poetry

New poem: “Witch’s Lens” in Polu Texni

Published on by Sara Norja

My poem “Witch’s Lens” is out in Polu Texni!

Read it here: “My witchery awakens / with the rising season.”

I wrote this poem in April 2014, and edited it around a year later based on feedback from my writing group. (Yes, sometimes my poetry progresses veeery slowly, with edits happening ages after the first draft was written in a frenzy.) Another poem that improved significantly with the help of suggestions from my lovely group. <3

Sadly, unlike in the poem, Finland is still in winter's grip – we've got sun at last (sun! sun! sun!) but it's still close to zero and there's frost at night. I hope true spring comes soon and all things begin to grow. To paraphrase my poem: I want my witchery to awaken, my winter-faded soul to strengthen. I've been winter-tired and mired in a thousand busy things, but perhaps with the turning year I too can turn, awake and begin to live again.

Sunday recs: poetry from the classroom

Published on by Sara Norja

I’m teaching a literature tutorial this spring, and in our final class on poetry, I made my students read some speculative poetry. I wanted them to see that poetry can involve any genre, and be more than just the classic (and wonderful!) stuff we’ve been reading. So here are the poems from newer writers that I used in class:

Gas Giants by Maria Velazquez, in Issue 6 (“Catalyst”) of Stone Telling. This poem is so powerful, with its space imagery and family issues.

Sarcophagus, by N. E. Taylor, in Issue 3 of inkscrawl. So much story and implied emotion in two lines! Amazing.

The Loss, by Mari Ness, in Strange Horizons, 2013. Bird-girls and the feeling of flight. Wonderful.

April, by Nita Sembrowich, in the Spring 2013 issue of Goblin Fruit. Starting as a delicate evocation of spring, the last two lines really make this poem for me.

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I’m using a story by Ken Liu and one by Amal El-Mohtar in my teaching, too. Because yay for literary SFF. 🙂

Poem sale to Strange Horizons

Published on by Sara Norja

“Oh frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!” she chortled in her joy.

So yeah, I’ve sold a poem to Strange Horizons! Huzzah! “Taboo” will appear this summer. It’s got a fox in it.

I’m intensely happy about this, my first poetry sale of 2016. I love SH so much. This will be my third poem appearing in the magazine (the previous ones being Wolf Daughter and Raw Honey). Funnily enough, although I didn’t initially intend it to, “Taboo” fits in quite well with the Finnish-tinged fantasy/fairytale world of the other two poems.

“Village Woman” in the new Goblin Fruit!

Published on by Sara Norja

Goblin Fruit is back with a new issue after their tithed year.

My poem “Village Woman” opens the Winter 2016 issue.

I’m very happy and proud to be in this wonderful magazine along with so many fantastic poets. Some favourites from the issue include Shawna Lenore Kastin’s The Ice Maiden, Toby MacNutt’s Amber and Ash, and Andrew Crabtree’s Norns’ Feast (Charcuterie and Pairings).

Go forth and feast on poetry!

“Storm-yarn” in issue 9 of inkscrawl!

Published on by Sara Norja

The newest issue of inkscrawl is up – and with it, my poem “Storm-yarn”. I’m really looking forward to reading the other poems in this issue – guest editor Bogi Takács has got together some really exciting poets! And a nice big issue. Yesss.

I wrote “Storm-yarn” in August specifically for the submission call for this issue, but the original inspiration comes from a story I started in 2007 (!). I never did finish the story – it wasn’t really very good – but the notion of knitting up a storm came from there. I wrote a short poem-draft based around the idea in December 2012, but it went no further till Bogi announced the topic for issue 9 (Atypical Weather), and my brain started ferreting around for ideas. “Storm-yarn” bears no similarity to the poem from 2012, but the same idea of yarn and storms is there – and now it’s finally out in a form that I’m very happy with.

Poetry sale to Polu Texni

Published on by Sara Norja

I’ve sold a poem to Polu Texni – “Witch’s Lens”, due to appear around the Spring Equinox next year. Yay!

I’ve been lax with posting lately, alas, for the busyness has continued. I haven’t been writing as much after Nanowrimo, which is sad, but I have been tinkering a bit with my poetry collection. I really need to get that revised by the end of the year.

I should also probably make an awards post, but doing that is pretty daunting because my impostor syndrome keeps telling me it’s preposterous for me to do such a thing. Silly brain.

Sunday recs: Liminality

Published on by Sara Norja

Liminality is a wonderful magazine of speculative poetry. All the issues have been full of really interesting and challenging SFF/genre-bending poetry. Here’s a few special favourites of mine:

The Word for Love by A.J. Odasso, in Issue 1. A.J. is a tremendous poet (with two lovely collections out!) and this poem is gorgeous.

