the zen space

I remember the days, here in the UK, when mail vans, pillar boxes (mail boxes?) and telephone kiosks (phone booths?) were all red. Every day was a red letter day, and mail came twice each day.

So, how to make some red letter days for the zen space?

There is a possibility that very soon the zen space will have a guest editor in charge of a Showcase – a couple of people have already expressed an interest. In their correspondence are several interesting ideas for improving the content. Here’s one, for example:

“First off, you wrote, ‘The editor would prefer pieces that have not appeared elsewhere, but does not insist upon it.’ That’s good, but I would openly encourage selections that were already published elsewhere, but would insist on citing where they were first published. This will give you some quality work, much of which readers haven’t seen before, or if they have, they probably forgot about. And it provides haikuists the chance to bring back some of their best work.”

That’s one idea I have already implemented, and you might see a slight alteration to some of the wording on the ‘Submission’ page accordingly. Here’s another idea:

“When I read Japanese haiku written in English, I find that the ones I really like are usually written by the school kids. And they won the top prize in the Ito En contests several years in a row. I would really like to see this happen outside of Japan. Many teachers are looking for interesting and educational activities. I would contact some schools to see whether any teachers would like to teach their students a bit about Japanese culture and submit their haiku to you.”

Well, that is an opportunity I might not get. But are any of you teachers? Are any of your friends teachers? How would they like to run a competition for their students?* Winning compositions – or even just works I think are worth showing off – would be published in the zen space.

Maybe some more ideas at another time. Watch this space.

*This would keep me at arms-length from the children – these days this is a sensitive matter.

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Awa wae yer adverts, ya nyaff!

Yes, we’re still here! I’ve managed to stir myself and put together a new Showcase. If you hover your cursor over the ‘experience’ tab you should see a drop-down menu – the New Year Showcase will be somewhere on it! Alternatively you can click here. I realise now that you all access the zen space not only on different marques of computer and on different browsers, but also on a variety of other devices. I’ve been told that the drop-down menu method of accessing showcases doesn’t work too well for some readers; so when I get the chance, I will augment it with actual links on the ‘experience’ page.

I’ll leave you for now with a gratis image of Napoleon Bonaparte. And why not!

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Je déteste les publicités!

I know, I’ve been talking about this for quite a while now, but I consider it’s about time I got my thoughts properly in order and put them to you. So here we go. Please read right to the end and then comment, I really need you to comment.

REASONS FOR CALLING IT A DAY

Lack of engagement with potential readership: The statistics for the zen space are now appalling. Since I last posted here I have had very few visitors, only one “Like,” and no comments. This indicates that the zen space is failing to reach steady and sustainable readership figures.

Social media failure: Up until somewhere in the past couple of years, I have been able to use my Facebook account and my Twitter/X account to announce when the latest Showcase or blog post has been published. At some point both systems temporarily suspended my accounts. That ought not to have been a problem, because that each system then said they would send a code to my email address and I would be able to regain access. However, no matter how many times I opted for that, absolutely nothing came into my email account, not even into my spam folder. I tried getting in touch with the administrators, but they stonewalled me, even though I was contacting them from the email registered with the service. This means that avenues of publicity have been cut off, which only made the lack of engagement worse.

Too few new contributors: Let me say straight away how much I appreciate my “regulars.” I could probably increase the number of Showcases per year based solely on people who faithfully submit their work time and time again. However, I am not only failing to reach a new readership, I’m failing to attract enough new writers. This is another indication that the zen space is not thriving.

No new artwork: In fact, no artwork at all. We used to discover, or be approached by, a fairly regular flow of artists willing to show off their work for no immediate reward. For a long time I’ve been relying on public domain ukiyo-e images and, lately, AI.

The platform here has become less and less user-friendly: Every time I post everything there is either a glitch or it downright refuses to do something it used to do at the touch of a key. There is little point in trying to find a new platform, because I doubt if I would take remaining readers with me.

I’m getting old, tired, and forgetful: What more can I say?

REASONS FOR PERSEVERING

This is my last remaining contact with my life as a writer: I used to be a prolific writer, never letting a day go past without composing something, be it a poem or a paragraph of a new story. As you can see from my own poetry site, the last poem I posted was in 2021. Also in 2021 I mentioned on my main web site (under the “New!” tab) that I had taken a sabbatical from writing five years before that! This little e-zine, for which I had such high hopes, was started while I was still in my prime as a writer. It was, if you like, a vanity project, born out of pique at some ignorant treatment by the “editor” of a “haiku magazine” (scare quotes intentional!). It wasn’t my first editorial position either – I had been Associate Editor of two poetry journals and Deputy Editor of a poetry anthology. If I let the zen space go I become nothing, at best a wraith – “Do you know if Marie Marshall is still alive? No? Neither do I!”

the zen space is my baby. I’ve watched it grow up from infancy. How could I let it go?

ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES

If you can think of more reasons why I should lay the zen space down, or continue with it, please do let me hear from you. If you have a practical solution to offer* then let me have it. In so many ways, the zen space is as much yours as it is mine.

Marie

*We have previously toyed with the idea of someone else taking over as editor. That didn’t come to anything. But you never know.

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I’ve been editing the zen space since 2011, and – I’ve said this before – I’m getting old. There’s nothing I can do about the aging process, but what should I do about the zen space?

I have admitted how slipshod I have become in the editor’s role. Showcases now regularly fail to meet their deadline, I often have to apologise to contributors for losing track of what items they may have sent, and I have failed to find any new artists to grace the Showcases with their creations. As regards the latter, I fall back again and again on an internet search for Ukiyo-e images. This isn’t good enough.

And yet I persist. Why? I think it may be vanity. the zen space is my last activity connected to creative writing. In the past I had more than two-hundred-and-fifty poems accepted for publication in journals. I published two collections of poetry, one of which was nominated for the T.S. Eliot Prize. I published three novels (and had a fourth scheduled for publication but the publishing house was effectively wound up). I co-edited a journal dedicated to the sonnet, and another to haiku, and also co-edited an anthology of poetry. And then I stopped. I wrote no more poems, I left two novels unfinished. And I dropped entirely out of editing, except for the zen space. Here I am still somebody – that’s what it feels like to me.

Is this, then, the end? Am I determined now to become a nobody? Or is this just another apology for a late Showcase? Over the next couple of weeks I hope to find time to sit and think.

I’m aware that the existence of the zen space is not just about me. There are people out there who read it and value it – they may be reading this post right now. So please, if you wish, do make a comment to this post. In fact I would be delighted to hear from you.

Marie Marshall
editor
the zen space

Postscript: As an added annoyance, I can no longer get into Facebook or X to publicise new posts or Showcases. This means less exposure.

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One thing that really does annoy me is how these ruddy adverts pop up all over the place. the zen space is not a money-making venture and I can’t afford to go premium. Hence my regular exhortation at the foot of each post that you ignore the damn things!

Right – no frills, no folderols, it’s out. WordPress no longer allows one to dictate the order that “children” pages appear under their “parent” page (amongst all the other “improvements” to the platform – for the comfort and convenience of our clients – which make things worse), so just click here to be taken to it.

So sorry for the delay!

MM

[As usual, ignore all adverts!]

Yes, I know, there’s a great big hole where the Summer Showcase should be. I’m so sorry. It’s mostly my own fault, but also there have been things beyond my control.

I’m going to try to bring things back under my control and either publish a the Summer Showcase late, or combine Summer and Autumn in October. But for now, I reiterate my apologies, with a suitably melancholy piece of art by Edvard Munch.

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Adverts are a figment of your imagination.