Interview Sessions: Volume 4.4

Meet Mike Sauve.

To kick off this post, an apology: 

Dear Mike, 

We are sorry that we keep trying to put down your name as "Suave." In our defense, you do seem charming, glib, and urbane. Speaking from experience as a man whose name has been written out correctly on the first try by strangers maybe six times since 1994, I know your pain. We sincerely apologize.

In solidarity, 

Kris "Yes, I am aware that it's normally spelled with a 'ch'" Bone

With that little bit of business out of the way, let's cut to the chase here: Just who is Mike Sauve? What does he write? How many horses does he own? (All the important questions we know you're demanding answers to.)

Having started in writing as a journalist, Mike now lets his artistic sensibilities run wild. He has a remarkably impressive portfolio of both fiction and non-fiction, a huge sampling of which is available on his website, Scorpion of Scofflaw. Let us warn you, though: if you have things written down in your agenda for the afternoon, you may want to delay clicking the link — Mike's writing will suck you in and refuse to let you go (or, at least if it did, you would refuse to leave). In fact, this post would have been up a while ago had this dedicated blogger (normally so impervious to distraction) not stumbled into the cave of wonders that is Mike's "Fiction" tab. 

Mike's work has something for everyone: we legitimately guffawed at his Memo: Considering a Face Tattoo, a pitch-perfect bit up on The Feathertale Review's website, and his An Open Letter to the Family Counseling Student Expelled for Lacking Empathy, published on the "Open Letters to People or Entities who are Unlikely to Respond" portion of McSweeneys.net; we find ourselves haunted by his Everything you Can Think of is True, from the 24th issue of M-Brane; and we are both haunted by and guffawing at his piece My New Gang from Theaker's Quarterly Fiction #39. 

Mike's remarkable creative range, in both subject matter and imagery, is simply striking. In our interview, he describes his writing as "a reaction to all the rigidly-enforced clarity and simplicity expected of low-level journalists," and we don't doubt that his writing benefits from that instinct — we can't help but wonder, however, if that journalistic foundation is where Mike's incredible ability to corral tangible, solid details in his fictional worlds comes from.  Just try reading "Everything you Can Think of is True" without wanting to shower away all the grit from 'the unraveling' afterwards. (We've showered twice, to no avail.) 

His website also features samples of his journalism, should you be interested to study the other side of Mike's writing. Certainly a strange experience after his fiction, he writes movie and music reviews, as well as features about diverse subjects like Baptist congregations, or the infamous Comfort Zone. Whatever the subject, whatever the medium, Mike's writing remains fascinating.

Mike was kind enough to answer some questions for us, which we have posted below. And once you've read those, you can check out Mike's website (if, for whatever reason, you haven't already). And then, we'll see you on Sunday. Have a safe and happy Friday/Saturday, all you wild people. 

(Oh — for the record, he owns a whopping six horses. And now you know.)

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An Interview with Mike Sauve: Call Centres and a Mayorally-issued Smog Alert

1) To get the ball rolling: For any audience members who have never had the chance to read your work before, how would you describe it? (For bonus points: on this month’s theme of ‘natural forces,’ what would the weather forecast be on the day your work is being read?) 

My work ranges from speculative fiction, to zany maximalism, to elegiac ‘bad feels’ over lost youth. I started in journalism, so I think a lot of my fiction is a reaction to all the rigidly-enforced clarity and simplicity expected of low-level journalists.


Weather: Humid and unpleasant, 33 degrees at noon, a mayorally-issued smog alert, citizens angry and hostile on buses and LRT lines—then a downpour. Some remove shirts and run in rainstorm ecstasy, and that’s redemptive for them, but most just get drenched and are worse off than when it was just the humidity, and then they go home and eat a high-sodium frozen entrée and think about the better times.

2) Can you remember the first time a writer's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about their writing caught your attention? Are there any elements of it that you still find yourself chasing, in some way? 

I was an avid young reader, so it would have been Stephen King when I was in the 4th grade. During the tumult of pre-pubescence, after enduring some social catastrophe, I took smug satisfaction knowing my rivals would go through life without the intimate pleasure of getting lost in a fictional world. History bore me out. I keep close tabs on those people and they are slack-jawed reality show enthusiasts to a one.

Recently, I loved The Spectacular Now. Both my novels feature precocious teen protagonists, so I appreciate the difficulty of writing the precocious teen. (Ever notice there are never unprecocious teens in novels? If so it would be all “Jamie talked on Facebook for three hours, heated a pizza pocket, masturbated.”) 

3) In your own work, are there any themes, images, or characters (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you? 

I often write about faded friendship and how memories of old friends can haunt a person, as seen in The Dispossessed Person and several of my other short pieces. I’m plagued by memories of adolescent glory and can’t stop dreaming about people I haven’t seen in over a decade, even after I’ve deleted all those individuals off Facebook. The people I grew up with don’t exist anymore; they’re new people who wear Ed Hardy shirts and boast about having a man-cave. A couple stories I’m sending out now continue to dwell on this theme, but after those I hope to move the heck on. This stuff isn’t healthy.

I also write often about demoralizing and meaningless work environments. I’ve worked a lifetime total of 12 days in three different call centres, but have written ten+ call centre-related stories. Similar to how George Saunders’ few days working in a slaughterhouse led to his brilliant workplace fiction, except mine is orders of magnitude less brilliant.

