10/09/2007: "Back!"

... the road is lawwww-whooong! with maaaaany a wind and bend / It leads us to whooooo knows where / Who knows where ...

Okay, so, back in Calgary after my vigorous constitutional in St. Catharines and England. A good time was had crashing on many couches, a couple a beds (always alone, lamentably), the cobbles outside a few boozers in a heap of my own puke (yes, that's right: I'm capable, when terribly intoxicated, of amassing a HEAP of puke; looks like a pile of wet leaves. Okay, so, I'm not really that manly), and wherever I could find succor in general. Thanks to my brother, Sam, Jay, Nicole, Kate, and everyone else who's doors I darkened; needless to say, if and when you're out Calgary way, you'll always to have a place to hang your hat---although I don't allow hats in my house, sorry. Unless you're wearing a buzzby, in which case I'd permit it.

Nothing that happened was of any great blog-worthiness. Good times, but not necessarily awkward or silly or strange or worthy of blogging. I did get some writing done while I was away---I know I said I'd take a break, but I'm a good-for-nothing liar in that regard---so I've got two novellas to print up (I wrote them longhand, which I haven't done in ages) which I think are good insofar as they are completely different from anything I wrote in RUST & BONE---not that I want to disavow those stories at all, just to say these are different, although a character from R&B shows up in one of these novellas---so once I've finished this other one I'll have the start of a pretty cool book, maybe. I was given an invite to submit work to Esquire, the fiction editor, but I seem to be completely incapable of writing a true short story anymore; 5,000 words just gets me warmed up, I'm afraid. So, sad as it is that I can't submit these there, I think the novella may be the right length for me, generally; it suits my masochistic nature that I'd chose the length editors are generally least interested in, and is toughest to sell.

So, what now? Well, I'm not sure. I've got to finish that novella. I go to Italy next month for the Umbria literary festival, and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone there and getting up to some shenanigans. After that, the party draws to a close. I've been sending out applications here and there. We'll see what happens on that. I don't know what I want to do, really, but I know I need to do something. I have been learning the kazoo in case I need to do some streetcorner busking; I've also been working on my mime skills and am happy to say my "trapped in an invisible box" bit is absolutely spot on. My organs all appear to be in good shape, so I can always sell those. Anyone with a complete liver is a greedy bastard; that's how I look at it. If you've got it, SHARE IT, that's my motto! So long as you throw a few ducats my way for the honor, you know?

Here's an old interview I don't think I ever posted. Conducted by Doug Johnstone, who I met in Scotland and who was a great dude. His book TOMBSTONING was great, and the followup will be called THE OSSIANS; a rock-band book, which is fitting, as Doug also play in NORTHERN ALLIANCE, a band. He's also got his PhD and I believe he can fly, or else bend animals to his will, or melt steel with his gaze, or something. Check it out if it so pleases you:

www.list.co.uk/article/4228-craig-davidson

All best,
Craig.