My Flirtation with Faulkner

I sidled up to Absalom, Faulkner’s giant, brushed up against his shoulders, winked, and said, “Come hither.”

He approached, though his slightly mocking look was anything but encouraging. “I am too deep for you,” his look seemed to imply.

Me, not deep enough? Psh, I’m as deep as they come.

Maybe I said it out loud because he threw up his arms and allowed me to stand before him.

“I’ve heard great things about you,” I said.

He allowed a weak smile, but said nothing.

Then, without any seeming prompt, he started talking.

And talking.

I was beginning to think he would run out of breath. But, no, he kept talking.

Good lord, I thought. This guy can string a sentence for pages.

But, I shrugged it off. The getting to know you process is always fraught. Give him a chance.

And, he kept talking.

At this point, I was beginning to wonder if he thought I was deaf, dumb or mute, and that’s why he went on and on in spirals of time and place that had me gasping as I tried to keep up.

And, he talked.

I started edging away in fitful intervals; fitful, because I wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing. I mean, I had heard so much about this guy!

My smile became pasted on.

It was a tremulous smile, though, borne of doubt about what the right thing to do was. I really had heard great things about this guy.

And, he talked.

I could not decipher whom he was talking about or whether that person was still alive or whether he was reminiscing or … what!

Maybe I was not deep, after all, because I put up my hand and said, “Sorry, I really have to go.”

He smiled that slightly derisive smile of his, which seemed to confirm his first impression of me as someone not of sufficient intellect to appreciate him.

Well, okay. But, life is too short.

I walked away.

Thus ended my flirtation with Faulkner and Absalom; well, Absalom, Absalom, if you want to get technical about it.

Phew.

Hello

I’ve been on blogging hiatus for a month, not foreseen. It just sort of happened. I continue to check, though not as frequently, the blogs I follow. Despite that, I feel as if I’m letting down the side. I notice, however, that, although some dedicated souls maintain a regular pace of posting, they seem to be the exception. So maybe my slower pace is not unusual. I keep meaning to give my blog the attention it used to receive, but alas one week follows another and – no new post! So this is simply a hello to my blogging friends. I hope life is good, personally and professionally.

Is There a Genre for This?

I have always maintained that my writing is hard to force-fit into a literary genre. Multicultural and literary come about as close as any labels can. My reading tastes are also wide-ranging. Here is what I have been reading in the last month.

• Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, winner of the 1952 National Book Award and a classic ever since. You might find it interesting that President Obama in college read and reread this novel until it was dog-eared. See The Washington Post excerpt from the upcoming David Marannis biography of the President.

• Cuentos de Amor de Locura y de Muerte [Stories of Love Madness and Death] a collection by the gifted Uruguayan writer Horacio Quiroga, who died in 1937.

• Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, a book of poems about the individuals buried in fictional Spoon River.

• Hope of Israel, a fabulous historical novel by Patricia O’Sullivan, “based on the true experience of Jews in Lisbon, Amsterdam and London during the politically and spiritually tumultuous 17th century." [Publishers Weekly]

• Inseminating the Elephant, a Pulitzer Prize finalist poetry anthology by Lucia Perillo.

• The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, a surprising page turner of a book that also lets one peek into early U.S. history.

• The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, a psychological novel by the award-winning Japanese writer, Yukio Mishima

• Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

How would you label my reading tastes?

What I’m Up To

• Playing with my new Kindle Fire. Loving it!

• Preparing so that I can eventually view my own short stories, poetry, et al. published as Kindle Singles.

• Rereading Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man to prepare for leading a class discussion. This remarkable, award-winning novel, now 60 years old, still offers up beautiful prose, brilliant insight into human behavior, and mastery of writing craft.

• Rereading Dostoevsky’s Notes from the Underground, also in preparation for the Invisible Man discussion. Ralph Ellison acknowledged the influence of this novella, among others, in writing his own National Book Award novel.

• Enjoying Spring.

• What’s up with you?

What’s in a Name?

Two authors from different cultures ask, “What is in a name?” The Irish poet Eavan Boland and the Puerto Rican playwright/poet Nancy Mercado conclude that the answer is of fundamental importance in defining one’s existence.

In her essay, “Lava Cameo,” Eavan Boland asks, “Was there really no name for my life [as an ordinary woman] in poetry?” Her search for her late grandmother helps Boland validate her “femaleness” in an otherwise largely male Irish literary tradition.

In her concluding essay to the collection What’s in a Nombre? Nancy Mercado states, “Naming is the spiritual act of living beyond the moment, of signifying something beyond the instant ….”

In both instances, each author reclaims the right to name herself and her work apart from the prevailing hegemony of gender and/or culture. In Nancy Mercado’s words, “The act of naming is rebellious; it is the expression of power over a thing or over someone ….”

It is also an affirming act. As Eavan Boland says, “I had written poems. Now I would have to enter them.”

In a perhaps less consequential way, I have renamed this blog. My literary name Judith Mercado now takes precedence over the previous title of Pilgrim Soul. This is a defining act signifying renewed focus on my literary life. I will always be a pilgrim soul, seeking and learning. This blog, however, will now focus primarily on Judith Mercado as a short story author, novelist, poet, and essayist.

Stay tuned.

My Short Story “Orphans And Hoodlums” Is Published!

“Orphans and Hoodlums” is included in phati'tude Literary Magazine’s current issue: WHAT'S IN A NOMBRE? This issue features Pulitzer-prize winners as well as lesser-known writers who explore Latino identity in America.





Their press release states, “WHAT’S IN A NOMBRE? sets out to investigate the diverse cultural identities of writers of Spanish descent by bringing together an amazing range of voices that we felt had been unfairly lumped into the category of “Hispanic” and “Latino.” ¿Qué hay en un nombre? What’s in a name?

¿WHAT’S IN A NOMBRE? celebrates and introduces readers to Latino writers from a U.S. perspective. Featuring a cavalcade of over 117 Latino poets, writers and artists, highlights include Interviews of Esmeralda Santiago, Oscar Hijuelos, Nelly Rosario, Gary Soto, and Junot Diaz; and tributes to Piri Thomas and Louis Reyes Rivera. Short stories by Rosebud Ben-Oni, Angie Cruz, Judith Mercado, Thelma T. Reyna and John Rodriguez. Artwork and photographs by Wanda Benvenutti, George Malave, Kukuli Velarde and more. Includes bilingual works in English and Spanish. The editors are particularly proud of a body of work that explores social protest and exploitation; the migratory experience; self-exploration or self-definition, including the exploration of myths and legends.

By no means is this issue complete, nor is it meant to be, but we have created a collection that includes some of the older, established writers alongside the newer and lesser-known voices that represent the different cultures thriving beneath the umbrella term of “Latino.” The authors here have courageously shared their stories with us through interviews, essays and poetry, where language, culture, history, religion, and gender issues are explored against the cultural backdrop of American culture. This groundbreaking issue is not only a great teaching tool, but it’s also an excellent addition in anyone’s library collection.”


I am proud to have “Orphans and Hoodlums” included in the most recent issue of phati’tude Literary Magazine. Established in 1997, it is an award-winning, internationally-acclaimed quarterly magazine published by the Intercultural Alliance of Artists & Scholars, Inc. (IAAS), an organization which promotes multicultural literature and literacy. It focuses on, but is not exclusively devoted to, the work of writers of African, Hispanic/Latino, Native American, Arab and Asian descent in an aim to provide a forum for quality works of diverse voices from around the globe.

The issue may be purchased here.