Monday, March 23, 2009
Robin Becker Chapbook Prize Is Announced
SEVEN KITCHENS PRESS announces the 2009 ROBIN BECKER CHAPBOOK PRIZE for an original, unpublished poetry manuscript in English by a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered or Queer writer.
Prize: $100 plus 25 copies.
Submission deadline: Postmarked between March 1 and May 15 of each year.
Eligibility: Open to all L/G/B/T/Q poets writing in English (no translations, please).
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING CHANGE TO THIS YEAR’S COMPETITION: Two manuscripts will be selected as CO-WINNERS of the 2009 Robin Becker Prize: one by a writer with no previous book or chapbook, and the other by a writer with previous book or chapbook publication.
Please read the guidelines carefully; the complete guidelines are posted on the Seven Kitchens site (see URL below) and we are not responsible for other versions that may be posted, in whole or in part, elsewhere.
GUIDELINES:
Any poet who identifies as L/G/B/T/Q is eligible to submit to the Robin Becker Chapbook Prize.
The manuscript itself need not address L/G/B/T/Q themes, though such work is welcome.
The final judge for this year's series is Ruth L. Schwartz.
Submit a paginated manuscript of 16-24 pages (not including front matter).
Include two cover pages: one with the manuscript title, author name, address, e-mail and phone number; the second cover page should have the manuscript title only.
Include a table of contents page.
Include, if applicable, an acknowledgments page for work previously published.
Please include, on a separate page, a brief (100-150 words) biographical note, including a statement of any previous or pending book or chapbook publication.
The author's name must not appear in the manuscript.
All manuscripts will be blind judged, meaning all identifying material will be separated from the manuscripts as they are logged in.
Manuscript titles and their log numbers will be posted on the WEB SITE [http:// sevenkitchens. blogspot. com] (remove spaces from URL) as they are received.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us promptly if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.
Submissions must be posted between March 1 and May 15, 2009.
The winning manuscripts will be announced on or before August 15, 2009.
Manuscript finalists will also be announced, and may be eligible for publication in the chapbook series.
Manuscripts will not be returned. E-mailed submission is preferred, but you may send via regular mail.
If you are sending by mail, do not staple or bind your manuscript; please use a binder clip and mail flat in an 8.5 x 11 envelope.
If you are sending by e-mail, please send one document in Microsoft Word format (.doc, .docx or .rtf files are ideal); you must include the words “Robin Becker Chapbook” in the subject line of your e-mail.
Include a $12 reading fee with each manuscript you submit (multiple submissions are welcome). IMPORTANT: Checks should be made payable to Ron Mohring. Online payment may be made via PayPal to sevenkitchens at yahoo dot com.
Each entrant will receive one copy of the winning chapbook, to be published during winter of 2009.
Each co-winner will receive $100 and 25 copies of her or his chapbook. Additionally, the publisher will distribute ten review copies and will solicit online reviews of each chapbook.
Send your manuscript:
by e-mail, as a Microsoft Word attachment, to: sevenkitchens at yahoo dot com; or
by mail to Ron Mohring, Publisher; PO Box 668; Lewisburg PA 17837.
ABOUT THIS YEAR'S JUDGE:
Ruth L. Schwartz is the author of four award-winning books of poetry and a memoir: Dear Good Naked Morning, selected by Alicia Ostriker for the Autumn House Poetry Prize (Autumn House, 2004); Edgewater, selected by Jane Hirshfield as a 2001 National Poetry Series winner (HarperCollins, 2002); Singular Bodies (Anhinga Press, 2001), winner of the 2000 Anhinga Prize for Poetry; Accordion Breathing and Dancing (University of Pittsburgh Press, 1996), winner of the 1994 Associated Writing Programs Award; and Death in Reverse: A Love Story (Michigan State University Press, 2004).
Ruth has won over a dozen national literary prizes, including two Nimrod/Pablo Neruda Awards, two Chelsea Magazine Editor's Awards, the North Carolina Writer's Network Randall Jarrell Prize, and the New Letters Prize in Poetry. She has received grants from the NEA, the Ohio Arts Council, and the Astraea Foundation. Her poems have been anthologized in The World in Us: Lesbian and Gay Poetry of the Next Wave (St. Martin's Press, 2000), American Poetry: Next Generation (Carnegie-Mellon University Press, 2000), The New Young American Poets (Southern Illinois University Press, 2000), and elsewhere.
OTHER TITLES IN THIS SERIES:
Two titles in this series are available: Judith Barrington's Lost Lands (the 2008 winner) and Steven Riel's Postcard from P-town (the 2008 runner-up) may be purchased for $7 each from our website (please add $1 for shipping).
Prize: $100 plus 25 copies.
Submission deadline: Postmarked between March 1 and May 15 of each year.
Eligibility: Open to all L/G/B/T/Q poets writing in English (no translations, please).
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING CHANGE TO THIS YEAR’S COMPETITION: Two manuscripts will be selected as CO-WINNERS of the 2009 Robin Becker Prize: one by a writer with no previous book or chapbook, and the other by a writer with previous book or chapbook publication.
Please read the guidelines carefully; the complete guidelines are posted on the Seven Kitchens site (see URL below) and we are not responsible for other versions that may be posted, in whole or in part, elsewhere.
GUIDELINES:
Any poet who identifies as L/G/B/T/Q is eligible to submit to the Robin Becker Chapbook Prize.
The manuscript itself need not address L/G/B/T/Q themes, though such work is welcome.
The final judge for this year's series is Ruth L. Schwartz.
Submit a paginated manuscript of 16-24 pages (not including front matter).
Include two cover pages: one with the manuscript title, author name, address, e-mail and phone number; the second cover page should have the manuscript title only.
Include a table of contents page.
Include, if applicable, an acknowledgments page for work previously published.
Please include, on a separate page, a brief (100-150 words) biographical note, including a statement of any previous or pending book or chapbook publication.
The author's name must not appear in the manuscript.
All manuscripts will be blind judged, meaning all identifying material will be separated from the manuscripts as they are logged in.
Manuscript titles and their log numbers will be posted on the WEB SITE [http:// sevenkitchens. blogspot. com] (remove spaces from URL) as they are received.
Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us promptly if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.
Submissions must be posted between March 1 and May 15, 2009.
The winning manuscripts will be announced on or before August 15, 2009.
Manuscript finalists will also be announced, and may be eligible for publication in the chapbook series.
Manuscripts will not be returned. E-mailed submission is preferred, but you may send via regular mail.