4) If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel when they read what you’ve written, or something that you’d like them to take away from your writing, what is it? 

I don’t have a good answer here. I’m happy if even a few people relate, find the jokes funny, and find the sad parts sad. To quote Jonathan Lethem from a recent Paris Review interview, “That’s all I have to offer, what Philip K. Dick had to offer me, solidarity.” 

5) Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite works/authors and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?

I’m going to say Bob Dylan and Kamikazes because Bob Dylan is my favourite artist, and during the 80s he used to down four of these incredibly sweet, acidic cocktails before each performance and then berate the audience, which was hilarious. And please email if you’d like to be directed to bootlegs of these performances and added to my Bob Dylan email list to receive emails like every second day with Bob Dylan-related original content. 

6) Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now.

Mike Sauve has written non-fiction for The National Post, Variety, Exclaim! Magazine and other publications. His online fiction has appeared everywhere from Feathertale, Pif Magazine, Monkeybicycle, Dragnet Magazine and McSweeney’s to university journals of moderate renown. Stories have also appeared in print in M-Brane, Criminal Class Review, Filling Station, and elsewhere. 


THE LIGHTNING ROUND:

1) What’s your desert island book/album/film? 

Got to go with Infinite Jest because it’s so long and so good and you could read it over and over no problem. Another option might be Adam Levin’s The Instructions. For a film I’ll say The Bicycle Thief because if there were no people around to depress me, I’d need something to depress me, right? 

2) Which artist, living or dead, would you meet for lunch? 

I already mentioned Dylan, so I’ll say David Lynch. My earliest fiction was very Lynch-influenced. I think I watched Mulholland Drive about 30 times when I was in OAC, and I was always striving for that type of irrealism. Because of Lynch, I was writing slipstream before I knew there was such a term. 

3) Which Toronto restaurant would you take them to?

I eat out a lot, mostly at cheap diners around Esplanade and Jarvis, so probably one of those places. Times Square Fish and Chips let’s say.

4) Most underappreciated novel/short story out there, in your opinion?

Youth in Revolt by C.D. Payne. It’s already a minor cult classic, but it should be on the Confederacy of Dunces level.

5) Any chance you'll give us a little hint at what you'll be reading on the 25th

The Dispossessed Person, which is my dubious tribute to the David Foster Wallace story The Depressed Person, except dealing with the above-stated themes of friendship loss instead of depression. 

Interview Sessions: Volume 4.3

Meet Spencer Gordon.

Should you ever cross paths with writer/editor Spencer Gordon during your travels around Toronto, the first thing you'll notice is that the man is sharp. He is intelligent, he is well-read, and he takes pride in his work — no matter what the subject matter is. 

Speaking as someone who has had a scintillating, if brief, conversation with the man on the topic of Hilary Duff (yep, really), I can say with confidence that it is a pleasure to engage with Spencer, whether you're chatting about professional wrestling or David Foster Wallace. In fact, one of Spencer's most admirable talents is his ability to craft heart-wrenching stories out of such unlikely sources as beauty pageants, celebrity culture, or dinosaur porn (here again, we are entirely serious). 

Spencer's highly-lauded collection of short stories, Cosmo, is like reading Brief Interviews with Hideous Men scrawled into the margins of People magazine. His technical ability is never in question while you read through the tales, and there's a palpable delight evident on the page as he cuts to the unlikely emotional hearts of situations and characters you may never have considered in the same way. 

Operation Smile, the collection's opening story, crafts a compelling portrait of the woman behind the Miss USA sash, exploring the immense pressures and considerations of chasing perfection in the public eye. Lonely Planet is an incredibly sad story, which is impressive, given that it deals with an aging porn star filming a dinosaur-themed scene in full costume. Journey to the Centre of Something is quite probably the most fantastic story starring Matthew McConaughey that you'll ever read, drawing easily on magical, dream-like elements which come together to create a narrative as unusual and riveting as Spencer's take on McConaughey himself. Spencer also sets aside a few stories to flex his sheer writerly muscle: This Is Not an Ending is a bleak, slow-burning fictionalization of the OC Transpo shootings in 1999; Jobbers is a crushing story about wrestling and family that was our personal favourite in the collection, and one that will stick with readers for years.

It's not for nothing that Cosmo was awarded CBC's Overlookie Bookie Award for "Most Underrated Canadian Book" in 2013: the collection is as energetic and fun as it is tragic and moving. Also, there is a story about Leonard Cohen resorting to writing jingles for Subway restaurants as a means of solving lingering money problems. So, yeah —it's perfect.

[If you're interested in picking up Cosmo — and you should be — it can be found here.]

A man of diverse talents, Spencer has his creative fingers in lots of different literary pies around Toronto, and odds are you've heard of at least one of his projects before. He is co-founder and co-editor of The Puritan, the online journal that just released a new issue. He is also co-founder and co-editor of the Ferno House micro-press, which has published anthologies and chapbooks from Andrew Faulkener, Mat Laporte, and Shannon Maguire, among others (including himself — his poetry chapbook Look Good, Feel Great, Have a Blast! was released last year, and was nominated for the 2012 bpNichol Chapbook Award). He teaches at both Humber and OCAD. Plus, he's been published in journals like CV2, Broken Pencil, and Joyland.

He kindly answered a few questions for the blog, even though we broke his fifth rule of interviewing authors. (Sorry, Spencer!) To his credit, his answer to question number four is basically the single best description of how readers would ideally feel ever. We're going to get it framed and put it up on our wall. Check it out below.

