5 Questions for Jason Sebastian Russo by Craig Morgan Teicher
I was thrilled to answer some questions for Craig Teicher-Morgan; we managed to get there pretty quickly and thoroughly. I’m grateful for his and Bennington’s continued investment in my case.
Bennington Magazine "Rodeo #2"
Bennington Magazine published some of my thoughts on my second rodeo. Shout out to their editing it from 5k to 1k and revealing a whole new kind of sense. Read the entire issue, it’s chock full and focuses on music this quarter.
Southwest Review "Earth to Dominic"
I’m happy to say that the Southwest Review published my short story, “Earth to Dominic” in their spring issue. The illustration and the kind and generous editing of Bobby Rae and Mary Klein blew me away. Order a copy, it’s a lot of amazing work for only $6, and it looks fantastic.
Harpy Hybrid Journal
Harpy Hybrid Journal published my apologies and a short interview about methods. I touch briefly on my fav Zen master, Ikkyu, which prompted the sharing of a fantastic paper on the old master by the inimitable @BodhiDave. Go here to read his article, and go here to read my poetry and interview.
Forever Mag
Forever Mag gave me a two-page spread (!?) in their epic fourth issue. They usually sell out, so hop to it. It’s available at select bookstores as well. The issue release party was one for the history books, and I’m stoked they exist to inject life into our ancient art form.
Schuylkill Valley Journal
The Schuylkill Valley Journal published my poem, Major Perk. The talented Rob Kaniuk included it in his final online collection for the journal, and the editorial staff also included it in their print issue. Grab a copy of the actual book, it feels really great to turn the pages.
Forever Magazine
Forever Magazine published four new poems of mine. Including one that I consider the spiritual center of my eventual collection, “Toyotathon.” I’m honored to be included for many reasons, but their epic web design is chief among them. Shout out to the talented Anika Levy and Madeline Cash for being extremely rad about the whole process.
Tandem
The good people at The Nervous Breakdown published Tandem, a significant chunk of HONK, my novel-in-progress. Read it here. I’m extremely grateful to Bud Smith for editing it. He really went the distance, we worked on it for months. I’m also indebted to Joseph Grantham for pulling the trigger. I’m a giant fan of the writing he and TNB publishes and honored to be included.
"Retsoor" Chap Book via Ghost City Press' 2021 Summer Series
It’s an honor to have been selected to be part of Ghost City Press’ 2021 Summer Series. I highly recommend downloading any of the chapbooks they publish (daily) each summer, they have fantastic taste in editors and writers. This summer is no exception. Giant thank you to editors Jeremy Boyd and Kwan Ann Tan for accepting this collection of twelve brand new poems into the Ghost City family. Shout out to Jill Braithwaite for her patience and editorial savvy, we worked hard to hammer these together, both on an individual and collective level. It’s my hope that they’re cumulative, relentless and exponential. I don’t always think of them as poems, but I’m also not sure of what else to call them. Either way, they're free and in chapbook form here. A Tremendous Savings. Print copies are coming soon. Sign up for my gentle, infrequent newsletter to find out when and how to buy one. (Soon!)
2021 Summer Series edited by Jeremy Boyd and Kwan Ann Tan
Poster design by Nick Larson
Hobart
One of my favorite authors and good friend, Bud Smith, curated excerpts of Honk in Hobart. For this I’m extremely grateful:
HONK
By Jason Sebastian Russo
ONE
Honk if in the winter of ‘96 you were released from 28-day rehab to live in your parents’ laundry room. Honk if the only job you could find in the small town you grew up in was turtle cleaner. Literally a turtle cleaner. As in, a local vet collected exotic turtles and he needed someone to syphon the turtle-shit-infused water with a pool pump attached to a garden hose. There were over 3,000 turtles in approximately 500 tanks. The smallest turtle was the size of a quarter, the largest was a snapper the size of a dining room table. The latter was kept in a pool covered in chicken wire. You and the goth kid, Dale, the only other employee, would toss full-sized trout into the gap in the wire. It was also your duty to carry the corpses of dead dogs to the giant refrigerator behind the garage. Sometimes you had to prop the door open with a frozen lap dog, a poodle or chihuahua.
