to find out how much actual work actually gets done during the Carnival season between recovering from the night before and anticipating the night ahead. Not a lot probably, though we are hard working folk and it’s not like time stops just because the Carnival spirit has seduced us into thinking we’re on a mini-break. We know on which side our bread is buttered, right?

Though who can blame us for feeling, as Carnival finally says luk mi yah, like we want nothing more than to dance away with it, fuelled by a beer or two and more music than we know how to say no to. The back log of work and the drudgery of it all is weak competition for this strange euphoria settling over us. We have entered the Carnival Zone.

Yes it does exist.

And as the days roll on and it continues to suck us in, will we be able to resist the temptation to spend money earmarked for mortgage and food, maybe to get a jump on school fees, instead on “ostrich plumes and feathers” knowing full well that we’re not really buying these flimsy items but the experience that comes with them.

After all as Red Hott reminded us a Carnival or two ago, “we love to play mas”. In fact, it sometimes feels like the rest of the year is a dream and we live to play mas. And as we continue to be sucked into the Zone, it’s hard to remember why it’s a bad idea to spend somewhere between $500 and $1200 on a two day street party. Or if the haze lifts and we do remember, in the Zone, it’s easy to find justifications for this bit of frivolity: … it only happens once a year…we’ve earned it…all work and no play…

We know if we don’t the sight of revelers dancing past will taunt us as it does every time we let the voice of reason penetrate the Zone, like an annoying ringing (time to get up!) intruding on a beautiful dream, a dream in which our past mas memories represent the absolute best times of our life. Better than our graduation, our marriage, the birth of our child, the publication of our book. Oh Gad! Who can resist such a temptation?

And have you noticed how in the Zone we seem to forget ourselves, baring, tearing, leering, all the while sneering at the unlucky lot who have to watch from the sidelines, who know all too well what they’re missing and how good it feels. And is that our boss over there watching us with his jaw on the ground?  Pick it up, Mister, don’t you know that like Vegas, what happens in the Zone stays in the Zone. Unless of course it ends up on YouTube – or given some of our antics, YouP*rn – but that’s a worry for Wednesday, after the Carnival. There are no frown lines in the Zone. Only big smiles and win’ing hips and unbridled bliss.

I’m being facetious, of course. But if my exaggerations have a point – and that’s questionable – Carnival is undoubtedly a time to release the pressure of jobs and bills and deadlines and relationship troubles…or it feels like it. Nothing wrong in embracing the positive vibes in the Zone (we sure need some good vibrations during this long drought)…as long as we don’t forget ourselves too much in the process; because what happens in the Carnival doesn’t necessarily stay in the Carnival, does it?

If only.

 As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, DancingNude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it, check out my page on Amazon, WordPress, and/or Facebook, and help spread the word about
Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.

Reading Room and Gallery II

 

The stacks were overflowing at the original Reading Room and Gallery; I decided to expand.

DISCLAIMER: By definition, you’ll be linking to third party sites from these Links-We-Love pages. Linked sites are not, however, reviewed or controlled by Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize nor coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse); and Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse) disclaims any responsibility or liability relating to any linked sites and does not assume any responsibility for their contents. In other words, enter at your own risk.

Here you’ll find stories, interviews, reviews, poems; you name it…a totally subjective showcase of (mostly) Caribbean written (sometimes visual and audio visual) pieces that I (Joanne) have either personally appreciated or which have been recommended (and approved) for posting/linking. If you’re looking for the winning Wadadli Pen stories (and I hope you are!), check Wadadli Pen through the years. You can also see the Best of Wadadli Pen special issue at Anansesem which has the added feature of audio dramatizations of some of the stories.

POEMS

Won’t You Celebrate with me (print and audio) by Lucille Clifton; also These Hips (actually Homage to My Hips).

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You never thought by Nic Sebastian.