If you are sending by mail, do not staple or bind your manuscript; please use a binder clip and mail flat in an 8.5 x 11 envelope.
If you are sending by e-mail, please send one document in Microsoft Word format (.doc, .docx or .rtf files are ideal); you must include the words “Robin Becker Chapbook” in the subject line of your e-mail.
Include a $12 reading fee with each manuscript you submit (multiple submissions are welcome). IMPORTANT: Checks should be made payable to Ron Mohring. Online payment may be made via PayPal to sevenkitchens at yahoo dot com.
Each entrant will receive one copy of the winning chapbook, to be published during winter of 2009.
Each co-winner will receive $100 and 25 copies of her or his chapbook. Additionally, the publisher will distribute ten review copies and will solicit online reviews of each chapbook.
Send your manuscript:
by e-mail, as a Microsoft Word attachment, to: sevenkitchens at yahoo dot com; or
by mail to Ron Mohring, Publisher; PO Box 668; Lewisburg PA 17837.
ABOUT THIS YEAR'S JUDGE:
Ruth L. Schwartz is the author of four award-winning books of poetry and a memoir: Dear Good Naked Morning, selected by Alicia Ostriker for the Autumn House Poetry Prize (Autumn House, 2004); Edgewater, selected by Jane Hirshfield as a 2001 National Poetry Series winner (HarperCollins, 2002); Singular Bodies (Anhinga Press, 2001), winner of the 2000 Anhinga Prize for Poetry; Accordion Breathing and Dancing (University of Pittsburgh Press, 1996), winner of the 1994 Associated Writing Programs Award; and Death in Reverse: A Love Story (Michigan State University Press, 2004).
Ruth has won over a dozen national literary prizes, including two Nimrod/Pablo Neruda Awards, two Chelsea Magazine Editor's Awards, the North Carolina Writer's Network Randall Jarrell Prize, and the New Letters Prize in Poetry. She has received grants from the NEA, the Ohio Arts Council, and the Astraea Foundation. Her poems have been anthologized in The World in Us: Lesbian and Gay Poetry of the Next Wave (St. Martin's Press, 2000), American Poetry: Next Generation (Carnegie-Mellon University Press, 2000), The New Young American Poets (Southern Illinois University Press, 2000), and elsewhere.
OTHER TITLES IN THIS SERIES:
Two titles in this series are available: Judith Barrington's Lost Lands (the 2008 winner) and Steven Riel's Postcard from P-town (the 2008 runner-up) may be purchased for $7 each from our website (please add $1 for shipping).
Monday, March 16, 2009
Free Music Concert on March 29th Available in VA
Ann Smith, a local Arlington musician, reports a free concert coming up on March 29th:
She will be playing solo violin accompaniment on 3 short selections on the program of the Virginia Bronze, a bells ensemble. The concert is free and is about an hour long.
For directions, click on the link below:
VA Bronze.Org
Sunday, March 29, 3:00 p.m.
Messiah United Methodist Church
6215 Rolling Road
Springfield, Virginia 22152
She will be playing solo violin accompaniment on 3 short selections on the program of the Virginia Bronze, a bells ensemble. The concert is free and is about an hour long.
For directions, click on the link below:
VA Bronze.Org
Sunday, March 29, 3:00 p.m.
Messiah United Methodist Church
6215 Rolling Road
Springfield, Virginia 22152
The New York Center for Independent Publishing Hosts a Special Reading on Wed., March 18th at 6:30 PM
Gival Press is pleased to announce the release of Poetic Voices Without Borders 2, an international anthology including over 150 poets, including Philip Levine, Rita Dove, Joy Harjo, Naomi Shihab Nye and many other well-known poets. The anthology is edited by Robert L. Giron.
On Wednesday, March 18, 2009, at 6:30 PM The New York Center for Independent Publishing will host a special reading in celebration of Small Press Month with the following poets: Stanley H. Barkan, Cliff Browder, John Del Peschio, John Domini, Isaac Goldemberg, Donna J. Gelagotis Lee, Marta Lopez-Luaces, Mercedes Roffe, Thad Rutkowski, Ron Singer, Rodrigo Toscano, and Barbara Louise Ungar. The poets will read from the anthology and their current work. Their bios follow.
The voices found within these pages are passionate and enlightening while echoing a desire in their own way to transform, to change, to transcend borders, be they personal, cultural or national, in a poetic manner as if to say that within literature there isn’t a border for the human spirit, for it is that energy that keeps us going.
Tim W. Brown, author and Board Member, of The New York Center for Independent Publishing will open the event at 20 West 44th St (between 5th and 6th Avenues in midtown Manhattan), New York, NY 10036. For further information, please call 212.764.7021.
In Celebration of Small Press Month and the Release of Poetic Voices Without Borders 2
Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 6:30 PM
The New York Center for Independent Publishing
20 West 44th St. (between 5th & 6th Avenues), NY 10036 ~ 212.764.7021
A Special Reading with the Following Poets
Stanley H. Barkan is the editor/publisher of the Cross-Cultural Review Series of World Literature and Art, which in the past thirty-six years has produced about 350 titles in fifty different languages. His translations and co-translations, besides Spanish, include Bengali, Hebrew, Italian, Macedonian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, and Sicilian, while his own poetry has been translated into twenty-two different languages.
Clifford Browder’s poetry has appeared in Snake Nation Review, Hawaii Review, The Chattahoochee Review, Heliotrope, Runes, and elsewhere. He is also the author of two published biographies and a critical study of the French Surrealist poet Andre Breton.
John Del Peschio lives in Brooklyn Heights. His work has appeared in www.lodestarquarterly.com and modern words: a thoroughly queer literary journal. He often walks past a wooden building that in the 1840s was a men's hairdressing parlor; he likes to think Whitman went there.
John Domini has won awards in all genres, most recently an Iowa Major Artist grant for creative non-fiction. His poetry has appeared in Meridian and elsewhere, and his latest novel is A Tomb on the Periphery (Gival Press, 2008).
Isaac Goldemberg, born in Peru, has lived in New York since 1964. He is the author of three novels, a collection of short fiction, 12 collections of poetry and two plays. His novel The Fragmented Life of Don Jacobo Lerner was selected by a panel of international scholars convened by the National Yiddish Book Center as one of the 100 greatest Jewish books of the last 150 years. He is the recipient of the 1977 Nuestro Award in Fiction, the Premio Estival de Teatro (2003), and of the Orden de Don Quijote (2005), an award received in previous years by such authors as Camilo José Cela, Fernando Arrabal, and Elena Poniatowska.
