powellitzer

Like lots of people, I was perplexed when I heard they'd awarded no Pulitzer Prize in fiction this year. What this seemed to be saying was that with all the remarkable lit books that came out in 2011, nothing was worthy - which sort of felt like an insult to everyone. I know there's more to it than this, but it got my nanny anyway.

It also sparked a bit of an idea. I spoke to some folks at Powell's and put together an image, and a quick, little display was born in the Blue Room [Literature] at Powell's City of Books. Our picks for the Powellitzer Prize.

The Blue Room and our book buyers had a good time with it, which made it a really fun project. They chose a short list of six lovely, smart books:

The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach,

Binocular Vision by Edith Pearlman,

Open City by Teju Cole,

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward,

West of Here by Jonathan Evison

and my favorite, Zazen by Vanessa Veselka.

Had I had more time to make the graphic, I may have gone more Portland and made him a hipster on a bicycle, but I figured staying with classical was best.

[when i was a kid, i thought it was the pulit surprise.]

blargh

[just because i liked the theme of yesterday's post...]

Step one: grab the garland and scissors and tissue paper and go down to Powells' Green Room early [8:10] in hopes that you can get all four window displays bedecked in the pre-customer quiet before your carts of books come and you have three hours of shelving to take care of.

Step two: pull out first window display case and lay down first length of tissue paper under display books.

Step three: open first skein [yes, i'm calling it a skein] of garland.

Step four: try to get the strand started without it getting tangled up.

Step five: oh, you've got to be kidding me.

Step six: pull it all off the cardboard carefully and try to extract the starting end of garland from the mess it came in.

Step seven, eight, nine, twelve, twenty-four: try to disentangle big knot of red sparkly madness.

Step twenty-five [8:30]: over the loudspeaker: "Attention Powell's employee Gigi, your carts are in in-coming. Gigi, your carts are here."

holiday catalog day

Two days to cram in the week's work at Powell's before Mom and Dad arrive and I take the rest of the week off. This two days happens to include the launch of the Holiday Catalog, which means approximately 55 staff favorite titles chosen to be displayed and sold at thirty percent off. Looking at it here in the glow of my computer screen, that just looks like some innocuous number, 55, but it's a huge endeavor. In the Green Room, it means reducing by half our display of author events books, moving into that open space half of our bestsellers and filling three cases with the Holiday Catalog books. In the Orange Room, this year, it meant completely reconfiguring the layout of about a third of the room, moving tables and spinner racks, taking books from this table and loading them into this display case, and vice versa. [I didn't have to move furniture - my hands were always on the books.]

This year, too, the morning was compounded by another huge display promotion switching out, and it was my job to take care of both. And to assist in the changing of signage posted and hanging in various places where the Holiday Catalog was going. I had help from some excellent coworkers, and still I worked pretty nonstop from seven in the morning to six-thirty last night to get all the books out, the signs up and four window displays put in place.

Holiday Catalog launch is always equal parts stress and exhilaration for me. No, maybe more exhilaration. There's something about running up and down the back stairs, pushing cart after cart down those corridors. Something about the pass of hundreds of books across my hands.

When I got home last night, Stephen had cheese waiting. We got in bed and put our feet up and watched Shirley Temple shorts.

Today: going in an hour early, maybe staying an hour or two late. Dealing with all the carts of books I abandoned at the end of yesterday. Overstock that needs to be put away, books that need to be relabeled for different sections. Posters advertising the Holiday Catalog need to go up. A hundred plus shelf talkers need to be notated with shelf locations and distributed. The books I order need to be tended to.

Then straight from work to an art opening and then home. And then home. Stephen and me and Nicholas and more cheese and a glass of wine. And then Mom and Dad.

americus

This month, I got to create my first real window display in... too long. So excited because it's touting not only Banned Books Week (coming up at the end of this month) but a new graphic novel illustrated by Portland artist (and friend) Jonathan Hill.

The book is called Americus and deals with the issue of banned books. You can check the book out here but if you're a Portlander, I'd encourage you to come down to the downtown store and have a look at this month's gallery show, which features every single illustration Jonathan drew for the book.

For the window display, Jonathan gave me an image for a poster he created - I think he put it together for a comicon - and I incorporated that into the panel. Can I just say how satisfying it was to put together a window display again? My little show-off image below includes an image of the book cover, but in the real window, the actual book is displayed there in front of the panel. The display will be up the whole month of September. The art show will be as well. Also, check out Jonathan's website here.

cuckoo part one

Excited to be seeing One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest tonight at Portland Center Stage. This morning, I took a look back in the old journal to see if I had said anything particular about the book when I read it (on audio, read by Kesey himself) back in o-eight, and found that I'd finished the last bit of it standing under the back awning of Portland Center Stage's Armory theater in the rain.

