Comments on: Kathy Acker: It’s All Up to You, Girls

By: Meredith Yayanos

Meredith Yayanos — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:16:40 +0000

(Revisiting this thread many, many moons later to state for the record that I’ve revisited a shedload of Poppy Z. Brite recently, and it turns out I AM a terribly big fan after all! Just sayin.)

By: CFS Loves 54 — Code For Something

CFS Loves 54 — Code For Something — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:27:10 +0000

[...] I have been reading experimental writer Kathy Acker’s work of late (for a travel writing class) – and the story of the punk woman behind the words is fascinating. Coilhouse has a published a great introduction to her work and attitude. [...]

By: fourth time lucky for digital neurally impaired | roominuse

fourth time lucky for digital neurally impaired | roominuse — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 07:38:15 +0000

[...] Kathy Acker wrote a book called Blood and Guts in High School that was on the Master’s English Programme at Auckland University until the early nineties when the Chief Censor banned the book. I daren’t put into words why the book was banned as I’m sick of being moderated. Suffice it to say, there was a few pencil drawings of a female anatomy and the word c**t was used in the actual text. It was a real indictment of the censorship process at the time as obvioously X rated material was making it into the sleazy bookstores all around the country. It begs the question that if some of that material had been on the reading list of English at Master’s level whether it would have been banned too. [...]

By: brytburken

brytburken — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:00:46 +0000

You should check out Stewart Home; his theoretical writing, the skinhead as well as later novels.

By: Jo Adams

Jo Adams — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 16:43:20 +0000

Mer- ‘mixed things’ is probably about right for Duncan, he’s entertaining, not genius. If you’ve digested Joyce and Burroughs, it’s unlikely you’ll find his stuff too complex/nonlinear/fragmented, as some have criticized him as, but on the flip side, he’s definately derivative of/inspired by the other authors I mentioned… so if you like surreal, ‘genre’, slipstream stuff, you’ll like ‘The Book of All Hours’, but, like me, probably bothered by a niggling ‘i coulda done this’ feeling.
On older writers (o’brian, oh yes, though i prefer ‘the Dalkey Archive’)- discovering M. John Harrison’s ‘Viriconium’ book(s) delighted me, especially the T.S ELiot references/quotations/evocations. He’s also writing some intresting stuff marketed as scifi- ‘Light’, ‘Nova Swing’. Dunno if the latter has any Burroughs connection.
So, Cherie Priest- the ‘urban fantasy’ type covers and marketing copy have put me off- but then, Kiernan’s work is now packaged in the same way, which would’ve deterred me had I not already read Silk- is this a ‘don’t judge a book’ case?

By: Mer

Mer — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 03:22:56 +0000

Hooray! You just made my day, Thivai. Hope to see you here again soon.

By: Thivai

Thivai — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 02:43:00 +0000

Great site… why haven’t I stumbled across this before? I was researching Bunuel for my students and it led me to your blog… I was stopped by this post on Acker’s resurgence and it brought back a lot of memories … thanks!

and then in the comments people are mentioning Flann O’Brien, Re/Search publications and JG Ballard… fuck I’m lost in a cultural desert, thanks for the long deep drink of CULTure…

i will definitely return …

By: Evan

Evan — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 23:42:55 +0000

Mer- Cherie Priest, Yes! I need to add her to the list.

It is amazing how many references LOST is tied together with. I enjoy the show immensely.

By: Jack

Jack — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 05:53:39 +0000

@Mer, oh no offense taken! I wear my scowling pomo lit prof badge with pride. (Well, I’m almost done with my PhD, so not quite a prof. yet…) Still, my scowl makes up the difference.

I definitely look forward to a Re/Search retrospective! I still have Angry Women, the Industrial Culture Handbook, and J.G. Ballard’s The Atrocity Exhibition on my shelves.

Any chance we’ll get a Rapid Eye retrospective as well? Those definitely rank highly on my own personal What Made Me Weird.

Now is the time on Coilhouse when we danse.

By: Mer

Mer — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 05:11:29 +0000

Oh, man. You guys… ALL of you guys!! You’re lifesavers. Tomorrow I’m going over to Moe’s on Telegraph to drop a Benjamin or two on some brainfood.

Professor Jack, no offense meant. I develop huge, forlorn crushes on every scowling pomo lit proff I ever meet. I’m a huge fan of Mary Gaitskill, she actually lives quite close to the liberal arts college I attended in upstate NYC. I discovered her around the same time I found Acker, as well as Djuna Barnes, Joyce Carol Oates and Angela Carter, in my late teens/early twenties. All of them blew my mind six ways til Sunday… I have this weird feeling I wouldn’t be remotely the same person if I hadn’t discovered all of those ladies when I did.

Same goes for the RE/SEARCH stuff, times twenty! I really, REALLY need to write a properly reverent CH post about the effect that series (and Search and Destroy) had on alternative culture. Living in the bay area, I’ve ended up in the same room with Vale multiple times. Every time, I swear, I turn back into the cripplingly shy 14 year old I was when I first heard of his work, and I can’t even muster the balls to approach and give thanks… someday…

Ben, Chris, you’re right. Flann O’Brian (a.k.a. Brian O’Nolan) is a god. I can’t ever look at a fat cop without thinking of him. Are either of you LOST watchers? I had a conniption fit when I noticed Desmond reading The Third Policeman. It is SO obvious that the writers on that show have been influenced as much by Flann O’Brien as they have by The Prisoner!

Evan, I will definitely check out Caitlin R. Kiernan, thanks! I may not be a terribly big Poppy Z. Brite fan, but I’m all for creepy toothy fae things. Have you, by chance, read anything by Cherie Priest? I have a feeling you’d enjoy her work a lot…

Jo, I’ve heard mixed things about Hal Duncan, but I’m definitely curious…

Jason, none of those names are familiar except for Cartlon Mellick, but they will be soon. Oh yuss.

Bless you all. Keep ‘em coming, Team Coilhouse! Feed my monkey. Touch him. Love him.