Conversation with Pat Nolan for Nuallain House, Publishers

I remember the poetry magazine, Big Deal 5, was a special issue of your work. I might have even owned a copy or someone I knew had a copy.  One section was titled the No Travel Journals. It was a nice presentation with a big picture of you on the cover. Offset, right?  Not mimeographed. Were most of those poems written during your time in New York City or were some from your experiences on the West Coast and in Japan?

Big deal 5: The Poetry of Maureen Owen presents two “books.”  The first is titled: a brass choir approaches the burial ground   or  “From the arms of one man into the arms of another.” Published in 1977, that says it exactly.  The second half was a reprint of the No Travels Journal. The marvelous Charlie Plymell had published the No Travels Journal at Cherry Valley Editions. His was a gorgeous production. Hugh Kepets created the wrap around cover and inside drawings, architectural and stunning! The 500 copies were gone fairly fast. Barbara Barracks at Big Deal offered to give it more exposure by reprinting the text in Big Deal #5. She didn’t have the funds to include Hugh’s drawings so we added photos of me as a kid on the farm to both “books.”

The edition was produced offset and with a cover photo by Josely Carvalho, an amazing photographer and silk screen artist who had a little studio at St Marks Church below the rectory.

A world of fabulous creative people!

The No Travels Journal was written in New York City and during a summer visiting my Uncle Bud in Minnesota on the farm.  All my New York City pals had been and were traveling to exotic geographies and feeling left stateside, I decided to write a No Travels Journal.

Both No Travels and A brass choir orbited around breaking up with one love and finding another.