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Spencer Gordon: A Cult of Personality, and Making the Giller Longlist.

1) To get the ball rolling: For any audience members who have never had the chance to read your work before, how would you describe it? (For bonus points: on this month’s theme of ‘natural forces,’  what would the weather forecast be on the day your work is being read?)

I try to write differently in each story, poem, or longer piece that I’m working on, making a succinct summary of “what it’s like to read my writing” difficult, at least for me. I’ll summarize what other people have had to say, in a series of arbitrary adjectives from positive reviews of Cosmo: “spritely,” “affecting familial realism,” “absurd vision quests in celebrity,” “experimental palate cleansers,” “brave,” “Mariah Carey-esque range,” “vigorous,” “charming,” “media-besotted,” “deliri[ous],” “refreshing,” “startling,” “rare.” High energy? Depressing? Funny? All over the place, right? I guess the weather would be similarly changeable, from annoying sleet to glad sunshine, muggy humidity to frigid cold. In other words, wake up!

2) Can you remember the first time a writer's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about their writing caught your attention? Are there any elements of it that you still find yourself chasing, in some way?

Everything I read as a child reached out and grabbed me, as you put it. I had no filter! So I was probably reading The Chronicles of Narnia or The Lord of the Rings or something. As for chasing these writers and works, not really. Dungeons & Dragons is always available.

3) In your own work, are there any themes, images, or characters (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you?

It’s all intention! Don’t let them tell you otherwise. I am drawn to extremely lonely people with incommunicable interior worlds. I am drawn to the contrasts between surface and reality, outward masks and personal pain. I am drawn toward the zeitgeist. Obviously this means pop culture, celebrity, wealth and fame and beauty, resolving the pulls of mass culture and supposedly nobler pursuits. I also like to play with scaffolding, the assumed frameworks of narrative, as much as I like to write traditional pieces. To explain why these things resonate me would involve many hours of psychological profiling.

4) If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel when they read what you’ve written, or something that you’d like them to take away from your writing, what is it?  

Here’s the basic rundown: first, I’d like people to weep and wail in joy and sorrow over how heartbreakingly affective my work is. Then I’d like them to swell with such immense and obsessive sexual and emotional desire for me that they beg to become my slaves, living for my occasional attention, my passing interest, my spanks. Then I’d like them to go out into the world to recruit more disciples to my cult of personality. Their lives changed, utterly. Then I’d maybe make the Giller longlist.

5) Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite works/authors and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?

My favourite descriptions of drinking can be found in various Hemingway novels. First it was the ‘giant killer’ (absinthe) in For Whom the Bell Tolls. Then I came to love the way the partying Spanish villagers squirt the bags of warm red wine down their throats in lustful exuberance and delirium in the streets. Inebriation and poor decisions and rosy glows (isn’t it pretty to think so?) are very important to Hem (there are whole academic essays on the subject), so I suppose both getting fucked up and reading Hemingway go hand in hand.


Note: I also believe you should be over 25 to read Hemingway because you will appreciate the better things in his work and avoid being a total asshole in your Romantic Youth.

6) Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now.

Spencer Gordon is the author of Cosmo (Coach House Books, 2012), winner of CBC Books’ “Underlookie Bookie Award” for Most Underrated Canadian Book and noted as one of CBC’s “Writers to Watch” for 2013. He is the author of the poetry chapbooks Feel Good! Look Great! Have a Blast! (Ferno House, 2011), shortlisted for the bpNichol Chapbook Award, and Conservative Majority (Apt. 9 Press, 2013). He’s the co-editor of the online magazine The Puritan and of the Toronto micro-press Ferno House. Look at his shit at www.spencer-gordon.com.

Lightning Round

1) What’s your desert island book/album/film?

I don’t really have a desert island book/album/film. Maybe the Bible, the Psalms? TheTao Te Ching? As for a film, I’d probably say Backdoor Barbecue Part IX or the much-rumoured sequel to Dinosaur Porn, Dinosaur Porn II: Reptile Dysfunction.

2) Which artist, living or dead, would you meet for lunch?

Taylor Swift.

3) Which Toronto restaurant would you take them to?

I’d take her anywhere she wanted—I’d even eat meat! But being realistic, I’d probably decorate my apartment as a restaurant and tell her it was a really trendy wine bar. (Hi, Steph!).

4) Most underappreciated novel/short story out there, in your opinion?

Let’s stick to Canada. In a Canadian context, the works/short stories of Douglas Glover and the novels of Tony Burgess. They are largely underappreciated. Not saying they aren’t appreciated in some way, but I am saying that they deserve more than what they’re given, especially by our absurd prize culture and lame-ass Conservative Majority Critical Culture. Lynn Crosbie wrote the best novel/memoir in 2012, so where is her medal? In Canadian poetry, I would throw in my friend Nathaniel G. Moore because his poetry collection Let’s Pretend We Never Met is fantastic and wasn’t reviewed or covered near enough (his new novel, Savage, appears this fall). I’d also say the books of Jim Smith, who is a dynamo. Also: my whole new world order stable of Ferno House poets: Mat Laporte, Liz Howard, Fenn Stewart, Shannon Maguire (also a BookThug poet!), Jimmy McInnes, Ben Ladouceur, Andrew Faulkner (author of Need Machine from Coach House), David Brock (upcoming Wolsak & Wynn poet!), etc. These are all young and up-and-coming poets who will make you dance.

