It was a tremendous launch for the Suffolk County Poetry Review 2016 at Dowling College in Oakdale. Tremendous. The poets in attendance that read were nothing short of awe inspiring. And I am so very proud to have been published amongst such talented and creative scribes. My piece “Careless Eyes” was chosen to be a part of the second ever Suffolk County Poetry Review and I am humbled and truly moved that it was. I submitted a few pieces, but this one has more significance to me than most. It is something I wrote about after suffering a traumatic brain injury that has drastically impacted my life, and in turn, my writing for nearly two years now. I attended the event and read my short piece “Careless Eyes” aloud. My Mom and Dad and my young niece – an intelligent poet of nine years of age (who is already reading and enjoying Walt Whitman; I mean how cool is that?) were there to witness it. The piece, as you will see by the picture here, is short. I told the poets in attendance it would be a short read, but I wanted them to get the most out of it; I urged them to look on it in there books, as this poem is every bit as visual as it is audiological. It was my great Creative Writing professor, and a Poet Laureate in his own right, Ed Stever, that taught me the power of a visual poem, that a poem could have no bounds on the page, and that it could in an abstract or specific way have visual stimulus other than the words. In the class there was a piece in the shape of a smoking cigarette that shook my brain out of its norm in a very, very good way. What do I mean when I say visual? Well, my favorite poets of T.S. Eliot and Ginsberg made way for another, one ee cummings, who refused to even punctuate his name and whose words became art on a page. Those of cummings are visual, as is “Careless Eyes”. Why does that matter? My short poem reflects my transformation from an author reading, writing, and editing an average of 1000 words a day for many years and then was struck by a car and unable to type even a simple good morning without inverting letters and words due to cognitive and visual sufferings from my brain injury. After so many years, typing a sentence, let alone a piece in any medium, took 100 times as long to accomplish as I continually wrote it wrong; every day I wrote one of my best friends ‘good monring’ and grew angry, despondent, depressed and a myriad of emotions at this battle that was my livelihood. For anyone that has ever dealt with a traumatic brain injury, and that includes a bad concussion, this piece is for them. My words start off working until the HIT on the page. And then you get a glimpse of what is has been like for me for nearly two years now. It hurts, but I fight to get through it. Nearly a year to the day after the car accident, I had to write this poem. I had to. I cannot explain that other than saying that I had to. It was difficult but it lives now forever in great company of poets from Suffolk County, Long Island, New York, and these talented individuals have inspiring pieces that fill the volume. My piece is but one tiny part in this anthology, but I am utterly grateful to be a part and for “Careless Eyes” to be the one in there means the world to me. I dedicate the poem to my love, my wife, Cassie, without whom I would have been lost to this, the past year plus. Sincerely, R.J. Huneke
2 Comments
Rune Works is ecstatic to announce that R.J. Huneke's newest thriller novel will also become a graphic novel written by the author! "I feel this work has a lot of intrigue for potential readers, and with its sharp, visual qualities, making a dystopian graphic novel makes a lot of sense," says Huneke. Read more of this conversation @ Rune Works. I've done it! The story has been written, and the first draft of my newest dystopian thriller novel is complete! It has been quite a ride, and my arduous research and many months of writing have yielded an incredible tale that shakes the notions of societal norms and controls. Looking back on the process... Read the rest on the RUNE WORKS page. Thanks for all of the support! ^R.J. My electric thriller THE SUBLIMINAL RELIGION is officially here! A lot of research went into subliminal messaging and the effects of this on unsuspecting TV watchers.
My riveting ride takes place in a New York City from a not too distant future that could be tomorrow; it is a dark place, that suffered another horrendous terrorist attack on 3/15, and is under a strict lock-down. People are encouraged to walk about the city in groups in order to single out potential wrong-doers. It is a place where undertaking a documentary on subliminal messaging that implicates Disney and the Tea Party in heinous acts against the unsuspecting American public is a very dangerous endeavor. And this is especially the case when the two filming it are just NYU film students trying to prove themselves . . . but they do not realize the cost . . . Remember John Lennon. He did not just sing for peace; he acted for peace.
