About the Author
bill bissett
bill bissett
originalee from lunaria ovr 300 yeers ago in lunarian time
sent by shuttul thru halifax nova scotia originalee wantid 2
b dansr n figur skatr became a poet n paintr in my longings
after 12 operaysyuns reelee preventid me from following th
inishul direksyuns
—bill bissett
bill bissett garnered international attention in the 1960s as a pre-eminent figure of the counterculture movement in Canada and the United Kingdom. In 1964, he founded blewointment press, which published the works of bpNichol and Steve McCaffery, among others.
bissett’s charged readings, which never fail to amaze his audiences, incorporate sound poetry, chanting and singing, the verve of which is only matched by his prolific writing career—more than seventy books of bissett’s poetry have been published.
A pioneer of sound, visual and performance poetry—eschewing the artificial hierarchies of meaning and the privileging of things (“proper” nouns) over actions imposed on language by capital letters; the metric limitations imposed on the possibilities of expression by punctuation; and the illusion of formal transparency imposed on the written word by standard (rather than phonetic) spelling—bissett composes his poems as scripts for pure performance and has consistently worked to extend the boundaries of language and visual image, honing a synthesis of the two in the medium of concrete poetry.
Whether paying tribute to his hometown lunaria or exercising his native tongue dissent, bissett continues to dance upon upon the cutting edge of poetics and performance works.
bill bissett was recently a featured poet on the Heart of a Poet series, produced in conjunction with Bravo! TV.
Among bissett’s many awards are The George Woodcock Lifetime Achievement Award (2007); BC Book Prizes Dorothy Livesay Prize (2003) peter among th towring boxes / text bites; BC Book Prizes Dorothy Livesay Prize (1993) inkorrect thots.
ALU presents...time capsule! We're digging up historical and literary dirt through the ages, like which books made waves back then (or hearken back to and capture the spirit of times gone by) and which publishers came on the scene. We grouped together our first two decades: ... Read more
With a whopping over-500 titles in print, Vancouver’s Talonbooks has been publishing one of the finest and most diverse literary lists in Canada for over 50 years.
Founded in 1963 by famed poet bill bissett, Nightwood Editions is committed to publishing and promoting poetry and fiction from talented, emerging writers all across Canada.
National Poetry Month will soon be drawing to a close and we intend to finish it out with a few more fantastic Poetry Primer picks. Lucky number fourteen of our established poets is Jim Johnstone. He is the author of four collections of poetry, including his latest, Dog ... Read more
Howdy, lit-lovers! While we're sad to see a successful Ottawa VerseFEST wrap up today, there's a bevy of great book events to console you through the week.
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This year, you may have resolved to eat healthier, quit smoking, or save money. But how about resolving to be open to new inspiration? Poetry offers an accessible read suitable for a quick browse, a languid savouring, or reading aloud.
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If you find yourself lost looking for what to add next to your TBR pile, we have the aspirin-and-coffee combo cure for your literary award hangover. We’ve hand-picked books that speak to the themes and/or style of this year’s winners and nominees from the Hilary Weston ... Read more
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