Making Space for Accessible Poetry

February 15, 2013

Canadian Poet Heather Grace Stewart launches her fourth poetry collection, Three Spaces

Three Spaces is a ‘brave new collection’ of poetry, prose and photography from Amazon and iBooks Canada bestselling-poet and journalist Heather Grace Stewart.  It examines themes within three spaces of our society: public space, personal space, and cyberspace.
“I wanted to put out a collection that was a reflection of our society today, of how we’re trying to balance our  public lives with our lives in cyberspace, all while trying to maintain some privacy in our personal lives,’ Heather explains.

“There are dark and intense poems that start this collection, but then I move into tender, humorous poetry and prose to lighten the mood, and colourful images that can provide space for introspection,” Heather explains. “As always, I try to give my poetry substance, but make it accessible. I don’t want my readers scratching their heads or pulling their hair out after reading one of my poems! I want them to relate in some way. I’d like for them to walk away from the experience of reading this book feeling moved, energized and entertained.”

Early reviewers describe Three Spaces as ‘inspiring’ ‘heartfelt,’ ‘professional’ and ‘modern.’ Best-selling Author Elisa Lorello (Faking It, Adulation) writes,

“Buy this book. Get hooked. Add it to your space. You won’t be disappointed.”

Three Spaces is available now in Kindle Stores Worldwide, including Canada, USA & India, the UK, Germany, and many other countries, as well as on Kobo, iBooks, Nook, Sony Reader, and many other epub readers.

It will be available in print on Amazon and in bookstores in April, IF there is enough initial interest (at least 100 requests ) to warrant the production costs.

Heather will appear at Chapters Pointe Claire, Quebec on April 14th to celebrate National Poetry Month and to read from Carry On Dancing and a Kobo version of Three Spaces on her Kobo for IPad app.

Heather’s poems have been published in Canadian literary journals, newspapers and magazines, nation-wide school textbooks, international print anthologies, online journals, and in the British small presses. She was awarded Queen’s University’s McIlquham Foundation Prize in English Poetry (1995) and the UK journal Various Artists’ Poet’s Poet Award in 2008 and 2012.

Her third collection of poetry and photos, Carry On Dancing (Winter Goose Publishing, 2012)  hit #1 on Amazon Canada’s Bestselling Poetry list in April 2012, and stayed there for several weeks. It’s now topping the Canadian Kindle Bestselling Poetry charts along with Where the Butterflies Go.

Her second collection of poetry and photos, Leap (Graceful Publications, 2010), has been described as a “lovely lilt of language,” and, “a must for new and already hooked fans,” by reviewers. Where the Butterflies Go (Graceful Publications, 2008), was reviewed as “whirlwind poetry that never hesitates…always delightful and rarely what you expect. We need poetry like this.”

Heather is also a children’s poet, and enjoys screenwriting. The Groovy Granny (2012 Kindle version; Special Audio Version on iBooks) and The Friends I’ve Never Met (Romantic Comedy screenplay, 2012) are her best-selling Kindle books.

Her photographs have appeared in Equinox and National Geographic Traveler among others, and on the cover of over a dozen poetry books.

Born in Ottawa, Canada, she lives with her husband and daughter near Montreal. In her free time, she loves to take photos, scrapbook, cartoon, inline skate, dance like nobody’s watching, and eat Swedish Berries — usually not all at the same time.

Three Spaces

Leaping to the Top of the iBookstore Charts

Dear Readers,

Number FIVE! I thought my dream of hitting the top 10 in poetry in the iBookstore by Spring 2012 was a pipe dream. But I did set it as a goal a couple weeks ago, when I realized how well both my poetry ebooks were selling on Lulu.com  I thought, okay, now to top the charts of the iBookstore!

Today, Leap is #5 in Top Poetry Paid Books in the Canadian iBookstore! It is also being featured in the What’s Hot section of the Canadian and US iBookstores.  Where the Butterflies Go is trailing behind at #141 (I published this an a ebook a little later than ‘Leap’) but I’m thrilled it’s on the list at all.

Ebooks don’t make a lot of money. Hell, poetry doesn’t make a lot of money! So I have always felt the thing to do with proceeds from these two collections is to donate half to making a small difference in the world. Since 2008, we’ve been able to help four children go to school for a year, and provided part of the teachers’ salaries too. We’ve contributed a little to the grand expense of building desks for a small school in India, and this past Christmas, we donated pencils to an entire school.

