There are still two months until my book is released, but the excitement in my gut is churning like I’ve been sucking down raw spinach. As of my last conversation with the editor at Feral House, Poop Culture is in layout. The designer is setting the type and complementing my witty and enlightening prose with about thirty visuals ranging from 19th Century woodcuts depicting the dangers of the then-nascent sewage infrastructure to prints of Piero Manzoni’s Merda d’Artista. Once the design is complete, I’ll examine a proof for typos and math errors, and then off to the printer it goes. I’ve been told to expect a late-April release, although Amazon claims May 1. (Yes, it’s been listed on Amazon! Yes, it’s ranked #803,588 in sales!)

I’m passing the time until the book comes out by preparing for the second-most exciting thing on my schedule: the University of Iowa’s Symposium on Obscenity. On March 1, I’ll be in glorious Iowa City itself to speak on a subject I’m passionate about: the behavior of the news media when confronted by poop. The title of my presentation: “All Stinks Considered: The News Media, the Bathroom, and Fear of Matter Out of Place.” Joining me at the conference are fellow scatologists Marisol Cortez and Danny Gerling, without either of whom my book would be vastly different.

Will poop play in Iowa? I’ll try to record my presentation and post it on Youtube so you can see for yourself.