Raw, Sometimes Uncomfortable, But Realistic
Sit Down and Have A Beer Again is an unfiltered publication of poems, short stories, and narratives portraying life in the 1960s and 1970s. Why was it important to republish these creative works into an anthology?
Rich Soos, editor of Cholla Needles Literary Magazine was the impetus for this collection. He was the publisher of my 1977 chapbook “Sit Down And Have A Beer” and he reached out to me in early 2021 and suggested that we republish my original chapbook along with all the other poems and stories of mine that were published back in the 1970’s. We both felt that the poems and stories had withstood the test of time and were relevant today. The small press scene of the 1970’s was an exciting and creative period in American literature. Unfortunately, so little of the work and so few of the literary magazines have been collected and preserved for the historical record. Hopefully, this collection will inspire other writers, poets and editors from that era to do the same.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Every poem and story in this collection is meant to shed an honest light on the emotions, vulnerabilities and struggles that everyday people battle. I was in my twenties when I wrote these pieces and they are raw, sometimes uncomfortable, but realistic expressions of a young man trying to find himself in the 1970’s.
What do you hope is one thing readers take away from your book?
Though the poems and stories are reflective of the era, my hope is that the reader finds the themes, the honest feelings and personal struggles as relevant today as they were back then.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
My current focus is on poetry and short stories. I am working on pieces that reflect the times we live in and are written from the perspective of a person who has lived a full life and still has something to say. Stay tuned!
Author Links: GoodReads | Website
The Small Press world of those days was the precursor to the internet – insane editors and publishers who believed that the established publications had simply lost touch with the creative reality of our nation. And, just like the internet, the small presses were eventually bought out by the rich folks who figured out the best way to beat them was to buy them out.
The second chapter of the book contains the other poems that were published in these mags but never collected till now.
The third chapter represents a small sample from When Life Was Like A Cucumber, the great novel about the early 1970’s that tells the story of a young man’s journey of self-discovery and sexual awakening as he tries to find his place in
post-Sixties America. The complete novel is available here on Amazon.
Posted on November 19, 2022, in Interviews and tagged author, author interview, book, book recommendations, book review, book reviews, book shelf, bookblogger, books, books to read, ebook, goodreads, Greg Wyss, indie author, kindle, kobo, literature, nook, novel, poems, poet, poetry, read, reader, reading, short story, Sit Down And Have A Beer Again, story, writer, writing. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.
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