“Chaos Theories of Goodness” by Tanya Bellehumeur-Allatt, reviewed by Steve Luxton

Shoreline Press (2022), 70 pp., $14.95 (paper). Available here.

In her poetry collection about the Covid epidemic, Chaos Theories of Goodness, Tanya Bellehumeur-Allatt remarks that if you’d predicted during the cheerful New Year’s celebration of 2020, what actually was about to happen, she would never have believed it, let alone imagined it. But it did, and so now, with her wings and ours too, clipped, she shows how the use of imagination gave her a path through the ordeal. Stuck unexpectedly at home, she dealt with her cabin fever and concern by writing a daily poem.

Chaos Theories is a series of poetic commentaries about her – and our – life while flapping dispiritedly within the cage of Covid 19. She discusses the details, both inner and outer, of suffering enforced domesticity.

There’s no shrill outrage or bellyaching here, just her sincere, quietly earnest voice expressing real anxiety at this contemporary plague. In her poem “Passover Prayer,” she writes: “May the angel of Death/on its gruesome flight/over nation, province, village/pass over us.”

Like all of us, she deeply longs for the bug to be gone, when she’ll happily join the rest of us with “the whistles, warbles and shouts/of our communal cheer.” But she also recommends a little proportion. In the poem “Plague,” she describes a huge East African cloud of locusts blocking daylight, so voracious they’ll “eat the tongue/right out of your mouth.” While in another piece, aptly titled “Perspective,” she tells how monstrous African floods have displaced and left thousands destitute.

Tanya

So, count your blessings.

She proposes that one way to do this, when your secure routines are swept away, is first to accept and even ratify the change, as in “Looking at Caravaggio’s Entombment”: “You are right where you belong.” Then, to seek nourishment in and note the small, meaningful things, which she describes in “My List of Small Things.” Also, she reminds us that mass dislocations – particularly epidemics – while painful at first and isolating, have paradoxically permitted the time for learning and great bursts of creativity in the arts and other fields.

Bellehumeur-Allatt writes: “I sign us up for lessons online:/ … We will emerge from our quarantine like Shakespeare/ And Newton, with theories and plays and solutions.”

The poet is not into unchecked moaning and groaning! She seeks out the constructive side of our current tribulation. Also, the funny one. Her fine sense of humour shows in “Dishevelment: A Sonnet,” where she laments how with the hairdressers shut due to the lockdown, our hair, grown out and self-styled by our own amateurish hands, is such a sight, the only solution is to “turn our mirrors to the wall.” Elsewhere, she prophesies mischievously that, after the epidemic, there will be a similar outcome as that which followed the Great Northeast Blackout – plenty of babies!

Bellehumeur-Allatt’s poems are serious but also, when life urgently requires it, comic and even light-hearted. Moving, intelligent, always accessible, they eloquently speak to and for us in this abnormal and surprising time.

***

Steve Luxton lives in Hatley, Quebec, and is currently Writer in Residence at the Lennoxville Library. This article originally appeared in The Townships Sun (Vol. 49 No. 5 February 2022) p. 17.

Note: You can read a whole collection of Covid pieces on Quick Brown Fox, including two poems from Tanya and even a piece by me. Just click here and scroll down. ~Brian

See Brian Henry’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.

Albert Whitman & Company seeks picture books, middle grade fiction, and young adult novels

Albert Whitman & Company

250 South Northwest Highway, Suite 320
Park Ridge, Illinois 60068
U.S.A.

https://www.albertwhitman.com/

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Also, if you’re not yet on my newsletter, send me an email, including your locale, to: brianhenry@sympatico.ca ~ Brian

Albert Whitman & Company has been publishing award-winning children’s books since 1919 and has a long-standing policy of accepting submissions from un-agented authors. They’re seeking picture books, middle-grade fiction, and young adult novels.

Specifically:

Picture Books, fiction and nonfiction, for children ages 1 to 8. Word count:  Up to 1,000 words.

Middle Grade Novels for children up to age 12. Word count: Up to 35,000 words.

Young Adult Novels for ages 12-18. Word count:  Up to 70,000 words.

Full submission guidelines here.

Author Jennifer Mook-Sang

If you’re interested in writing for children or for young adults, don’t miss the online Writing Kid Lit workshop, with Kids Can Press senior editor Patricia Ocampo, August 13. Details here. 

And in the fall, join us for an online Writing Kid Lit weekly class, Wednesday evenings, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., Oct 12 – Dec 7, 2022 {Or to Dec 14 if the course fills up}. Details of all fall classes here.

