By Sonali Das
It has been a busy few weeks at the UI Press since the name Miller Williams
drew national attention this January.
Demand for the author's work dramatically increased after President Clinton
picked him to deliver the inaugural poem.
"As soon as people knew he was the inaugural poet, the demand increased
tremendously," said Stephanie Smith, publicity manager for the UI press,
Williams' publisher.
After he became the inaugural poet, 5,000 special edition hardcover copies
of Williams' book, "The Ways We Touch," were printed with the
inaugural poem tipped in. (Williams' inaugural poem could not be released
until after the ceremonies. UI Press printed the rest of the book prior
to the event and then the poem was bound in to the back of the book just
before shipping.) Those copies have been completely sold out to bookstores
around the country. Another 5,000 copies are scheduled to come off the press
this month, this time with the poem printed in the book.
It's a new spotlight for the 66-year-old author and director of the University
of Arkansas Press. Williams has written 10 books and been well-received
by the poetry community, but he said he was surprised to receive the call
from the inaugural committee inviting him to speak.
And although much of the country wondered, "Miller who?" the selection
was quite deliberate. Williams is from Arkansas and is what he calls a "cordial
acquaintance" of the president.
And, Clinton reads and admires Williams' poetry, which is plainspoken in
style. Williams said he is inspired by emotions, an image or a striking
turn of phrase. To help himself compose the inaugural poem, "Of History
and Hope," he relied on the help of his John Coltrane CD, which he
said he had playing on his stereo.
"I guess I went through two yellow legal pads of drafts and fiddling,"
he told a Washington Post reporter. "It was pretty straightforward."
He wanted it just right if it was going to be delivered to an audience of
as many as 200 million people.
"I saw more people than I could have imagined standing as politely
as possible -- but waiting for the poem to pass, he recalled after delivering
his poem. "Then in the middle of the poem, I saw them looking up and
by the end, I felt they were leaning toward me a little as if they heard
what I was saying."
Although the writing community has been listening to Williams for years,
the UI Press hopes more of the public will be interested in his work because
of the inauguration. That's something the poet hopes for, too.
"I don't write poems to keep them secret," he said.
###