[Gregory Dowling]

Thanks, Rory, for these encouraging and generous words. It was a pleasure to write the essay and it is, of course, very rewarding to receive such an estimation from someone so close to the subject.

[Maryann Corbett]

I'm continuing to enjoy making my way through the essays. Yesterday I read Julie Stoner's review of Rachel Hadas's The Ache of Appetite with great pleasure at learning not only about that book, but about the way the poems there interweave with the rest of Hadas's work. A copy of the book should be on its way to me now.Thanks for your essay, Julie.

[Susan McLean]

I have been enjoying the new issue of Able Muse, too, and I have to say that Julie Stoner's reviews, both of my own book and of Rachel Hadas's The Ache of Appetite, are terrific, full of good information, expert analysis, and, in the review of my book, even a villanelle of her own that is itself part of the review. Astonishing!

Susan

[Julie Steiner]

Thanks, Maryann and Susan! (I feel obliged to point out to everyone that "McLean" isn't actually pronounced the way I thought--see my note at the end of the review. Reality can be so inconvenient sometimes...)

Personally, my favorite part of the issue is Sharon Passmore's interview with Billy Monday, who produces such gorgeous photographs of nudes (often in landscapes). It's probably just a sign of my own immaturity, but I giggled helplessly at some of his observations on his craft. I particularly cracked up at the challenges of working on location outdoors ("Weather, light, and hikers keep my stress levels up"--oh, my, the poor hikers!); his bemused disappointment that nude models somehow don't seem as enthusiastic as he is about photographs requiring them to lie down in icy wilderness springs; what he looks for in a model ("Reliability is also important. I’m pretty laid back but I can tell you that one surefire way to never work with me again is to leave me waiting alone at a freezing cold trailhead at 4:30 in the morning while you’re sleeping in your warm bed"); and the household creepiness factor of having the mannequin "Claire" around. My own stress levels are pretty high lately, so I appreciated both the giggles and the wonderfully abstract beauty of the photos.