What We Talk About
A brand new literary journal – LIT – helmed by Traci O’Dea and my dear friend Aaron Belz
published What We Talk About When We Don’t Talk At All. I asked if they wanted me to remove the Alf part but they didn’t seem to care. Read it here. Support them on the internet, they’re doing amazing things.
Cobra Milk
The fine people at Cobra Milk published their beautiful second issue and it features HONK’s epilogue. I began writing it in summer 2020 and wrote the epilogue sometime last fall. All I have to do is finish the middle. I’ve been pretty much constantly working on it. It’s crazy to think that I might have a complete manuscript this year, but not that crazy. They also included a drawing of mine, screenshots below. I urge you to give them love on social media; they’re earnest, thoughtful people.
Substack
I’ve sub stacked. Please sign up to receive occasional, non-invasive, writing-centric, missives from me. HERE. Being directly in touch will be so much better than interacting on social media.
Below is my very first Substack post. The various subscription tiers get you varying degrees of life advice from me plus writing. In short, a tremendous savings.
Welcome to Retsoor by me, @retsoor. If you’re reading this you’ve found your way here via twitter or one of the bands I’m in. These missives will focus on the writing side of my brain, but will not be with out visual or audio content. Much of it leading up to the book/album/series of videos called HONK. I appreciate your interest.
Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue & please, tell your enemies!
“that stone Buddha deserves all the
birdshit it gets
I wave my skinny arms like a tall
flower in the wind”
―Ikkyu
https://linktr.ee/retsoor
Clay Literary
Clay Literary featured three of my poems in their online zine, ‘Raven.’
Author bio: Jason Sebastian Russo is a writer, composer, musician, and digital marketer based in Brooklyn. He's recorded and toured with bands that include Mercury Rev, Kevin Devine, Hopewell, Pete International Airport, Nicole Atkins, and Guiding Light, which releases a new album in January 2021. He’s also working on a novel and currently exploring forms that combine poetry, music, and technology, as well as scoring podcasts for the New York Times and others.
Honk (excerpt)
Written by Jason Sebastian Russo
if being poor is a full-time job
if you’re starting to look like your van
or it’s starting to look like you
if your boss is an algorithm
honk
if you’re a slave to freedom
if you thought love was a feeling
if good things are just things that stop at the right time
if you’re a bird that loves its cage
if your body feels like a pair of shoes
that are too small
honk if you’re honking
honk
if you’ll try anything way more than twice
if you're happier than you feel
if you can't or hate to honk
if the problem with ideas is the people having them
if your body is a tomb
or a clock
or a time machine
if the next brooklyn is within as is the real wifi
honk if the way the skin is wrapped around your skull buys you privilege
if you're probably a computer programmed to think it's not a computer if it's always the past
or
you're horny for truth
& you lost your virginity on the premises of your catholic high school
honk if the molecules that decide they are you
think they're honking
honk
if god exists
but we don’t
honk if the world is a mask for the truth
or, if eating percocet out of the toilet killed people, you'd have been dead in 1999
&
if it's not death's fault
honk if your fate is to reject destiny
&
if god isn't a noun
honk
if love can only be mutual
like color is light reflected back at you
honk if music wants to be played
if the most self-destructive part of you claims that the most self-destructive part of you is the part of you that is attracted to self-destructive people
honk if we lack the analogies
if love made us so we can make it
or is hard for a reason
or literally never waits
if you are plural but we are not
if the child you never had is you
if your father is a folder of contradictory emails if your parents are a hotel ice maker next to a vending machine
& murderers
in reverse
honk if we're good
honk if we get closer, but the moon stays the same size
or if a giant sadness has come between us
or if I've already forgiven you for crimes you've yet to commit
honk if all you inherited was a look of horror
or if it’s entirely possible that you’ll die
of astonishment
(Listen to this poem's audio HERE ON SOUNDCLOUD)