Beyond that, Brian's schedule continues to take shape:

Online: Writing and Revising, Sunday, August 14. Details here.

Weekly classes {Details of all fall classes here}: 

Online: Enjoying Creative Writing, Tuesday afternoons, 12:30 – 2:30, Oct 11 – Dec 6, 2022 {Or to Dec 13 if the course fills up.} Details of all fall classes here.

In-person: Enjoying Creative Writing, Thursday evenings, 7 – 9 p.m., Sept 29 – Nov 24, in Burlington. Details here.

Online: Writing Personal Stories, Monday afternoons,  12:30 – 2:30, Oct 24 – Dec 5, 2022 {Or to Dec 12 if the course fills up.) Details of all fall classes here. 

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Tuesday evenings, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m., Sept 20 – Dec 6, 2022 {Or to Dec 13 if the course fills up. No class Oct 4}. Details of all fall classes here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Wednesday afternoons, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m., Sept 14 – Dec 7, 2022 {Or to Dec 14 if it’s fill. No class Oct 5}. Details of all fall classes here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Friday mornings, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Sept 23 – Dec 9, 2022 {or to Dec 16 if the course fills up. No class Oct 14}. Details of all fall classes here.

In-person: Extreme Creative Writing, Thursday evenings, Sept 29 – Dec 1, in Burlington. Details here.

Writing Retreats:

Lake Simcoe Writing Retreat at The Briars,  Friday, Sept 16 – Monday Sept 19, 2022. Enjoy a weekend of writing at an elegant southern Ontario resort. Details here.

Muskoka Writing Retreat at Sherwood Inn, Friday, Oct 14 – Monday Oct 17, 2022. Details here. 

To reserve a spot or for more details about any course, workshop or retreat, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

 

Markets for your short stories, essays, memoir, humour pieces, etc ~ and some of them pay

Note: You can hang out and chat with quick brown foxes and vixens on my Facebook page (here). Just send a friend request to Brian Henry.

Also, if you’re not yet on my newsletter list, send me an email, including your locale, to: brianhenry@sympatico.ca ~ Brian

Pure Slush is looking for contributions to their anthology, Marriage – Lifespan Volume 6. Stories and essays should run 150–1,000 words; submit a maximum of 3 prose pieces. Poems should run 80–1,000; submit a maximum of 5 poems.

Deadline: July 31, 2022. Full submission guidelines here.

Volume 7 of Pure Slush’s proposed 12-volume Lifespan series will be on Home. The submission period will open up sometime after July 31.

 

Canadian Notes and Queries considers a wide variety of non-fiction (literary and cultural criticism, essays, memoir, humour) written either from a Canadian perspective, or about Canadian subjects, for publication. 

Please include with your pitch or submission a brief biography and attach or link to other relevant work. Like everyone else, “CNQ aims for diversity in the voices it publishes, so if you are a member of what you believe is an underrepresented cohort, feel free to identify yourself as such (though identification is no guarantee of publication).”

Pays 10 cents a word to a maximum of $200, plus a one-year subscription to the magazine.

Full submission guidelines here.

Femke magazine targets a mostly Canadian audience that ranges from 19 to 35 years old, that’s creative forward-thinking, body-positive, and loves fashion, music, and their environment. 

Femke publishes pieces online two or three times a week and publishes a print magazine once a year.

They’re accepting pieces for these categories and sections:

That’s Random – Relevant, creative pieces from 200–2,500 words.

#FridayFeminist – short profile, birthday must land on the Friday, humanitarian focus, 200–500 words

#StyleMania – relevant, creative pieces, 200–1,000 words

#WorthIt – short, relevant book, theatre, film, and music reviews, 200–500 words

Femke Magazine – fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry, 50–2500 words

Pays: $0.06 cents per word, $40 for poems, $50 per page for comics, $25–$200 for illustrations

Submission period: Anytime. Full submission guidelines here.

TheDalhousie Review is a literary journal published tri-annually by Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. They invite submissions from both established and emerging writers in Canada and around the world.

Poetry submissions may consist of up to five poems on any subject and in any style.

Fiction submissions may be up to 8,000 words in length, and no submission may consist of more than one story.

Nonfiction submissions may be up to 4,000 words in length, and no submission may consist of more than one essay.

Reviews may be up to 1,000 words in length, but please contact the Review Editor for guidelines before submitting unsolicited reviews. Publishers may also submit copies of new titles on the understanding that no review is guaranteed.

Contributors receive two free copies of the Review.

Full submission guidelines here.

 

Canadian author Elaine Cougler (www.elainecougler.com) is seeking contributions for an anthology to be published in 2023 in time for the July 1 Canada Day celebrations. 