Donna J. Gelagotis Lee's book, On the Altar of Greece (Gival Press, 2006), winner of the Gival Press Poetry Award, received a 2007 Eric Hoffer Book Award: Notable for Art Category and was nominated for a Los Angeles Times Book Prize. She lives in New Jersey but lived in Greece for many years. Website: www.donnajgelagotislee.com.
Marta López-Luaces has published two books of poetry, Distancias y destierros (Red Internacional del Libro, 1998) and Las lenguas del viajero (Huerga y Fierro, 2005) and a plaquette entitled Memorias de un vacío (Pen Press, 2000). A selection of her work appeared in English in the Revel Road’s chapbook series (2004) and in the literary journal, Literary Review (New Jersey, 2003). She is the co-director of Galerna, a Spanish-language literary journal published in the USA. She was awarded speaker for the New York Council for the Arts and the Humanities (2003-05).
Mercedes Roffé, an Argentine poet, has been widely published in Latin America and Spain. Her work has also been translated into Italian, French, and Romanian. An anthology of her work in English translation, Like the Rains Come: Selected Poems 1987-2006, has recently appeared in England (Shearsman, 2008). Since 1998 she has edited the New York-based poetry series, Ediciones Pen Press. Among other distinctions, she was awarded in 2001 a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in poetry.
Thaddeus Rutkowski is the author of the novels Tetched (Behler Publications) and Roughhouse (Kaya Press). Both books were finalists for an Asian American Literary Award. He teaches fiction writing at the Writer's Voice of the West Side YMCA in Manhattan, where he lives with his family. Visit: www.thaddeusrutkowski.com.
Ron Singer trawls the genres: poetry, fiction, satire, journalism about Africa, and librettos for two operas. His essay-review on The Caine Prize for African Writing appeared in the Summer 2007 Georgia Review, and a second printing of his chapbook, A Voice for My Grandmother (Ten Penny Players, Inc.), was issued in Fall 2007. Visit: www.ronsinger.net.
Rodrigo Toscano is the author of To Leveling Swerve (Kruspkaya Books, 2005), Platform (Atelos, 2004), The Disparities (Green Integer, 2002) and Partisans (O Books, 1999). His new manuscript, Collapsible Poetics Theater, won the National Poetry Series 2007, while his poetry has appeared in Best American Poetry 2004, War and Peace (2004), War and Peace (2007) and In the Criminal's Cabinet: An Anthology of Poetry and Fiction (2004), Junta: An Anthology of Experimental Latino Poetry (2008), and The Gertrude Stein Awards Anthology. Originally from the Borderlands of California, he lives in Brooklyn and works in Manhattan at the Labor Institute.
Barbara Louise Ungar is the author of The Origin of the Milky Way, winner of the 2007 Gival Press Poetry Award and The 2007 Adirondack Literary Award for the Best Book of Poetry, among other awards, and Thrift, which was a finalist for many awards including the May Swenson Poetry Award and the Tupelo Prize, as well as the chapbooks Sequel and Neoclassical Barbra, and Haiku In English. Her poems have appeared in Salmagundi, The Minnesota Review, The Cream City Review, The Literary Review, and other publications. She’s an associate professor of English at the College of Saint Rose in Albany.
Robert L. Giron, founder of Gival Press, has written five collections of poetry and is the editor of the Poetic Voices Without Borders series and the online journal ArLiJo.com. He teaches English and creative writing at Montgomery College-Takoma Park/Silver Spring, Maryland, where he also serves as a poetry editor for Potomac Review.
###
Friday, March 13, 2009
Darius Goes West An Inspirational Film
On Wednesday the 11th of March, a group of the Arlington Salon trekked into Washington to view the independent film Darius Goes West.
The film is about Darius, a Southern teenager, who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a fatal disease that affects thousands if not millions of children in the world.
Here is a simple story that is told with a full-heart, which is both informative and also inspirational. None of this would be possible if it were not for Darius himself, who has a soul of gold and an attitude worth more than gold itself, and the young men who have helped make his journey possible. Their very personal and sincere interactions are a model of how people can and should create lasting relationships; relationships that cross cultural and ethnic communities.
In short, if you have not seen this film, I recommend it highly. Click here below for more information about national showings and the Foundation to create awareness about DMD.
Darius Goes West.Org Foundation
The film is about Darius, a Southern teenager, who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a fatal disease that affects thousands if not millions of children in the world.
Here is a simple story that is told with a full-heart, which is both informative and also inspirational. None of this would be possible if it were not for Darius himself, who has a soul of gold and an attitude worth more than gold itself, and the young men who have helped make his journey possible. Their very personal and sincere interactions are a model of how people can and should create lasting relationships; relationships that cross cultural and ethnic communities.
In short, if you have not seen this film, I recommend it highly. Click here below for more information about national showings and the Foundation to create awareness about DMD.
Darius Goes West.Org Foundation
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Writing Workshop Held in Queens, NY on 3/22/09
Here's the latest news from Marcela Landres:
One-Day Writers Workshop: The Writing Life, Queens, NY
WHAT: Please join award-winning writer/journalist Michael P. Geffner and former
Simon & Schuster book editor Marcela Landres for three infinitely enlightening
hours on the world of big-time publishing. Topics include: Building the
Professional Writing Life; Learning How Editors Think; Finding, Impressing
and Landing a Literary Agent
For an additional charge of $30, you can reserve a 15-minute private
consultation with any of the speakers. Book writers should submit no
more than 10 double-spaced pages of a manuscript plus a one-page
synopsis, so it can be forwarded well in advance to
Ms. Landres (she does not accept poetry or children's books). Journalists
should submit to Mr. Geffner their query
letters and/or resumes of no more than one page, or a story of no
more than 10 pages double-spaced. You should include your name,
mailing address,phone number and e-mail address on the first page
of each piece of work.
These one-on-one sessions are open only to workshop attendees!
TESTIMONIALS:
"For writers new to the publishing market, but also for those with experience,
Michael Geffner's One-Day Publishing Workshops are not to be missed. As
someone whohas been involved in small-press literary publishing for more
than a decade, I can vouch for the good advice given to writers hoping to
submit their work to editors and agents. Wearing my other hat, as a writer
looking for recognition and support of my own work, I was moved by the
generosity that Mr. Geffner and his panelists showed the workshop attendees.
