For Candice James, the idea began as a way of creating a memory for her granddaughter.
She wanted to find some way to use her granddaughter's art and her own writing in tandem with each other, to leave a lasting memory for the future day when she will no longer be here.
From her musings about how best to accomplish that grew Shorelines, which will be introduced at a special double book launch this weekend.
The launch event is set for Sunday, Aug. 11 at 1 p.m. at the Heritage Grill backroom and will also feature Alan Hill's new book The Broken Word.
Shorelines is a 98-page poetry book of villanelles - a specific form poem that calls for nineteen lines, with two repeated refrains and a two-rhyme, AB, rhyme scheme. (For the uninitiated, it's the form perhaps best known to most of us from Dylan Thomas's Do not go gentle into that good night.)
James, who's the city's poet laureate, is no stranger to poetry - but form poetry is another matter altogether.
"I've always written free verse, all my life," she says.
A few years ago she decided to try her hand at adding a bit of structure to her work, largely as an experiment to see how it would affect her other writing. She tried her hand at arguably the most restrictive form of them all: the sonnet.
"The first few, I hated, hated, hated," she says emphatically. "It was so awful to be constrained. By the time I got to number 10, I was actually quite enjoying it."
In the end, she emerged with a book of sonnets, and, though she admits the creative process drove her crazy at times, "it was a real, real labour of love."
This time out, she says the villanelle attracted her because there's something inherently gentle about its nature, and she thought the form would fit naturally with her granddaughter's art.
"They're kind of a bit soothing in their own way, with the repetition," she says. "I thought that would be the right fit for some of her artwork."
Shorelines pairs each villanelle with an accompanying piece of artwork. It features work by James' granddaughter, Emily, and also by James herself - with other contributing artists including Valerie Barron-McRae, Janet Kvammen, Don Portelance, Doreen Bruce and the late Rex Howard.
James is looking forward to sharing the launch event with Hill.
"He's a great poet in his own right," she says, noting the two are planning to work together through the fall to promote their works.
Hill's book takes the reader on a journey based on Hill's own life, growing up in a family with a brother who was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
"You get a whole different slant on poetry. It's like a different slice of life," James says.
And, as it happens, the cover of Hill's book features a work of art by James herself.
The two will also open the floor to other poets for a two-hour open mike session - which James laughingly notes they're dubbing "the longest open mike ever."
All poetry lovers and poets alike are invited to take part in the event, which is scheduled to run from 1 to 4 p.m. on Aug. 11 James and Hill will each present for about-halfan-hour before opening the floor to other poets. Their books will also be for sale at a discounted price.
The Heritage Grill is at 447 Columbia St. in downtown New Westminster.
For more information about the book launch, email silverbowpublishing@gmail. com or call 604-714-1773.
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