Cirque: A Literary Journal for Alaska and the Pacific Northwest

08/31/2024

Introduction at the launch of
Apportioning the Light by Karen Tschannen
Sandra Kleven of Cirque Press
On Karen… When I review the process of arriving here, early steps are vague. We met in the summer of 2016 when Karen’s friend, former laureate, Joanne Townsend, came to Anchorage from Los Cruces, New Mexico and read as the Poetry Parley featured poet.
They were once three – Joanne, Nancy Cleery and Karen. Three graces – friends who supported each other’s writing in the tradition of Anne Sexton and Maxine Kumin. In the tradition of many kitchen table poets.
This period in our history - the seventies and earlier - was a time when the poetry of woman was trivialized as “kitchen poetry” and a woman had to fight this perception even to take herself seriously.
Karen took UAA classes with Tom Sexton and Nancy Cleery. A prose/poem piece titled “Wednesday Lover” was published in the first issue of AQR. That would be the mid 80’s. This would be considered quite the accomplishment. Thirty-five years later AQR is the hardest nut to crack.
Somehow through my acquaintance with Karen I gathered the fact that she had enough material at hand to read as the featured local poet for Poetry Parley. This is all vague up until about two years ago in the geographical footprint formed right here… back when we occupied the Adults Only shop and I heard Karen read her verse for the first time… “Where is that woman walking past going? I’ve seen her before…”
Soon, I would ask “Do you think you have enough poetry for a book?” And for 14 months we worked to make this happen. Michael Burwell edited. Paxson Woelber worked on design and Kat Anderson providing the cover. There was no Cirque Press. But I proposed this to Michael “For nine years, we’ve created two books a year.” Referencing Cirque. We know how to make a book. Let’s publish Karen’s collected poetry.”
~~~
Now, there are no words because we have captured them all here… in poems with such memorable phrasing as “ankle deep in stars.” “stiff night of winter,” “praised god in horizontal harmonies,“ “bulbs like infant fists insisting on the light, lobed memories listening intently..” and “Where is that woman Walking Past Going, I’ve seen her before going alone.”
Karen says, collected poems are like an offering. We bring them together and secure them, offer them. Collected and published in a book, she will be remembered for what she has accomplished. These words will not be lost. Karen writes, “Once for a little time, someone heard my words, words reckless and inexhaustible, words powerful as love. “
Karen Tschannen – one of Alaska’s great poets.
Now I would like to introduce the one to whom the book is dedicated, Annaleisa Tschannen, Karen’s daughter.

08/29/2024

Karen Tschannen says, 4/3/2018
Thank you so much for the pix and your kind words...for me and for poetry here in Alaska. It is so alive these days. I do remember those days so many years back when having ten attend a reading at The Bread Factory was a "crowd." Now there is hardly enough parking at some of the many venues here in Anchorage. New publications, new fresh words at readings, handsome broadsides in food venues. Lots of excitement. Lots of poetry postings on my Facebook feed. Feeling the VIBES! and YOU (Vivian Faith Prescott) add a lot to that all the way in and from SE Alaska! Thank You! and Sandra Kleven and Mike Burwell at Cirque, 49 writers, and so many many others, providing the energy and thoughtfulness and words words words! Poetry, alive and well in Alaska.

08/24/2024

Marion Elliott, author of Out Of The Dark: A Memoir, just shared this wonderful review posted to Amazon by “Holly.” Thank you.

“I found this third-person memoir hard to put down, because there was no logical place to pause. I wanted to keep learning more about her loss, and about her journey (including a literal journey, the ultimate road trip from New York to Alaska). Her lyrical writing is so descriptive I was almost experiencing the grief of losing a son as she did, and I also learned a lot about how grief can affect a person. If this sounds like a sad book, well portions of it are. But there is joy to be found here too, and wonderful stories of the folks she meets on her road trip and in Alaska. I recommend you pick up a copy to follow along on the journey.”