5) Any chance you’ll give us a little hint at what you’ll be reading on the 25^th?

I’ll probably be reading poetry. My poems get small gratifying pops and my fiction is big and hard to perform in short amounts of time, leaving me feeling like no one has had a good time. I’ve also got a new chapbook of poems coming out soon from Ottawa’s fantastic Apt. 9 Press and I’d like to share it with you dinguses.

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Spencer Gordon is a Toronto writer, editor, and educator. He holds an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Toronto, and he has a great haircut. His second chapbook, Conservative Majority, will be released this fall with Apt. 9 Press (and we can't wait). Should you wish to help him start that cult of personality he mentioned, you can tweet him (@Spencergordon), or visit www.spencer-gordon.com. 

Interview Sessions: Volume 4.2

Meet Winter Rowan.

You may not know Toronto folk musician Winter Boyer-Bivins, a.k.a Winter Rowan, a.k.a nope actually those are the only two things that she goes by so far as we are aware, but here are 3 reasons why you definitely, certainly, most assuredly should:

1) She has an album called Sexual Tension in the Cereal Aisle.

2) She does ukulele covers (and sometimes takes requests!), including this cover of "Zombie" by The Cranberries.

3) She is, in her own words, "very Canadian."

Continuing on the trend of "young musicians whose talent makes us feel bad about ourselves" which we started with the handsome Robot Feels, Winter is only 19, though you wouldn't guess it if you were listening to her music. An acoustic artist, who works as often with the guitar as with its miniature cousin, the ukulele, Winter's delicate, somewhat wistful voice suits her music to a tee. Drawing inspiration from artists like Sarah Slean, Regina Spektor, and Hawksley Workman, among others, Winter's music has a real heart to it, something at once raw and fragile that tugs at your ears the way a breeze tugs at long grass. She's not one to fence herself in to one genre or a select stable of artists, though.

"i love the canadian music scene and listen to a lot of cbc," she says, "but i have one direction on my ipod too, so i kind of just listen to whatever catches my eye--ear."

One thing that caught our eye about Winter's work is the variety she shows in both subject matter and references. With a Winter Rowan album, you never quite know what to expect. Sometimes it's musical theatre (as with her album titled Enjolras and Grantaire Die Holding Hands), sometimes it's unexpected appearances by other bands (a cover of the Rolling Stones' "Wild Horses" being one of our favourites) and 

sometimes it's a little more socially minded. 

As she mentions in our interview, she "like[s] throwing in random bits of activism. i'm feminist, queer, and have a mental illness, so it's important for me to draw from these experiences--being a woman and having depression. it's important to look at these things and make light of them even when shit just seems pretty bad."

Either way, her output alone is staggering: if you check out her Bandcamp, you'll see that she has four albums available (for listening to or downloading by donation), and that's just a fraction of her catalog. She's always producing new songs, new covers, and new material from other disciplines as well (the odd drawing or bit of writing may very well sneak under the radar).

She can't wait for you to hear a sample of her music this Sunday at The Only, and neither can we. And if you find yourself wanting to chat with Winter after the show, a hint: try asking her about musical theatre (and especially Les Miz). You can thank us later.

We've got an interview with Winter below, but if you want to learn/read/hear more, you can find her on Twitter, Tumblr, or at one of her websites.

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THE BIG QUESTIONS: 

1) To get the ball rolling: For any audience members who have never had the chance to hear your work before, how would you describe it? (For bonus points: on this month’s theme of ‘natural forces,’ what would the weather forecast be on the day your work is being performed?): 

cute and depressing. hopefully chilly--think october or california on the beach. gotta have wind yo.

2) Can you remember the first time an artist's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about them caught your attention? Are there any elements that you still find yourself chasing, in some way?: 

i'm not sure i remember exactly when...but the first artist that really really got to me is sarah slean. at first, i didn't really like her music. they played her on cbc all the time and i never really got into it, but something happened (i dunno) and suddenly she was my absolute favourite musician. her music is just a really important part of my life and my writing process. she puts me in a good mood, a relaxed mood, and really helps me get the creative juices flowing.

well, i'd like to be able to play piano well, which i think would help me get more of an ambiance i want around certain songs, but for now i feel pretty good with my stuff. i'm still experimenting and finding exactly where my niche is in the music world.


3) In your own work, are there any themes, images, or melodies (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you?: 

i'm originally from northern ontario, so nature is pretty important to me. i find myself drawing metaphors with water and forest and wind...definitely got some four elements stuff going on. i always feel pretty close to nature, it's something i'd like to channel more than i do. i like throwing in random bits of activism. i'm feminist, queer, and have a mental illness, so it's important for me to draw from these experiences--being a woman and having depression. it's important to look at these things and make light of them even when shit just seems pretty bad. i'm all about alienation effect, sounding really happy when the lyrics might be like "i am so depressed i hate everything where the frick is my whiskey". also tv shows and books...writing about real life is much harder than it seems.


4) If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel when they read what you’ve produced, or something that you’d like them to take away from your music, what is it?: 

i'd hope people feel inspired to do whatever they want. my music's about letting go and saying "fuck the system" in a way it's got a punk definition even if it doesn't really sound that way. i just want people to feel free. and cry.


5) Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite albums and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?: 

(last night we were) the delicious wolves by hawksley workman and apple cider (throw some booze in there if you want). they've both got a sort of edge, a tang if you will. there's something super cozy about both hawksley's music and apple cider where you want to snuggle into bed and just chill but also makes you want to get up and dance or sway and let go. it's a very "autumn" feeling i suppose--bundle up in sweaters and scarves and fall like leaves.


6) Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now. 

Winter Rowan's only real proud moments have to do with her work in musical theatre in high school, but she is very proud of her bandcamp and her clever album names. Right now, she's working as what she likes to call a "freelance musician" and taking song commissions online, hoping to make enough money to pay for her application on Ontario Colleges. She continues to try and fail at piano playing.



THE LIGHTNING ROUND:

1) What’s your desert island book/album/film?: hapsgood translation of les mis.


2) Which artist, living or dead, would you meet for lunch?: liza minnelli


3) Which Toronto restaurant would you take them to?: the spaghetti factory (that's the fanciest place i can think of oh my gosh i never go to restaurants except like subway)


4) Most underappreciated album out there, in your opinion?: 11:11 by regina spektor


5) Any chance you'll give us a little hint at what you'll be reading on the 25th?: think ukulele

Interview Sessions: Volume 4.1

Meet Ben Ladouceur.

Ben Ladouceur describes himself as a "die-hard man about town," which is something that very few people involved in Toronto's literary scene would be inclined to disagree with. After all, it's not uncommon to find Ben gracing the stage at one of Toronto's many readings, or to stumble across his poetry in your favourite journals. He's all over town, and not just this town, either -- his work has appeared in some of Canada's best titles, from coast to coast: Winnipeg's Contemporary Verse 2 and Victoria's The Malahat Review, as well as Toronto mainstays like The Puritan and Dragnet. [It is worth mentioning here that Dragnet has just launched their first anthology, in which Ben's work appears, and which you can order on their website.]

It doesn't take a long time to understand why Ben is in such high demand. His poetry, lyric though it is, also often shares the funny, instantly relatable nature of a good bar story. His poems are well measured and emotionally complex, with a solid, energetic core to them that makes reading them a genuine pleasure. When we first heard some of Ben's work, we were blown away by the balance they demonstrated, especially when you're lucky enough to hear them read in person. When he reads them aloud, the poetry takes on a new dimension: his delivery is straightforward and unpretentious, but very self-aware and with a clear understanding of how he wants his poems to function. The overall effect shares a lot with watching a comedian at the top of their game, in that you feel like you're in on a great joke, or that the poem you're listening to could only be understood by you and the people listening around you. It's a remarkable feeling.

Most recently awarded PRISM international's Earle Birney Prize for his poem "Gran Vals," Ben has also been nominated for a plethora of other poetry awards, including the John Lent Poetry Prize and The Pushcart Prize. And as if those weren't flattering enough, one of Ben's poems was even selected for inclusion in this year's Best Canadian Poetry 2013. 

Originally from Ottawa, where he achieved both an undergraduate degree in English Literature, and a Master of Arts degree in Canadian Studies, Ben has settled in Toronto for the moment (suck it, other Canadian cities!), and his reputation is going nowhere but up. We managed to harass Ben into answering a few questions for us before the reading on the 29th, which you can read below.

[Reply to this post with your favourite RL Stine Goosebumps book, and we'll give you a shout-out on Facebook and Twitter! We're calling Say Cheese and Die, though.]

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An Interview with Ben Ladouceur: Goosebumps, Making Pizza with Anne Carson, and Two Years of Dogs.

1) To get the ball rolling: For any audience members who have never had the chance to read your work before, how would you describe it? (For bonus points: on this month’s theme of ‘natural forces,’  what would the weather forecast be on the day your work is being read?)

The boring way to describe my work, I guess, would be to call it lyric poetry, often personal/confessional, and usually dwelling on queer themes. The weather forecast? It would be raining actual cats and dogs.

2) Can you remember the first time a writer's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about their writing caught your attention? Are there any elements of it that you still find yourself chasing, in some way?

The very, very first books to reach out and grab me? I am not ashamed to cite R. L. Stine’s “Give Yourself Goosebumps” (choose your own adventure) series, which were first published in 1995, when I was eight years old. I ate those books up. I can see why literary fiction and CYOA books have not, to my knowledge, done much commingling. However, I think the CYOA genre and lyric poetry have some common ground – most prominently, the use of the second person singular. It helps me to think of the beloved (the “you”) as a particular person – a reader who is following my instructions, taking my characterizations to heart, and enjoying the journey from point A to point B.

3) In your own work, are there any themes, images, or characters (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you?

There was a two-year period during which I mostly wrote about dogs. The other night I did a reading (the Dragnet Anthology 1 launch, which was a great time) and a friend from Ottawa, who hadn’t seen me read for years, came up to me after and was like, “What happened to the dogs, Ben??” I don’t know what happened to the dogs. These days, most of my work happens to focus on relationships of all sorts between males. I do not know precisely why this has become a theme of mine, but it has.

4) If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel when they read what you’ve written, or something that you’d like them to take away from your writing, what is it?  

I don’t know. There are no inappropriate responses. The best possible feeling I could instill in people, I guess, would be an urge to go home and make art. That’s the dream, right?

5) Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite works/authors and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?

Lorrie Moore and pinot grigio. I know, first hand, that they go well together.

6) Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now.

