(A new anthology of the Rue Bella is available in the UK and US on Kindle).It started at the beginning.
The Hay Festival. Must have been '97 I guess.
Brian Patten entertained us in a huge, stiflingly hot tent. Afterwards, drinking beer on the lawn, Brian came over and calmed us in lisping scouse. That was the moment. He told us about his days in the sixties putting together his mag, getting out and doing it. The Mersey Poets were on fire. Still are in this man's opinion (well, those who are living).
Later that evening we saw some pretentious evocation of Rimbauld set to out of key music using amps that cut in and out like a lighthouse with visual-tourettes. Before we retired to our cars to sleep for the evening, we decided we could do better. You know what - we were right.
Our first volume 'Saving the Snow' was put together by Geoff and I using our own work and the work of two other friends. We wore out our DM's distributing to shops across the country and fly-posting in Camden Town. Waterstones were still open to small projects back then and copies got into some interesting hands. Independent stores were always willing.
'Dearth of the Cool'; 'Blue Ruin'; 'Larking Gratey'; 'As High As The Bullet Holes'; 'Feet Like Cassius'; 'Pacific Radio Fire'; 'Shakespeare In Havana'; and 'Busted Flat' followed.
We put out work from around the world.
Top-drawer poets gave us their support - Brian Patten; Ruth Padel; John Kinsella; Benjamin Zephaniah; Alan Brownjohn' Michael Horovitz; Jan Oskar Hansen; Ed Mycue; Peter Knaggs... the list went on. Thanks, still, to them for their support.
More importantly to us, we provided the opportunity for newcomers and those on their way to showcase their work.
It means a lot to have something accepted by someone else. It suggests you're not crazy, that you've communicated something to someone, that somebody out there loves you. It also means that the next time you submit work you have something to add to your CV that wasn't there before and so editors may pay that little bit more attention the next time.
I was looking up a few things this week and came across some of our contributors and their work.
David Rose, a frequent flyer with the Rue Bella, is about to have a novel published by Salt. Entitled 'Vault', it's sure to be beautifully written. He was always encouraging and it's nice to be able to say that it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy and know I'm on the money. Follow the links at http://www.saltpublishing.com/ and you'll get there. I believe he has a short story collection due out soon, also to be published by Salt. More when it's available.
I also stumbled into Joel Lane as I followed Tweets and links and intuition. I've ordered his chapbook from http://nightjarpress.wordpress.com/. Entitled 'Black Country' and only £3, it's got to be worth a punt. There's also a lovely photo of Joel which shows just what can be done with a name and a little imagination.
Peter Knaggs has clearly been busy. Look him up and check him out.
Ben Myers has been prolific. After his success with 'the Book of Fuck' he is about to have his next novel 'Richard' published by Picador. http://benmyersmanofletters.blogspot.com/ should tell you what you need to know. Good on you.
Matt Nunn, well he's the current poet in residence for Birmingham City FC - http://mattthepoet.co.uk/. Cool.
I could delve further, but I'd like people to send things to me, make my life easier. I'd like to hear from any of you guys. I know that I'm pissing into the dub.dub.dub wind here, but if you stumble upon me, get in touch.
The Rue Bella went out with a bang producing three individual collections - Craig Smith ' A Quick Word With A Rock And Roll Late Starter'; Norman Jackson 'Fieldwalking'; and Dick McBride 'Remembered America'.
In the end, we folded. There were too many holes in the organisation, there were children in the mix, depression hit and we lost money every step of the way (bit like Blue Monday at Factory Records, the more we sold the more we lost).
Nowadays things are different. You can set up and print on demand. The costs will be lower, the boxes won't clutter up your loft for the rest of your life and you can have a lot of fun. In the process, you can encourage new talent, reignite old-timers, give someone the buzz of recognition however short-lived and connect with amazing and creative individuals.
Go on young pups, pick up the baton and run like hell.
To quote an early editorial, 'Along the way we feel sure that some of the wirters in this and future editions will lay down lines with the power to rouse you from sleep, to take you outside and knock seven shades of shit out of you, or simply, on occasion, to remind you of love and of feeling. This is why we [made] the effort. We hope you [could] see the virue in it.'
That night in the car, by the way, was bloody freezing. Next time we booked a cottage.
The Hay Festival. Must have been '97 I guess.
Brian Patten entertained us in a huge, stiflingly hot tent. Afterwards, drinking beer on the lawn, Brian came over and calmed us in lisping scouse. That was the moment. He told us about his days in the sixties putting together his mag, getting out and doing it. The Mersey Poets were on fire. Still are in this man's opinion (well, those who are living).
Later that evening we saw some pretentious evocation of Rimbauld set to out of key music using amps that cut in and out like a lighthouse with visual-tourettes. Before we retired to our cars to sleep for the evening, we decided we could do better. You know what - we were right.
Our first volume 'Saving the Snow' was put together by Geoff and I using our own work and the work of two other friends. We wore out our DM's distributing to shops across the country and fly-posting in Camden Town. Waterstones were still open to small projects back then and copies got into some interesting hands. Independent stores were always willing.
