AWP23—Enzo Silon Surin

ire'ne lara silva—Texas Poet Laureate

Phuc and Kate speak with the acclaimed and straight-up luminous Texas Poet Laureate, ire’ne lara silva, at the 2023 Writer’s Family Reunion sponsored by Writespace.

We had the opportunity to chat about her process, the bold and unapologetic treatment of grief in her writing, and how she finds cracks of light in the depths. silva, who is an inductee in the Texas Institute of Letters and an inaugural CantoMundo fellow, runs a workshop called “Forget Discipline,” where she and fellow writers practice the art of creating without constraints. Though she has authored books of poetry, short stories, and a forthcoming comic book, silva hardly considers herself prolific. “I’ve spent hours debating a comma,” she quipped in response to this characterization of her work, “I don’t let anything go until I’m ready.” 

Perhaps these principles are what drive her acclaimed work, which has been described as “candid and fearless.” True to this portrayal, silva’s work is unafraid of approaching heavier themes, and she recognizes this authenticity and honesty as critical to creating a space where readers can see themselves in her stories. This approach lends itself well to silva’s exploration of grief in many of her works, which she artfully conceives of as a transformative process that signifies the importance of those close to us in our lives. Concluding with an elegant summation of her creative process, silva muses, “what’s the point of transforming all these things if it’s not to live a joyous life, if it’s not to find love and friends and work worth doing and to appreciate our creativity?”

We couldn’t have asked for a more fitting conclusion for season 6 of the podcast. Stay tuned for more from the desks of Bloomsday Literary. If you’ve heard all the podcast episodes, and still want more, we have short interviews with publishing insiders in our Instagram Live archive series called “Dear Sirs.” Check it out @bloomsdayliterary on IG.

Honorable mentions: 

Writer’s Workshop, Macondo Workshop (next workshop begins July 23, 2024!)

the eaters of flowers, Saddle Road Press 

silva’s books and reviews

for Uvalde by ire’ne lara silva

Photo credit Jana Birchum

AWP23—Guadalupe Garcia McCall

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Guadalupe Garcia McCall is an author, poet, and educator who has been noted as a “leading voice in Chicana and Latina children’s and young adult literature.” She received her B.A. in Theatre and English from Sul Ross State University and an MFA in creative writing from the University of Texas at El Paso. She is a recipient of the 2012 Pura Belpré Medal and currently teaches young writers in the MFA program at Antioch University.

In this episode, in collaboration with Bloomsday intern Elena Welsh, a lover and scholar of YA, we talk about McCall’s mission to reach young people who did not see themselves in literature growing up and to represent the Hispanic community’s “mamas, tios, and tias.” McCall also discusses the differences between publishing with the Big Five and independent publishers and how each choice affects growth and the longevity of her books. Further, McCall emphasizes her role and experience as an educator in her creative and publication processes, and how essential her interaction with educators and librarians in schools is to her work. McCall stresses the care it takes to find the right translator for her work, to ensure that the Spanish language “sounds true” to her Hispanic readers. And finally, excitingly, McCall tells all about her most recent work, a collaboration with David Bowles’, Secret of the Moon Conch (Bloomsbury, 2023). Tune in to here more about the inspiration behind and the process by which she wrote this time-traveling love story.

P.S. We talk about a haunted house Garcia McCall and Bowles visited to inspire the sense of place in The Secret of the Moon Conch. Who doesn’t love a good ghost story?

Honorable Mentions: 

• Check out her brand new book, forthcoming March 2024, Hearts of Fire and Snow

• YouTube reading with Garcia McCall, 2012 Belpré Author winner

• Conversation with Garcia McCall about getting bit by the writing bug at a young age

photo credit: Michael Mercado Smith

Audio by Bloomsday Literary in partnership with the official 2023 AWP Conference & Bookfair

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AWP23—Enzo Silon Surin

Enzo Silon Surin writes, composes, and publishes artifacts on the “witness continuum”—art that he says “pays homage to the culture in which it was formed” and the necessity of generational change. Surin’s work spans librettos commissioned by the Boston Opera Collaborative, four poetry collections, and a musical-in-the-making. He also founded Central Square Press, an independent publisher of works that “reflect a commitment to social justice in regards to African-American, Caribbean, and Caribbean-American communities.”