Ben Ladouceur is a die-hard man about town. He was recently awarded the Earle Birney Poetry Prize. His work has been featured in magazines such as The Malahat Review, The Steel Chisel, The Puritan, Dragnet, Ryga: a journal of provocations, CV2, Prism International, Echolocation, and Arc, and in the anthology Best Canadian Poetry 2013. His website is benladouceur.wordpress.com.

THE LIGHTNING ROUND:

1) What’s your desert island book/album/film?
Book: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
Album: Music in Twelve Parts by Philip Glass.
Film: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

2) Which artist, living or dead, would you meet for lunch?
Anne Carson.

3) Which Toronto restaurant would you take them to?
We’d make pizza at my apartment together and it would be adorable.

4) Most underappreciated novel/short story out there, in your opinion?
“The Torontonians” by Phyllis Brett Young.

5) Any chance you’ll give us a little hint at what you’ll be reading on the 25^th?
Think road trips.


-----

Ben Ladouceur currently serves as a contributing editor for Arc Poetry Magazine, and his work can be found online in The Puritan, Dragnet, and Ryga, as well as at his personal website. His published works include the chapbooks Alert, Mutt, and the forthcoming Impossibly Handsome. Should you care to tweet him to tell him about how much you love his work or how your day is going or something, you can find him under the handle @ItsBenLadouceur. 


Photo credit: Charles Earl.

Aftermath Sessions: Vol. 3

We Survived. (And, as far as we know, so did everyone else.)

Like the series finale of The Sopranos, it is suddenly over. Ruckus Readings Volume III: Don't Ruck it Up Now was more exciting than a Micheal Bay movie (and a good one, too, I'm not even going to waste time comparing it to a lump of stainless steel turd like Transformers 2), and had more heart than the first Kelly Clarkson album.

It was magical.

For those of you out there who missed it: I'm so sorry that your grandmother passed away/your airplane crashed into the side of a mountain in eastern Europe/you were suckered into a Lord of the Rings trilogy extended edition marathon. Because otherwise, I mean, I can't think of why you would have been anywhere else.

M.K. Morris woke up the neighbours with her ingeniously interactive rendition of "Steven Myerschmidt Bites the Big One;" Christine Bernier rocked her way through the night with covers of artists like Sleeping with Sirens, Britney Spears, and George Watsky (yep, that George Watsky); we saw cameo appearances from not one, but two Ruckus Alumni (Nicholas Daniel Michelis and Daniel Scott Tysdal, for those of you stamping your bingo cards); and Nicole Chardenet raised the rating to at least PG-13 with her plastic-boobed take on a portion of her newest novel, Sumer Lovin'. (And you know what? I'm not even going to explain how that one happened - that's your punishment for missing the reading.)

Now is the time to mourn your bad life choices, friends. Now is the time to weep over having lain down with Netflix and Skittles rather than trotting down to The Only to see the show. Luckily, however, redemption is close at hand.

Our next reading will be taking place SEPTEMBER 29th, at 7 PM, located in the one and ONLY CAFE (972 Danforth - but you knew that by now.) Slowly, with pieces of stale bread and pages of Donald Barthelme, we are luring our next cast of readers and performers out of the woods and into our den of vice and lunacy quite pleasant company.

Keep your radio dials locked!

... To "off," where they've probably been for the past few decades, and keep checking your browser of choice for further announcements on both RUCKUS READINGS VOLUME IV (tentative title: "A Fource to be Ruckoned with"), and on a few big projects we have coming down the pipes/tubes/playplace slides...

You won't want to miss 'em.

Interview Sessions: Volume 3.3

Nicole Chardenet: Not Safe for the Taliban.

If Nicole already looks familiar to those of you who have previously attended a Ruckus Reading, you may know her as Marlon Brando. At Ruckus Readings Vol. II, she was the lucky volunteer who gave an electrifying turn as the heartthrob actor after composing a poem at the behest of reader Daniel Scott Tysdal. And if you didn't get a chance to catch that, then you're still in luck: she will be reading for us from her newest novel this Sunday.

Nicole, we are pleased to report, came over to us here in Canada from the dark side (To readers who may not immediately get that: I mean America. (To our American readers: ha ha ha just kidding.)) In 2005, Nicole moved up North to Toronto. She "likes to tell conservatives it was all for the socialism but really, it was for better beer."

Either way, we're lucky to have her. Nicole describes herself as a "humorous fantasy author," and it only takes a quick peek at either of her novels to get a sense of what that means. "Zany" might be a good way to describe Nicole's trademark sense of humour. It's on the edge of pop culture, it's fun, it's guffaw-worthy - and it's so much more than that. 

Nicole's first novel, "Young Republican, Yuppie Princess," is the tale of a right-leaning, all-American gal and her three Dungeons and Dragons-loving friends (how embarrassing), who have to brave a pseudo-medieval alternate universe in order to rescue a proverbial damsel in distress. It ain't all fun and games, though: black magic, swordplay, and a "stupid prince who sounds like DeNiro on steroids" aren't making things any easier. Ye shall laffe, ye shall crye, ye shall love "Young Republican, Yuppie Princess!" [ED.'S NOTE: No, we're not sure if that was supposed to be medieval, either.]