Entwined ‘Neath Stars and Empty Suns by Merc Rustad, in Issue 2. I’ve recommended this before but really it’s just so awesome and space opera that I’m going to rec it again.

Among the Dead by Lev Mirov, in Issue 3. A beautiful ghost story.

A Visit with Morgan le Fay by Sofia Samatar, in Issue 4. A bone-achingly lovely prose poem.

I’m still in the process of reading Issue 5, so let me just recommend the whole issue to you!

Sunday recs: cuteness, mythology and pirates

Published on by Sara Norja

I was just making a start on editing my upcoming Finnish short story as per the editor’s suggestions – very good suggestions! I love it when someone reads your work and points out possible things to improve and you’re like yesssss this will make it so much better.

Now for recs before I go to sleep in preparation for a superbusy week of journeying and conference.

Archana and Chandni by Iona Sharma (in Betwixt Magazine) – a charming tale of a wedding in space. This was ultimate comfort-reading for me.

ζῆ καὶ βασιλεύει by Sonya Taaffe (in Ideomancer) – inspired by Greek mythology, grimmer than the previous but beautiful.

The Saga of Captain Jens by C.S.E. Cooney (in Uncanny Magazine) – and finally, a silly, awesomely rhyming poem. I just love how Claire Cooney uses her rhymes! So inventive, so hilarious. Also, pirates.

Poetry sale to inkscrawl

Published on by Sara Norja

More publication news, yay! My poem “Storm-yarn” is forthcoming in Issue 9 of the lovely inkscrawl, guest-edited by Bogi Takács.

I’m really happy with this! “Storm-yarn” is a recent poem but based on an old story idea that never went anywhere. Worked out in poem form at least. 🙂

Sunday recs: Court of Fives and other stories

Published on by Sara Norja

Firstly: get yourself a copy of Kate Elliott’s newest book, Court of Fives. I finally got myself one and glommed the book in a few breathless sessions. I would’ve read it in a single day (I got halfway through in a few hours on my first reading session) but I was helping people move on Fri & Sat, so no book marathon for me. Anyway! It’s definitely the kind of book you want to enjoy in long, deliciously breathless sessions. Here’s how Kate describes the book:

I call this “Little Women meet American Ninja Warrior in a setting inspired by Greco-Roman Egypt” while the publisher has pitched it as “Little Women meets Game of Thrones meets The Hunger Games.” (source)

I could go on and on about how much I loved this book. 😀 I’m a huge fan of Kate Elliott’s work and look forward to her new releases. I was a bit apprehensive about the YA part, because in general I’m not a big YA fan – but Court of Fives was just a damn good book, and the YA was mostly in the protagonist’s age and some of the conventions in the book. OK, so I guess the YA thing also meant that the awesome worldbuilding couldn’t be described in as much detail as Elliott usually likes to do (and which I like). But it was also cool to see how much can be revealed through rather little overt description.

Things I loved: the worldbuilding (Ptolemaic Egypt creates great fodder for inspiration!); the sibling relationships (sisters being sisterly, yessss); the Fives game itself (great descriptions of action too); how the protagonist Jes kept on being sensible and making rational decisions despite being a teenager amid difficult circumstances.

I wish the next book was out already! 😀 I loved the ending for CoF, but damn, it was a tantalising one.

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In case you can’t get out and buy CoF right this minute, here are two delightful things to read in the meantime:

Et je ne pleurais jamais les larmes cicatrisantes magiques; c’est seulement un mensonge joli: Aarne-Thompson Index No. 310 by Elizabeth R. McClellan (in Niteblade) – a great Rapunzel poem with a twist. I do love a good narrative poem.

Stone Hunger by N.K. Jemisin (in Clarkesworld) – an excellent secondary-world story with creepy and compelling worldbuilding (as is usual for Jemisin – she has such good worldbuilding in all her novels too). After reading this and finding out that it was a sketch of sorts for the world of Jemisin’s newest novel The Fifth Season, I got even more excited about reading said new novel. I asked my local library network to order the book and apparently three copies are making their way to three libraries. Yay!

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So many exciting novels coming out or just appeared! I’m especially excited about Aliette de Bodard’s The House of Shattered Wings, Fran Wilde’s Updraft, and Zen Cho’s Sorcerer to the Crown. I wish I had more money so I could buy all the books, but I will ask my local library network to order them if nothing else – as in the case of The Fifth Season, it’s so great that they’re very much open to ordering new books based on customer recommendations. I heart libraries.