I am so excited to announce that James and the wonderful team at Dymocks, Knox City, are now stocking copies of my latest book of poetry, Pas De Deux, as well as my first collection, Defenestration!
I'm super excited to see my books on the shelves at a bookshop and on the shelf next to Sylvia Plath. I still can't quite believe it's true!
There's a thrill that comes when you see your words in print and your name on the cover of a book. There's also a deep sense of satisfaction and completion. You've managed to get your book this far and now it's ready to go out into the world and meet new people. I wonder if they will be friendly…
As a writer, I am looking for an audience; a reader to complete my work and connect with my words, thoughts and ideas. To dance with them as they dip into the pages. Most things I do come back to connection and writing is no different. It's just another way I can connect with the people and the world around me by sharing the things that I notice.
All I've said so far is true but creatively speaking, I said goodbye to the poems in this collection a long time ago. I still perform my favourites on stage at open mics but there are many pieces in here that I have forgotten about. However, now that I have a copy to flick through and pore over, I am looking forward to finding forgotten gems. Some of these poems were written over three years ago and opening the pages to see them again is a little like seeing an old friend after many years apart. I wonder if we will still have things in common or if we will get on?
A big thank you to everyone who attended the launch of Pas De Deux, last night and made it such a success.
Here's just one of the comments from last night's chat:
'Absolutely gorgeous. I love your words, and your voice – there’s nothing like hearing you read your work yourself…. Encore!' Sue Totterdell
An especial thank you to the lovely Caz Masel who launched the book and said so many nice things about it. I loved listening to Caz read some of my poems and I got a kick of hearing her compare me to Samuel Taylor Coleridge. High praise!
And of course a huge thank you must go to Stephen Matthews at Ginninderra Press who published Pas De Deux, my second collection of poetry. I am forever in Stephen's debt for first publishing the young, aspiring poet Indrani Perera (late last century as my girls like to remind me!) and for continuing to believe in my poetry, twenty-three years later.
An honorary mention must also go to Joan Fenney, editor of the journal The Crow, who battled tech issues to finally join the zoom.
If you'd like to purchase a copy of Pas De Deux or my previous collection, Defenestration, head on over to the Ginninderra Press website or visit Book Depository. You can also get your hands on electronic version if you prefer digital.
It’s incredible to finally have actual, physical copies of my book instead of peering at proofs on a screen. To be able to hold it in my hands and flip through the pages. And you know, to see my name on the cover.
Designing the cover and getting it right was a big process. I went through many ideas before this final version. I knew I wanted a drawing of a bird, a welcome swallow in fact, but finding the image was a challenge. It turns out there aren't too many pictures of welcome swallows in the public domain!
In the end I ended up drawing it myself which meant learning to use a new, open source program to create the image. First I drew the bird on paper, then loaded it on to the computer and finally I traced around it. I'm sure there's an easier way to do it but as a beginner in drawing on a computer this is what worked for me.
Like most things it took way longer than anticipated but I think that it was well worth all the effort!
Hint: it's not a cat…
I'm an old fashioned gal at heart. I adore vintage furniture and ephemera like suitcases, hat boxes, shoe lasts, tie clips and butter knives with bone handles. I also haver a thing for graphic design so it made perfect sense to combine these two loves and create a postcard to send to friends and family for the upcoming launch of Pas De Deux, my second collection of poetry.
I've recently become a bit of a font geek and have been obsessing over the best typefaces to use for my designs. I'm still not 100% sure of the distinction between a typeface and font even after reading the excellent book Just My Type by Simon Garfield which I got for Christmas last year. Designing the invitation for my launch, however, was a breeze because I just had to use the fonts which I had already used for the cover of the book itself. For those of you interested in such arcane, matters I used Playfair Display for the heading and Montserrat Classic for the sub headings. I set the text on the back in Bodoni FLF.
It was great to sit down with my address book, a pile of postcards and some stamps and write out all the invitations. And then of course the fun of opening up that great big red box and putting the postcards inside. Isn't it marvellous that all you have to do is stick on a stamp and then your letter gets taken all around the world?
My second collection of poetry, Pas De Deux, has been published by Gininderra Press and you’re invited to the online launch via Zoom at 7pm on Tuesday 30th March 2021. If you can make it, please RSVP by 23 March 2021 to hello@indraniperera.com with “YES” in the subject line.
7.00 pm
Tuesday 30th March 2021
Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6014563938
Copies of the book are $22.50 (plus $5.00 for postage and packaging for Australian orders). If you’d like to pre-order a copy to have at the launch, I’ll happily post one out to you. Just let me know when you RSVP that you’d like a copy (and let me know if you’d like it signed!). Once you’ve paid, I’ll mail out your copy.