Marie Gauthier

Weekend Recap, or, I am Launched!

What a whirlwind of a weekend!

Even though I was tethered to a table all day Saturday during the Massachusetts Poetry Festival, I had a grand time.  Unlike some literary festivals where folks ignore the book tables in droves, MassPo is all about poetry & poets, and poets love books, so I was able to chat with a number of interesting people, including

  • one poet who read a blog post I wrote last year about enjoying her book — what a thrill that was! I always think I’m sending these posts into the ether, so it never fails to surprise me when their subjects come upon them!  Which then makes me wish I had written more cogent & detailed posts re: my admiration in the first place.
  • two poets I know & admire from their blogs & ReadWritePoem — meeting online friends in person can be a gamble, but Carolee & Jill were every bit as wonderful & generous face to face as they are electronically.  I hope we can meet up again before too long.
  • Joan Houlihan, who is a HOOT!  I adore her.

Now I have to wait an entire year for the festival to come back around again…hopefully next October I’ll be able to participate a bit more.

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Also this weekend, last night in fact, was my chapbook release party.  Wow.  I’m so thankful for the nice crowd of good friends that came out on a cold & wet autumn night at the tail end of a busy weekend to help me celebrate.  And I’m grateful it was a patient crowd:  I brought the boys for this first big event, and that added quite the element of unpredictability to the poetry reading!  I’m pretty sure none can say they’ve ever been to a reading like this one before…and nor will they ever again.  Look for some photographs of this singular evening soon, right here, and you’ll see what I mean!  Too bad I didn’t think to have the reading filmed for posterity — with Aidan & Vincent’s assistance, it was, um, quite a night.

In the meantime, I have another reading this Wednesday night, with the ferociously talented Kimberley Ann Rogers…this time sans children.  Because we all could use a night off from time to time.

mariegauthier

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10 responses to “Weekend Recap, or, I am Launched!”

  1. Pat Fargnoli

    Your reading was, for sure, the most unusual reading I’ve ever attended!
    I smiled all through it. And wondered how on Earth you ever write even one poem in the midst of motherhood; how anyone does in fact.

    But you carried it all off with grace and warmth, and the room was just overflowing with love for you. I was so happy to be a part of it all.

    AND I read your whole chapbook this morning and loved, loved, loved it.
    The poems are full of intelligence and gentle emotion and impeccable, careful craft. Congratulations.

    Pat

  2. Sandy Longhorn

    Wish I could have been at both the Mass Poetry Festival and your reading. Congratulations on the book launch! Will send for the book as soon as the next paycheck arrives.

  3. emmabolden

    O, I am SO HAPPY to hear of your great successes! And how I wish I could’ve been at the chapbook launch — it’s such a gorgeously put-together book, full of such rich poems — a gift to the world!

  4. Carolee

    congrats on the launch! it was wonderful to meet you in lowell. thanks for the nice things you said about us — very sweet. we will meet up soon!

  5. mariegauthier

    Pat, it meant so much to me that you came, thank you. And I’m THRILLed that you like my book, THRILLED & honored. And relieved. 🙂

    Sandy, thank you! That’s so kind, I appreciate it.

    Dear Emma, I wish you could’ve been there as well! In a future more perfect world, time & money will be plentiful for poets! Thank you, thank you.

    And Carolee, I will hold you to that. Tho’ soon is relative, yes. 😉

  6. jillypoet

    Congratulations! We will definitely meet up again! And…when Carolee and I get our reading series organized, we want you to be a featured reader!

  7. Karen Weyant

    I want pictures! 🙂

  8. mariegauthier

    Jill, you can count on me! And next time let’s plan our meeting, so we can grab coffee or somesuch away from whatever hubbub is bound to be about…

    Karen, me too! As soon as I have them, I promise to share. 🙂

  9. Victoria

    It all sounds so wonderful. Congratulations on all your success!

  10. mariegauthier

    Victoria — It IS fun — thank you!

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