July 14, 2013
Dear Allan, Bruce, Carol, Chris, Conrad, David, Deborah, Ellen, George, Honey, Jeff, Jennifer, Karen, Mick, Norma, Patrick, Terry, and Trudi,
Thank you for participating in the launch (Toronto) and celebration (Hamilton) of Milton Acorn’s In a Springtime Instant. Both events went really well. Q Space and the Artword Artbar were full of People’s Poets and Acorn supporters. I am not sure how many copies of In a Springtime Instant were sold by Terry at Q Space, but I sold all 5 copies I had at the Artword Artbar yesterday. Clearly People’s Poetry is very much alive and well in Canada.
I plan more of these In a Springtime Instant celebrations. Ottawa and Guelph are good bets for the spring, perhaps during National Poetry Month.
A wide spectrum of Acorn poems were read. I was interested to note that except for Norma and me (we read the same poems at both events) no one in Hamilton read a poem that had been read in Toronto. In total we heard 45 different poems read.
We now need help spreading the word. We need book reviews. As far as I know, there have only been two reviews of In a Springtime Instant. Maybe you could review it or perhaps you know someone who would. From the public response so far, there is clear interest in the book. (I can assure you that it is rare to sell 5 books at a reading in Hamilton.) The problem is that most folks outside the greater GTA have no way of knowing the book exists. It is for sale in no bookshops.
On a different matter, I am part of a 4-poet committee to find a new literary venue in Sarnia. Our first meeting is set for Wednesday. If we are successful in establishing a regular reading series, we will be looking for readers who wish to journey to Sarnia. Perhaps you?
Poetry Power!
. . . James (Deahl)
