Last night Unnameable Books in Brooklyn hosted the second stop of the I Am Here You Are Not I Love You tour. Although the book’s official release date was Friday, I billed last night as a second launch, because I think this is a New York City book almost as much as it’s a Buffalo book. (In the recent Brooklyn Rail review, Melissa Holbrook Pierson observed that Buffalo is a prominent character in the book, and I think you could say the same for SoHo and Williamsburg.) I was deeply grateful for the company of the artist and Hallwalls founder Charles Clough, who was a major source for my book, and the Renaissance man Howard Fishman, who wrote the impassioned and inspiring biography To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse.
We spoke about our various projects, I read a little from the book, and we discussed our experiences, observations, and gripes as working writers and artists. The loose conversation took some interesting turns—we covered the who’s who of various named movements of the last century; public funding in the arts; the interplay of talent, charisma, and changeability; and Buffalo’s Vincent Gallo.
I know many readers are eager for a readout from Buffalo, too. I’m cooking up something special to commemorate that night (with help from a friend)—so hang tight.
Next stop: Unnameable Books in Turners Falls, Massachusetts, 7pm on Saturday May 24, with my friend
. If you’re in the Valley or the Hills, I’d love to see you there!
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