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I have a theory about Reflection by Renee Ashley (The Robert Watson Literary Prize Poem)

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As I write this I’m reading Full Woman, Fleshly Apple, Hot Moon Selected Poems of Pablo Neruda (in Spanish and English) and amidst the lush language, I found this gem that seems timely (it being pre-Valentine and all at this posting) – Sonnet XVII which reads in part

Te amo como la planta que no florece y lleva
dentro de si, escondida, la luz de aquellas flores,
y gracias a tu amor vive oscuro en mi cuerpo
el apretado aroma que ascendió de la tierra

Translation:

I love you as the plant that doesn’t bloom and carries
hidden within itself the light of those flowers,
and thanks to your love, darkly in my body
lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth.

The full poem can be found here.

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I am nobody’s nigger - bup! bup!

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Liking the humour in Maelynn Seymour-Major’s Retired Woman War.

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Still haven’t read The Help, nonetheless Carol Boyce Taylor’s Borscht made me think of it. Those who have read it can tell me if I’m totally off the mark.

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As a fan of Gil Scott Heron’s The Revolution will not be Televised, I had to share this piece, Complainer, about the late poet-activist by Fred D’Aguiar.

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Tell me One Fine Day I will walk with my Head held High by Bisi ADeleye-Fayemi (also found here) doesn’t leave you feeling empowered.

SHORT STORIES

Twins by Tiphanie Yanique from Ma Comere.

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One of my favourite shorts from one of my favourite writers: Jamaica Kincaid’s Girl.

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Regular readers might remember me writing about Will Allison’s What You Have Left. Here’s an excerpt (kinda) from Zoetrope’s All Story.

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Quirky, interesting tale from the New Yorker; A Man Like Him by Yiyun Li.

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This origin story from the Shonga People in Zimbabwe, published in Anansesem, was quite engaging. Favourite line: “After this they knew that when they listened to the beat of their hearts, they would not feel trapped or lost.”

NON FICTION

i’m still on a learning curve with this publishing business. But I can report that much of what this writer says is true, from my experience; and that I read it with an eye toward checking off what I’d done and what I still needed to do. Turns out I’ve done most of it and hope to see it pay off. For anyone thinking of publishing – either independentally or with a publishing house – this is useful information re marketing: http://www.shewrites.com/profiles/blogs/five-marketing-tips-to-drive-excitement-and-buzz

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Anyone who knows me (well) knows how much I love and relate to the music of Lauryn Hill and even to her particular brand of ‘crazy’. It’s why I feel the need to share this: http://vigilantcitizen.com/latestnews/lauryn-hills-tumblr-letter-on-the-music-business/ which says among other things “I Love making art, I Love making music, these are as natural and necessary for me almost as breathing or talking.  To be denied the right to pursue it according to my ability, as well as be properly acknowledged and compensated for it, in an attempt to control, is manipulation directed at my most basic rights! ”

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A blog about Bocas and others in the series  by author Karen Lord.

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“…knowledge of one’s own history and culture has intrinsic value.” Read more in this Carolyn Cooper response to a critic who calls into question the relevance of a course in reggae poetry at the University of the West Indies. Personally, I’d like to see a course in calypso poetry too.

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“I thought that publishing a book meant I was a writer, but I was wrong. Convincing yourself each day to keep going, this means that you are a writer.” Read more of Last Lecture: Am I a Writer? by Cathy Day.

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This blog entry by Tameka Jarvis shares her review of Rita Marley’s No Woman No Cry, a book I’ve reviewed here in Blogger on Books and which remains one of my favourite autobiographies.

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Love this blog entry by Brenda Lee Browne… as I prepare for the launch of my new book, I can relate to the hesitance to dip your toe in the water. This is a scary, scary path we choose when we pour our heart, soul, energy, years of life into this thing that we then have to let go and await the world’s judgment.

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This is actually a blog entry by Silver Sparrow author Tayari Jones. Silver Sparrow is on my to read list, NaNo which challenges you to write a certain amount of words in a month, is decidedly not on my to do list, her blog sums up why. Mostly, I like what she suggests about writing being a process not a destination. While challenges like the one mentioned can help a writer develop the discipline needed to finish a book, to take up pen and declare I want to write a book rather than I want to be a writer misses the mark; the latter requires investment in the discipline of actually developing craft and perspective. Read, live, grow, write (and edit, and redraft, and redraft, and redraft…), then (maybe) publish.

