Tea and figs

June 28 to July 4: the week of the great slug conference.

On my way home, I passed four of them, silently stretching their way across the pavement. With every step, I feared the squish-pop under my shoe. These slugs were out for business. Surely, they would seek revenge.

I don't know what world event provoked such a meeting. There are safer things for a leopard slug to do than try to cross the road at midnight on a dark street. Perhaps the news of Michael Jackson's death just reached them. Perhaps they were on the long pilgrimage to a good viewpoint for the Canada Day fireworks (you know how slugs love fireworks). Perhaps this is the week when all slugs everywhere go back to the ravine and let the raccoons keep the city streets.

Labels: this is the week

Phew. Finally, the book has arrived!

Stacey and I have been working on the book for more than a year, but it's done! The launch party is Tuesday at the Gladstone -- a This Is Not A Reading Series event hosted by Pages Books. The waves of nauseating anxiety are starting to subside. (I bought a really cute skirt from Peach Berserk to wear to the prom part of the evening, so I'm starting to look forward to the launch without needing to get some air.)

Come party.

Labels: book, shameless

The Shameless book is finally here!

This is our beautiful cover, designed by the talented Sheila Sampath. Press release for our launch party is below.


SHE’S SHAMELESS / SHE’S WRITING
What media event five years ago transformed the lives of teenaged girls across North America? Here’s a clue: it had nothing to do with a boy wizard or the misadventures of trust fund brats. In June of 2004, Shameless, a magazine for “girls who get it”, first appeared on newsstands. Megan Griffith-Greene and Stacey May Fowles have assembled She’s Shameless: Women write about growing up, rocking out, and fighting back (Tightrope Books). To celebrate the launch of the inaugural Shameless collection, such contributors as Zoe Whittall and Shannon Gerard will perform short pieces. Five teenaged girls will join them on-stage and present monologues from a writing workshop conducted that afternoon by acclaimed writer and teacher Ibi Kaslik. The evening will conclude with an early ‘90s-themed, Sadie Hawkins prom, featuring a noted local DJ. – A This is Not A Reading Series event presented by Pages Books & Magazines, Tightrope Books, Shameless, NOW Magazine, Gladstone Hotel and Take Five On CIUT.

Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St West, Toronto
Tues June 23; 8pm (doors 7:30pm) $5 (Free with Book Purchase)

SHE’S SHAMELESS: Co-editors Megan Griffith-Greene and Stacey May Fowles have compiled She’s Shameless: Women write about growing up, rocking out, and fighting back, an anthology of fearless and funny non-fiction about strong, smart and shameless young women. With wit and honesty, the writers share stories of their teen experiences (both positive and negative) on everything from pop culture to high school principals. The book is founded on Shameless magazine's tradition of smart, sassy, honest and inclusive writing, and reaches out to young female readers who are often ignored by mainstream: freethinkers, queer youth, young women of colour, punk rockers, feminists, intellectuals, artists, and activists.

SHE’S WRITING: Acclaimed writer and educator Ibi Kaslik will conduct a late afternoon workshop at The Gladstone Hotel with five teenaged girls from across Toronto. Kaslik will guide the emerging writers through the process of creating a short piece. The girls will present their five monologues later that evening at the launch for She’s Shameless.

STACEY MAY FOWLES is an author, journalist and editor. She has contributed to numerous online and print periodicals, Open Book Toronto and The Walrus Magazine. Her first novel, Be Good, was published to wide acclaim. Most recently, she collaborated with artist Marlena Zuber on the illustrated novel, Fear Of Fighting She is the publisher of Shameless magazine. Fowles lives in Toronto.

SHANNON GERARD is an author and educator. Gerard’s recent installation Playing Doctor brought together various components of her multimedia projects, Boobs and Dinks: Early Detection Kits. She teaches a course at The Ontario College Of Art. For more info, visit: www.shannongerard.etsy.com

MEGAN GRIFFITH-GREENE is a writer and editor. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Shameless magazine, a Contributing Editor at Chatelaine, and the former Editor / Designer of The New Pollution. Her work has appeared in such publications as The Walrus and THIS Magazine. Griffith-Greene has long been an active advocate of youth rights, social justice and education issues. She lives in Toronto.

