Dear Friends,
     It’s time for some good news, so please sit back, relax, and join me as we enjoy all the good things that have happened since last fall.
    My big news is that this coming fall, Marsh Hawk Press will be publishing The Jaguars That Prowl Our Dreams: New and Selected Poems of Mary Mackey, 1974 to 2018. Among other things, this collection will feature a series of narrative poems entitled “The Culling” that form a miniature poetic novella about life in Western Kentucky from 1742 to 1975.
         Meanwhile the new Audible version of The Village of Bones is doing well, as are the Audible, paper, and e-book editions of the other three novels in the Earthsong Series. So I’d like to thank all of you who spent time in Prehistoric Europe with me this winter.
     On March 17th, I’ll be teaching a one day course with novelist Dorothy Hearst on “Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy” at Left Margin LIT Literary Arts Center in Berkeley. Space is limited, so if you want to enroll, now is the best time. I’ll also be doing a series of readings with other contributors to Katherine Hasting’s amazing anthology of women’s poetry Know Me Here; plus an April 6th benefit for the CIIS Women’s Spirituality Program during which I’ll talk about “Making the Goddess-worshiping Cultures of Prehistoric Europe Come Alive.” (Click here to see times and places.)

Less Stress More Joy

When the going gets tough, the tough do something fun to remain sane. My favorite escape this winter has been this video of a group of Newfoundlanders organizing a spontaneous singalong and dance party at the Toronto airport when their plane was delayed. Put on your dancing shoes and give it a click.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhy9u1s0K9o

Send me your favorite ways to relax and have fun,and I will post one of them in my next newsletter.

THE FUN OF WRITING A SERIES
Ever wonder where ideas come from and how to avoid writers’ block? Read Charlotte Seabury’s interview with me and discover how one of my novels (The Year the Horses Came), unexpectedly turned into the entire Earthsong Series.
https://marymackey.com/writing-a-series-of-novels-an-interview-with-mary-mackey/

Good News From Friends
Congratulations to: Andrena Zawinski for her new collection of poetry Landings; Trina Drotar for receiving 2nd place in the 10th annual Jack Kerouac Poetry Contest; Phyllis Meshulam for her new collection of poetry Land of My Father’s War; Joan Gelfand for her video The Ferlinghetti School of Poetics, a Meraki Film Festival Semi-Finalist; Angus Wright for his essay “Environment degradation as a cause of migration: cautionary tales from Brazil” recently published in Environmental History of Modern Migrations; Jen Cross for Writing Ourselves Whole: Using the Power of Your Own Creativity to Recover from Sexual Trauma; Christopher Sindt for his new collection of poetry System and Population; All 40+ contributors to Re-visioning Medusa: From Monster to Divine Wisdom, edited by Glenys Livingstone, Trista Hendren, and Pat Daly;  Stephen Paul Miller for the publication of his poem “Poem” in POSIT; Gary Kaplan, JFYNet Director, for 30 years of working to provide increased opportunities for disadvantaged urban youth and adults; Kirston Koths for his poetry collection One Good Turn; Renee de Palma and Katy Maina for winning 2 First Place and 2 Second Place honors in the Rookie/Vet American Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot, and Viennese Waltz competitions; Robert McLaughlin from the National Cancer Institute for sending us the good news that cancer mortality rates are continuing to decline among men, women, and children; Lauren Coodley for her new collection of poetry The Same River Twice; JoAnn Smith Ainsworth for her novel Expect Trouble which was a runner-up in the Shelf Unbound Best Indie Book Competition and semi-finalist in the East Texas Writer’s Guild First Chapter Award; Charles Entrekin for editing the Sustainability Issue of Sisypus Magazine and for founding Sisypus;  and Judy Grahn for the founding of My Good Judy, a new residency for LGBTQ artists in New Orleans which honors Judy’s pioneering works as a poet, activist, and foremother. 

Please send me your good news so I can put it in my next newsletter. You don’t have to be a poet, novelist, film maker, artist, or musician. Good news is good news.

If you are tired of bad news and would like to get my Good News Newsletter four times a year CLICK HERE to add your name to the mailing list.

Upcoming Events

Saturday, March 17, 2018, Berkeley, CA: Mary Mackey and novelist Dorothy Hearst teach a one day course on Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy at Left Margin Lit Creative Writing Center. TIME: 10:00 pm to 3:00 pm  (with one hour lunch break). PLACE: Left Margin Lit Creative Writing Center, 1600 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley CA 94709. Fee: $150.

Learn the secrets to writing fantasy and science fiction in a way that sweeps readers into an imagined landscape and makes them want to go on reading! By the end of this one-day class, we will learn how to create new worlds that readers want to live in (or maybe escape from). Other craft elements we’ll discuss include developing intriguing characters and shaping a page-turning plot that will make your readers long for a sequel. We will provide plenty of helpful writing prompts and exercises, and there will be time throughout the day to answer your questions about writing and publishing in this expanding genre of fiction

Sunday, March 24, 2018, Novato, CA: Mary reads with contributors to Know Me Here – An Anthology of Poetry by Women, edited by Katherine Hastings. Time:  7:00 pm. PLACE: Copperfield’s Books, 999 Grant Ave, Novato, CA. Free and open to the public.

April 4, 2018, Oakland CA: Mary reads poems from her forthcoming collection The Jaguars That Prowl Our Dreams:New and Selected Poems (coming from Marsh Hawk Press, Fall 2018) as part of the Pandemonium Press series, which has recently relocated from the Spice Monkey to the Octopus Literary Salon.  Time: 7 to 9 pm. Place: Octopus Literary Salon, 2101 Webster St #170, Oakland, CA 94612. Come to hear the poets  and sign up for the Open Mic.

April 6, 2018, San Francisco, CA:  “Raising up the Bones of the Past and Bidding Them Dance:  Novelist Mary Mackey Brings the Goddess-Worshiping Cultures of Prehistoric Europe to Life.”  Mary in conversation with Dr. Mara Keller, founder of the California Institute for Integral Studies Women’s Spirituality Program. TIME: 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. PLACE: Namaste Hall, California Institute of Integral Studies, 1453 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA. (between 10th and 11th Streets). This event is a benefit for the CIIS Women’s Spirituality Program.

To see Mary’s complete schedule of readings and other events please CLICK HERE