Author Randy Hayes (left) sits with publisher John Peterson (right). Photo by Catherine Stachowiak
Sitting at the KRVAA Book Store, located at the Station in Wofford Heights, publisher John Peterson talked about a new book release, which he worked on with editor Sandra Hughes. The author Randy Hayes joined Peterson and the Kern Valley Sun for coffee last Friday morning.
On Thursday October 10, they will be holding a book signing and poetry book reading, on behalf of the Kern River Valley Art Association (KRVAA,) for Hayes’ book titled “Bits and Pieces of Me.” Everyone in the community is invited to attend.
Peterson, who has been a publishing editor for many years, and was one of the beat poets of the Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Allen Ginsberg era, talked openly about the book. “Randy was part of a workshop that Sandra Hughes and I did earlier this summer,” Peterson said.
According to Peterson he and Hughes gave participating writers 30 prompts to write to, and it was right in the middle of fire season, causing a few workshops to be missed and some of the writers to leave, diminishing numbers.
“Randy’s the only one that finished all of the sessions. We put it out as a poetry writing workshop, working off the prompts, and we put out that we would do an ebook based upon whatever people wrote. And then Randy stuck with it, and did the writing, and came up with at least 30 pieces. And that’s where the book came out of. And then he and I, in discussion afterwards decided to, instead of an ebook, to do a regular book. It ended up 48 pages total.”
Copies of the book are available at the KRVAA bookstore, at the Station, and will also be available on Amazon.
Hayes, has lived in the Kern Valley for six years now. He lives near the South Lake located fire station in Weldon. “I’ve just always kind of felt that everything I write is part of me. So Bits and Pieces of Me just seemed like a good title,” said Hayes.
Themes contained within his book were based on the prompts, which Hughes and Peterson provided during the workshop they held at the KRVAA. “They had to do with time, nature…life,” Hayes said.
Peterson said he was hoping others who came to the workshop at the beginning would show up to the reading, at the Station book store and coffee house, along with the rest of the community. “The second Thursday of each month is generally an open reading. But we’re going to focus this time on Randy and his new book.” Peterson said, “The way I evaluate music and poetry is the authenticity of the artist.”
Hayes said he gets very emotional when reading his own poetry because he really puts his heart into his works.