The inspiring workshops provide specific advice, opportunities to connect with
mentors and peers in a lasting way, and also the unbeatable opportunity to sit
one-on-one with professionals in the field, including editors and agents
whose attention is otherwise difficult to attract, and receive direct feedback on
manuscripts and query letters. Mr. Geffner is on a mission--self-explanatory
in the title of his venture, "Writers Helping Writers." You'd be hard pressed to
find a better value, or a better way to spend a day, than Mr. Geffner's
workshops."--Allison Parker
"A big 'thank you' to Mike and Marcela for putting so much into Sunday's
workshop. I took away so many valuable action points for my next
assignment. Thanks for being so generous with the inside track and how to
set it all up properly. I walked away with a stack of notes that spoke directly to
me and where I am right now. Judging from the writing going on around the
room, everyone else was in the same frame of mind. I only wish I had gotten
this information 20 years ago. You certainly delivered and I'm going to make
sure I don't let you down. Thanks again."--Erin Snyder Dixon
"After attending Mike's workshop I came away with a sense of direction in
terms of where to focus my attention on how to find a place for myself as a
writer. I now have tools as to where to look for contacts, how to approach the
right people and ways to establish myself in this career path. The small group
fostered a relaxed atmosphere and great dialogue between the participants
and the workshop leaders, which included Marcela Landres. What a treat to be
able to pick the collective brains of these two people! Their combined
expertise and willingness to share the inside information pertaining to such
simple inquiries as to income expectations and the process of publishing a
book shed light on questions that too few "insider's" like to or want to share.
Oh and the food was great too! "--Melissa Dorfman
WHEN: Sunday, March 22, 1-4 p.m. (with 4-5 p.m. for consultations)
WHERE: A restaurant in Forest Hills, Queens (easy to reach by car or
subway)
WHO: Michael P. Geffner has written for Details, Texas Monthly, The
Village Voice, The Sporting News, and The Associated Press. His work
has been acknowledged for excellence by The Society of Professional
Journalists, the Associated Press Sports Editors, Best American Sports
Writing, New York Press, and the New York Publishers Association.
Marcela Landres is the author of the e-book How Editors Think: The
Real Reason They Rejected You, and is the publisher of Latinidad, an
award-winning e-zine which was chosen as one of the 101 Best Web
Sites for Writers by Writer's Digest Magazine. She speaks frequently for
organizations such as the New York Round Table Writers' Conference,
Columbia University, and The National Association of Latino Arts and
Culture.
REGISTER/QUESTIONS: Cost is $99.00, pre-registration required. Please
email mgeffy@live.com for details.
***********************************************************
For a list of all my upcoming workshops, visit
http://www.marcelalandres.com/
***********************************************************
Marcela Landres
Editorial Consultant
718-208-5810
marcelalandres@yahoo.com
Web Site: http://www.marcelalandres.com/
Free e-zine: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/marcelalandres/
Facebook: http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=567699306&ref=profile
Author of the e-book How Editors Think: The Real Reason They Rejected You
One-Day Writers Workshop: The Writing Life, Queens, NY
WHAT: Please join award-winning writer/journalist Michael P. Geffner and former
Simon & Schuster book editor Marcela Landres for three infinitely enlightening
hours on the world of big-time publishing. Topics include: Building the
Professional Writing Life; Learning How Editors Think; Finding, Impressing
and Landing a Literary Agent
For an additional charge of $30, you can reserve a 15-minute private
consultation with any of the speakers. Book writers should submit no
more than 10 double-spaced pages of a manuscript plus a one-page
synopsis, so it can be forwarded well in advance to
Ms. Landres (she does not accept poetry or children's books). Journalists
should submit to Mr. Geffner their query
letters and/or resumes of no more than one page, or a story of no
more than 10 pages double-spaced. You should include your name,
mailing address,phone number and e-mail address on the first page
of each piece of work.
These one-on-one sessions are open only to workshop attendees!
TESTIMONIALS:
"For writers new to the publishing market, but also for those with experience,
Michael Geffner's One-Day Publishing Workshops are not to be missed. As
someone whohas been involved in small-press literary publishing for more
than a decade, I can vouch for the good advice given to writers hoping to
submit their work to editors and agents. Wearing my other hat, as a writer
looking for recognition and support of my own work, I was moved by the
generosity that Mr. Geffner and his panelists showed the workshop attendees.
The inspiring workshops provide specific advice, opportunities to connect with
mentors and peers in a lasting way, and also the unbeatable opportunity to sit
one-on-one with professionals in the field, including editors and agents
whose attention is otherwise difficult to attract, and receive direct feedback on
manuscripts and query letters. Mr. Geffner is on a mission--self-explanatory
in the title of his venture, "Writers Helping Writers." You'd be hard pressed to
find a better value, or a better way to spend a day, than Mr. Geffner's
workshops."--Allison Parker
"A big 'thank you' to Mike and Marcela for putting so much into Sunday's
workshop. I took away so many valuable action points for my next
assignment. Thanks for being so generous with the inside track and how to
set it all up properly. I walked away with a stack of notes that spoke directly to
me and where I am right now. Judging from the writing going on around the
room, everyone else was in the same frame of mind. I only wish I had gotten
this information 20 years ago. You certainly delivered and I'm going to make
sure I don't let you down. Thanks again."--Erin Snyder Dixon
"After attending Mike's workshop I came away with a sense of direction in
terms of where to focus my attention on how to find a place for myself as a
writer. I now have tools as to where to look for contacts, how to approach the
right people and ways to establish myself in this career path. The small group
fostered a relaxed atmosphere and great dialogue between the participants
and the workshop leaders, which included Marcela Landres. What a treat to be
able to pick the collective brains of these two people! Their combined
expertise and willingness to share the inside information pertaining to such
simple inquiries as to income expectations and the process of publishing a
book shed light on questions that too few "insider's" like to or want to share.
Oh and the food was great too! "--Melissa Dorfman
WHEN: Sunday, March 22, 1-4 p.m. (with 4-5 p.m. for consultations)
WHERE: A restaurant in Forest Hills, Queens (easy to reach by car or
subway)
WHO: Michael P. Geffner has written for Details, Texas Monthly, The
Village Voice, The Sporting News, and The Associated Press. His work
has been acknowledged for excellence by The Society of Professional
Journalists, the Associated Press Sports Editors, Best American Sports
Writing, New York Press, and the New York Publishers Association.
Marcela Landres is the author of the e-book How Editors Think: The
Real Reason They Rejected You, and is the publisher of Latinidad, an
award-winning e-zine which was chosen as one of the 101 Best Web
Sites for Writers by Writer's Digest Magazine. She speaks frequently for
organizations such as the New York Round Table Writers' Conference,
Columbia University, and The National Association of Latino Arts and
Culture.