Her most recent work, "Sumer Lovin'" (And yes, that's Sumer, not summer - think ancient Sumeria) comes to us courtesy of Deux Voiliers Publishing, and brings the fun a little closer to home with a story set in Toronto. When a strange earthquake hits the city, things start to change - and not in a "new bike lanes" way, either. All of a sudden, a fountain of youth pops up downtown, portals to the underworld are opening up faster than new sushi joints, a gorgeous woman is stalking and seducing Toronto's virgin men (with horrifying consequences), and a Jewish matchmaker from New York has to help solve everything. And if you want to find out how, well... you'll have to read the novel. 

If you want to know more, you have a few options: Miss Chardenet, who we can personally attest is a pleasure to meet in person, also has an excellent personal website where you can learn more about her, buy her books, or meet Belladonna, her partner in crime/henchkitty. She can be found on Twitter (@Nchardenet), Facebook, LinkedIn, or.... you can just read the interview below.

Right out of the box, tell us: how would you describe your writing to someone who hasn't ever read it before? (For bonus points: if it came with a safety warning, what would that warning be?)

I write humorous fantasy fiction, particularly for folks who are tired of fantasy fiction. In the process I like to take pokes at everyone and everything. In my first novel, Young Republican, Yuppie Princess, I had a go at ‘80s yuppies and Young Republicans, not to mention having some fun with all the stock characters of your average swords ‘n’ sorcery novel. Like a prince who's a total dirtball (kinda like Prince Humperdinck but not nearly as refined), a witch who’s a Goddess-worshipping feminazi – take that, all you ‘feminist’ historical revisionists who write silly, unhistorical books about alleged ancient matriarchies and Goddess worshippers!), a wizard who’s also a heavy metal aficionado (yeah – WTF?!?! There’s an explanation) and Conan-style tribal warriors, except only half as smart or good-looking. In Sumer Lovin’, my most recent novel, I brought the story to modern-day Toronto, the most romantically-challenged city in North America, as we follow several characters in their search for love (and occasionally lust), complicated by a band of demons and other bizarre denizens of ancient Sumeria who are released onto the relentlessly normal city from the Underworld via an earthquake.

Along the way I have my wicked way with Americans, Canadians, New Agers, women-hating men, men-hating women, and the city of Toronto, which is a wonderful place to live but in the immortal words of Jack Nicholson's Joker, “What this town needs is an enema!

SAFETY WARNING: Not safe for humourless uber-lefties or uber-righties, Islamophobes, anti-Semites, aging virgins, the Taliban, or scorpion aficionadoes.

Can you remember the first time an writer's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about their writing caught your attention?

The first author for whom I became a rabid fan was Dr. Seuss. Loved the stories, loved the whip-quick rhymes, loved most of all the outrageously fantastical illustrations and environments. What kid wouldn’t fall in love with fuzzy trees, castles and buildings on tiny little hills defying the law of gravity (not to mention local building codes!) and anthropomorphic creatures who wanted to be your friend? Was there any awesomer birthday celebration than in Happy Birthday To You!, especially that wicked cool fountain the birthday boy dove into, in his birthday suit? How ‘bout all the cool pets you could have in One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish? Or the trouble Horton goes through to save his Who? I still secretly jones for a Collected Works of Dr. Seuss collection. Santa...?

In your own work, are there any themes, images, or characters (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you?
I will steal take inspiration from just about anything. I have wide and varied interests so I will beg, borrow, and st--er, acquire--from anything that strikes me as odd, unusual, interesting or funny. I've been a practicing Pagan (I hope to go pro some day) for more than twenty years and I decided to put all that weird arcane knowledge to good use, so you will find many paranormal or occult themes in my novels. I love Toronto, having lived here for eight years, so I like to feature well-known locations around the city. Toronto's got a well-deserved reputation for being a bit tightassed, which is why I greatly enjoyed sic'ing a red-hot drop-dead gorgeous ancient hellbabe on its hapless population in Sumer Lovin'.

If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel, or to take away from your writing, what is it?
A really good laugh. Including several really guilty chuckles that make you think, as a Canadian, you’re probably going to hell for that, because I said something that might piss off (or, 'offend) some overly-P.C. Canadian somewhere. I’m not afraid to say what’s on my mind and I know I often say things that other Canadians privately think but don’t want to say out loud because they don’t want to take the caca for it. For example: I spoofed First Nations land claims and protests with a band of ancient agitators downtown who emerge from the Bank of America building, and their uber-lefty overly politically-correct defenders. I do support Native rights, of course, like every good Canadian, but it's near-impossible to have an adult conversation about Native issues with white guilt-ridden so-far-to-the-left-even-Fidel-Castro-can’t-see-you Canadians shrieking about how Natives have suffered and residential schools and blah blah blah. Yeah, we all know the history, can we please talk rationally about the present and the future for once?

Sorry, just can’t help being a bit of a firebrand. It’s the American in me. I’m still kinda new to this Canadian thing, having been here for only eight years and a citizen for about three months. It’s still easier for me to offend than to be offended. I’ll have to work on that.

Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite works/authors and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?
THAT'S OFFENSIVE!!! Oops, sorry, was just practicing being a Canadian. Let’s see, I’m a big fan of David Copperfield, which no one actually forced me to read, and I have also developed a taste for flavoured martinis, and that’s all Canada’s fault because in the States I had to drive, not that I had much surplus cash to drink with anyway. I’m not really sure how martinis are like David Copperfield, except that they’re rich and flavourful and David Copperfield eventually did well for himself and no one can argue that his novels aren’t chock-full of well-drawn, wickedly memorable characters, like the chronically ‘lorn widow Mrs. Gummidge, or the eternally optimistic Mr. Macawber, or Dumb Dora, or sweet, noble, gentle Agnes, or Tommy Trammell with his ridiculous hair. So, of course, chocolate martinis are memorably chocolatey, and sour apple martinis are teeth-on-edge delightful, and fruity martinis are tropically adventurous, and cosmopolitans make you look like one of those Sex & The City wankers.

Then again, David Copperfield won’t make you fat or so drunk you do something majorly embarrassing in front of your boss and all the senior managers at the office Christmas party, so really, you’re better off with David Copperfield.

Any chance you'll give us a little hint at what you'll be reading on the 25th?
I'll be acting out a scene from Sumer Lovin' in which Lamashtu, an ancient Sumerian demi-goddess and reigning hellbeast, attempts to seduce a 35-year-old virgin on a park bench in Nathan Phillips Square. Expect some faux semi-nudity (sorry, you'll have to attend to find out what 'faux semi-nudity' really means). Daniel Tysdal, who performed his own piece at the July Ruckus Readings, and who appears to have not a shred of inhibition, has agreed to play my aging virgin. And my friend Gord Jeoffroy will read some of the narration.

Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now.
Nicole Chardenet doesn't submit her work for many awards because she's afraid if she wins the Giller Prize people will think it's really literary and therefore it's gonna suck. Like a novel with a Mesopotamian nympho has a shot at the Giller, but whatever. Her next novel will also smite Toronto with sexual paranormal weirdness, so be forewarned.

Interview Sessions: Volume 3.2

MK Morris: You'll Laugh, But You'll Feel Immediately Guilty About It.

She's a writer. She's a filmmaker. She is a self-described "burrito enthusiast." (We have the same qualification on our resumes!) She is MK Morris. 

It was her keen comedian's sense for punchlines that first grabbed us (we can't wait to hear her piece live), but her art goes so much deeper than snappy zingers. With humour that is a little tongue-in-cheek, and a critical eye for the world around us, MK's work will make you think (just as soon as you've finished laughing). 

As you may be able to gather from her list of credentials, MK is a busy woman. The short story she submitted to us, "Steven Myerschmidt Bites the Big One," is now (perhaps unsurprisingly, all things considered) being toured around the film festival circuit, and we can only imagine how fantastically MK's sharp writing style has translated to the screen. She also maintains a Twitter presence under the handle @mk_morris, a youtube channel under the less-obvious handle NotTallAtAll, and has a demo reel up on Vimeo (just in case you're interested in bringing her on board to your own film projects).

How will she find time to read for us on Sunday? Well, we're expecting her to be reading from a director's chair as she squints into a camera lens, stopping repeatedly to yell things like "Cut!," "Rolling!," and "I'll be in my trailer!" ....which, on its own, would be worth seeing. 

We may not have an on-set catering service available this Sunday at The Only Cafe, but we do have an excellent selection of beer, coffee, tea, and literature - and if you're hungry for a little somethin' somethin' now, MK answered a few questions for us about herself and her work, that you can read below.

Right out of the box, tell us: how would you describe your writing to someone who hasn't ever read it before? (For bonus points: if it came with a safety warning, what would that warning be?)

Generally my works tend towards a comedy where people die – but it’s funny, I swear.


Warning: you’ll laugh but feel immediately guilty about it.


Can you remember the first time a writer's work really reached out and grabbed you? If so, who were they, and what about their writing caught your attention?


Joss Whedon is probably someone who first sparked my interest in writing. I usually write for film, prose is actually something I find very difficult. Something about Joss Whedon’s distinctive style, playing with genre, and subverting audience expectation really spoke to the type of writing I wanted to do. (However I managed to interpret this in my 10-year old’s mind though). Novel-wise, I’d definitely have to say Terry Pratchett. I actually recently found a “novel” that I wrote when I was about 12 (it was about 30 pages long), that was so clearly influenced by Terry Pratchett – it was absolutely riddled with footnotes and “clever” phrases.


In your own work, are there any themes, images, or characters (etc.) that you find yourself drawn to, intentionally or otherwise? What are they? Why do you think they resonate with you?
Schmucks. Unfortunate average people. I love superhero movies, but I think that super things happening to incredibly average people is kind of more interesting.

If there's one thing that you'd like people to feel, or to take away from your writing, what is it?
Enjoyment. Hopefully. Maybe?


Just for fun, give me a pairing: one of your favourite works/authors and one of your favourite beverages (alcoholic or not). Why do they go together? How do they complement one another?
American Gods by Neil Gaiman and a whisky sour. Drink whilst reading and you’ll look super classy.


Any chance you'll give us a little hint at what you'll be reading on the 25th?

A comedy in which someone dies. I’m sorry, I’m terribly predictable.


Last question: give us a short (less than 75 words) third-person bio blurb about yourself which covers any awards/distinctions you're proud of and what you're tackling right now.

MK Morris is a Toronto-based writer, creative producer, filmmaker, and burrito enthusiast. The short film based on her short story Steven Myerschmidt Bites the Big One is making the festival circuit, to (hopefully) many accolades. She is currently working on getting her TV show, Mama’s Green Tea, picked up, which won first place at Raindance’s Live!Ammunition! Pitch competition, with her writing partner Kaleigh Sutton.