I did a window display at Powell's to promote both the play and the book, and also the shirt we carry that has the book cover reproduced on it.

Couple of photos...




The look comes from the promo poster PCS created for the production.

Review to come.

family fun

I love stories about wacky families. One of my February window displays celebrates these stories, including one of the wackiest of all, Jessica Anya Blau's Drinking Closer to Home. For the rest, I asked friends at Powell's what their favorites were. But there've got to be a million great stories about family dysfunction or kookiness out there. Anyone want to add a favorite?

First, the poor quality, full-of-glare window picture:



And the image by itself.

spotlight on diane rios

I've put a new Employee Spotlight display up at Powell's City of Books. This month, I'm highlighting Diane Rios [self-portrait above] who works in the French section and who is quite an accomplished artist. Here are some of her lovely stencil pieces, along with the interview she gave me about her life and her art.

me: How long have you worked at Powell’s?

DR: I’ve worked at Powell’s for 2 ½ years now! I started as a cashier, then moved to a Generalist position, and am now in charge of the French section. I post a blog on Powells.com about the most interesting French books both new and out of print that come into the store.



me: Has working at Powell’s or being around books had an influence on your art?

DR: Oh yes, I’ve made several prints of Powell’s itself, and am constantly inspired by the books and what they’re made of. As well as the beautiful covers of course, I love the delicious papers, old typeface, and lovely old ink illustrations in the books. New books are such a glossy, decadent treat, but the old books are my favorites--dusty, foxed, and with that bookish smell. I’m working on a very large print of a big stack of old books right now.





me: Which book has made a profound impression on your life?

DR: I would say Traveler by Richard Adams. I loved the books Watership Down and The Plague Dogs by him, so I tried Traveler which, strangely enough, is told from the perspective of Robert E. Lee’s horse in the Civil War. I learned so much about the Civil War and completely fell in love with Robert E. Lee and Abraham Lincoln. This led me to read several books about Lincoln and the Civil War which led me to love American history, which led to an interest in European history and now I’m a huge history buff and can’t get enough of the 1700 and 1800’s. And it all came from that one book told by a horse.



me: What are you reading right now?

DR: High on Arrival by McKenzie Phillips. It’s sad, but a really interesting snapshot of the 1970’s boho scene, which, being a hippy kid from Southern California, I can relate to.

me: Are you willing to identify a cheesy book that you like?

DE: There are so many! How about Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris by Paul Gallico? It was made into a movie with Angela Lansbury! There’s nothing like a salty old London Char woman to make you smile. You know he also wrote The Poseidon Adventure? He had real range!

me: What is your ultimate goal with your art?

DR: I want to sell my illustrations to national magazines and newspapers. I think my style would lend itself very well to editorial art. I would also love to do a children’s book with my stencils. I have one started called “Lulu in Paris” that I will shop around.



me: Who do you feel are the biggest influences on your art?

DR: Definitely early commercial art and turn of the century poster art from Paris--Toulouse Lautrec, that kind of thing. Also, I used to be a street artist, putting my stencils on walls until I was caught. So other street artists still influence me, but my work is a little softer than what I have seen come from other spray paint artists. More bears, horses, and French angel dogs, than is usually done.

me: Do you have anything exciting on the horizon?

DR: I just got back from a trip to New York where I met with Disney/Hyperion and Penguin/Dutton publishers. They were excited about my unusual style and gave me a list of artist reps to contact. I am submitting work to local publications as well as national ones, so stay tuned for exciting developments. I’m looking forward to 2011!




All images: copyright Diane Rios.

Check her out at her blog and on her website.

new workspace pictures

So many great improvements to the Merchandising Space at Powell's. I had Stephen take a few pictures with his phone on Saturday. One great idea he had was this corral for foam core signs on the right. (For the signs that have come out of the windows and can be used by merchandisers for projects in their rooms.) It's built so that I can store boxes below. All this stuff used to be stacked or leaned up against walls.



On the left in front of the white board is another new addition. Storage for rolled paper and posters and other long, thin items. Again: in the past? Leaned up against walls. Or stuffed in the corner behind my desk.

