Poetry Friday - Exploring The Mythic in Stone Telling 5

I've been a fan of the poetry magazine Stone Telling ever since its founder Rose Lemberg posted guidelines for the very first issue published one year ago. Every quarter, Stone Telling, publishes not only gorgeous, hauntingly surreal poetry that but also features nonfiction articles, occasional reviews, and a thought-provoking roundtable interview of its poets. In its first anniversary issue, co-edited for the first time by the fabulous duo of Rose and Shweta Narayan, Stone Telling explores the mythic.

I've read and listened (yes, you can listen to many of the poems) to this entire issue, which is stunning. Every poem is strong and compelling in its own manner. I found myself blown away by Delia Sherman's "Fathers," a poem in three sections, each section taking the point of view of a father figure from a famous Western fairy tale. JT Stewart's reinterpretation of Snow White is deftly rendered and evocative. Mike Allen's "Surviving Wonderland" is a whimsical, fun riff of that most famous Alice. Sonya Taaffe delivers a gem of a poem in "Graffiti."

At Stone Telling, one can not only read poems but also listen to poems, and one that I think everyone should hear (and read) is Alexandra Seidel's "A Masquerade in Four Voices" (and not b/c I happen to be one of the readers for the poem; in fact, I think I'm the weakest link). Listen to this poem! It's so cool. Alexa's two voices are darkly, chillingly gorgeous; Nathaniel Smith reads an ever-so-earnest young man; and Mike Allen is awesome as God.

Allen is a three-time contributor to this issue, as he also gives a concise review of another poetry magazine Not One of Us. But leading the nonfiction section is Goblin Fruit Co-Queen Amal El-Mohtar heading a lovely retrospective series about The Journal of Mythic Arts, a site that was edited by Terri Windling and Midori Snyder. A must-read for this issue is the thought-provoking Roundtable interview moderated by Julia Rios. I am still contemplating the concept of "passing." Stone Telling's mythic nonfiction also includes my article is entitled "In Search of Truth and Beauty within the Intersection of Multicultural Mythology and Poetry." It's a bit of a hybrid piece, separated by haiku, like I like to do.

Feel free to explore all of Stone Telling's Mythic Issue. If you like what you see, please consider donating to Stone Telling (link at bottom of page).


Power of old tales
is in the re-telling...so...
Go tell your own myths!