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UT grad published in controversial New Yorker issue |
| By
Jacob Corkins |
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Jul 29, 2008
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| Marcus Jackson at a poetry reading at the Studio Museum in Harlem |
The latest issue of The New Yorker magazine has drawn a lot of heat from people all over the country, but one person not complaining is UT alumnus Marcus Jackson.
Just by coincidence, Jackson’s poem titled “Mary at the Tattoo Shop” appeared in one of the most talked about issues of The New Yorker, which received criticism over the cover art from both presidential candidates and their parties. The illustration of Barack Obama and his wife was intended to be satirical, according to editors.
Jackson said he sent about 40 poems to different publications; the only one to be picked up was “Mary at the Tattoo Shop,” which was accepted in January.
Not knowing when the poem would run, Jackson began to worry and was reassured by his father, Raymond Jackson, adviser in the UT Department of Communication, who said, “I told him that they paid him already and not to worry, it was going to run.”
As fate would have it, just as the political sphere was heating up even more, the poem appeared in the hotly debated July 21 issue.
“It’s a career-maker,” Ray said. “[The New Yorker] is the pinnacle of journalism, and I cannot express how spectacular that is for someone his age — it’s wonderful!”
“When I first found out that the poem would be published in The New Yorker, I was in disbelief,” the 26-year-old said. “It re-instilled confidence and a thankfulness that makes all the rejection poets face worth it.”
Marcus’ first recollection of writing a poem was his sophomore year in high school when he met a girl that he liked. He didn’t know how to tell her how he felt, so he wrote a poem.
Marcus graduated from Start High School in 1999 and said that before his father worked at UT, he hadn’t really thought of college and planned to work at the Jeep factory in Toledo.
“I told him you can get a quality education on this campus,” Ray said, adding that he knew the faculty here would be an excellent fit for Marcus’ creative mind.
“[Jane Bradley, Dr. Tim Geiger and Dr. Rane Arroyo, faculty in the English Department who focus on creative writing] literally showed me what contemporary literature was all about … They poured the foundation, teaching me how to be a writer,” Marcus said.
In 2003, Marcus graduated magna cum laude with degrees in communication and English with a focus in creative writing. “In high school, [Marcus] was a mediocre student, but he flourished here. It was like a light switch went on,” Ray said.
Realizing that he wanted to continue writing, the next step was to apply to graduate school to seek a master of fine arts degree. Marcus was accepted to about 10 of the top fine arts schools in the nation and selected New York University.
Inspiration came from studying with great instructors — Philip Levine, Yusef Komunyakaa, 1994 Pulitzer Prize winner for poetry, and Cornelius Eady.
The inspiration for “Mary at the Tattoo Shop” came after moving to New York City. Marcus said he walked by a tattoo shop and he went home to write a few lines in his journal in which he records daily observations.
Ray said Marcus kept composition books all throughout high school. “His mother and I honored his privacy … Most of his stuff I did not see until he graduated,” Ray said.
After receiving his MFA from NYU, Marcus decided to live in New York, where he works for a magazine publisher.
With 10 poems published, he is working on a collection of short stories, a novel and his debut poetry collection, many of which are about his time in Toledo.
“The reason I write is that I have to let my language escape me,” Jackson said.
Read Marcus’ poem here.
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