Interview with L. Ralph Pennel

Meet NUNUM's Contributor: L. Ralph Pennel

7/1/2023

NUNUM

Blending Flash Fiction & Art

Interview with L. Ralph Pennel

Ralph, what was the first book you remember reading all by yourself?

The first book I picked up and read by myself was One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. But there were many series of books which I picked out from the local library for myself to read—I'm a bit of a serial reader. I decided to read the entire L. Frank Baum Oz series, which really resonated with me as a young reader.

Have you been influenced by any other writers, I mean someone who got you interested in becoming a writer?

I don't know that any one writer convinced me to pursue writing, but writers which have had a big impact on me personally and as a writer include, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Milan Kundera, Toni Morrison, Adrienne Rich, Michael Martone, Jorge Luis Borges, Larry Levis, John Barth, Italo Calvino.

That is quite the list. Have you read any craft books that you think are worth passing on to others?

Some craft books across all genres that I would recommend for new writers are, Writing Fiction, by Janet Burroway, On Writing Well, by William Zinzer, The Poet's Companion, by Dorianne Laux and Kim Addonizio, A Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction, edited by Tara Masih, The Art of Daring, by Carl Phillips, A Primer for Poets and Readers of Poetry, by Gregory Orr. The list is longer, but I will stop there.

Is there a particular writer who has influenced your current writing?

I don't know if there is any one writer specifically who has influenced my current style. I think that is harder to pin down for anyone who is a fiction writer who also writes poetry. But if I had to name authors, perhaps Garcia Marquez, Michael Martone, Adrienne Rich, Wyn Cooper.

Okay, an easy one, why write flash fiction?

It presents an interesting challenge. How to satisfy all the traditional elements of story in a condensed form.

I think as a poet who writes fiction, this appeals to me a great deal. My very first exposure to flash was a piece by Michael Martone titled, "The Mayor of the Sister City Talks to the Chamber of Commerce in Klamath Falls, Oregon." I was still an undergrad. This piece had a huge impact on me. I have taught it many times and I have brought it up in conversation many more times.

I was introduced to the piece in a poetry workshop, along with the opera, Einstein on the Beach, by Phillip Glass and Robert Wilson. Both shaped the way I thought about writing across all genres a great deal.

You mentioned Opera, would you say that any other forms of art have had an influence on your work?

Absolutely. Film has had a big impact on me. Kieslowski, Haneke, Almodovar, Tarkovsky, Lee, Godard, Inarritu.

Visual art too. Donald Judd, Rothko, Kahlo, Louise Bourgeois, Rauschenberg, Ellsworth Kelly, Ai Wei Wei, Egon Schiele. Jazz, especially bop and fusion. Coltrane, Davis, Coleman, Munk. Always looking for new ways to experience the world through ways others experience (or refuse to experience) the world.

What advice to you have for someone who is just starting to send their work out to journals?

For anyone who is just starting to send their work to journals it is important to keep in mind that rejection is the evidence of work. It means you are creating and sending work out. Try not to take rejection personally. We all get rejections. Find journals who publish work that looks and sounds like yours or work you like reading. Send them your work, and not just the journals you think you're supposed to get into. If a journal says "we would like to see more work," take them at their word and send them more work. They mean it! Finally, be active about publishing—go to readings and conferences (if you can afford it). Meet the editors and publishers of journals you admire. If no one takes your work after 10 or so tries, revise! And then send it out again.

Ralph is the author of A World Less Perfect for Dying In. His writing has appeared in The Ocean State Review, The Iowa Review and other publications. He’s been nominated for a Pushcart, Best of the Net award, and he was twice a finalist for Somerville Poet Laureate. You can learn more about Ralph here.