Back From the Streetlight Reading

The Dec. 5 Streetlight Reading was a big success. Poet's Judy Longley and Charlotte Matthews were simply stunning. I felt flattered just to share the stage.

"Excerpts from Plastic and Zen" went over very well. I read, they laughed, applauded, and many approached me afterwards to tell me they liked it. There's not much more an emerging writer can ask for. I was honored, for instance, when Matthews simply touched my shoulder and said, "You were great. I was laughing"

New Part for Plastic
In a last minute change of mind, I decided to include the short Borges-inspired faux introductory letter for the faux excerpts. This was axed, rightly so I still think, by John Rubins, when he published "Plastic and Zen" in Tatlin's Tower in December 2001. He felt it seemed like it was trying a bit too hard in its humor, and in the context of that publication, I agree with him that it was best to let the excerpts stand alone and fight for themselves. For the reading, however, it gave me an interesting opportunity to present the work as a "found" piece, and set the tone for the excerpts.

Experience the Magic For Yourself
With all that said, here are some links:

Plastic and Zen's Lost Introductory Letter (Bonus Feature)

Excerpts From Plastic and Zen: A Self Help Book for Action Figures

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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Great reading Matt. Would like to see you read in person sometime.

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