REGISTER/QUESTIONS: Cost is $99.00, pre-registration required. Please
email mgeffy@live.com for details.
***********************************************************
For a list of all my upcoming workshops, visit
http://www.marcelalandres.com/
***********************************************************
Marcela Landres
Editorial Consultant
718-208-5810
marcelalandres@yahoo.com
Web Site: http://www.marcelalandres.com/
Free e-zine: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/marcelalandres/
Facebook: http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=567699306&ref=profile
Author of the e-book How Editors Think: The Real Reason They Rejected You
Monday, March 09, 2009
The Word Works News
Here below is the latest from The Word Works:
The Women Poets international listserv joins the National Museum of Women in the Arts to celebrate National Poetry Month and the publication of an anthology of poems by members, with a reading on April 5 at 2 pm at the Museum. Poets reading form the anthology and their work include Rosemary Starace and Lesley Wheeler (editors), Julie Enszer, Kim Roberts, and Rosemary Winslow. Free and open to the public.
Deadline: March 31, 2009
The Word Works is now accepting five-page manuscripts of original poetry in English from poets interested in reading in the 34th Annual Joaquin Miller Cabin Summer Poetry Series is seeking submissions for poets to read this June and July in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C., this June and July. Please submit five poems, an SASE for reply, and a short bio. Send to Rosemary Winslow, Dept. of English, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, 20064. For complete guidelines, visit
The Word Works DC.com
The Women Poets international listserv joins the National Museum of Women in the Arts to celebrate National Poetry Month and the publication of an anthology of poems by members, with a reading on April 5 at 2 pm at the Museum. Poets reading form the anthology and their work include Rosemary Starace and Lesley Wheeler (editors), Julie Enszer, Kim Roberts, and Rosemary Winslow. Free and open to the public.
Deadline: March 31, 2009
The Word Works is now accepting five-page manuscripts of original poetry in English from poets interested in reading in the 34th Annual Joaquin Miller Cabin Summer Poetry Series is seeking submissions for poets to read this June and July in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C., this June and July. Please submit five poems, an SASE for reply, and a short bio. Send to Rosemary Winslow, Dept. of English, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, 20064. For complete guidelines, visit
The Word Works DC.com
Friday, March 06, 2009
ArLiJo Features Michael Larrain and Melissa A. Tuckey
ArLiJo.com is currently featuring poets Michael Larrain and Melissa A. Tuckey.
Click on the link below:
ArLiJo.com
Click on the link below:
ArLiJo.com
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
A Tomb on the Periphery Receives National Praise
John Domini's Book Is the Most Widely Praised Small-Press Novel of the Year!
"Extremely well-developed characters... a flair not frequently seen."
—Dan Wickett, Emerging Writers Network
"Takes the trappings of noir then transcends the genre... a lush and generous work." —Michael Madison, Bookslut
"Domini's novels about Naples... seem poised to bring him a far wider level of recognition."—Emanuele Pettener, Rain Taxi
"A flash of authentic Naples.... Extraordinary energy and plasticity... startles, stabs, tickles and at times dazzles."—Linda Lappin, Gently Read Literature
"A Jamesian complexity, ...a lively, generous mind in action through swift moving, sonorous language."—Dennis Barone, Italian Americana
An Award Winning Independent Press
PO Box 3812
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Sunday, March 01, 2009
Beltway Poetry Quarterly's Local March Calendar of Events
Here below is the March listing of postings at Beltway Quarterly Review, an online journal, hosted by Kim Roberts:
POETRY NEWS: March 2009
Listings of readings and performances in the Poetry News only include events in the greater DC area (covering roughly the same area that the METRO public transit system covers), although we include a larger geographic region for listings of Competitions, Grants, Calls for Entries, Workshops, and Special Events (covering all of DC, MD, VA, WV, and DE). To get listed in the Poetry News, please send an email with full information (including a phone number) any time during the month prior for readings, and up to two months prior for Calls for Entries and Special Events. We try to be as complete and accurate as possible; listing here does not constitute an endorsement, nor can we be responsible for changes and additions made after the first of the month. Please check with sponsors to confirm the accuracy of listings. Send your news to beltway.poetry@juno.com.
NEW RELEASES
Luis Alberto Ambroggio, trans. by Yvette Neisser Moreno, Difficult Beauty: Selected Poems of Luis Alberto Ambroggio (Cross-Cultural Communications)
Karen Leona Anderson, Punish Honey (Carolina Wren Press)
Greg McBride, Back of the Envelope (chapbook, Copperdome Press)
Katherine E. Young, Van Gogh in Moscow (chapbook, Pudding House)
Inspired Results: Poets and Artists of Takoma Park, MD. Documents collaborations of 36 artists and poets. Contributors include: Anne Becker, Brian Gilmore, Merrill Leffler, Chris Llewellyn, Ann Slayton. (Lulu)
It's All Love: Black Writers on Soul Mates, Family and Friends, ed. Marita Golden. Contributors include: Reginald Dwayne Betts, E, Ethelbert Miller, Kwame Alexander, Abdul Ali, Brian Gilmore, Kenneth Carroll (anthology; Broadway Books)
COMPETITIONS, GRANTS and CALLS FOR ENTRY
Split This Rock 2009 Adult Poetry Contest. $1,000 awarded ($500 for 1st place, $250 each for 2nd and 3rd) for poems of provocation and witness, judged by Patricia Smith. Winning poems published on website, and winners get free registration to the 2010 conference in DC (where the 1st prize winner will be invited to read). "Submissions should be in the spirit of Split This Rock: socially engaged poems, poems that reach beyond the self to connect with the larger community or world; poems of provocation and witness. This theme can be interpreted broadly and may include but is not limited to work addressing politics, government, war, leadership; issues of identity (gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, disability, body image, immigration, cultural heritage, etc.); community, civic engagement, education, activism; and poems about history, Americana, cultural icons." Send up to 3 unpublished poems, no more than 6 pages total, in "blind" reading format with cover page, plus $25 reading fee. Simultaneous submissions OK. Postmark deadline: March 9. http://www.splitthisrock.org/contests.html.
