The Shanghai Tunnels Project

In 2012, H.A.L. Publishing of Shanghai, China and its sister site, Unshod Quills of Portland, Oregon, teamed up with Monica Storss of Portland, Oregon and China’s JUE Arts and Music Festival to produce the first China-US based video poetry festival. Submissions were sought and sent from all over the world. A panel of four officers with the Shanghai Tunnels Project prescreened the videos, selecting those for judging that most met their definition of video poetry.  If you’re viewing this from the PRC, you’ll need a VPN to view the YouTube links (some are on Vimeo).

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The Ministry of Truth: Storytellers

H.A.L. Publishing and mamagushi bring the ancient art of  oral STORYTELLING to Suzhou and the ‘Hai starting March 22nd with what could possibly be both city’s first ever Storytelling events. Artists will be crafting some juicy stories and telling them up close, personal and live for both the JUE Festival and the Bookworm International Lit Fest. Experience the awesome as our storytellers take on the topic of FIRST TIMES! For a taste check out some badassery from one of our past GROUPTHiNK Storytelling workshops.

If you are an audience member or aspiring storyteller that wants to get involved in the action, just come on by to one of the events and toss your name in the ring for a chance to tell your own story. If you’re a little shy, stay and watch the show, get your liquid courage on and give it a try. The Topic again is FIRST TIMES (doesn’t need to be the obvious) and can be funny, touching, silly, wonderful. Whatever.  It just has to be true! Stay glued to H.A.L. for more updates.

H.A.L. loves ya!

Hero’s Journey: Lecture

Our first installment of the Hero’s Journey workshop was a great big bowl of awesome. Some great beginnings from some great writers. We were treated to a little of everything, ranging from employees at a dream factory to a kung-fu adventure spanning two continents. A lot of talking and feedback from all the participants  involved.

This upcoming meeting was going to be geared towards crafting the second parts in our stories but H.A.L. got some good news in the form of  Lynn King, who just happens to be all about the Hero’s Journey. Lynn teaches others how to live their own hero’s journey and how to apply it to their daily lives. Lynn has offered to come in and speak to GROUPTHiNK about the subject. This is a great chance for all you guys who may not know much about this subject and will allow others who could not make it to our first session or are behind with their stories to catch up. As for those of you who are a head of schedule it will give you a chance get some perspective on what you’ve already written. Or if you are just interested in the Journey and want to be inspired stop on by.

Our regular workshopping of part 2 of our hero stories will start up again at the following GT after the 25th.

And remember  DYCE Productions will be choosing a story to illustrate after this is all over. We look forward to seeing you all at The Rabbit Hole.

(NEXT GT MEETING SUNDAY MARCH 25th. 6:30PM @ THE RABBIT HOLE . A lecture on The Hero’s Journey)

A Place of Great and Rushing Silence

by Fei Wu
Past midnight. Salary-men hurtle home drunk and horny to silent apartments, cold rice and a bowl of shriveled green beans swimming in oil. They glance at their still, sleeping wives and consider shaking them awake for a quick and furious fuck, but balk at the thought of worn beige panties, and tofu waists indented with the elastic bands of winter wear. Some turn to their computer screens; pant in the near-dark, faces aglow with artificial light.
Then there are those who phone Xin. Continue reading…

Love Between Trapezes

by Peaches Pleasant
Vivienne’s legs were spread wide, blood rushing to her head. The whip cracked and Damien laughed. “Okay, sweetheart. You can come down now. You’ve been a very good girl.”  Continue reading…

Fifteen Minutes

by Basia Dekleva

“Come on, harder. Fuck me hard.”

“Stop. Ehm, Jess, could we try that one again? Let’s remember the girl is just getting fucked by a big guy she kinda likes, alright?”

Jess rolled her eyes. She had had a bad day and now this. Dubbing porn. Dubbing fucking porn. “Fuck me”, she thought to herself. Continue reading…

Donkey Punch

by W. M. Butler
Being in a long distance love affair is hard work in Shanghai. The distance, the occasional clandestine meetings in hotel rooms across the world. Bali, Bangkok, Phuket, Las Vegas, and in Shanghai. Each meeting a frenzied melding together of fucking, fighting, and making up. Emotions turned up to hard boiled. You go from pure love to lust then hate, spite, fear and finally a numbing tired yawning in your belly when it’s time to leave again. You stumble over yourselves trying to apologize for all the accusations and venom that you’ve been spitting at each other for the past seven days, trying to remember the good times, the coke binges, the walks through ancient Chinese temples built in 1998 where you stopped to fuck in the bathroom, or behind the stage after that event or getting that blowjob on a red-eye flight, spaced out on Xanax and KFC egg tarts. Trying to make sense of all the laughing and the crying and the screaming about not loving each other enough.
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An Evening of Smut @ YY’s

H.A.L. got all hot and bothered over at YY’s with some of the filthiest smut around plus featured readings by Renee Reynolds and Mark Talacko from H.A.L.’s second book MIDDLE KINGDOM UNDERGROUND. Performances by Robin Silver, Basia Dekleva, W.M. Butler and Fei Wu left the audience panting for more! The evening was a climatic event for all involved. Guests and authors stayed late into the night in a post coital embrace, lost in the afterglow of some brilliant readings. If you missed the event and would like to get a little taste of what going down at a H.A.L. event is like check out these stories!

Basia Dekleva – Fifteen Minutes

Peaches Pleasant – Love Between Trapezes

W.M. Butler – Donkey Punch

Fei Wu – A Place of Great and Rushing Silence

HAL and MKU in the Media

Press for H.A.L. Publishing, its writers, its new book, MIDDLE KINGDOM UNDERGROUND and its events. Check it out, and while you’re at it, check out The Shanghai Tunnels Project. Get involved!

Enjoy Shanghai : HAL Publishing (MKU Launch and SLAMHAI 3!)

The World of Chinese: Bjorn Wahlstrom on guerilla publishing

That’s Magazine : MKU Review

Vimeo MKU book Trailer

MKU: Press Release

Asian Cha: Dena Rash Guzman and MKU/River South Arts Festival

Pipe Dream Publishing: two articles –
MKU/Book Launch and interview with DRG

The Shanghai Tunnels Project