That Shrinking Feeling
By Lauren Mitchell (Bendigo Advertiser Sat Oct 8, 2011)
Little words go a long way for author John Holton.
Some of life’s most important things happen at the kitchen table; family meals, lazy Sunday breakfasts, publishing...
For Bendigo author John Holton, the toast crumbs have been pushed aside for the time being for the production of his latest book, Cowness, a follow-up to The Little Book of Nowhere. Both titles are teeny tiny collections of John’s poetry, hand made with a needle, thread, and plenty of soul.
Since John began writing in 1997, his short stories have appeared in every literary journal in the country, he has had more than 10 books published, and now he writes a weekly column, Between Here and Home which appears every Tuesday in the Bendigo Advertiser.
John says although his latest books fit in the palm of his hand, he is as proud of them as any other achievement.
He says the shift from short stories and feature articles to poetry happened partly by accident.
“A few years ago my stories magically began to shrink,” he says. I wrote a whole batch between 2005 and 2007 that, at their longest, were only around 400 words, but the shorter ones were as small as 80 to 150 words.
“I started to question whether they were stories or not and how they might translate to poetic form. The Little Book of Nowhere has several poems that began life as stories. It was an interesting transformation from prose to lines and stanzas. Many became something else all together.”
John says his little books are a conscious decision to move away from mainstream publishing to something unique and handmade.
“It’s funny – when I started writing, almost 15 years ago, my aim was to see my books in bookstore windows – I wanted to be Tim Winton and Peter Carey rolled into one,” he laughs. “Somewhere along the road that all changed. When I wrote short stories, they were published widely – that was my measure of success back then. It’s been a different approach with poetry.
“Those that have been published appeared in more unusual places.”
For example, his poem Crescent Moon appears on an art billboard in the Long Gully Linear Park, while another, Stationery Shop Girl , is touring venues around Melbourne as part of the Moving Galleries exhibition.
A whole batch of John’s poems have also been transformed into songs by Steve Lane for his band Steve Lane and the Autocrats. They appear on a recently released album titled The Romance of Communication.
John says there’s something about hand making books that makes him feel very connected, both to the process and his readers.
“ I often hear that people carry The Little Book of Nowhere around in their handbag,” he says.
“I hadn’t heard of him until the beginning of this year when my friend, poet and novelist Cate Kennedy, told me about a dream she’d had where she walked into a smoky bar and saw Billy and I drinking beers together and laughing,” John says.
“When I read his work it was a real ‘ah ha’ moment. It was like a bit like – wow, this could be me writing this.
“It’s not like you try to mimic another poet, but his writing gave me a reference point – a kind of context for my poetry. And like any discovery of new writing it kicked off a whole new trail of writers to explore.”
Bendigo readers would do well to explore John’s work. The Little Book of Nowhere and Cowness can be found exclusively at bob boutique, 17 Williamson Street, Bendigo, or online at http://www.bob.net.au/
Little words go a long way for author John Holton.
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| Photo by Jim Aldersey, Bendigo Advertiser |
For Bendigo author John Holton, the toast crumbs have been pushed aside for the time being for the production of his latest book, Cowness, a follow-up to The Little Book of Nowhere. Both titles are teeny tiny collections of John’s poetry, hand made with a needle, thread, and plenty of soul.
Since John began writing in 1997, his short stories have appeared in every literary journal in the country, he has had more than 10 books published, and now he writes a weekly column, Between Here and Home which appears every Tuesday in the Bendigo Advertiser.
John says although his latest books fit in the palm of his hand, he is as proud of them as any other achievement.
He says the shift from short stories and feature articles to poetry happened partly by accident.
“A few years ago my stories magically began to shrink,” he says. I wrote a whole batch between 2005 and 2007 that, at their longest, were only around 400 words, but the shorter ones were as small as 80 to 150 words.
“I started to question whether they were stories or not and how they might translate to poetic form. The Little Book of Nowhere has several poems that began life as stories. It was an interesting transformation from prose to lines and stanzas. Many became something else all together.”
“It’s funny – when I started writing, almost 15 years ago, my aim was to see my books in bookstore windows – I wanted to be Tim Winton and Peter Carey rolled into one,” he laughs. “Somewhere along the road that all changed. When I wrote short stories, they were published widely – that was my measure of success back then. It’s been a different approach with poetry.
“Those that have been published appeared in more unusual places.”
For example, his poem Crescent Moon appears on an art billboard in the Long Gully Linear Park, while another, Stationery Shop Girl , is touring venues around Melbourne as part of the Moving Galleries exhibition.
A whole batch of John’s poems have also been transformed into songs by Steve Lane for his band Steve Lane and the Autocrats. They appear on a recently released album titled The Romance of Communication.
John says there’s something about hand making books that makes him feel very connected, both to the process and his readers.
“ I often hear that people carry The Little Book of Nowhere around in their handbag,” he says.
“On a real estate writing job recently I walked into the kitchen of house and saw The Little Book of Nowhere stuck to the fridge with a magnet. It was an amazing feeling – strangely, better than seeing my books in a shop window. I’m lucky to have experienced both. “
The most recent book, Cowness, is a collection of 27 new poems. The title came from a Billy Collins poem. Billy Collins was the poet laureate of the US from 2001 to 2003. “I hadn’t heard of him until the beginning of this year when my friend, poet and novelist Cate Kennedy, told me about a dream she’d had where she walked into a smoky bar and saw Billy and I drinking beers together and laughing,” John says.
“When I read his work it was a real ‘ah ha’ moment. It was like a bit like – wow, this could be me writing this.
“It’s not like you try to mimic another poet, but his writing gave me a reference point – a kind of context for my poetry. And like any discovery of new writing it kicked off a whole new trail of writers to explore.”
Bendigo readers would do well to explore John’s work. The Little Book of Nowhere and Cowness can be found exclusively at bob boutique, 17 Williamson Street, Bendigo, or online at http://www.bob.net.au/
Those outside of Bendigo can contact John via email at john@burrenpublications.com
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