'Dearth of the Cool'; 'Blue Ruin'; 'Larking Gratey'; 'As High As The Bullet Holes'; 'Feet Like Cassius'; 'Pacific Radio Fire'; 'Shakespeare In Havana'; and 'Busted Flat' followed.
We put out work from around the world.
Top-drawer poets gave us their support - Brian Patten; Ruth Padel; John Kinsella; Benjamin Zephaniah; Alan Brownjohn' Michael Horovitz; Jan Oskar Hansen; Ed Mycue; Peter Knaggs... the list went on. Thanks, still, to them for their support.
More importantly to us, we provided the opportunity for newcomers and those on their way to showcase their work.
It means a lot to have something accepted by someone else. It suggests you're not crazy, that you've communicated something to someone, that somebody out there loves you. It also means that the next time you submit work you have something to add to your CV that wasn't there before and so editors may pay that little bit more attention the next time.
I was looking up a few things this week and came across some of our contributors and their work.
David Rose, a frequent flyer with the Rue Bella, is about to have a novel published by Salt. Entitled 'Vault', it's sure to be beautifully written. He was always encouraging and it's nice to be able to say that it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy and know I'm on the money. Follow the links at http://www.saltpublishing.com/ and you'll get there. I believe he has a short story collection due out soon, also to be published by Salt. More when it's available.
I also stumbled into Joel Lane as I followed Tweets and links and intuition. I've ordered his chapbook from http://nightjarpress.wordpress.com/. Entitled 'Black Country' and only £3, it's got to be worth a punt. There's also a lovely photo of Joel which shows just what can be done with a name and a little imagination.
Peter Knaggs has clearly been busy. Look him up and check him out.
Ben Myers has been prolific. After his success with 'the Book of Fuck' he is about to have his next novel 'Richard' published by Picador. http://benmyersmanofletters.blogspot.com/ should tell you what you need to know. Good on you.
Matt Nunn, well he's the current poet in residence for Birmingham City FC - http://mattthepoet.co.uk/. Cool.
I could delve further, but I'd like people to send things to me, make my life easier. I'd like to hear from any of you guys. I know that I'm pissing into the dub.dub.dub wind here, but if you stumble upon me, get in touch.
The Rue Bella went out with a bang producing three individual collections - Craig Smith ' A Quick Word With A Rock And Roll Late Starter'; Norman Jackson 'Fieldwalking'; and Dick McBride 'Remembered America'.
In the end, we folded. There were too many holes in the organisation, there were children in the mix, depression hit and we lost money every step of the way (bit like Blue Monday at Factory Records, the more we sold the more we lost).
Nowadays things are different. You can set up and print on demand. The costs will be lower, the boxes won't clutter up your loft for the rest of your life and you can have a lot of fun. In the process, you can encourage new talent, reignite old-timers, give someone the buzz of recognition however short-lived and connect with amazing and creative individuals.
Go on young pups, pick up the baton and run like hell.
To quote an early editorial, 'Along the way we feel sure that some of the wirters in this and future editions will lay down lines with the power to rouse you from sleep, to take you outside and knock seven shades of shit out of you, or simply, on occasion, to remind you of love and of feeling. This is why we [made] the effort. We hope you [could] see the virue in it.'
That night in the car, by the way, was bloody freezing. Next time we booked a cottage.
Edward Mycue (tel. 415 387-2471) was born in Niagara Falls, New York, raised in Texas. Was a Teaching Fellow at North Texas State; Lowell Fellow at Boston University; WGBH-TV Boston intern; Macdowell Colony Fellow; a Peace Corps teacher in Ghana. Then US Dept Health,Educ,Welfare. Mycue lives @ 3595 Geary St., #320, San Francisco, CA 94118
ReplyDeleteBooks are
DAMAGE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY Panjandrum Press, San Francisco1973
CHRONICLE Mother’s Hen, San Francisco 1974
ROOT ROUTE RANGE Holmgangers, Alamo, CA 1976
ROOT ROUTE & RANGE SONG RETURNS Paper Castle, Melbourne, Australia 1979 (a long poem of 90 pages)
THE SINGING MAN MY FATHER GAVE ME Menard Press in London, England 1980. Also in the 1980’s came THE TORN STAR, EDWARD, NO ONE FOR FREE, GRATE COUNTRY, IDOLINO, NEXT YEARS' WORDS, THE SINGING SURGEON
In the 1990's came PINK GARDENS BROWN TREES, BECAUSE WE SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE (both of those from England) and LIFE IS BUILT FROM THE INSIDE OUT
In 2000 came NIGHTBOATS Minotaur Editions Oakland, CA
MINDWALKING Philos Press, Lacey, WA 2008, and an e-chapbook
I AM A FACT NOT A FICTION Wordrunner, Petaluma, CA 2009 – a free online chapbook of 25 poems
SONG OF SAN FRANCISCO Spectacular Diseases, Peterborough, England 2012
mycueed@yahoo.com