Split This Rock 2nd annual "The World and Me" youth poetry contest. Open to students residing in or attending school in DC. Prizes for two categories: age 12 and under, and high school students aged 13 and above. Poems must address one or more of the following questions: What about your neighborhood/city/country/planet makes you happy/proud? What makes you sad? If you were in charge, what would you change? What issues do you care deeply about? What situations in the news or in your neighborhood make you angry? Or glad? Students may submit 1 to 3 poems with application form. Postmark deadline: March 13. http://www.splitthisrock.org/contests.html.
Apprentice House Chapbook Competition, sponsored by Loyola College in Baltimore. Open to poets previously unpublished in book form. Winner receives $250, publication, and 25 copies. Submit at least 30 pages, typed. $25 reading fee. Postmark deadline: March 13. http://www.apprenticehouse.com/resources.
High school students from the greater Washington DC region invited to submit work for the Jacklyn Potter Young Poets Competition, administered by The Word Works. Two winners selected to read at the Joaquin Miller Cabin series and receive an honorarium. Students or teachers can submit a manuscript of 5 or 6 poems. Postmark date: March 15. http://www.wordworksdc.com/young_poets.html
The Potomac Review fiction contest. First prize is $1,000 and publication. Two runners up will receive $250. Send one story, up to 15 pages, with $20 reading fee. No restrictions on subject. All stories must be unpublished and under 3,000 words. No SASE; no stories returned. "Blind" reading format. Winners notified in late Spring. Postmark deadline: March 15. http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/potomacreview/fiction_contestad.html
26th Annual Larry Neal Writers Competition in poetry, short fiction, essay, and dramatic writing, with separate awards for adults and youth. New this year: The Big Read Special Recognition Award for Creative Expression, for essays on the theme of courage. No fee to enter. Deadline: March 19. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
Readers sought for the 2009 summer Joaquin Miller Cabin Poetry Series, sponsored by The Word Works. For consideration, submit 5 poems, brief biographical note, and SASE. Approximately 15 poets selected to read (in a split bill with one other poet) on a Tuesday evening in June or July in Rock Creek Park, and receive an honorarium. Postmark deadline March 31. http://www.wordworksdc.com/miller_cabin.html
DC Commission on the Arts, Small Projects grants of up to $2,000. Deadline: April 8. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
If Poetry Journal seeks poems on the theme of music for the third issue. No previously published poems. Email 1-5 poems in the body of an email (no attachments) with basic cover letter by April 25. Email to Don Illich at ifpoetryjournaleditor@gmail.com. http://www.ifpoetryjournal.blogspot.com.
WORKSHOPS, EXHIBITIONS, AND SPECIAL EVENTS
Exhibit at Space 88, "Image/Word: Fusion of Poetry and Art," through March 6. Seven pairs of poets and visual artists collaborating on a single work on the theme of "creation": Sally Brucker & Ann Slayton, Bonnie Lee Holland & Anne Becker, James Landry & Greta Ehrig, Margot Neuhaus & Anne Dykers, Stephanie Sove Ney & Carol Beane, Howard Spector & Merrill Leffler, and Eric Wolinsky & Sydney March. 8211 Mayor Lane, Silver Spring, MD (301) 437-6652. http://www.space-88.com.
"Critique Your Complete Novel, Not Just a Couple of Chapters," workshop led by Richard Peabody. Fee: $500. Limited to 5 students. Meets every two weeks, mostly Wednesday nights from 7:30 to 10:00 pm in Arlington. Dates: March 4 & 18, April 1, 15, & 29, and May 13 & 19 (seven sessions). Information and registration: gargoyle@gargoylemagazine.com.
Virginia Festival of the Book, Charlottesville, VA, March 18-22. Authors include Rita Dove, Paul Muldoon, Lisa Russ Spaar, David Huddle, R.T. Smith, Victoria Chang, Ted Genoways, Jennifer Atkinson, Sarah Kennedy, Sandra Beasley, Dorianne Laux, Gregory Orr. Most events free. http://www.vabook.org/
24th Annual Mayor's Arts Awards, Monday, March 23, 6:00 pm. John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Concert Hall, Millennium Stage. Free Admission. Hosted by DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, sponsored by the DC Commission on the Arts. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
3rd Annual "Conversations and Connections" conference, Saturday, April 11, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Johns Hopkins University in DC, Dupont Circle neighborhood. Panels, keynote by Amy Hempel, "speed dating with the editors," book fair. Fee: $55. Sponsored by Johns Hopkins, Montgomery College, The Baltimore Review, Barrelhouse, and The Potomac Review. http://www.WritersConnectConference.com.
Bethesda Literary Festival, Bethesda, MD, April 17-19. Readings by novelists, journalists and poets, poetry slam, comedy night, family events, adult and youth writing contests. All events free. Authors include Stanley Plumly, E. Ethelbert Miller, Myra Sklarew. Also includes the15th Annual Writer's Center Small Press Fair on April 18 from 1-5pm, with displays of journals and literary presses. http://www.bethesda.org/specialevents/litfest/litfest.htm
AREA READINGS and PERFORMANCES
March 2
Cafe Muse: Joshua Poteat and Cedily Parks, plus classical guitar by Michael Davis and open mic. Hosted by Adele Steiner.
Monday, 7:00 pm
Free. Friendship Heights Village Center, 4433 S. Park Ave., Chevy Chase, MD. (301) 581-9439.
March 3
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Society's Hell: Surviving War, Strife, Crime and Oppression," featuring authors Elizabeth Bruce and Alivia Tagliaferri, translator Lila Guadamuz, tutors from DC Experience Corps, and photographer Heather Bradley Kubo. Moderator: Timothea Howard. Also includes an exhibit featuring Carly Sachs, Kathy Keler, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 3
Lannan Series: Ciarán Carson
Tuesday, Seminar at 5:30pm, reading at 8:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, Intercultural Center (Seminar in ICC 462, reading in Copley Formal Lounge), 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-6294.
March 4
Small Nations Poetry Reading: ambassadors of nine country read poetry from the countries they represent in English and their native languages, on the theme of the environment. Ambassadors from Austria, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, and Slovenia will participate
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
$18 Admission. National Geographic, Gilbert H. Grosvenor Auditorium, 1600 M St. NW, Farragut Square neighborhood, DC. (202) 857-7700.
March 5
Jazz Harmonies: Brian Gilmore and Brandon Johnson read with a jazz trio led by Marshall Keys
Thursday, 6:30 pm
Donations accepted. The Phillips Collection, 21st at Q Street NW, Dupont Circle neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-2151
March 7
Film: "Counting Headz: South Africa's Sistaz in Hip Hop," featuring MC Chi, DJ Sistamatic, and Smirk. Followed by an audience discussion and performance with DC female emcees RaTheMC, Carolyn Malachi, and Porche 9-11
Saturday, 2:00 pm
Free. Historical Society of Washington, 801 K St. NW, DC. Reservations required: (202) 383-1828.
