As a poet, spoken word artist, indie filmmaker, and memoirist, I self-publish my work under the name, Full of Myself Productions. To date, I offer four poetry chapbooks in e-chapbook format (PDF) at no cost to readers of Mixed Metaphors, Oh My!, though all copyrights apply and all rights are reserved. Future projects include the production of limited-edition, illustrated letterpress versions of the chapbooks for purchase. Also slated for future publication is the memoir, Perfectly Flawed. Featured vignettes can be found on this site.
What is a chapbook?
History of chapbooks*
A chapbook is a pocket-sized booklet. The term chapbook was popularized in the 19th century referring to a variety of ephemera (disposable printed material) and popular or folk literature including pamphlets, political and religious tracts, nursery rhymes, poetry, folk tales, children’s literature and almanacs. The term is derived from chapmen, a variety of peddler, who sold such literature as part of their stock. Today it is used to describe publications, usually poetry, of up to about 40 pages, ranging from low-cost productions to expensive, finely produced editions.
Modern chapbooks*
Chapbook typically denotes poetry publications bound with some form of saddle stitch, though many are perfect bound, folded, or wrapped. These publications range from low-cost productions to finely produced, hand-made editions. More recently, the popularity of fiction chapbooks has also increased.
The genre has been revitalized in the past 40 years by the widespread availability of first mimeograph technology, then low-cost copy centers and digital printing, and by the cultural revolutions spurred by both zines and poetry slams, the latter generating hundreds upon hundreds of self-published chapbooks that are used to fund tours.
With the recent popularity of blogs, online literary journals, and other online publishers, short collections of poetry published online are frequently referred to as “online chapbooks,” “electronic chapbooks,” “e-chapbooks,” or “e-chaps.”
*Source: Wikipedia
e-Chapbook Catalog
Scenes of Everyday Life
Scenes of Everyday Life is a collection of poetry spanning almost 30 years, capturing the mundane moments of everyday life that when looked at together chart the longitude and latitude of a life’s journey, the culmination of choices, and the destinations as snapshots in time. The collection is divided into three sections, Phases of Love, The Valentine Poems, and Scenes of Everyday Life.
Scenes of Everyday Life Chapbook
The Valentine Poems
The Valentine Poems are a chronicle of the author’s personal, committed relationship spanning 15 years. Each year on Valentine’s Day I wrote a poem to my partner. Our 15 year journey together included two sabbaticals and almost three years of living in two households as a commuter relationship. The poems capture both the passion and the mundane nature of everyday life.
Crush(ed)
Crushes are born in the imagination, sometimes secret musings, fantasy connections between our heart and mind, wishes given life and power, fueling passion and desire. Crushes are rehearsals for relationship, sometimes becoming real, often forgotten like last night’s dream. Crushes acted upon may yield a yes or rejection. The infatuated becomes besotted and smitten when love is reciprocated and crushed when not.
Seasons/Change
Living in the Midwest in Wisconsin, our lives ebb and flow with the changing seasons. Sometimes winter is unrelenting and it’s a struggle just to get out the door for our day-to-day lives. We are restored in the spring when the changing weather brings us hope and quells the itchy restlessness of spring fever. Summer is our reward, a time for leisure and vacations. In the autumn, we reap the harvest of the land and prepare for the long, cold nights again, the cycles of change repeated.