History Chat: Collecting Alan Justiss for National Poetry Month

# Celebrating the Life and Poetry of Alan Justiss

This April, in honor of National Poetry Month, Jacksonville Public Library will highlight the life and poetry of Alan Justiss (1943-2011), a celebrated Jacksonville poet whose works have recently been acquired by our Special Collections department. 

"I don't make poetry up. I don't sit down and make poetry up. If it's poetry, then it makes me up." - Alan Justiss, at a poetry reading at Chamblin's Uptown in 2008 (recorded by Nestor Gil).

Lynn Skapyak Harlin, a poet who often worked with and sometimes wrote about Justiss, said in a 2011 interview with The Florida Times-Union, "He refused to edit a finished poem." The article goes on to say, "He would sit at his manual typewriter and pound out the poems that he would then deposit in boxes, often unread by anybody, even him. The result was an estimated tens of thousands of poems."

Check out the Alan Justiss Manuscript Collection, 1960-2011, in the catalog.

# JOIN THE DISCUSSION

Save your seat for the History Chat: Collecting Alan Justiss (To The Hawks Lend Your Heart) on Saturday, April 27, at 2 p.m. live on the fourth floor of the Main Library in the beautiful Ansbacher Map Room. This panel discussion will be moderated by artist and educator, Nestor Gil. The panelists will talk about Justiss’ life and legacy, read selections of his poetry, and a preview of an upcoming documentary. An audience Q&A will follow the presentation.

Register Now!

# Additional Panelists

• Lynn Skapyak Harlin - poet
• Al Letson - poet, playwright, host of Reveal on NPR Radio, TV writer/producer
• Tim Gilmore - academic, author, and principal creator of Jax PsychoGeo online
• George Gilpatrick - poet
• Shelton Hull - journalist
• Troy Lukkarila - multidisciplinary artist and documentarian

# Remembering Alan Justiss

Former Library staff member, Matthew Moyer, wrote this about Justiss, after his passing:

"Though he created a vast body of work, mixed it up with the likes of Alan Ginsberg and Charles Bukowski, and had a huge influence on at least two generations of young Jacksonville writers and creatives–and much will no doubt be written about that – [Jacksonville Public Library] remember him fondly for his work above and beyond the call of duty in promoting the first Much Ado About Zines event [in the spring of 2010]. Though obviously in ill health, Alan, acting as the grand old man of Jacksonville zines, undertook a hectic two-day schedule promoting and participating in the event."

"He appeared on WJCT’s First Coast Connect radio show talking about the history of zines and chapbooks, gamely attended the gala fundraiser for the event (adding some much-needed grit to the champagne bubbles), got up bright and early to do a reading on the day, signed books and chatted with fans, and finally attended a lunch with all of the other zine writers. His performance, shunning a microphone and relying on the gravitas of his voice for amplification, was just electrifying and incantatory. He easily held his own against savvy wordsmiths like Patrick Hughes and Duncan Barlow. It was a great thrill to be able to gather such a diverse and talented group of zine writers; but at the end of the day, it was Alan Justiss who sat at the head of the table."

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# Save the Date: Duval Comic and Zine Fest

The Main Library will host the third annual Duval Comic and Zine Fest on Saturday, June 15, from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. A celebration of independent publishing featuring local creators of self-published zines, comics, alternative press, and DIY media, DCAZ Fest is the sort of event where Justiss would feel right at home. There will be over 50 tablers, a risograph printing activity, and a Lit Chat with award-winning cartoonist Nate Powell from 4-5 p.m. 

# Register for the Lit Chat!

# Zine Collection

Jacksonville Public Library has an expansive Zine Collection—one of the first housed in a public library in the Southeast! Pronounced "zeens," they are self-published pamphlets of all sizes and shapes, often covering subjects overlooked in larger-scale publications. The scope of the collection is broad, including the arts, music, comics, politics, gender issues, and advocacy.  Housed on the first floor of the Main Library, zines are fully searchable in our catalog.

# Read Zines!

# Call for Zines

We accept zines of different shapes, sizes, and formats. The Library's collection is primarily focused on regionally-based zines - an effort to better reflect the voices in our community. However, we do collect zines from creators outside of Northeast Florida. Whether hand-drawn or hand-written, photocopied and stapled, or professionally printed: we want to see it all! There’s no deadline to submit. We are always accepting new zines.

Selections are made by Library staff from available donations using the Library policies regarding collection development.

Criteria for selection will include literary merit, artistic merit, subject specialty, scarcity of material on the subject, quality, format, and local and regional authorship. Efforts will also be made to replace zines that have been heavily used and worn.

You can donate anytime in person or by mail to:

Main Library c/o Zine Collection
303 N. Laura St. 
Jacksonville, FL 32202

Be sure to include:

• Name of Author(s)/Artist(s)
• Volume number(s), if any
• Year of publication
• Your email address