It's almost the end of January 2015 and we've just had the State of the Union address. Time for the State of the Poet.
The New Year has kicked off with lots of excitement. First, I signed a contract with Dollar Shave Club to write weekly Pop Culture Haikus that, holy smokes, will provide a regular rent-paying source of income from poetry! And what was the secret to getting 'signed'? Just sitting out on the street on a Friday night, writing poems for passersby, having conversations, giving hugs, telling stories, being part of the night. These weekly haikus will cover new releases in film, tv, and music, with occasional asides to do things like lampoon the Superbowl ads. 21st Century Poet, selling out hard, fast, deep. Paying rent.
Speaking of rent, the other big huge major change has been moving to a new place, which will be the headquarters for our Production (not-a-)Company, Liminal LA! It's an old craftsman right by USC, which is either 'Downtown convenient' or 'in the hood', depending on your chosen lens. It has three major perks:
More things in the works, but this is the foundation for what promises to be a highly poetic and hopefully debaucherous 2015.
The New Year has kicked off with lots of excitement. First, I signed a contract with Dollar Shave Club to write weekly Pop Culture Haikus that, holy smokes, will provide a regular rent-paying source of income from poetry! And what was the secret to getting 'signed'? Just sitting out on the street on a Friday night, writing poems for passersby, having conversations, giving hugs, telling stories, being part of the night. These weekly haikus will cover new releases in film, tv, and music, with occasional asides to do things like lampoon the Superbowl ads. 21st Century Poet, selling out hard, fast, deep. Paying rent.
Speaking of rent, the other big huge major change has been moving to a new place, which will be the headquarters for our Production (not-a-)Company, Liminal LA! It's an old craftsman right by USC, which is either 'Downtown convenient' or 'in the hood', depending on your chosen lens. It has three major perks:
- It is so dirt cheap. Rent is about 60% of what I was paying at my last place, AKA a bit over half. Part of the decision to get serious about art and the business of art is cutting down on superlative expenses, and in a city like LA, rent is a humongous one. The new place means that if, each month, I make what I made in September from poetry alone, I can cover all of my expenses and not just rent. Hallelujah.
- It has a gigantic living space which we are keeping empty until we cram it full of PEOPLE! This is explicitly a live-work space for artists, hosting events, parties, productions, one-offs, open mics, discussion groups, lectures, film nights...the list goes on. And I can't wait to see it all.
- It has Derek Poppe, who is a dope DJ, a improv impresario, and an all-round mensch.
More things in the works, but this is the foundation for what promises to be a highly poetic and hopefully debaucherous 2015.