Then moving to the left, there's the little nook where my desk sits. That all used to be open. The new shelving unit and the semi-wall of wood create another corral for foam core signs (my stuff, which used to be leaned up against the wall behind my desk chair).

The little picture of the bunny came with the shelving unit. Powell's, on the floor and off, is full of stuff like this, where employees have put their mark on things. I love that, and wonder who put the bunny picture up and where the shelf was, then.



Moving into the little nook where my desk is, you can see (if you look hard hard hard) how I've started putting my own mark on the new area. The picture in the corner of the shelf, there, is Maxx and Zoë.

I love this little work surface built into the wall...



Open it up...



...and work on your panels for window displays.



Here's my nook for signs and other supplies. Including the three sock monkeys made specially for last year's Banned Books display and, on the right below them, the dried-up, petrified apple.

the harvard psychedelic club

Here's one of my January windows. I found this fascinating. I had no idea that Andrew Weil was connected with these guys. So interesting to see what these four men brought to our culture, and how they were connected (which included being at Harvard at the same time). And to see where they are now (or where they ended up).

Plus I got to put together a take on a psychedelic graphic for the window. Here's the top panel in jpeg form.

10

I've just started listening to Suite française on my walks to and from work. Started it on Tuesday, and my brain did what it always does when I read about those times in history that seem so... full. It felt a little jealous of that fullness, that importance, and a little... what would you say?... disappointed, I guess, to be living in a time that seems so normal. Certainly a time that seems comfortable.

But then days themselves can be full. Tuesday. Full of stress and lovely moments and good things and bad things. Work day was nonstop as Powell's changed out its New Favorites displays for its Holiday Catalog titles and this year whole cases were moved and tables taken down and hundreds of books put in and taken out and mostly by me. Stress and exhaustion, and then I'm thinking about the air raid I didn't live through, that I listened to being read to me in the opening of Suite française, and then I'm walking to the cupcake store on my lunch break and presenting my morning helpers with cupcakes and I feel great, and then I'm back schlepping books.


A full day, too, because every time I popped on the computer--before work, at lunch, in the evening--it was lovely news for Stephen.




An image of the magazine cover with his art on it.





An image of a big sign outside of Seattle's Winston Wächter Fine Art gallery that includes Stephen's name.





[see it sort of in the middle, there?]



The news that they've already sold his beautiful series Les Humeurs.



In the evening it was a trip to meet up with the man who's been building my website so we could consult and he could hand me the keys and teach me to drive it around a bit. Lots of stuff packed into a thing like that--all sorts of stuff about future and ambition and hope and what a dangerous thing hope can be. Drove home in fog so thick it seemed to be carrying the car.

Then late, an e-mail, the kind with bad news, scary loved-one bad news--not the really dire kind, not at all, but it's a note equal parts reassuring and terrifying--and funny in that particular way he's always funny. Stephen standing in the doorway to make sure I'm OK.

Finally: past my bedtime, another full day tomorrow, and I go to get ready to sleep, and Stephen says, oh, we forgot the anniversary.

Five years from our engagement. It's right there on the calendar, and we've been watching it approach. We are big homage-payers and celebrators. But the day was just too full to fit it.

But, look.

Stephen and me in the kitchen, and I take my two fingers and touch the little boxes of the calendar where they have the days printed. The Tuesday box says 10. The Wednesday box says 10. I put my fingers on two November 10ths and Stephen laughs out loud. It's not our anniversary at all. The day was just so full the number on the calendar grew. We still have tomorrow.

conspicuous

A really creative member of my merchandising team at Powell's has decided to craft some really cool hanging decorations for the holidays out of old, damaged books. I don't have photos right now, but I do have an image to share. One of the books she used was an old picture dictionary for kids. Some of the illustrations were so funny that she had to cut a few out and save them. One so cracked me up that she cut it out and presented it to me. Check out how this dictionary chose to illustrate the word conspicuous.



close-up...

sniff

I thought it would be fun to do a display on favorite tear-jerkers. I asked some of my friends around Powell's what their favorites were--just to get a list of books--and all of the sudden I had all these great, tiny reviews, these personal accounts of relationships with books.

Here are a couple of my favorites:

Shawn D. on The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein - "I sent it to my mother last year for her birthday. When I called her a week later to see if she liked it, she broke down crying hysterically. At first I was worried that a friend of hers may have died, but through her sobs I could just barely make out, 'I loved that book sooooo much.'"

Kevin Sampsell on Happy by Alex Lemon - "Alex's struggles made me cry. Alex's mom's love made me cry. And when it was over, I thought about how grateful I am for everything and I made myself cry."

