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"Fire Escape by Seann McCollum"
Seann McCollum writes short form pieces of sad decay, road madness, debris-strewn landscapes and breakups. He writes it all with a sense of wistfulness. He writes with a sense of despair. More than that, he writes with a recognizable voice. And recognizable soul.

Sad decay: "Fire Escape" begins with “Lansdale”: “Beside the rust-spotted dumpster sat an old couch, its cushions dense with rainwater.” And she is with him, but they do not know what to say or do next. Smoke rises from her cigarette. Everything goes away. Nothing stays. The ephemeral. The evaporative.

Road madness: A favorite moment in the collection is “Pillar of... More > Salt.” “The 18,000-wheeler hurtles through the night along icy roads …” And it’s alive! When axles break and tires shred in flames, new ones sprouts in their place, like a lizard’s tail that grows back after it’s severed. It slows down to fool the animals into crossing the road, then – smack! – grill decorations! Interpret as you will. Is it life and the world and what it does to us? Is it us and what we do to those we love? Or is it simply a Kafka-esque nightmare of highway traveling?

Debris-strewn landscapes: There are used condoms and diaphragms – the trash of love, huh? There's even a short piece called "The Last Thing You See" that simply presents:

A pink plastic lei
lying in a ditch
filled with melting snow

And then there are the breakups: She’s always gone or going. And she haunts him. “The animals creep up on the porch and stare at the place you disappeared into.” And “I will always cup my hands to catch you and you will always drip through.”

I recognize the tradition McCollum’s following. But I also recognize that he’s original at the same time. He’s a craftsman. He shapes these pieces with his word choices and that’s how he elicits your emotions. And by saying that, I’m not saying it’s manipulative. I’m saying it’s art. “Fire Escape” is artful and it’s moving.

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"Yep, he's the real thing" This guy, Mccollum, really has "it." The gift, the voice, the raw and the cooked. It's a great book. Let him know by buying it, and reading it, and loving it. He makes good art too.