I’m donating to Unicef again today (enough to give pencils to an entire school) as a way of thanking all of you for reading, buying and sharing my poetry links; for helping more people discover my work, and for helping me achieve my charity donation goals.

Thank you. I couldn’t have done any of this without you loyal readers.

Life is short. Keep on laughing. Keep on loving. Never stop leaping.

All my best,
Heather
PS Watch for ‘The Groovy Granny’ as an ebook on Lulu.com and in the iBookstore soon, and my new collection of poetry and photographs by Spring 2012.

#5! Top Paid Poetry Books - iBookstore August 24, 2011

Heather Grace Stewart with the epub 'Leap' for the iPad

iLike myPoetry in iTunes!

If you’d told me a decade ago if I’d have my own publishing company, I’d have never believed it.

If you’d told me I’d have my poetry collection in a bookstore in an online music store run by the guy who started Apple computers, I’d have wondered what you were drinking. Then, I’d ask you to pour me some, too.

I’ve only had iced tea today, so I know I’m really seeing what I’m seeing: my book ‘Leap,’ has been launched in the ibookstore of itunes–so you can read it on your ipad, ipod, iphone, and more! Take a look:

Leap in the ibookstore at itunes

I used to balk at the thought of reading poetry on any digital device, but you readers have told me time and time again how my words have affected you in big and small ways (thanks so much for telling me, by the way, and for sharing my poems with others, on both special and sombre occasions.) So, I’ve come to the conclusion that if the poetry comes to you in a hardcover, paperback, on an ipad, an ipod, an iphone, your Mac, PC, Blackberry, Sony reader, or the very latest ‘it’ tablet (which according to my engineering hubby is the Asus Eee Pad transformer) as long as the message gets to you, it doesn’t matter how you’re receiving it.

So, go ahead. Take the ‘Leap’ into reading poetry as an epub, and when you do, please LIKE it on FB, and give me a star rating and a short review – those really help spread the word.

If you’re not sure about jumping into this sea of ebooks yet, perhaps trying mine first would be a good way to dip your toes in the water. You can download a free Adobe Digital Editions ereader for your Mac or PC right here Leap the epub for Mac, PC, and ereaders on Lulu.com When you download the epbub -a very easy process – you can read it on that, as well as on a variety of devices like the Blackberry, Sony reader, and other cool tablets.

Poetry isn’t going away – not by a long shot. It’s changing with the times, boldly accommodating itself to new technologies—and coming out cooler than ever. What’s not to LIKE! about that?

Leaping into the itunes ibookstore, June 9, 2011

Taking the LEAP

American writer and poet Jamie Dedes, a former columnist and features writer, reviewed ‘Leap’ today in her Saturday Review series. I’m thrilled with her well-written, informative review (and tickled she’d put Anne Murray, k.d. lang, and Mark Vonnegut in the same sentence as my name) and wanted to share parts of it with my readers here.

“When I think of Canada, the first thing I think of is snow and Mark Vonnegut (The Eden Express, Memoir of Insanity), and voices clear and cool as mountain spring-water, k.d. lang and Anne Murray … and now I think of Heather Grace Stewart, a new-to-me poet, writer/journalist, children’s writer, and photographer,” writes Jamie.

She continues, “In this one collection, Leap, Heather deftly combines lightness and depth. It’s an honest, unpretentious look at life with all its risks and joys. We recommend that you take the Leap. The book is oversized with a paperback cover and illustrated with Heather’s photographs of family – especially her young daughter – and nature scenes. It can be purchased HERE for $9.99 with half the proceeds going to UNICEF’s Gift of Education project.

You can read the whole review and many other great posts over at Jamie Dedes’ site.

Thanks, as always, for reading and taking the leap with me.

'Poetry Rocks' copyright Meg Laufer 2010

Interview at Exposure Worthy

I’ve been Exposed!

Fellow poet and blogger Kellie Elmore has deemed me Exposure Worthy. I answered her interview questions late last night, and to my surprise, she notified me this morning that she already had the complete interview up at her site–with links and all! She’s amazing.

Thanks so much for suggesting we do the interview, and for
asking such great questions, Kellie. I thought it was going to be painful (I’m used to being the journalist; the one who asks all the questions) but it was actually a fun trip down memory lane.

Check it out here:
Kellie Elmore interviews me

And please read my favorite poem by Kellie Elmore:

Magic in the Backyard by Kellie Elmore

Have a great week everyone.
Cheers,
Heather