The book length publication will feature unique and true stories of people who escaped their homeland and settled in Canada as a result of the Second World War or because of other warring troubles in their home countries. The publication will show that our country is made up of amazingly strong people who escaped something bad and created something good.

The submissions may be written by the participant or by relatives or friends of the participants. This is a chance to shine the light on true family stories which may not ever have been told in a formal way.

Submissions should be fully edited short stories, book chapters, short novellas or narrative poems written by the person submitting about people who ended up in Canada.

Deadline November 1 2022. Full details here.

Quick Brown Fox Quick Brown Fox welcomes your book reviews and your short stories, poems, and essays about reading, writing, favourite books, and libraries. Read a few essays on the blog to get a taste of what other writers have done (see here and scroll down).

Quick Brown Fox also welcomes reviews of any kind and of anything, anywhere or anybody. If you want to review your favourite coffee shops or libraries, babysitters or lovers (no real names please), go for it. See examples of book reviews here (and scroll down); other reviews here (and scroll down).

Submit to: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Include a short bio at the end of your piece and attach a photo of yourself if you have one that’s okay.

 See Brian Henry’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.

“Taking My Show on the Road” Rosemary Kilpatrick

 

It was all Barbara Streisand’s fault. I was about four when I heard Streisand sing “People” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from the hit Broadway musical Funny Girl. Whenever I heard the songs on the radio, I sang along. I wanted to be a star, too, like Fanny Price, and take my show on the road.

Peterborough, Ontario, is a long way from Broadway, but that didn’t stop me. After dressing in my mom’s crinoline slip and pearls, I was ready for the stage. I walked out the front door to start my career.

We lived on a side road that had about twelve houses on it. At the end of our street was the main artery from the south to the northern part of the city. Along the way were two factories and a few schools. Crossing Monaghan Road was a challenge, even for me.

I had my repertoire of songs. I had my stage outfit. I started knocking on the doors of various houses on my street. My audience awaited me. Surprisingly, no one answered any of their doors.

Not one to give up easily, it was time to venture further afield: I crossed the main road. I looked both ways, then stepped off the sidewalk with confidence and determination. I made it without incident. 

I straightened my dress, I climbed the three or four concrete steps to a house that, to me, looked inviting. It was a brown and red brick bungalow with white shutters beside the two front windows. My small hands knocked on the front door. 

Within seconds, I had my first audience. She was tall, though, everyone is to a child. She had brown curly hair, much like my mother.

“Hello,” she greeted me with a smile.

“I am here to sing for you,” I announced.

“Oh, are you by yourself?” she asked while looking behind me.

I looked over my shoulder. Nobody there. "Yes,” I assured her. “All by myself.”

“Perhaps you should come in,” she said, and gently led me into her kitchen.

Inside, I had milk and cookies while a radio played in the background. She asked me where I lived. I pointed in what I thought was the direction to my house.

She turned up the radio when the announcer said something about a missing child in the area. Then the lady made a phone call. After a few minutes, there was a knock at her door. I heard her talking to someone. Shortly after, she returned with a ginormous man in a black police uniform. He kneeled next to me.

“Would you like to go home now?” he asked kindly.

“But I have to sing to this lady first,” I said and my chin started to shake.

“It’s okay,” she said. “I’ll listen to you perform another day.”

I took the huge officer’s hand as he guided me to the black and white police car parked on the street. I instantly panicked and started crying and screaming. Crossing a busy road to start my musical career hadn't been a concern, but I was frightened of the man and the car.

The officer talked into his car radio. He came back to sit on the front veranda with the lady and I while we waited. I didn’t know what was going to happen next. All I knew was I didn’t do anything that warranted being arrested. I just wanted to sing my songs.

A second police vehicle eventually arrived on the scene. I thought I was really in trouble because more police were needed to arrest me. Through my tears, I saw my mom step out of the car. 

“Why are you arresting my mommy?” I cried as I ran to protect her from the police officers. She swept me up into her arms and we cried into each other's shoulders. I thought for sure they were going to take her off to jail.

She wiped my hot teary face. “This nice officer is taking us to our house," she said.

“Are we going to jail after?”

“No, sweetheart.”

She let me down gently so I could climb into the back seat with her, and I sat safely in her arms as we drove away from my audience.

After a warm bath, and some dinner, I was tucked into my bed. My parents hugged and kissed me good night. My fans would have to wait another day before I could take my show on the road.