We had the pleasure of chatting with Surin about how he came to writing as means of documentation—from intuitively producing plays and operas about his childhood in Queens to developing his 10-minute play, “Last Train” (which has a forthcoming operatic adaptation). We discussed the juxtaposition of violence and tenderness in his collection, When My Body Was A Clinched Fist, winner of the 21st Annual Massachusetts Book Awards. Between witnessing the coup that forced Surin from Haiti and the “social violence” he saw in New York, he says he grew up in “state of violence.” It was by becoming a “clinched fist” that Surin says he protected his innate compassion and resilience. Finally, Surin celebrates how writing “saved [his] life” and speaks from the corner of publishing he’s forged, where he’s found that real-life audiences hungry for quality work “already exist."

Honorable mentions

• When My Body Was A Clinched Fist (recorded reading)

• American Scapegoat

• Central Square Press

• Cheesy love songs in the style of Barry White

Bloomsday Literary in partnership with Official 2023 AWP Conference and Bookfair

AWP23—Alyson Sinclair

Does Alyson Sinclair sleep? We had to keep asking ourselves as we chatted it up with Alyson from the floor of AWP (Association of Writing and Writing Program)’s Conference and Bookfair. She’s done it all when it comes to the writing world—bouncing between the bureaucracy of big-four publishers—um, she sent faxes to Seamus Heaney?—to the hustle and bustle world (emphasis on the hustle) of independent presses. Currently, Alyson is the Owner/Publisher at The Rumpus and founder of Nectar Literary, a boutique publicity and communications firm for authors, independent presses, and literary organizations of all ilk. 

Making literary community might just be the crux of our conversation. After learning that hunker-down-and-drink-tea-all-day-with-page-turny-manuscripts editorial roles are not the default at an eye-opening internship, she turned to publicity. Connecting authors to the broader writing ecosystem thrilled her. Publicity and pitching media, in Alyson’s eyes, is a fascinating form of problem solving. Her insight comes from a wide range of experiences in all corners of our ecosystem, spanning from soliciting advertising at a magazine, to setting off individually in the convoluted publishing universe, to coexisting with other literary collectives that share the same mission. Let’s just say—both before and after soaking in this conversation—Bloomsday is a certified Alyson Sinclair fangirl. 

Honorable Mentions:

• Independent Press, Alice James Books

• Independent Press, City Lights

• Literary Network, Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP)

• Literary Magazine, Crazyhorse

• Nonprofit Publisher, Graywolf Press

• Director of Coffee House Press, Mark Haber

• Nonprofit Publisher, McSweeney’s

• Seamus Heaney

• Yusef Komunyakaa

Audio by Bloomsday Literary in partnership with the official 2023 AWP Conference & Bookfair

AWP23—Chelsea Kern from CLMP

As Program Director of the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP), Chelsea Kern is the glue that holds so much of the indie literary world together, advocating for mission-driven independent publishers and magazines—and, with equal importance, introducing readers to the work this community produces. It is clear from our conversation, she has a passion for seeing big projects through to completion.

We discussed the constant that is CLMP and how the literary landscape has transformed since the organization’s founding in 1967—becoming increasingly global and digital. CLMP, with Chelsea’s leadership, has taken these changes in stride with webinars, newsletters (that Bloomsday archives for reference religiously), and a listserv for magazines and presses to ask and answer each other’s questions. As a proud member of CLMP, we can confirm that this listserv is one of the crown jewels/hidden gems of the organization, which always saves us from having to reinvent the wheel when it comes to oddly specific publishing questions Google doesn’t have the answer to. We also explored Chelsea’s personal journey, from a CLMP fellow working in Diversity & Inclusion to Program Director. A go-between who works to connect us needy presses with the grant gods themselves, she has spearheaded vital programs like the Literary Arts Emergency Fund. Chelsea could be considered literary royalty, but she is a magnanimous monarch. We are grateful to have shared space with her in this episode.

Honorable Mentions:

• Literary Advocacy Organization, Academy of American Poets

• Fellowship Program, American Council of Learned Societies

• Grant, Literary Arts Emergency Fund

• Literary Coalition, LitNet

• Literary Foundation, National Book Foundation

• Writing Mentorship Program, Writers in the Schools (WITS) 

Audio by Bloomsday Literary in partnership with the official 2023 Conference and Bookfair.