Epiphany, December 6, is a good time for epiphanies. I've had one. Having spent a fortnight with my wife, brother, sister-in-law, and young godson, I know, more than ever, that bonds of family, and love, are the most important elements of life. Therefore, I have decided to temporarily close Eyewear. It will be getting shut-eye, as I develop the new small press, Eyewear Publishing, and - perhaps - return in a new form. In the meantime, look for my future comments at Facebook and elsewhere. I won't be posting for the foreseeable future. Editing, teaching, writing, researching, and spending time with my family - will take up more time. Thank you for reading this blog over the years. Some critics were right - it had become shallow at times. The passion and commitment it takes to edit and write for years, on poetry, and life, cannot be easily sustained. And blogs are now dinosaurs. There are other, faster, slimmer, more elegant ways to reach people. Eyewear remains open, as a publishing venture. Keep an eye out for what will be next. Peace be with you.
THAT HANDSOME MAN A PERSONAL BRIEF REVIEW BY TODD SWIFT I could lie and claim Larkin, Yeats , or Dylan Thomas most excited me as a young poet, or even Pound or FT Prince - but the truth be told, it was Thom Gunn I first and most loved when I was young. Precisely, I fell in love with his first two collections, written under a formalist, Elizabethan ( Fulke Greville mainly), Yvor Winters triad of influences - uniquely fused with an interest in homerotica, pop culture ( Brando, Elvis , motorcycles). His best poem 'On The Move' is oddly presented here without the quote that began it usually - Man, you gotta go - which I loved. Gunn was - and remains - so thrilling, to me at least, because so odd. His elegance, poise, and intelligence is all about display, about surface - but the surface of a panther, who ripples with strength beneath the skin. With Gunn, you dressed to have sex. Or so I thought. Because I was queer (I maintain the right to lay claim to that
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We are very sorry to read this and wish you every possible success with all your future projects.
Best wishes from Simon & Rusty
Roy