It was thirty years ago tonight that one of the greatest men, a last of a dying breed that included Dr. King, Gandhi, JFK and RFK, was assassinated in New York City outside his home. For John's wife, Yoko Ono, and family I'd like to say that I'm so sorry. John did more for humankind than can even be described. His dreams and hopes for us are still alive, because his spirit is still with us. Imagine. To read the W2P article "Remembering John Lennon 30 Years Later" click here; it is a more in-depth look at John's life. Give Peace a Chance. Filling the entire Javits Center, the 2010 New York Comic Con became a city within a city last weekend. Walking the streets of New York City, anyone could glance over and see various visions of Spiderman, Anime, Watchmen and vast custom made weapons! The NYCC (NewYorkComicCon.com) costumed fun officially exploded on Saturday when random walks on the show floor brought movie-prop quality Predators to battle with Spiderman, or the Riddler joining with Harley Quinn, the Joker and the Scarecrow to pose with the Batman!
This year, the main floor contained myriad pieces of art, television, movies, video games, books, card games, comics and anime. The new 007 James Bond game, "James Bond: Blood Stone" (Bloodstonegame.com) was playable and I was able to take part in a driving board, while Ben Ward - Studio Communications Manager of Blizzard - explained how the storyline, featuring Daniel Craig as Bond, was meant to be an in-between movie-story to help bridge "Quantum of Solace" with the next film. The hand to hand combat is amazing and unlike any game before! The driving scene that I played was too real, as the snow poured down on the Russian industrial city highway I dodged attacking vehicles, traffic and near-constant explosions! It was like being in a 007 film!!! Leslie Ditto, the modern surreal artist, had an entrancing display of her skilled artwork on hand at the NYCC, including three limited giclee prints: Alice in Wonderland, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and a third Gaga woman with a city titled Princess of Pop. See the amazing breadth of Leslie's work at her site here (LeslieDitto.com). Her work catches the eye and further envelops the mind invoking sharp feelings and thought. The swag was excellent this year, as "LOST," the "Wheel of Time" and 1st Print Kenyon (the authors were there signing) hardcover books were given away, along with "Wheel of Time" bumper stickers/maps, dozens of Bite Me type buttons and of course Comics! Tons of books, samplers and full novels like Kenyon's newest (which was not even out yet) were being given away to loyal fans and it was to the point that you had to choose what to take based on how much you could carry. The gaming industry really stole much of the show, as Nintendo featured a gorgeous booth and two player games, the new "Donkey Kong Country" and the new "Kirby" game, both of which were incredibly fun and visually supreme for the Wii. Capcom had the much anticipated "Marvel Vs. Capcom 3" (MvC3.com) and it did not disappoint! The game had half of the characters available to play and the graphics and intricate moves resembled MvC 2 Squared! "Red Dead Redemption Undead" looked frighteningly fun, as did "Dead Rising 2." The Blu-ray release of the movie "Alien: Anthology" was represented with a full sized Nostromo ship stasis setup for four members to go and lie down in. Inside the hibernation chamber were screens featuring a frightening collection of images from the movie to scare the bejesus out of those cramped in the small space with alien face-huggers and worse. Those who made it inside got a free t-shirt too! Though the panels were lacking, Seth Green was on hand to deliver a brilliant "Robot Chicken" event. He showed a solid 10+ minutes of upcoming footage from the new season and the "Star Wars Episode III Special." Funny. Very funny, it was. The NYCC was a blast this year! There was so much going on, between the cosplay-inspired fans, the art, the games, the swag, the stars, toys, contests and comics that it was impossible to take it all in. It was a pure adventure and no one could go through the NYCC with the same tales! Next October is already looking like Christmas! |
AuthorI have turned the tide and started on my journey. Words and Worlds hang in the balance and I am writing it all down before the RJ Tower! Read about my newest novel on CyberwarSeries.com Archives
March 2023
Categories
All
|