A Probability of Being

One fine evening, I asked for poetry prompts, and a friend asked me to write a poem about bananas, the linguistic kind. I had to look it up. This was about three years ago, and it's still silly. Fruit Flies Like A Banana, Part 1:  “Mine,” snarked the snail. “No, mine!” cried the slug. “WE SHALL DESCEND AS A HOARD UPON THIS AND CLAIM IT AS OUR ANCESTRAL BIRTHRIGHT,” claimed the fruit flies. Thus was there a bloody war over the forgotten banana carelessly thrown under the bush. Fruit Flies Like A Banana, Part 2: Whenever they flapped their leaves, they tried very hard to mimick the grace of the yellow boomerang swirling in the air, leaving a smoothie in its wake. Ah, if only they could be content with the reality of being far-flung instead of trying to be what they were not. Fruit Flies Like A Banana, Part 3: But I’m not sure that this is a good idea; banana trees may only produce a single bunch in their lifetimes, but they also never stop growing and ...

I'll be at the International Conference of the Fantastic in the Arts again this year! I'll be reading on the "Words & Worlds: Poetry I" panel, Thursday, March 23, 10.30am - 12pm, Captiva B! And then I'll be discussing "The Politics of the Human in N.K. Jemisin's Fiction" on Friday, March 23, 2.30pm - 4pm in the Dogwood! I'll be among really big scholars like John Rieder, who wrote Colonialism and the Emergence of Science Fiction (a key text in helping me shape my dissertation), as well as beloved colleagues like fellow UC Riverside grad Taylor Evans! Outside of panels you'll likely find me grading in the Marriott lobby, or hunting Pokemon around the lake. I'm very excited to be seeing friends like Kathryn Allan (disability scholar), Emily Jiang (poet!), and K. Tempest Bradford, as well as seeing former Clarion instructors Andy Duncan (and probably also Ted Chiang).