March 7
The African Continuum Theater Company presents: Abiodun Oyewole, one of the original Last Poets, performing with Kim Bey, Beny Blaq, and Jade Foster
Saturday, 8:00 pm
Admission $25, $50, and $100. Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Mount Vernon Square neighborhood, DC. (202) 529-5763.
March 8
Suheir Hammad
Sunday, 4:00 pm
Free. Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th Street NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 8
Iota Series: E. Laura Goldberg and JoAnne Growney, followed by open mic. Hosted by Miles David Moore.
Sunday, 6:00 pm
Free. Iota Club and Cafe, 2832 Wilson Blvd., Clarendon neighborhood, Arlington, VA. (703) 256-9275.
March 9
Nine on the Ninth Series: Hosted by Derrick Weston Brown.
Monday, 9:00 pm
$3 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 14th & V Streets NW, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 10
Poetry at Noon: "Abraham Lincoln," featuring Daniel Mark Epstein
Tuesday, Noon
Free. Library of Congress, Jefferson Blg., Whittall Pavilion, 10 First St. SE, DC. (202) 707-5394.
March 10
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Undone: Finding Refuge and Cultural Survival from Displacement," featuring authors Evelyn Torton Beck, Julia Garcia, and Laura Brylawski-Miller. Moderator: Lisa Pegram. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Ellie Walton, Timothea Howard, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 10
"Flirting with the Masters: Poets on Elizabeth Bishop," featuring Jehanne Dubrow and Michael Collier. Book signing and reception to follow. Hosted by Sandra Beasley.
Tuesday, 7:00 pm
Free. The Arts Club of Washington, 2017 I St. NW, DC. (703) 994-3166.
March 10
Speakeasy: Storytelling for Adults on the theme "Black Cats and Four Leaf Clovers: Stories about good and bad luck"
Tuesday, 8:00 pm
$10 Admission. Station 9, 1438 U St. NW, DC. (240) 888-9751.
March 11
Brookland Reading Series: "Name That Theme." At the end of the reading members of the audience will get to submit their best guess for what this month’s theme was. Prizes will be awarded for accuracy and originality.
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Brookland Visitor's Center, 3420 9th St. NE, DC. (202) 526-1632.
March 11
Writers Here & Now Series: Juliana Spahr and Selah Saterstrom
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. University of Maryland, McKeldin Library, Special Events Room 6137, College Park, MD. (301) 405-3820.
March 12
Third Thursday Series: Anne Becker and participants from her Writing a Village workshops
Thursday, 7:30 pm
Free. Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, MD (31) 891-7224.
March 13
11th Hour Poetry Slam: 2 rounds, audience chooses winner, prizes awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.
Friday, 11:00 pm
$5 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 14th and V Streets NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 14
"When the Word is Written" Series: conversation with Patricia Elam, author of the novel Breathing Room, hosted by E. Ethelbert Miller
Saturday, 2:00 pm
Free. Historical Society of Washington, 801 K St. NW, DC. Reservations required: (202) 383-1828.
March 15
Sunday Kind of Love: featured readers, followed by open mic. Hosted by Melissa Tuckey and Katy Richey.
Sunday, 4:00 pm
Free, but donations collected. Busboys and Poets, Langston Room, 14th & V Streets NW, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 16
"Write it QUEER! A reading of new queer work" featuring Eileen Myles, Nalo Hopkinson, and four writers randomly selected to share seven minutes of their own writing. Plus raffle of two books by each author, and reception and discussion to follow
Monday, 7:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, McShain Lounge, 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-7435.
March 16
Claudia Emerson and Natasha Trethewey
Monday, 7:30 pm
$12 Admission. Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 E. Capitol St. SE, Capitol Hill neighborhood, DC. (202) 544-7077.
March 17
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Intimate Betrayal: Voices of Survival," featuring authors Sistah Joy, Billye Okera, Deborah Harris O'Brien, and Cheryl Miner. Moderator: Linden von Eichel. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Carolina Mayorga, Irma Rivera, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 18
Poesis Series: Mary-Sherman Willis and Jeneva Stone with live music. Hosted by Simki Ghebremichael
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Pentagon City Borders, 1201 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA (703) 418-0166.
March 18
Michael Dirda, author of Classics for Pleasure
Wednesday, 7:30 pm
$10 Admission. JCC of Greater Washington, 3125 Montrose Rd., Rockville, MD. (301) 348-3769.
March 18
Poetry and Prose reading: Dunya Mikhail and Bruce Weigl
Wednesday, 8:00 pm
Free. American University, Butler Pavilion, 6th floor, Butler Board Room, DC. (202) 885-2973.
March 19
Intersections series: readings, discussion, and open mic. Hosted by Fred Joiner.
Thursday, 8:00 pm
Free, but donations accepted. Charles Sumner School, 1201 17th St. NW, DC. (202) 249-0253.
March 19
Cheryl's Gone Series: Hosted by Wade Fletcher.
Thursday, 8:00 pm
Free, but donations accepted. Big Bear Cafe, 1st and R Streets NW, DC. (202) 470-5543.
March 21
Reading from the anthology Post Traumatic Stress featuring Camillo “Mac” Bica, Thomas Brinson, Marc Levy, Walt Nygard, Jim Murphy, Jay Wenk, Dan Wilcox, and Dayl Wise. Followed by open mic. Book proceeds to Veterans for Peace. Hosted by Melissa Tuckey. Sponsored by Split This Rock Poetry Festival, DC Poets Against The War, and Busboys and Poets
Saturday, 5:00 pm
Free. Busboys and Poets, 14th & V Streets NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 22
Sabor Sundays: Brandon Johnson and Deanna Nikaido, plus visual art by Samuel Miranda and Ronald Chacon, and live music
Sunday, 1:00 pm
Free. Sabor Cafe, 6209 Georgia Ave. NW, DC (202) 829-3322.
March 24
Dan Vera, sponsored by GLOBE
Tuesday, Noon
Free. Library of Congress, Madison Blg., 101 Independence Ave. SE, DC.
March 24
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Psyche's Pain: The Struggle for Psychic Health and Healing," featuring Sarah Pleydell, Carolyn Joyner, Lisa Schamess, and Leslie N. Smith. Moderator: Cynthia Matsakis. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Kimberly Gaines, Patricia Henske, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 25
A Space Inside: Greg McBride and Ann Knox
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Riverby Books, 417 E. Capitol St. SE, Capitol Hill neighborhood, DC. (202) 543-4342.
