On Friday, I read at an open mic at Le Poisson Rouge on Bleeker Street. Usually I announce beforehand so I can get folks to come support but I wasn’t sure if I was going to get on the roster that night. I went up first which was a good thing. We were in the gallery space beneath the music venue so while I was up it was nice and quiet. There is something so amazing that happens when I am up there in front of a new audience and the room turns perfectly still. I feel myself expand and reading from my work allows my wings to stretch out a bit. Usually, I am trying hard to tamp myself and my personality down because it doesn’t fit into the culture of my day job. So I contract in order to be able to just get the work done. But when I’m doing my work, my writing, reading from my book of poems, I feel the power of that moment. It radiates up through my feet, makes my legs tremble, moves up to my belly where the butterflies are aflutter, through my lungs where breath and voice connect and out comes the words in these flowing waves and I more present then at any other moment in my life. * happy sigh * I managed to sell a book which is always a pleasure. It was a great night of eclectic writers. There was one cat called D-Bird that cracked me up with his poetry. Funny and so well-worth the price of admission.
Then I went to see Disgraced on Saturday night. I’ve written up a separate entry on that experience.
Then on Sunday afternoon it was Writing Group time. My short story Clara Betta went over really well. I was honestly surprised at how well it was received…it made me blush. So now it’s time to make some final revisions, one more look see with WG and then send it out to see if some magazine will publish it. Hmm. So much to consider. Where to send it? First I’ll make the final tweaks and then see what might be a few possibilities.
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