“… a lyrical medley of free verse, blank verse, a sonnet, and a song or two … spans the life cycle of a consciousness; its intersection with the culture.”
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ALL FOUR VOLUMES OF R J SOBEL’S THE SEASONS SUITE AVAILABLE NOW
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*ARS | Soliana Written Word Albums contain no audio
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About the Author …
R J (Richard Jay) Sobel was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1949. An award-winning poet, he is the author of Momentary Vagrant, Purview of the Sky, Leaves of Entropy, and Dreams and Other Lastings — the four volumes of “The Seasons Suite” — as well as other works of drama, lyrics, poetry, and prose. His writing, known for its timeless philosophy, musicality, and unique voice, has appeared in a number of literary publications, such as OPEN: Journal of Arts & Letters, Haibun Today, Contemporary Haibun Online, MacQueen’s Quinterly, Shamrock Haiku Journal, Under the Basho, The Haibun Journal, Autumn Moon Haiku Journal, etc. Among his most memorable honors was being awarded first prize by a prestigious panel of judges (Western Justice Center, International Conflict Resolution Day “My Peace of Poetry” contest) — the first time he had ever entered a poetry competition — for a poem, submitted on a whim, that he thought might be taken as too subversive. His forthcoming collection of haibun, equinox/solstice, will be published in 2025 (ARS|Soliana Written Word Album). He and his wife, Lisa, live in Southern California.
Winding down his latest work as a policy & ethics consultant, he divides his time these days between his work as a writer, poet, and ghostwriter. His earlier dramatic works include original screenplays as well as collaborations with a number of luminaries in film and TV, such as Oscar-winning screenwriter (and uncle), Carl Foreman (The Bridge on the River Kwai; High Noon, etc.) Larry Forrester (Tora, Tora, Tora; Hart to Hart, etc.) and distinguished author and historian, John D. Weaver (The Brownsville Raid; Warren: the Man, the Court, the Era, etc.) on projects including a Centerpoint Productions TV series inspired by a storied portion of his (Sobel’s) life.
The creator of the Written Word Album™, R J Sobel’s painterly approach to his unique format — artisanal pieces, from cover and interior design to author’s comments in his Liner Notes, not meant (for better or worse) for an editor’s pen or penchant of a traditional publisher — gave rise to the founding of Soliana Publications.
His Written Word Album concept (an alternative to the conventional chapbook) embraces the iconic record album model — the perfect format for a collection of songs, and likewise fitting for the presentation of his lyrical work in the four volumes of “The Seasons Suite.”
Self-directed, with a musical bent and philosophical slant from the start, R J Sobel’s studious interest and practice in the art of dramatic writing eventually led to his progression toward a “higher art” — as “the components of story structure, plot, and character development became overshadowed by the tasty rhythms and rare elements of imagery and resonance mined from the depths of thought — with which Shakespeare would craft his eloquent heroic couplets, etc., as would Wordsworth, Rilke, Frost, et al. compose their elegant verse.”
In 2016, R J Sobel presented his long-awaited debut poetry collection in the four volumes of “The Seasons Suite.”
Written Word Album is a trademark of Richard J. Sobel/Soliana Publications
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