Had fun, too, with the graphic I made for the window...


I interspursed some of the little blurbs people wrote with some pulp novel images that I changed up a bit to go with the theme...

spotlight on sheila ashdown

To coincide with the release of issue #3 of the Ne'er-Do-Well Literary Magazine, I thought it would be fun to do an Employee Spotlight display on publisher Sheila Ashdown, who is also not only a writer herself but a member of the marketing department for Powell's Books. [i also thought it would be fun since i happen to have an essay in #3...] I loved the answers she gave me to my interview questions, especially the one about whether she'd had any particular experiences or made any discoveries as she sifted through submissions for this latest issue, which is subtitled Working-Class Stories and, according to the press, "casts a fresh light on the absurdity, banality, and redemption of contemporary wage-slavery."



In a a blog post about the issue, she wrote: "Your job might seem as boring as a rock, but lift up that rock and the soil beneath is probably teeming with the stuff of stories."

[ooh! wiggly!]

Here's the interview. You can find the display [plus copies of all three issues, plus copies of the Ne'er-Do-Well's two-color, limited-edition poster] on the Mezzanine at Powell's City of Books.



What is your position for Powell’s and how long have you worked here?
I've worked for Powell's for three years, first at the customer service desk at the City of Books, and now as a marketing coordinator for Powells.com.

What inspired you to publish a literary magazine?
My first inspiration was altruistic: I love helping writers shepherd their work into the world. There are a lot of lit mags out there, but there are far more good writers who are struggling to get published in a tight market. I figured one more publishing outlet would be a good thing.

My second inspiration was selfish: I was sick of sitting on the publishing sidelines, where my role was almost completely passive: submitting my work to other people's magazines and waiting for them to pass judgment—or, "ordering some rejection letters," as my friend Kelly says.

What inspired the Ne’er-Do-Well theme behind it?
I was a middle-school misfit. Seriously, that's pretty much the basis of my literary aesthetic. I love stories that explore the experience of being an outsider, but are also able to showcase our shared humanity.

I love the idea of gathering working-class stories into one volume. Did you have any particular experiences / make any particular discoveries choosing these pieces?
It was an eye-opening experience. While most of the stories in this issue are written by members of our Powell's union (we have a wealth of talented writers who work here), I also took submissions from the general public—and I was floored by the stark difference between the two. The submissions I got from non-unionists generally portrayed the working class as lazy, shifty, drug-using, and trashy. It was extremely disheartening! Luckily, there were enough proud working-class writers out there to supply me with the smart, fun, heartening stories that ultimately made it into the magazine.

What is your favorite aspect of publishing a literary magazine?
I love connecting with people, and frequently find myself overwhelmed with gratitude for those who volunteer their stories, time, brainpower, and enthusiasm to the magazine. When I was putting together this latest issue, I seriously had a few sleepless nights where I was just too keyed up with gratitude to calm down and fall asleep. It's such a positive and empowering experience.

Which book has made a profound impression on your life?
Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. I read it at a very formative time in my life, when I was just starting to take myself seriously as both a writer and a feminist. Obviously, some of its lessons aren't applicable to a 21st-century gal, but I often invoke its spirit when I need a reminder to focus my energy on my own writing.

And then there's Denis Johnson's Jesus' Son, which totally lit my eyeballs on fire.

What are you reading right now?
Right now, I'm reading The Whore's Child: And Other Stories by Richard Russo. That man is a god. He can create the most captivating story out of the most subtle situation.

Are you willing to identify a cheesy book that you like?
I'm fascinated by self-help books, though I'm slightly embarrassed to admit it. The one self-help book that I actually own is Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffers. It's all about taking risks and making "no-lose" decisions. It blew my mind.

As a writer yourself, what is your ultimate goal in your writing life?
My ultimate goal is two-fold: to write as much authentic, well-crafted fiction as I possibly can—and hopefully get some of it published.

banned books week 2010

Banned Books Week is coming up at the end of the month. Powell's always recognizes this with displays around the store, and this year a creative member of my merchandising team, Christopher Johnson, suggested the theme for the window display. He made me three sock monkeys, positioned in see-no-evil, hear-no-evil, speak-no-evil stance. Look at these guys!



Obviously, I created a backdrop to look like a zoo or jail cell, and we used the monkeys graphically in the shelf talkers in the rooms (that's what's pictured above) and physically in the window. Here's a window shot...



I love having cool, creative minds on the team!