08/24/2024

08/23/2024

Contemporary poets replicate a surrealist photo 

08/22/2024

Poetry Parley. Part 2 Program
The Poetry of Mark Muro
The Poet of Influence
Andre' Breton Intro &
Readers:
1. Part of the Manifesto on
Surrealism--Sandra Kleven
2. "The Spectral Attitudes"
Kerry Feldman
3. "Verb To Be" -- Wanda
Wilson
4. ALL THE SCHOOLGIRLS
TOGETHER --Lucky
5. "Choose Life" -- Cynthia
Steele
6. "It Was Going on Five in the Morning"-- Monica
Devine
7. "Less Time" and "Always for the First Time"-- Eric G
Johnson
8. Peter Porco -- TBA

08/22/2024

Poetry Parley. Part 1 Program
The Poetry of Mark Muro
The Poet of Influence
Andre' Breton Intro &
Readers:
1. Part of the Manifesto on
Surrealism--Sandra Kleven
2. "The Spectral Attitudes"
Kerry Feldman
3. "Verb To Be" -- Wanda
Wilson
4. ALL THE SCHOOLGIRLS
TOGETHER --Lucky
5. "Choose Life" -- Cynthia
Steele
6. "It Was Going on Five in the Morning"-- Monica
Devine
7. "Less Time" and "Always for the First Time"-- Eric G
Johnson
8. Peter Porco -- TBA

08/17/2024

At airport no plane yet... but I didn't miss it! Thank you to all the wonderful people for our readings and our dear friends, Kay, Lynda, Ron, and Claudia for putting us up and for putting up with us 

08/17/2024

#2
CIRQUE READS WITH FRIENDS
August 16th at 7 pm
Bothell United Methodist Church
Meet literary writers/poets from
AK, the NW the CANADA
Celebrate 15 years of CIRQUE: A
Good Start
Cirque #28.
MC - Sandy Kleven
Reading in this order:
• Ron McFarland
• Georgia Tiffany
• Sherri Levine
• Elisa Carlsen
• DJ Lee
• Mary E Crane
• Amanda Hiland
• Mike Hull
• Diane Ray
• Lynda Humphrey
• Intermission
• Craig Smith
• Allison Spikes
• Christianne Balk
• Joel Savishinsky
• Andrea Nicki
• Cynthia Steele
• Ari Blatt
Please continue to support Cirque Press with your submissions and your financial support.
We are so proud to display the work of writers and artists throughout Alaska and the Northwest. Sandra Kleven, Michael Burwell, Cynthia Steele and our talented group of designers - Signe Jorgenson, Dale Champlin, Kari Odden, and Emily Tallman.
Just ahead: announcement of the winners of the Poetry in Motionn contest. With a Zoom reading of the winning entries.
Zoom launch of Cirque #27 with the formal launch of Out of the Dark, and two other memoirs out soon.
Decisions about
CIRQUE
Joumal for the North Potille Rim
VOLUME 14, NO. 1
CIRQUE PRESS
Image by Nard Claar
A VARIABLE SENSE OR TRENGS
Featuring Ron
McFarland
During his 50-year teaching career at the University of
Idaho he helped create the MFA program and served as
advisor to the lit mag, Fugue.
LIVE THEAM

08/17/2024

CIRQUE READS WITH FRIENDS
August 16th at 7 pm
Bothell United Methodist Church
Meet literary writers/poets from
AK, the NW the CANADA
Celebrate 15 years of CIRQUE: A
Good Start
Cirque #28.
MC - Sandy Kleven
Reading in this order:
• Ron McFarland
• Georgia Tiffany
• Sherri Levine
• Elisa Carlsen
• DJ Lee
• Mary E Crane
• Amanda Hiland
• Mike Hull
• Diane Ray
• Lynda Humphrey
• Intermission
• Craig Smith
• Allison Spikes
• Christianne Balk
• Joel Savishinsky
• Andrea Nicki
• Cynthia Steele
• Ari Blatt
Please continue to support Cirque Press with your submissions and your financial support.
We are so proud to display the work of writers and artists throughout Alaska and the Northwest. Sandra Kleven, Michael Burwell, Cynthia Steele and our talented group of designers - Signe Jorgenson, Dale Champlin, Kari Odden, and Emily Tallman.