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Perspective on the publishing industry … if Shakespeare was publishing today, would he be rejected too?

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The Bronte sisters aren’t Caribbean, unless you count the literary link between Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Jean Rhys Wide Sargasso Sea or the fact that many of us children of the Caribbean grew up reading both books; either way, I thought this article on the Brontes might intrigue you as it did me.

INTERVIEWS

I’m sharing this interview with Cara Blue Adams, fiction and non fiction of the Southern Review literary journal in the U.S., for two reasons – and, no, one is not her delightfully quirky name. One, I think her insights on the process submissions go through provide some insight and perspective for writers. Two, I found interesting the discussion about fewer women being published (and perhaps) writing…because with Wadadli Pen it’s actually the opposite. A grad student actually asked me about this once i.e. the level of participation among girls versus boys in Wadadli Pen, and it broke down that in 2004 only 12% of the participants were boys, 18 percent in 2005, 29 percent in 2006, 0 percent in 2010, 16 percent in 2011, 23 percent in 2012. The arts in Antigua, I think, are not seen as manly things, and many of the literary folk I come across (not just in Antigua but in the wider Caribbean) tend to be female, but, interestingly, many of the region’s literary legends are male. Interesting.

Their Eyes were watching God is not only one of my favourite books, Zora Neale Hurston, its author, is one of my literary heroes. For more on her, I recommend Valerie Boyd’s Wrapped in Rainbows. This is not an interview but a discussion with Alice Walker, Sonia Sanchez, and Ruby Dee on Hurston’s writing and legacy. It’s lengthy but worth checking out.

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Jamaica Kincaid, uncensored…but then isn’t she always. And then there’s this one, I’m struck by how pretty she looks in this interview and by these words “I understood the book much better when I was writing it” (I understand this feeling so much as I try to answer questions now like ‘what inspired you to write this book i.e. Oh Gad!’ when that impulse is now a vague memory).

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Surprise, surprise American Scholar Henry Louis Gates is a bibliophile. But do you know which Antiguan author is on his list of essential reading? And which Caribbean writer he’d readily take to the beach again? Check it out.

VISUAL ART

Author of the Caribbean Adventure Series Carol Ottley-Mitchell’s visual tale featuring the resourceful monkey Chee Chee. Perfect for classroom storytime.

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Interview with and analysis of the artistry of up and coming talent Danielle Boodoo Fortune at the ARC.

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Jamaica Kincaid reading at Columbia “the beauty, economy and precision of Kincaid’s prose transports even the most curmudgeonly and aloof reader into the abject state of gushy fandom.” – Saidiya Hartman, professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia university

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Something about this… Doggie in the Picture by Danielle Boodoo Fortune.

…AND HERE’S SOME OF MY STUFF

Excerpt from Oh Gad! (my new book released in 2012)

Friday Night Fish Fry (fiction) @ Sea Breeze – http://www.liberiaseabreeze.com/joanne_c_hillhouse.html

After Glow (fiction) @ Tongues of the Ocean – http://tonguesoftheocean.org/2009/11/after-glow

How to Make Cassava Bread and Other Musings on Culture (non fiction) @ Antigua Stories – http://antiguastories.wordpress.com/food-2/food

At Calabash (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://wadadlipen.wordpress.com/2010/09/20/at-calabash

Defining Moments (non fiction) @ Geoffrey Philp’s blog – http://geoffreyphilp.blogspot.com/2010/12/defining-momentsjoanne-c-hillhouse.html

Off the Map (non fiction) @ Signifying Guyana -

http://signifyinguyana.typepad.com/signifyin_guyana/2010/12/guest-post-writing-off-the-map-by-joanne-c-hillhouse.html  and again at Blurb is a Verb

What Calypso Taught Me About Writing (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/what-calypso-taught-me-about