IBI KASLIK is a writer, journalist, and teacher. She graduated with her master’s degree in Creative Writing from Concordia University and her short stories and articles have appeared in literary magazines such as Matrix and Geist. Kaslik’s debut novel, Skinny, was shortlisted for Amazon's Best First novel award and the CLA Best Young Adult book is her second book, The Angel Riots, is her critically acclaimed follow-up, called “beautiful” by the Globe and Mail. Kaslik has taught creative writing in a variety of settings, notably high schools and The University Of Toronto. She lives in Toronto.

ZOE WHITTALL is a widely respected poet, novelist and performer. Her bestselling debut novel Bottle Rocket Hearts was on the Globe & Mail’s “Best Of Year “list. Whittall won the Dayne Ogilvie Award for Best Emerging Gay Writer in Canada, and was selected by NOW Magazine as emerging author of the year. Her poetry books include Precordial Thump. Whittall lives in Toronto.

Visit: www.shamelessmag.com and www.pagesbooks.ca

Stay in touch with your culture: join the This Is Not A Reading Series Facebook group

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Shameless: Stacey May Fowles, staceymayfowles@shamelessmag.com
Ibi Kaslik / This Is Not A Reading Series: Chris Reed, tinars@pagesbooks.ca, (416) 598-1447 ext 221

Urg. Haven't blogged in a while, but there's nothing like a snowstorm to inspire a little typing.

Yes, it's white outside, completely white, with progressively fainter outlines of trees, chimneys, rooftops. Molly Johnson is singing on the radio.

Let's recap: where are we? My website desperately needs an update, and probably a fresh design (though I still love the frames). Poked around a bit in the stats today, and found out that in addition to people Googling my name (I am the only one), here are some of the search terms that people are using to find me:

scrunched nipples
gandhi's tortoise
cartoon ninja dance
fisheries unions chikura japan
genius percentile
milking herself
crude sextant
sextant of the old north church
megan griffiths on page 3
ninja rice cookies hammer
manx speakers
penny farthing builders australia
how to sit for the scholatic aptiude test in ghana accra
is harriet the tortoise still alive
show dandi in gujarat state in the indian map
ninja theyre everywhere

My favourite; that last one. My lease favourite? Maybe "milking herself".

Here's my current view. More soon.

xo m

The text for my piece in the December issue of The Walrus is up. For interested parties: Let's Get Lost.

Labels: writing

After three crazy nights, my NXNE trip is over for another year. But I am pretty pleased by this year's adventure. Only a few misses. Nights two and three went as follows:

FRIDAY:
UltraMagnus
Spiral Beach
Dance Yourself to Death
Five Hot Bitches

Had to leave the last one, I'm afraid. I like Peaches (and some of her derivatives), but at the end of night #2, just couldn't get into the headspace necessary to tolerate a band who were screaming at me.

SATURDAY:

Always be prepared, and when it's a hot ticket show like Saturday's lineup at the Horseshoe, go ridiculously early. We were there at 8, had a table, and were laughing and drinking beer while the throngs lined up around the block to get in. Lineup was:

The United Steelworkers of Montreal
Oh Bijou
Sebastien Grainger
We Say Party, You Say Die

Good times, good music, and good to have seats with the place packed. Oh Bijou was my favourite. After hearing Casey play the NP acoustic set a few weeks ago, I thought the band would be like a bunch of balloons blowing around the backyard in the sunlight. And while the band was heavier than I thought they would be (maybe balloons filled with water?), the result was just as delightful as I had hoped.

Last year I gave up mid-festival, tired of lines, and only seeing bands that I already knew and liked. This year was great: saw some fantastic shows, ran into friends, only waited in one line, and got some nice story ideas out of the mix.

Labels: music, NXNE