- Day of Two Poems: Reading Poetry with Arjun RajendranLink visible for attendees
It happens every third Saturday of the month. On Google Meet. From 4 PM to 6 PM.
The meeting link is https://meet.google.com/tnt-fnkp-uhp
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Welcome to the 'Day of Two Poems', an online meetup, where poet Arjun Rajendran will take us on a literary journey through two exceptional poems from the vast world of English literature. Arjun Rajendran - an acclaimed poet, and editor - is known for his insightful analysis and appreciation of poetry.
In this meetup, he will guide us through the intricacies of each poem, exploring their themes, stylistic devices, and hidden meanings. He will share his insights and interpretations, shedding light on the beauty and depth of each piece.
Whether you're a seasoned poetry lover or just starting to explore the genre, this meetup is the perfect place to immerse yourself in the world of English poetry.
About poet Arjun Rajendran:
Arjun Rajendran is the author of Snake Wine (Zaporogue 2014), The Cosmonaut in Hergé’s Rocket (Paperwall 2017), and One Man: Two Executions (Westland 2020). His work appears in numerous anthologies including The Penguin Book of Indian Poets, Future Library, Helter Skelter and Best of Eclectica (poetry).
In 2018, Rajendran was the Charles Wallace Fellow in Creative Writing at the University of Stirling, Scotland. He is also the founder of the writing community, The Quarantine Train and was the former poetry editor of The Bombay Literary Magazine.
- Once Upon a Time : Reading 'Sweethearts' by Richard FordLink visible for attendees
The story of the month: Sweethearts by Richard Ford
Link to the story: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QD3XytZy2Eq-BvNQr3QzxyuFro_L_psB/view?usp=share_link
Link to the Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/tnt-fnkp-uhp
The meeting room will open 5 minutes before the session.
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"A short story must have a single mood and every sentence must build towards it."
~ Edgar Allan Poe
Despite unwarranted reports of its demise at various times, the short story has been robust and thriving. The form itself has constantly changed, always reflecting the times it came out of, unlike the novel.
From the great short story writers – Guy de Maupassant, Anton Chekhov, Henry James, O’Henry, and Saki – we moved to the more modern writers who brought a change in the middle of the twentieth century – Flannery O’Connor and Raymond Carver were at the forefront of this.
Once Upon a Time is a session where we try to familiarize ourselves with the world's best short stories. Shankar will read the story aloud in the session. After the reading, we will analyze it together to learn from it.
But if you can, please read the story beforehand.
THE STORY:
Sweethearts by Richard Ford
Link to the story: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QD3XytZy2Eq-BvNQr3QzxyuFro_L_psB/view?usp=share_link
THE AUTHOR:
Richard Ford (born February 16, 1944) is an American novelist and short story writer. Ford's first collection of short stories, Rock Springs, was published in 1987. He received the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for his novel 'Independence Day'.
In Spain, he won the Princess of Asturias Award in 2016 and received the Park Kyong-ni Prize in 2018, an international literary award from South Korea. His novel 'Wildlife' was adapted into a 2018 film of the same name, and in 2023 Ford published 'Be Mine', his fifth work of fiction chronicling the life of Frank Bascombe.
The story, 'Sweethearts', is from Ford’s first collection of short stories, Rock Springs.
THE HOST :
Shankar is an aspiring writer, living in Pune. He has been a lifelong reader and was bitten by the writing bug after reading books by Tobias Wolff and William Trevor. While he loves novels, especially by the Russians, he always has a particular fondness for short stories.