At Sea (fiction) @ Munyori – http://www.munyori.com/joannehillhouse.html

Pushing Water Up Hill (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/pushing-water-up-hill-one

Wadadli Pen – Nurturing Another Generation of Antiguan and Barbudan Writers (non fiction) @ Summer Edward’s blog – http://summeredward.blogspot.com/2010/08/guest-post-by-joanne-c-hillhouse.html

Cold Paradise (fiction) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/Hillhouse_ColdParadise.htm

Somebody! (fiction) @ St. Somewhere – http://visitstsomewhere.blogspot.com

Reflections on Jamaca (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://wadadlipen.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/reflections-on-jamaica

Portent (fiction) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/Hillhouse_Portent.htm

Philly Ramblings 8 (poetry) @ Ma Comère – http://dloc.com/AA00000079/00004/36j

Ghosts Laments (poetry) @ Small Axe – http://smallaxe.net/wordpress3/prose/2011/06/30/poem-by-joanne-hillhouse

Benediction before the Essence (poetry) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/hillhouse_poetry.html

Prospero’s Education, The Arrival, Da’s Calypso (3 poems) @ Calabash – http://www.nyu.edu/calabash/vol4no2

Interview @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/interview-with-joanne-c

 

As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing Nude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it, check out my page on Amazon and/or Facebook, and help spread the word about Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.

Who Made the Short List

There are so few opportunities for acknowledgment on a regional scale that the short lists of the few opportunities that do exist are rapidly and hungrily devoured by writers. Did I make the cut? Am I worthy? Am I worthy?!? Of course, as I’ve learned doing Wadadli Pen (as yet a national competition on a much smaller scale) these past eight years, sometimes not making the list is not an indication of talent or lack thereof. Sometimes  on a list of 11, you may be the 12th one but you would never know. And so to those not on the list, including myself when it applies, I always say keep growing and keep striving, see it not as discouragement but as a challenge. I’m coming for you, List.

The Latest List to have the Caribbean literati talking is the Commonwealth Short List, a really difficult list to crack (believe me, I know) even with the recent revamping of the prize structure. So special congrats to the Caribbean writers who did:

Sweetheart, Alecia McKenzie (Jamaica), Peepal Tree Press – making McKenzie, a past regional Commonwealth winner for Best First Book, the sole* Caribbean short-listee for the 2012 Commonwealth Book Prize.

*Past Commonwealth Writers Prize winner Jamaican Olive Senior is also on the short list for Dancing Lessons (Cormorant Books) but as part of the Canada region.

Devil Star, Hazel Campbell (Jamaica); Glory, Janice Lynn Mather (The Bahamas); The Dolphin Catcher, Diana McCaulay (Jamaica); Friends, Sharon Millar (Trinidad and Tobago) – short listed for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize.

Wrapping as you read this, meanwhile, is the BOCAS Literary festival in Trinidad, which delivers perhaps the biggest purse (i.e. US$10,000) of literary competitions emanating from the region. The short list was announced a while ago and by the time the contest wraps on April 29 2012 one of the names listed below will be the new king or queen of the sea of Caribbean literature, at least until next year. A discussion here explores whether this prize is meeting the development needs of the region; and, specifically, how the presence of literary legends (like last year’s winner Derek Walcott) on Bocas long and short lists can prove discouraging for newer writers trying to break through. Seriously, how do you contend with a Nobel Prize Laureate? Whether or not these concerns will be acted upon remains to be seen, but either way, it does not diminish the accomplishment of those who did make the cut, to whom we take the opportunity to say congratulations. Especially Loretta Collins Klobah of Puerto Rico, the poetry winner for The Twelve-Foot Neon Woman; Earl Lovelace of Trinidad and Tobago, the fiction winner with Is Just a Movie; and Godfrey P. Smith of Belize, the non fiction winner for George Price: A Life Revealed - these three also contenders for the overall prize. UPDATE APRIL 29TH 2012: And the Winner is …Earl Lovelace.

As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing Nude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it, check out my page on Amazon and/or Facebook, and help spread the word about Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.