***

Rosemary Kilpatrick retired to Marsh Lake, Yukon Territory, with her husband, Robert, and their three dogs. Since then, she’s read many “how to write a novel,” books by various authors. In 2021, she enrolled in the Creative Writing Certificate program at the University of Guelph. When Rosemary isn’t writing, she loves cooking French and Italian cuisine, enjoys wines, reads, and is learning to play Gracie, her cello. She is currently working on her first book about a family journey. 

See Brian Henry’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.

Four agents at ARC literary seek authors ~ picture books to adult fiction and nonfiction

A Beautiful, Terrible Thing, a memoir
by Jen Waite, represented by ARC 

ARC Literary Management

New York

https://arcliterarymanagement.com/

Note: Don't ever miss what’s happening with Quick Brown Fox. If you’re not yet on my newsletter, send me an email, including your locale to:  brianhenry@sympatico.ca   ~Brian

ARC is a new full-service literary agency established by Myrsini Stephanides in the fall of 2021. She was previously with the Carol Mann agency. ARC represents everything from picture books to adult fiction and nonfiction. All four agents at ARC are looking for authors:

Agnes Carlowicz joined Arc Literary Management in April 2022 as a full-time agent. As the most junior member of the team, she is likely the hungriest for new authors.

Agnes began her publishing career in 2015 as assistant to Joy Tutela at the David Black Agency, while completing her English B.A. and Creative Writing concentration at Barnard College of Columbia University in New York. In 2017, she joined Carol Mann Agency as assistant to the president where she worked closely with renowned novelist and essayist Paul Auster. 

While there, she began growing her own list to include authors from varied perspectives interested in disrupting the status quo. Agnes wants to use her position in the publishing industry to help create a world where writers are liberated to unabashedly express themselves, and readers of all identities see themselves represented on the page.

In Nonfiction, Agnes is looking for projects written from underrepresented perspectives covering both history and current events, intersectional social justice, lifestyle with a personal touch, deeply honest and self-reflective memoir, and fresh humor/gift books.

Agnes would love to see fiction that includes well-developed and imperfect characters with atypical relationships dealing with relatable issues.

In children’s, Agnes is interested in complex topics made palatable for kids of all ages for parents to read with their children. She would also love to see heart-warming stories and silly wholesome humor.

Submit to Agnes through her query manager here.

Iris Blasi has close to two decades of experience in publishing, working in multiple facets of the industry. She joined Arc Literary Management in 2021 after four years at the Carol Mann Agency. Prior to becoming a literary agent, she was Marketing Director and Senior Editor at Pegasus Books. She has held editorial, marketing, publicity, and consulting roles at Random House, Pegasus Books, Union Square Press, Open Road Media, literary PR firm Hilsinger-Mendelson, and consulting firm Idea Logical, Inc.

She has worked on best-selling and award-winning books by authors including Lawrence Block, Rachel Carson, Michael Dirda, Erica Jong, Ira Levin, Alexandra Silber, Jerry Stahl, Gloria Steinem, Charles Strouse, and Fay Weldon.

She is seeking nonfiction in the categories of biography, memoir, history, science/nature, pop culture, cultural criticism, current events, politics, and narrative nonfiction. She has a strong interest in feminism (especially intersectional feminism), in nature, climate change, and conservation, and in social and racial justice. She has a particular penchant for books stemming from a quirky journalistic, academic, or personal obsession. 

On the fiction side, she is presently seeking literary and commercial fiction with a strong voice. She is also seeking upmarket mysteries and thrillers. She has a special weakness for books about a major event (a wedding, a reunion, a funeral) that reunites a group of people, books that take place in compressed time periods or places (i.e. The Dinner), books set in boarding schools or on college campuses (Prep; The Secret Place), and books with a gently comic touch.

She is a big fan of Jami Attenberg, Megan Abbott, Taffy Brodesser-Akner, Emily Henry, Linda Holmes, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Curtis Sittenfeld, Emma Straub, J. Courtney Sullivan, Jonathan Tropper, and Kevin Wilson, and would love to see submissions along any of those lines.

Query Iris at: iris@arcliterary.com

For fiction, send a query letter including a brief bio and, if applicable, publishing history with sales figures, and the first 25 pages of your manuscript. For nonfiction, send a query letter including a brief bio and a proposal with sample material. All material should be pasted into the body of your message; attachments will not be opened.

Maile Beal joined Arc Literary Management in 2021 after over five years at the Carol Mann Agency. She began her career as an intern before becoming subrights manager and assistant to Myrsini Stephanides and eventually growing her own client list.

She is passionate about advocating for writers and artists so that they are empowered to create work that will have a lasting impact – books in which readers will see themselves represented, find tools for social change, learn something new, connect with a different perspective, and deepen their understanding of the world.

