Wisconsin Book Festival: The Tweets

For part of one week every year, a city that bills itself as the cultural center of the Midwest hosts a slew of writers for the Wisconsin Book Festival. I went, and now, after this post, you can feel like you went too. What follows are tweet updates that I would have written had I a) kept a twitter page b) had text message capabilities on my cellphone and c) really felt that anyone cared at all what I had to say about anything. Too self-effacing? Ok, I'll give you that. But I also give you Wisconsin Book Festival: The Tweets.

(Note: To clarify for the twitter apostles out there, as I am unfamiliar with the twitter format for tweets, I will opt instead to post my "tweets" in the facebook status update format, which, I've come to understand, is recognized by MLA.)

Casey Thayer is at Avol's Books for Erinn Batykefer's poetry reading. First event for me, first event for the Book Festival. The crowd stirs with anticipation or discomfort: The chairs have no cushions and all the elderly notice and whisper to one another.

Casey Thayer News flash: Erinn Batykefer has just called me smart because I used the word "ekphrasis." Is it that easy to be seen as intelligent? I must be passing.

Casey Thayer hopes you all go to (and get the chance to read at) Avol's. Put it this way: arched doorways, a skylight, gloomy endless hallways, and used books. I am lucky to have gotten out of there without a backpack full of new purchases, especially given that I have had to start stacking books alongside my full bookshelf to my fiance's frustration.

Casey Thayer realizes that his "tweets" are probably way too long, character-wise, to be called traditional tweets. He will try to use abbreviations like "l8er" for "later" and "1erous" for "onerous," though he doesn't use "onerous" often, even when blogging, and agrees that the abbreviation isn't quite right.

Casey Thayer Erinn Batykefer reading on a scale of one (that being open mike nights at the feminist bookstore) to ten (that being any Ilya Kaminsky reading): nine.

Casey Thayer is at the Michael Perry/Loorie Moore reading. Alone among so many people who know each other and look like writers. Casey forgot to wear his ascot, or his shawl. No one talks to Casey.

Casey Thayer The Orpheum Theatre is beautiful and large. Up in front men with blinking red buttons over their hearts pace back and forth. What the hell?

Casey Thayer Two women behind me are talking about Michael Perry. "He's a wonderful reader," one says. "I love Michael," the other responds. Neither know I am listening in.

Casey Thayer Michael reads an essay criticizing writers who complain about their book tours.

Casey Thayer Loorie Moore starts by complaining about her book tour.

Casey Thayer On Friday, Casey is tired. He goes to the Wisconsin Academy People & Ideas reading but stays only until the poets and two fiction writers have finished reading. He attends a chili party and is nearly convinced to karaoke. Key word: nearly.

Casey Thayer Is it fair that when women write about wanting sexual connection they are empowered but when men do they same, they are creepy? I'm not too angry about this. I just wish I could write a poem about sex and not have people respond with "eww."

Casey Thayer Saturday! Chuck Rybak reading, then Verse Wisconsin small press panel.

Casey Thayer feels bad for Joel Friederich. He has some great poems. The problem? He's reading with the hilarious Chuck Rybak. It's so early, at least for poetry, that funny is what the audience is responding to.

Casey Thayer Chuck Rybak just said, "I googled myself," which, as he points out, sounds dirty.

Casey Thayer At the Verse Wisconsin small press panel, I feel the first wave of depression wash over me. Who reads these small presses? Will I toil in obscurity? Will I have to pay for my chapbook's press run?

Casey Thayer Salvation! Centennial Press. Check them out!

Casey Thayer While I am supposed to be at a panel led by editors and agents, I have instead retreated with a poet-friend to The Local Tavern. The Badgers are on TV and every time they score, which they do twice within the first 25 minutes of our arrival, we are given jello shots. The Buckeyes score and Austin asks, "Do we get a shot when they score? That's when we really need it." The bartender says, "I think I can arrange that." One hour later, I waddle in the direction of my bike.

Whew, that was a long and rambling post. I promise to keep my posts shorter in the future. If you have any observations or tweets to share about the festival, post them in the comments. Of course, this assumes that I will have a readership...