reader meet author

I have always been fascinated by the motivation of writers. True, it starts with an idea, a story, a desire to share on a broader level, but what keeps the writer moving forward and continuing on with projects. What drives Shane Jones is the thrill and challenge of utilizing a different style for each project. He has gone from a free photocopied short story (Gravity's Rainbow) to a beautifully constructed debut novel (Light Boxes) to the forthcoming collection The Failure Six, and for each project he has approached writing from a different perspective and the results have reflected that difference.

Recently, Shane was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Orange Alert (OA): Your new novel, The Failure Six is available for pre-order and is just starting to gain some attention online. I know the review copies don't come out until next month, but what can you tell us about The Failure Six?

The word prolific can on occasion be subjective, but when a writer is driven by factors both internal and external there is no denying the fact that their work will be widely published. Molly Gaudry does not only pour words on to the page that entertain, convey, and engage, but she is also driven to share her work in every way possible. As you will see, Molly has had 31 pieces published this year (through June), and I don't believe that includes the interviews she is so skilled at. She is also the co-editor of Twelve Stories and Willows Wept Review. As we await the arrival of her new novella from ML Press, I felt it was the perfect time to ask Molly a few questions.

Orange Alert (OA): We Take Me Apart is coming soon from ML Press. What can you us about your new novella?

Two words come to mind when I follow the activities of people like Blake Butler, Tobias Bengelsdorf, and others. Those folks running journals, publishing books, running blogs, and still finding time to write with style and intelligence. Those two words are, Stay Active. You have to be engaged, consistently interacting and always reaching for every opportunity you are offered. As you increase activity you will increase the number of times you make contact with readers and other writers.

Matt Bell is very active, and combines that activity with a high level of quality writing. This has translated into two sold out chapbooks in 2009, and next year he will release a full-length collection though Keyhole Press called, How They Were Found. In August he is launching an on-line literary journal called The Collagist in conjunction with Dzanc Books. He is an active blogger and book reviewer and an all around accomplished person.

Recently, Matt was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Man vs. Woman, I imagine it could all boil down to genetics, but I like to think it is more profound than that. No matter how long you have known each other there is always a lack of communication between men and women. More than communication it is a lack of understanding that manages to find its way into the middle of relationships. Until I started reading the work of St. Louis' Kristina Marie Darling I felt that men didn't understand because they didn't take the time, but now I see it a little differently.

Kristina's work tends to focus on the internal struggle of the female. She uses the day to day details of life and love to explore the nuances of the female mind. She covers romance, fear, respect, as she allows her characters to grow and experience. It's rather remarkable to capture so much in the confines of a poem.

Recently, Kristina was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

True, being well-read and focused can generate a lot of ideas and stories, but there is a certain spark that travel can produce in a writer. P.F. Potvin knows that speak and utilizes its energy to write poems that are filled with all aspects of life. It is not the he writes exclusively travelogues, but his work is littered with experiences and cultures in an intriguing way. Reading through his debut collection, The Attention Lesson (No Tell Books, 2006), his observations are brief but richly-textured, each poem almost has it's own flavor. Yet, it is all tied together through his eyes and experience. I am not saying you have to travel to write, but the adventure sure his deepened P.F.'s inkwell.

Potvin is also an accomplished runner, but he was able to take a break from training to answer a few of my questions.

Orange Alert (OA): Much of your writing is based on your travels. Do you feel a writer should experience the world before he/she begins to record it?

One of the more active participants in Chicago lit today is Tobias Amadon Bengelsdorf. He edits the highly addictive and time absorbing on-line lit journal Fiction at Work. When not filling the work days of people around the world Tobias is also the Assist Editor of Green Lantern Press. His latest project is a full-length collection of stories being publish by the intriguing new non-profit organization Another New Calligraphy.

When I say active I also mean physically, Tobias will be involved in four different readings this month and it all started with this weeks ANC reading with Megan Milks and music from two fantastic local bands. If you missed that reading he will be reading at Quickies on June 9th, at Quimby's on June 26th, and at The Orange Alert Reading Series on June 28th.

The words "small press" are consistently changing in meaning. In my mind I relate the small press to the indie label in music. There is a higher level of care, artistic freedom or investment, and all around concern for the product. However, just like with most indie labels, the sales rarely equate to the effort. Many smaller presses rarely focus on sales though, it is about the process, the conversion 0f thought into realized physical product. Despite all of these good intentions, simply getting words into print will never pay the bills.

There are times when we all begin to coast a little bit. You know what I mean, move through days, through functions, through life without thought or effort, but then something happens. A bolt, accidental or intentional, it snaps your mind and body to attention. It changes everything you ever thought or felt, and forces you to move in a new direction.

Not that Chicago's Joe Meno was floating, but he did feel the shock of a life changing event. Four years ago, while already working on a version of The Great Perhaps, Joe suffered a seizure. I can only image the fear and helplessness he felt in that moment. His latest novel, The Great Perhaps (W.W. Norton, May 11th), deals with some of these emotions, but ventures (in only a way that Joe can) into a whole new universe. It tackles the essence of uncertainty and life's complexities, and attempts to secure the simplest answer in the most difficult situations.

Recently, Joe was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Define the word Poet without using the word poetry. It is virtually impossible because the poet comes in all different forms and writes for all different reasons. There is no specific fabric from which the wordsmith is cut. Over the last two and half years I have talked with over a hundred different poets and none seem to be approaching their craft in the way that Derrick Brown is.

"I miss the honest life we used to lead/scraping up odd jobs so we could see/a movie the next town over"

Just when I thought I was beginning to understand the function and process of poetry I happen to come across a book that completely changes my thought process. Poetry, even when collected into book form, is not supposed to tell a story. Poetry is suppose to caress topics, and sweep up snapshots of events in metaphors. Shaindel Beers' debut collection, A Brief History in Time, achieves something more profound. Shaindel manages to tell the story of her life (or something close to it) through verse, and through her honesty and subtle use of methaphor she is able to relate this story to a wide range of readers.

Yesterday, I conducted my ever live interview in an attempt to the followers on Shaindel's vitural book tour something new and different.