Maile is interested in adult nonfiction as well as children’s, middle grade, and YA fiction and nonfiction. In all categories, like everyone else, she is looking for projects that amplify underrepresented voices and untold stories.

In adult nonfiction, Maile is interested in journalistic, investigative deep dives, narrative retellings of untold histories, business and leadership resources centering underestimated identities, lifestyle and cookbooks with a fresh, personal hook, and unexpected humor and gift books.

In children’s, Maile is seeking fiction and nonfiction in all age categories. In picture books and MG, she gravitates toward heartfelt, earnest stories that use humor and silliness to connect with readers. In YA, she’s drawn to voice driven projects focusing on community and relationships with strong, complex characters that will stick with readers beyond the last page.

Submit to Maile through her query manager here.

Myrsini Stephanides founded Arc Literary in Fall 2021. A publishing professional with over 20 years of experience in the industry, she spent the first 10 years of her career as an editor at book packagers, Indie, and Big 5 publishers specializing in illustrated nonfiction. From 2009 to 2021 Myrsini was a literary agent at the Carol Mann Agency, where she built an eclectic roster of clients while managing day-to-day operations.

From 2009 to 2021 Myrsini was a literary agent at the Carol Mann Agency, where she built an eclectic roster of clients while managing day-to-day operations. She brings her clients and her passion for fostering a supportive community around colleagues, affiliates, and budding creatives to her next chapter at Arc Literary.

Myrsini is currently looking for projects in the following adult categories: voice-driven business/tech books with clear perspectives from experts in their fields; scientist-storytellers writing accessible narratives for a general, non-academic audience; women's health, self-care, and progressive parenting books geared toward a millennial audience; narrative humorists and/or illustrators with unique voices and a strong platform/community of supporters (on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, etc).

In the children’s world, she is looking for early readers, middle grade and young adult fiction; graphic novels for all reading levels; narrative or illustrated nonfiction for all reading levels; picture books by writer-illustrators (no scripts without illustrators already attached).

Like everyone else, Myrsini welcomes submissions (adult and children’s) from authors and creators with diverse backgrounds who have been misrepresented or marginalized and want to share their work with the world.

Submit to Myrsini through her query manager here.

Full submission guidelines here.

Kids Can Press Senior Editor
Patricia Ocampo

If you’re interested in writing for children or for young adults, don’t miss the online Writing Kid Lit workshop, with Kids Can Press senior editor Patricia Ocampo, August 13. Details here. 

And in the fall, join us for an online Writing Kid Lit weekly class, Wednesday evenings, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., Oct 12 – Dec 7, 2022 {Or to Dec 14 if the course fills up}. Details of all fall classes here.

Beyond that, Brian's schedule continues to take shape:

Online: Writing and Revising, Sunday, August 14. Details here.

Weekly classes {Details of all fall classes here}: 

Online: Enjoying Creative Writing, Tuesday afternoons, 12:30 – 2:30, Oct 11 – Dec 6, 2022 {Or to Dec 13 if the course fills up.} Details of all fall classes here.

In-person: Enjoying Creative Writing, Thursday evenings, 7 – 9 p.m., Sept 29 – Nov 24, in Burlington. Details here.

Online: Writing Personal Stories, Monday afternoons, 12:30 – 2:30, Oct 24 – Dec 5, 2022 {Or to Dec 12 if the course fills up.) Details of all fall classes here. 

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Tuesday evenings, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m., Sept 20 – Dec 6, 2022 {Or to Dec 13 if the course fills up. No class Oct 4}. Details of all fall classes here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Wednesday afternoons, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m., Sept 14 – Dec 7, 2022 {Or to Dec 14 if it’s fill. No class Oct 5}. Details of all fall classes here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, Friday mornings, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Sept 23 – Dec 9, 2022 {or to Dec 16 if the course fills up. No class Oct 14}. Details of all fall classes here.

In-person: Extreme Creative Writing, Thursday evenings, Sept 29 – Dec 1, in Burlington. Details here.

Writing Retreats:

Lake Simcoe Writing Retreat at The Briars resort,  Friday, Sept 16 – Monday Sept 19, 2022. Enjoy a weekend of writing at an elegant southern Ontario resort. Details here.

Muskoka Writing Retreat at Sherwood Inn, Friday, Oct 14 – Monday Oct 17, 2022. Details here. 

To reserve a spot or for more details about any course, workshop or retreat, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

 Navigation tips: Always check out the Labels underneath a post; they’ll lead you to various distinct collections of postings. If you're searching for more interviews with literary agents or a literary agent who represents a particular type of book, check out this post.