Just ahead: announcement of the winners of the Poetry in Motionn contest. With a Zoom reading of the winning entries.
Zoom launch of Cirque #27 with the formal launch of Out of the Dark, and two other memoirs out soon.
Decisions about
CIRQUE
Joumal for the North Potille Rim
VOLUME 14, NO. 1
CIRQUE PRESS
Image by Nard Claar
A VARIABLE SENSE OR TRENGS
Featuring Ron
McFarland
During his 50-year teaching career at the University of
Idaho he helped create the MFA program and served as
advisor to the lit mag, Fugue.
LIVE THEAM

08/12/2024

08/12/2024

08/12/2024

Soiree in the home of Karl Flauccus and Christianne Balk August 2024 2

08/12/2024

Soiree in the home of Karl Flauccus and Christianne Balk August 2024

08/09/2024

http://cirquejournal.com

08/08/2024

Posted for 49 Writers

08/08/2024

08/07/2024

Tomorrow we leave the ranch of Lynda Whisman Humphrey and go on our merry way toward Lake Chelan and Seattle and such ... but we will miss the likes of these fine folks and others that I had the opportunity to photograph while we (Sandra L Kleven & I) were here... 

08/03/2024

I am not your enemy. I am not the faceless adversary lurking in the shadows of your mind. I am not the source of your fears, nor the architect of your doubts. I am simply another human being, navigating this complex world just as you are, searching for meaning, for connection, for peace.

It would seem we are living in a time when this needs to be stated up front with each and every instance.

We have been taught to see each other as threats, as competitors in a race to the top, as obstacles to our own success and happiness. But this narrative is a lie. It is a trap designed to keep us divided, to keep us isolated in our struggles, to prevent us from recognizing our shared humanity.

When you look at me, what do you see? Do you see someone different, someone alien, someone whose experiences and values are fundamentally opposed to yours? Or do you see a reflection of yourself, another soul striving for understanding and compassion in a world that too often feels cold and indifferent?

I have my flaws, my imperfections, my moments of weakness and failure. I have made mistakes, hurt others, and been hurt in return. But these moments do not define me, just as your mistakes do not define you. We are all a tapestry of experiences, woven together with threads of joy and sorrow, love and loss, hope and despair.

I am not your enemy. I am your potential ally, your fellow traveler on this journey called life. Together, we can overcome the barriers that divide us, the prejudices that blind us, the fears that paralyze us. Together, we can build a world where understanding and empathy triumph over hatred and suspicion.

It starts with a simple act: seeing each other for who we truly are. Not as labels or stereotypes, but as individuals with unique stories, dreams, and struggles. It starts with listening, with opening our hearts and minds to the experiences of others, even when they challenge our own beliefs and assumptions.

In this way, we can begin to dismantle the walls that separate us, brick by brick. We can create a community where everyone feels seen, heard, and valued. We can transform our fear into trust, our hostility into cooperation, our isolation into solidarity.

I am not your enemy. I am your brother, your sister, your friend. I am a fellow human being, yearning for connection and understanding. Let us discover the beauty of our shared humanity. Let us choose love over fear, compassion over indifference, unity over division.

In the end, we are all in this together, and together, we can create a brighter, more hopeful future for us all.
Posted Originally By Brad Williams

08/02/2024

This is happening in Bothell, WA, in just a few weeks. We've got three writers traveling from Oregon, one from Idaho, Cynthia from AK, and this trip I'll be heading to the Northwest from Barcelona where instead of frolicking's in the nearby waves, I am promoting this reading! So be there. I have sacrificed for this!
By way of compensation in one hour I will head out on to Montserrat and ascension via a cog-wheel train.
Note that we'll also be celebrating the release of Ron McFarland's new book from Cirque Press, A Variable Sense of Things.
People who staff the door since this all began (14 years ago!) Lynda Humphrey and Kay Fisher will be staffing again and Lynda will bring copies of Miss Bebe Comes to America - the adorable, bi-lingual immigration story of a kitten, illustrated by Judi Nyerges.

07/19/2024

Facts on facts.

07/19/2024

Cynthia Lee Steele