Book Review: “Digging In” by Ric Amante

December 05, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Sixty poems: all compelling, all with a feeling of completeness about them, all fresh. But “Digging In” is not just another slim book of good poems, it is a good book, well and thoughtfully constructed. Case in point, the opener, “Passage”, first line:

And love will grind your bones…

I read that and had to read on. What I found was sometimes gritty, sometimes profound, sometimes fantastic and once even reminiscent of “Casey at the Bat.” All poems were refreshing, challenging - laden with the reasons I love poetry.

This is a tightly constructed book, thoroughly enjoyable. I highly recommend it and suggest you get your copy NOW.

“Digging In”, by Ric Amante, Shires Press, 2010

Available Online from Northshire Bookstore

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Collateral Damage

November 21, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Yet another amazing, compact, striking poem by contributing poet, Donal Mahoney.

Read Collateral Damage

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Steele Fields

November 21, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

“I talk with an edge and live on the fringe of a gritty city. I write poetry because I was born this way. An extra chromosome here, a missing one there…who knows why? DNA is a funny thing.

I wrote my first poem when I was twelve. It was about a pair of faded Levi’s lying beneath a lilac bush. And it rhymed. I remember it clearly because the minute I finished it, I began worrying about where the next one would come from.

I’ve seen others who are similarly afflicted. They’re the people you see walking around, always squinting at everything. It’s hard to tell if they’re actual poets or just suffering from undiagnosed myopia. Real poets tend to hang out in crowded subways and all night diners. They drink a lot of coffee and suck inspiration from the passing carnival of life, while secretly yearning to wander alone beneath a sky as blue as the one in Arizona. Because even in a crowd, a poet is forever doomed to feel like a lonely head in a roomful of hats. Trust me— being a poet isn’t an occasional gig. It’s your job for life.”

Read Steele Fields poem, “Leaving.”

Click here to read more work by Steele Fields.

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Chris Grasso

November 16, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Continuing with our tradition of showcasing newly emerging poets, we are proud to welcome Chris Grasso as a Featured Poet on Eye On Life Online Magazine. Chris executes his work in broad brush strokes taken from the palette of the American cultural pulse, classic myth and the world at large.

ChrisGrassograduated from New York University in 1999 with a BFA in Film/TV. The diplomas were dispensed much the way toilet paper can be easily ripped from the roll. After diving for cover from the un-paying, cut-throat industry known as ‘Film Production’, he found a horrible, low-paying job taking construction photos (horrible because heights are not his thing).

For the last 10 years he’s wiped countless preschoolers’ noses and tied their shoes right before he takes their portraits. He’s owned his own business doing this for 6 years. It’s much safer than dangling under the Brooklyn Bridge with no edge or rail to hold on to.

Read Chris Grasso’s Poetry:

Click here for Chris Grasso’s portrait photography web site.

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Eye On Life Poetry Contest 2010-2011

November 15, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

First Prize: $100
Second Prize $50

Entries accepted November 15^st, 2010 through January 31^st, 2011. Winners announced in February, 2011. See contest rules below:

Entry fee: $1 per poem, payable in U.S. Dollars by check or money order payable to Tom Rubenoff

No entry fees will be refunded
Submit up to 5 poems
Poems can be any style, no more than 400 words
Poems must be original, previously unpublished

Mail entries with entry fees to:

Eye on Life Poetry Contest
c/o Tom Rubenoff, Poetry Editor
P.O. Box 35457
Brighton, MA 02135

No poems submitted to this competition will be returned
No entries will be accepted without payment
No online entries will be accepted. Submit entries by mail only.

The top five poems will be published at Eye On Life Online Magazine. Honorable mentions may be given as well.

Other prizes may be announced. If you would like to donate a prize to the Eye On Life Poetry Contest, please email tomr@rubecom.us

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Ivan Jenson

November 09, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Ivan Jenson’s poetry has a deceptive lightness, like a crisp new shirt worn over a wound, or a star whose immense power is muted by distance. The voice seems light hearted, but its depth is revealed in the whole of the poem.

Ivan has enjoyed unprecedented success publishing his poetry in the US, the UK, and France. He has received recognition for his bold Pop Art. His Absolut Jenson painting was featured in Art News, Art in America, and he has sold several works at Christie’s, New York. His poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Word Riot, Zygote in my Coffee, Her Royal Majesty, Camroc Press Review, Haggard and Halo, O and S Poets and Artists Magazine, Poetry Super Highway, Alternative Reel Poets Corner, Underground Voices Magazine, Blazevox, and many other magazines, online and in print. Jenson is also a Contributing Editor for Commonline magazine. Ivan Jenson's debut novel Dead Artist is available as a paperback and on Amazon Kindle and Nook. His new novel a psychological thriller entitled Seeing Soriah is now available as an eBook or in Paperback on Amazon.

http://www.ivanjensonartist.com/

Read Ivan’s latest contributions to Eye On Life here:

Click here for more of Ivan’s poetry at Eye On Life.

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Donal Mahoney - November 2010

November 09, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Here at Eye On Life we count ourselves lucky that Donal Mahoney enjoys seeing his work here on our online magazine. His poetry is like a telephoto lens on life, zooming in unexpectedly on the poignant, the playful or the meaningful aspects of the individual.

Donal is a regular contributor to Eye On Life Online Magazine.

Click here to see is latest.

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Cheryl Sommese

October 29, 2010 / Tom Rubenoff, Senior Editor

Cheryl won the first annual Eye On Life Halloween Poetry Feature with her poem:

Halloween Images

Since then she has graced with:

Cheryl Sommese has a BA in communication and MA in liberal studies. She has been writing poetry since her teens but only recently has devoted herself on a regular basis. One of her short stories, “September Leaves Turning,” was included in Carved in Granite: Storytellers of New Hampshire, a New Hampshire anthology book published by SciArt Media and released in the summer of 2008. In December 2008, Cheryl had a children’s story, “Candy Store Delight,” included in the collection Dragons and Bugs, Balls and Mud: Children’s Stories by New Hampshire Authors. “Keepsakes in the Kitchen,” was included in the 2009 collection Carved in Granite II: Storytellers of New Hampshire. A poem, “Bound,” was included in Unhoused Voices: Granting Change for the Homeless published by Sabella Press.

Cheryl is a contributing poetry writer for the online magazine www.thewriteplaceatthewritetime.org. One of her fictional pieces recently tied for 1st place in the short fiction contest. Cheryl has also written a screenplay about her maternal grandparents; the work underscores the trials and triumphs some immigrants faced in early 20th century America. Her dream is to one day have the script brought to life.

Other works works by Cheryl (published by SciArt Media):

“Candy Store Delight”
Part of the collection:
Dragons and Bugs, Balls and Mud: Children’s Stories by New Hampshire Authors

“September Leaves Turning”
Part of the collection:
Carved in Granite: Storytellers of New Hampshire