Mother’s Garden Republished in Pixelhose

My story Mother’s Garden has been republished in Pixelhose. Mother’s Garden was first published in Sybil’s Garage.

You can read the story here

If you like Mother’s Garden please click on the like button in the site.  This is a contest and peer support is very welcome. Thank you!

December’s Publications

These are the last publications of the year (2011) for me. Two appeared earlier in the month, but I held on thinking I’d post them all together. I am not the type to get sentimental or anything, and I don’t get … Continue reading →

I’ve been published in this online magazine before; another piece of quirky flash. Yesterday’s publication is entitled She Does Not Know

These are stories written in a rush of mood. And afterwards I don’t try to find a logic or purpose behind them. Don’t know how good they are (or bad), but when they grab me, I have to pick up the nearest thing at hand, even if it’s a paper napkin and an eyebrow pencil! Much like my experience when I write poetry. Sometimes, though,  I am totally helpless and there’s not a thing at hand to lay the words down, or I am in a situation where writing is impossible. So the words chase up and down in my head and then drown, settle into a sediment below, get added to the coral reef… I like to believe that later on, days-months-years, unconsciously or from memory, some do get resurrected. Perhaps have already been resurrected. Or will be at some other time. Except that time is always borrowed… at a premium. But hope is a nice thing to have.

Returning to She Doesn’t Know, I wonder what women think of this story. I’d really like to know.

 

I’m gleeful! Sharing space with my friends and writers Anuradha Kumar (with a story – Clash of Ambitions ) and Abha Iyengar (with an article – Chatting with Ashwin Sanghi) in Reading Hour’s latest issue, soon to hit the stands! My story/memoir is called Condiments.

Do book your copies. Get a taste of what’s on offer here:

Reading Hour November 2011

Two Poetry Contests

Here are two poetry contest for all of you poets out there.

The first one is just around the corner – DEADLINE IS 15th NOVEMBER! So go grab that pen!

Brought to you by the brand new journal Golden Sparrow Literary Review, this is a FEE-FREE contest. One poem per submitter.

Check out the details in GSLR’s Contest page 

Now get started on the new year by working on a poem. Yes, you get some time for this one!

Cha:An Asian Literary Journal has a FREE-FREE poetry contest lined up for you.

The last date for entries is 15th January 2012. Up to two poems per submitter! Get the details in the Cha Blog  

Happy Poeming

The magazine had arrived on Monday. But we didn’t check our letter box. So I got it on Tuesday. And now today is Friday. I’ve been  so busy savouring my second publication in Crannog that I didn’t get to post the news!

Crannog 28

My poem: The Sky Speaks to Me

The Sky Speaks to Me

The Horrorist!

Few days left before the month of horror ends! So quickly read my inteview on Nathan Rosen, up today in Flash Fiction Chronicles

Here:-

Rumjhum’s Ruminations: Horror-ific Revelations about Nathan Rosen!

While on the subject of horror, Nathan is running a horror flash contest in his  magazine MicroHorror. The last date is 31st October. The word count is exactly 666! This year’s theme is water. Get the details here

BOO!

My Essay on Sumona Roy’s Poem

My essay on Sumona Roy’s poem Love: Made in China is here:

http://finecha.wordpress.com/2011/10/15/sumana-roy/

The essay won first prize in the Fine Tea Competition 2011 from Cha: An Asian Literary Magazine’s blog A Cup of Fine Tea

 

Judging Poetry

I’ve taken on the task of judging the Slingink Scribbling Slam, along with Jeff Jeppesen  and Robin Sue Herrnfeld, as you may know from an earlier post.  And I must say that judging poetry is a lot more tough than writing them!

We are on the second round of poems now. I’ve already printed out my batch, like I did the last time. And this time too, I’ll be taking those sheets of paper with me to the dining table, to the couch before the TV and for my evening walks. The reason being I need to live with these poems in order to understand them better and hopefully be a fair judge.

Poems have this knack of lighting up one facet that you’d never noticed before, despite that first, second and third reading. Then there is the problem of two or more poems that seem to be on equal footing. What do you do? Nitpick, obviously!

Sometimes you come a cross a poem that you love for its theme or imagery, but alas can’t give more marks to because of certain poetic flaws; sometimes you get a great poem in the making, which is sad as far as the contest goes, but you hope that the poet will not lose hope and work on the poem afterwards.

The whole process is rather unnerving and humbling too. Here you are, a small person, and you have to sit in judgement on other people’s creative works. You want to be completely fair and honest about the whole thing; you don’t want to let anything slip past your fingers; you want to make sure that your reasons (for the marks etc.) are perfectly reasonable.

And then, you have to be aware of that elusive thing, which ultimately skews the scales in favour one over the next - your personal tastes and sensibilities. That is what some would call luck. That’s the choice made between two equal poems, when there’s place for only one (followed by the rest in descending order). No matter how hard you try, that matter of personal taste will always be the decisive factor. Creativity is a subjective arena, after all.

As for me, I know that while I’m at it, I am gettinbg better at my poetic craft. It’s a learning process, and like all such processes, it’s unnerving. Wish me luck!

Poetry Contest

I copy pasted the information from Oonah’s facebook Page. (Oonah is the managing editor of Every Day Poets).