Interviewed by Commonwealthwriters.org

Is there a place or an event that has informed your writing?

My writing is always rooted in my Antiguan-ness; and in particular the Antiguan (with a hint of Dominican) working-class reality from the 1970s to present; the rhythms of that world especially informed my first book The Boy from Willow Bend. But it’s there in some way, shape or form in the other stories as well – even the ones not set in Ottos, where I was born: people making do and making a way, people who had their eyes wide open to reality but were still superstitious, people dealing with the disorientation of change within the shadow of larger political and social factors, much like in my new book Oh Gad!

Calypsonians would have been some of the first poets I would have been exposed to and, from a literary perspective, their frank handling of topic juxtaposed with their inventive use of language to give the story a layered interpretation – I think in retrospect I took in some of that, though back then I just loved to sing and dance to my favourites – Shorty, Obstinate, Latumba. We all did; and we all knew we could count on them to tell the truth. But, of course, I also read what I could get my hands on, or bent my ear to whatever Anansi or jumbie story was floating around.

READ THE REST OF THIS INTERVIEW

I want to say thank you to them for their interest in interviewing me.

And with the April 17th 2012 release of my book Oh Gad! the timing couldn’t be better.

 

Quote

“The writer of colonial descent has a harder struggle to find her material, see its appeal, uniqueness and value, validate it herself before anyone else does. There’s a vastness in each of us. Perhaps that’s the wonder about literature – it distills the experience of being human.” – from Caribbean Writer 25, Page 255, Renee H. Shea interview with MARILÈNE PHIPPS-KETTLEWELL.

UPDATED! To add some interesting – and, for me, relatable - comments by the author from the same interview:

“A lot of what writers do is instinctive; and it’s interesting to see what others perceive in what we have written, how the work lives through others.” – Page 248

“Since my stories are character driven, it is because a character has a particular force that I’m drawn to him or her…What is dramatic is the point of tension, the point of resistance, the momnet before action, the point at which the character says no, and something different starts happening. In that tension and ensuing change lay the seed of a story worth telling.”

I love bananas, too

Interesting bit of trivia, at least to me; according to site
stats, the all time top 5 search terms (as of August 2011) that most often lead
people to Wadadli Pen are, in descending order, most to least searched:

1.       Legend of banana

My reaction: No wonder Chatrisse Beazer’s 2011 prize winning Wadadli Pen entry The Legend of Banana Boy is so often lately among our top posts…how much do I love that one of the products of this Wadadli Pen project, a story by
one of our young authors, is in such demand?…They are searching for the
story, right, and not some mythical legend about bananas?

2.       West Indian literature

My reaction: No surprise here; John R. Lee’s bibliography on Discovering West Indian Literature in English  has (consistently) attracted a lot of traffic to

That's Lee far left with In the Castle of My Skin author George Lamming centre, and poet and BIM editor Esther Phillips far right.

the site since it was initially posted and until the rise of the banana owned the top spot. I’m happy for this as I do want the site to be seen as sort of a resource on not just Antiguan lit and Wadadli Pen but…well, writing in general and West Indian Literature in particular.

3.       Wadadli pen

My reaction:The site’s purpose for being is Wadadli Pen,
so, guess I should count it as a win that we’re in the top three. We’re coming
for you bananas!

4.       Caribbean novels 1960  

My reaction: This is odd, not the “Caribbean novels” part but the “1960″; is this a college course or something? If not, why are so many searching for this particular year of Caribbean novels? Sure the ’50s and ‘60s was a banner period for the emerging Caribbean novel, but why 1960 in particular? Hm. Almost as much of a mystery as the legend of the banana.

5.       The Legend of Banana

My reaction: …speaking of which…

After that, you have people looking for particular authors
and poets – Esther Phillips to Althea Prince to Jamaica Kincaid – or for
groupings like “Antiguan poets”; and, given my ambitions for the site, that
thrills me no end, even as it challenges me to step up my game to make sure
that you don’t come here in vain.