Eight Questions for Harald Voetmann

Very happy to be able to say that my interview with Danish writer Harald Voetmann has been published by the kind folk at Full Stop Magazine.

More or less everything I have to say about the interview is in its intro, but it’s worth repeating here that I really did love Awake (do check it out – through ND Books in the US or Lolli Editions in the UK) and I can’t wait for the next couple of books.

With thanks to Harald, of course, and Denise at Lolli Editions. And a special thanks to Michael at Full Stop for giving the interview a home.

On ‘Untitled (Death of the Dead Man)’

My piece Untitled (Death of the Dead Man) has been published in the anniversary edition of RIC Journal. As usual, it’s a privilege to have my writing be given a home – with thanks, as always, to Saudamini.

As you can see, the Dead Man still follows me. Still tugs at my sleeve to distract me and sleeps on my sofa some nights, snoring so loudly I can hear him from the next room.

Rounding up the Dead Man

I’ve been neglecting this space in recent months, so I’m behind on posting about the Dead Man pieces RIC has published.

A little about the Dead Man – regardless of what else is happening in my life, and irrespective of what else I am writing or reading or thinking, he is a constant. He manifested in hard times, survived a pandemic, and continues to follow me, hiding in my shadow. It’s comforting to know he is there.

Thanks to S for giving the Dead Man space to make a nuisance of himself.

The Dead Man at the Cathedral

Untitled (The Dead Man’s Remorse)

Untitled (The Dead Man Shells Walnuts)

The Dead Man and the Palm Reader

On ‘Untitled (The Dead Man Drags His Feet)’

My piece Untitled (The Dead Man Drags His Feet) has been published in the March 2022 edition of RIC Journal.

I try to forget the Dead Man, at least for a time, but then something happens and he reminds me that he is there – and very likely always will be.

With thanks, always, to S.

On ‘The Quadrant of the Dead Man’

My piece The Quadrant of the Dead Man has been published in the January 2022 issue of RIC Journal.

Bit of a story behind this one.

Last year, I wrote a Dead Man every month for RIC, January through to December. I had absolutely decided to take a break from that output and not write a Dead Man for January 2022 at least – maybe even beyond. But three things happened.

A friend, Mimosa Shah, sent me How a Gray Painting Can Break Your Heart, an interactive essay by Jason Farago on the work of Jasper Johns, specifically the painting ‘In Memory of My Feelings — Frank O’Hara’. I appreciated the gesture of having an essay sent my way; the piece is lovely and rich and exactly the kind of thing that you want from a discussion of art, especially that which does not comfortably reveal itself. But hidden in the artwork in question is a reference to a dead man, which got me thinking.

Secondly, at the time of writing, I had Covid-19. I have, for most of my adult life, framed my experience in or through writing, so it seemed important to mark this, somehow – because it is something we as a species, or at least I as an individual, have been trying to outrun for the last two years, but also because the Dead Man has evolved during the pandemic, taken on a new meaning or role. It made more sense to try to write something at the time, not less.

And, finally, once I started, the writing came easily – clearly, there was more story to tell.

Thanks, as always, to Saudamini.

On ‘The City of the Dead’

My piece The City of the Dead has been published in the November 2021 edition of the ever-astonishing RIC Journal.

This is the eleventh Dead Man of a long year, one more left.

Thanks to S for keeping the Dead Man alive.

On ‘Alcatraz (The Dead Man’s First Day)’

My piece Alcatraz (The Dead Man’s First Day) was published in the October 2021 edition of RIC Journal.

This is the tenth Dead Man piece for the year. Thanks, as always, to S for giving it, and me, a home. Dead Man still dead.

On ‘The Dead Man and the Card Game’

Very pleased to report that my piece The Dead Man and the Card Game has been published in the August 2021 edition of RIC Journal.

I measure time in dead men – this is the eighth of the year. There are four to go. Thanks, as usual, to Saudamini for keeping me writing despite everything. Do read and support RIC.

On ‘A Personal History of Attention’

My piece with Michelle Lynn Dyrness, ‘A Personal History of Attention’, has been published in Vol. 1 No. 3 of Firmament, Sublunary Editions’ print journal. Michelle did the images, I did the words.

This is a real thrill for me for a few reasons – firstly, it’s my first piece in a print journal (!) for a long, long time. How good is paper.

Secondly, it’s always great to work with Josh and the crew at Sublunary who are performing small press miracles.

Thirdly, I really, really like this one as it was the first official collaborative piece Michelle and I did together – we also, with Kyle Coma-Thompson, made a postcard which Sublunary printed off and dispersed, but that came together in other ways. For this, we bounced prose and images back and forth till we had something we felt coalesced into a single piece worth your attention. Since then, we have done more work together, all of which I pray sees the light of day.

If this sounds like your thing, do order a copy, subscribe to Sublunary or check out their backlog.

On ‘The Dead Man Did Bad Things’ and ‘Untitled (The Dead Man Must Come Back)’

The pandemic continues, we are in lockdown and the Dead Man stays dead. As I write this, the state government of Victoria tells the residents of my state we cannot enter. I cannot leave my home without a mask; I cannot go beyond a 5km radius. Calasso died today. It is 2021.

There is little left to say.

Read The Dead Man Did Bad Things.

Read Untitled (The Dead Man Must Come Back).

With thanks, as always, to Saudamini.