*Christopher Johnson has worked over twelve years in independent bookstores, including a colorful month-long stint at New York’s famed Strand. You can currently find him at Powell’s Books on Burnside in the Blue Room, sweating over the letter S.

preparedness month

Found out that September is National Preparedness Month and thought I'd have some fun with that at Powell's. With the recent rash of books on how to be prepared for the zombie apocalypse, the alien invasion, the robot uprising, along with a whole section of books for surviving in the wild, I figured it was a good time to take being prepared to the next level.

Here's the top panel I put together...



I was able to reuse an image I'd created for my First Contact display a while back...



There on the left side is my version of the letter-to-the-editor that Billy Pilgrim wrote in Slaughterhouse Five--one of the number of alien-related books I was displaying along with First Contact. Here's a blog post on that display which shows the original use of the letter. And here's an earlier blog post about the display in which I explain how to create an alien out of a cat and George W. Bush.

Then I found some blueprints and played around a bit with them to simulate some sort of plans for hiding and evacuation during the zombie / robot / vampire / alien apocalypse. Made quick work of it because part of that area of the display was going to be blocked by books. Here's a picture of the final display--including the annoying shine from the window glass and excluding the book that someone removed at the request of a customer that day. The customer bought the book, which is good, but I always have mixed feelings when I see those empty book holders. Yay - the display is effective... boo - now I have to go get another copy to put in the window. I've had a lot of that with this display, actually, and I've heard there are a lot of people asking questions about the books. I wonder what it is that people are getting more prepared for... survival in the wilderness or the undead.

fun with powells' photo booth

Right now, Powell's has a little attraction going on where you can have your picture taken superimposed in front of our entrance and with your name, or whatever else you want, on the marquee. With [my brother] Frank so soon to leave town, I said we should get in line and have a kooky Powell's picture together.


The choking was his idea.

But wait, there's more. You must look close. If we zero in a bit, you see...


And then we bring it in just a bit closer...

cool displays at powell's

These need no commentary, so I won't give them any. Except to say that these are two cool displays by my team mates that I've come across recently, walking the rooms in Powell's. There, see? That's all I'm going to say. Take a look...

The Purple Room: histories and social science...

The Gold Room: genre fiction...

mockingbird

I keep putting off posting this because I want to find out about the person who designed the first To Kill a Mockingbird cover. Since it's coming up on the 50th anniversary of the original release (July 11th), Powell's wanted to do a window display, of course. Harper Collins has put out a 50th anniversary trade paperback, hard cover and slip-cased edition and has based them all graphically on the original.


That's the slip-cased edition. A darker color scheme than the trade, which is what I based my window display on.

I wanted to talk about the person who originally designed that illustration but couldn't find anything out--and it's getting late. So, I'm just going to go ahead and include my knock-off graphic for the window. The blank green space is where the books themselves get piled and faced-out for display.

powell's in the news

OK, so do you want to know just how self-involved I am? I'm posting this link to a cool article the New York Times did about the big craze revolving around Steig Larsson and Scandinavian mysteries--not because I think it's neat that the Times snapped a picture of a display Powell's did for our current big Scandinavian Mystery Sale--but because, see that sign, that very simplistic sign that says 30% off, 30% off? I made that sign.


I am famous.

Photo courtesy of Mike Davis of the New York Times.

pacific northwest reader window display

I love the fact that both books with my work in them, that I've had the privilege of creating a window display for, have been visually beautiful books. Makes my job extra fun. I get to make my display not only a tribute to the book but to its cover art--just as a good piece of cover art is a tribute to the book nested inside.

The Pacific Northwest Reader's cover--and all the rest of its physical layout--are the work of Ecco's Greg Mortimer. Who, like the rest of the contributors, offered up his eye and his hand gratis, to benefit the ABFFE--the American Booksellers For Free Expression. Here's my take on his lovely cover. The two pieces below are the top and then the bottom panel of the display--in jpeg form since photos of window displays, with all the glass glare, just never do the display honor.



The empty space in the lower right-hand corner of the top panel is where the actual copies of the book go. In fact: shiny, glare-y photo in entirety below...


There was a little girl wandering around the Powell's porch, an hour before opening time, as I was taking my pictures. Mother sitting up against the adjoining wall like they were camped out. I kind of hoped to capture the little girl's reflection somewhere in my pictures, but I didn't.

Alright, one more shot, this one from inside. That great display space in the Purple Room, directly at the top of the stairs.



[i love love love greg's use of slant. to see more of me loving the use of slant you can go here.]

[portland noir window display post here]