Toronto Poetry Vendors
(in)dispensable poetryTPV’s Top 30 for fall
This fall is packed with festival action for your favourite travelling paper candy machine, Snacks. First up, he’ll be at SuperCrawl in Hamilton on Saturday, Sept. 10, hanging out on James St. North next to the Barton Street Stage. Crawl by, drop some loonies and say hello — there’ll be poetry readings on that stage starting at 4:45 p.m. and onward into the night. Stay tuned for details on Word on the Street in Toronto in September and Museum London in October.
As a special festival issue, TPV is compiling a greatest hits collection of all 30 Toronto poets who have contributed thus far, from Linda Besner to Zoe Whittall. (For a full list, see our Issues page.) Now’s your chance to stock up on back issues and collect all 30!
TPV at Meet the Presses
Start saving your toonies! TPV will be at Clinton’s Tavern (693 Bloor St. W, near Christie Station) on July 9 for the Meet the Presses chapbook market. Look for our travelling machine, lovingly known as Snacks, all stocked up with our new issue and possibly some back issues too. See you there?
TPV @ Shopgirls!
We can barely express how excited we are to have a TPV machine at Shopgirls gallery boutique in Parkdale. If you’ve been there, you know how fabulous it is, and if you haven’t, well, may we suggest you join us June 30 at 7 p.m. for the launch of the spring 2011 issue?
Spring ka-ching
TPV is waking up after a long winter’s nap to announce our spring 2011 issue contributors:
Linda Besner
Laurie Graham
Mathew Henderson
Aisha Sasha John
Nathaniel G. Moore
Sachiko Murakami
Adam Seelig
Moez Surani
Souvankham Thammavongsa
Matthew Tierney
We are very excited to bring you 10 poems from these 10 fabulous Toronto poets, many of whom have books just out or forthcoming this spring, have been shortlisted for/won various fancy awards and contests, and are just generally excellent. You can read more about them on our Bios page. Stay tuned for events and other news coming soon.
Holiday parties and podcasts
The holidays are a time for looking back (among other things), and our spot on CBC Radio’s The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers gave TPV the chance to look all the way back to our launch at the beloved and now-defunct This Ain’t the Rosedale Library book store nonpareil in Kensington Market. It was that day in April 2010 that TNC contributor Linda Besner (thanks, Linda!) popped in and asked us some stuff about the project. Now, after months of agonizing suspense (and weekly lurking on the TNC site) you can hear what we had to say (spoiler: I sneak the words “condoms” and “tampons” in there). Bonus: Toronto poet and author Alison Pick is featured on the same podcast.
In other poetry vending news, TPV was in the house last Tuesday when Jason Collett kicked off his fourth-annual Basement Revue at the Dakota Tavern on Ossington. We now have crushes on all the performers that graced the stage, from Collett himself to Julie Fader and Guelph’s Jesse Bell Smith to the all-male literary lineuppers Pasha Malla, David O’Meara, and Ken Babstock. The weekly guests are kept under wrapping paper until the event starts, so we’re looking forward to going back next week to see who’s on the bill.
TPV lives at Poet’s House
TPV’s Spring 2010 issue is ensconced on the New Publications shelf at Poet’s House in Tribeca, NYC, a worthy Mecca for any fan of poem thingys.
TPV does the Canzine
Save your loonies for Sunday! Snacks has been working full-time this fall, and there’s no end in sight, at least until after the indie-lit madness that is Canzine, happening in Toronto on Sunday. Look for the big red poetry machine amidst the sea of DIY girls and hipster boys at The Great Hall at 1087 Queen St. West from 1 p.m. till 7, or till we sell out of our Awesome Fall 2010 Issue*, whichever comes first.
*BIG thanks to all our poets and everyone who came out to our fall launch at Zoots Cafe last weekend! By all accounts, a great success.
A new home for Spearmint
Zoots Cafe image stolen from BlogTO
TPV has been very busy this fall, and the fun continues with a new location for our Spearmint machine at Zoots Cafe. This beautiful Dundas and Dufferin coffeehouse is run by Windsor-import-poet Melanie Janisse, who has generously made space on the wall for our slim little crank-operated contraption. Join us October 17 for a launch, featuring readings by poets from our brand new fall 2010 issue and hosted by TPV co-publisher Elisabeth De Mariaffi. Check the details and RSVP here.
In other news, TPV will be featured on CBC Radio 1 program The Next Chapter this week, so keep your ears peeled. If you miss it, never fear, we’ll post the link here soon. Thanks to Linda Besner for the love!
Plus, TPV will have a table at the one and only Canzine in Toronto on Oct. 24. Stay tuned for more on that soon.
Ka-ching! Issue 2 is here
TPV is proud as a penny to announce the fall 2010 contributor lineup, comprised of the following Toronto poetic talents:
Nancy Jo Cullen
Angela Hibbs
Jim Johnstone
Jeff Latosik
Michael Lista
Pasha Malla
Leigh Nash
Lindsay Tipping
Aaron Tucker
Zoe Whittall
Artist bios are coming soon, but in the meantime the broadsides are all laid out and ready to go to the printers after Labour Day, and we couldn’t be happier with it. You’ll find us folding like the wind next week to get ready for the Brooklyn Book Festival (Table 108, shared with small press ingenues The Emergency Response Unit) and the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival, coming up in two and three weeks, respectively. Plus stay tuned for more events and news about a new home for our Spearmint machine next month.
