Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing
Q. What is the title of your book?
A. Microtones. Here is my cover:
Q. Where did the idea come from for the book?
A. Some of the material was generated through the ongoing influences of music; rhythms, patterns, refrains, lyrics. Also my vast array of artistic mentors. The title is a nod to musical outsider, genius Harry Partch, an American composer and instrument creator. You can find more out about Harry at Ubuweb:
U B U W E B – Film & Video: Harry Partch – The Outsider: The Story of Harry Partch (2002)
Q. What genre is your book?
A. Microtones is a chapbook, comprised of 24 poems and flash fiction shorts.
Q. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
A. Any indie Off-Off Broadway out of work actor who works some overnight job to make ends meet.
Q. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
A. Microtones is a quiet, unsettling expression for Robert Vaughan’s foray into publishing his first collection of prose & poetry. You can sample one of the pieces in the collection, “The Outlaw,” here:
elimae
Q. How is your book published?
A. My publisher is Cervena Barva Press, Gloria Mindock is publisher/editor:
Cervena Barva Press Poetry Homepage
Q. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
A. About five years. Most of these were previously published in online journals, like Elimae, prior to appearing in Microtones.
Q. What other books might Microtones compare to?
A. My work has been compared to Charles Simic, Maureen Seaton, Simon Perchik, James Tate, Andrew Michael Roberts, Li-Young Lee, and Dorianne Laux.
Q. Who or what inspired you to write this book?
A. I can’t possibly list entirely everyone: surely my partner, family, friends, teachers. Also everyone who has ever told me “not good enough” or sent a rejection. And James, Mel, Sally and other loved ones who are in spirit now.
Thanks to Bill Yarrow for this! You can order Microtones very soon from the Cervena Barva Press website. Also, our table at AWP is P11. Come find us!
I will be participating in three or four off-site readings while at AWP in Boston:
Festival of Language on Wednesday, 5:30- 10 p.m. at Dillon’s
Reading Experiment Game Show on Thursday- 4- 6:30 p.m. at LIR
HEAT on Friday, 2:30- 6 p.m. at Dillon’s
Stay tuned for more. I have some other exciting news that I will be posting very soon! In the meantime, any support you can muster to help get the word out about Microtones would be great!
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The Next Best Thing