March 25
Lia Purpura and Stephen Corey
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Kensington Row Bookshop, 3786 Howard Ave., Kensington, MD. (301) 949-9416.
March 25
Sparkle Series: Jona Coleson, followed by open mic. Hosted by Regie Cabico.
Wednesday, 8:30 pm
$3 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 5th & K Streets NW, DC. (202) 315-1320.
March 29
"Salt Lines Tour," featuring Sonya Renee, Andrea Gibson, Tara Hardy and Denise Jolly
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
$10 Admission. Warehouse Theater, 1021 7th St. NW, DC. (202) 783-3933.
March 30
Lannan Symposium: Cry Havoc! Poetry of War and Remembrance, 1968-2008. "Fifty Years of Truth" panel, featuring Daniel Berrigan, Seymour Hersh, and Amy Goodman
Thursday, 7:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, International Cultural Center, Copley Formal Lounge, 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-7435.
March 31
Lannan Symposium: Cry Havoc! Poetry of War and Remembrance, 1968-2008. Includes "Terror and Image" with U Sam Oeur, "Sorrows of Baghdad" with Brian Turner, Dunja Mikhail, and Saadi Youssef, and "War and Remembrance" with Yusef Komunyakaa, James Fenton, and Carolyn Forché
Friday. Panels at 10am, 1:30pm, 4:00pm, and 7:30 pm
Free. Complete schedule information at http://lannan.georgetown.edu/symposiumfestival.htm
March 31
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "The Fragile Body: Restoring Health and Healing," featuring authors Jade Foster, Kat Parrish, Cheryl Somers Auburn, visual artist Sharon Burton, and dancers Andrea R. Thompson and Veronique Tran. Moderator: Eileen Wasaw. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Gloria Quirarte, Rosabel Goodman-Everard, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
POETRY NEWS: March 2009
Listings of readings and performances in the Poetry News only include events in the greater DC area (covering roughly the same area that the METRO public transit system covers), although we include a larger geographic region for listings of Competitions, Grants, Calls for Entries, Workshops, and Special Events (covering all of DC, MD, VA, WV, and DE). To get listed in the Poetry News, please send an email with full information (including a phone number) any time during the month prior for readings, and up to two months prior for Calls for Entries and Special Events. We try to be as complete and accurate as possible; listing here does not constitute an endorsement, nor can we be responsible for changes and additions made after the first of the month. Please check with sponsors to confirm the accuracy of listings. Send your news to beltway.poetry@juno.com.
NEW RELEASES
Luis Alberto Ambroggio, trans. by Yvette Neisser Moreno, Difficult Beauty: Selected Poems of Luis Alberto Ambroggio (Cross-Cultural Communications)
Karen Leona Anderson, Punish Honey (Carolina Wren Press)
Greg McBride, Back of the Envelope (chapbook, Copperdome Press)
Katherine E. Young, Van Gogh in Moscow (chapbook, Pudding House)
Inspired Results: Poets and Artists of Takoma Park, MD. Documents collaborations of 36 artists and poets. Contributors include: Anne Becker, Brian Gilmore, Merrill Leffler, Chris Llewellyn, Ann Slayton. (Lulu)
It's All Love: Black Writers on Soul Mates, Family and Friends, ed. Marita Golden. Contributors include: Reginald Dwayne Betts, E, Ethelbert Miller, Kwame Alexander, Abdul Ali, Brian Gilmore, Kenneth Carroll (anthology; Broadway Books)
COMPETITIONS, GRANTS and CALLS FOR ENTRY
Split This Rock 2009 Adult Poetry Contest. $1,000 awarded ($500 for 1st place, $250 each for 2nd and 3rd) for poems of provocation and witness, judged by Patricia Smith. Winning poems published on website, and winners get free registration to the 2010 conference in DC (where the 1st prize winner will be invited to read). "Submissions should be in the spirit of Split This Rock: socially engaged poems, poems that reach beyond the self to connect with the larger community or world; poems of provocation and witness. This theme can be interpreted broadly and may include but is not limited to work addressing politics, government, war, leadership; issues of identity (gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, disability, body image, immigration, cultural heritage, etc.); community, civic engagement, education, activism; and poems about history, Americana, cultural icons." Send up to 3 unpublished poems, no more than 6 pages total, in "blind" reading format with cover page, plus $25 reading fee. Simultaneous submissions OK. Postmark deadline: March 9. http://www.splitthisrock.org/contests.html.
Split This Rock 2nd annual "The World and Me" youth poetry contest. Open to students residing in or attending school in DC. Prizes for two categories: age 12 and under, and high school students aged 13 and above. Poems must address one or more of the following questions: What about your neighborhood/city/country/planet makes you happy/proud? What makes you sad? If you were in charge, what would you change? What issues do you care deeply about? What situations in the news or in your neighborhood make you angry? Or glad? Students may submit 1 to 3 poems with application form. Postmark deadline: March 13. http://www.splitthisrock.org/contests.html.
Apprentice House Chapbook Competition, sponsored by Loyola College in Baltimore. Open to poets previously unpublished in book form. Winner receives $250, publication, and 25 copies. Submit at least 30 pages, typed. $25 reading fee. Postmark deadline: March 13. http://www.apprenticehouse.com/resources.
High school students from the greater Washington DC region invited to submit work for the Jacklyn Potter Young Poets Competition, administered by The Word Works. Two winners selected to read at the Joaquin Miller Cabin series and receive an honorarium. Students or teachers can submit a manuscript of 5 or 6 poems. Postmark date: March 15. http://www.wordworksdc.com/young_poets.html
The Potomac Review fiction contest. First prize is $1,000 and publication. Two runners up will receive $250. Send one story, up to 15 pages, with $20 reading fee. No restrictions on subject. All stories must be unpublished and under 3,000 words. No SASE; no stories returned. "Blind" reading format. Winners notified in late Spring. Postmark deadline: March 15. http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/potomacreview/fiction_contestad.html
26th Annual Larry Neal Writers Competition in poetry, short fiction, essay, and dramatic writing, with separate awards for adults and youth. New this year: The Big Read Special Recognition Award for Creative Expression, for essays on the theme of courage. No fee to enter. Deadline: March 19. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
Readers sought for the 2009 summer Joaquin Miller Cabin Poetry Series, sponsored by The Word Works. For consideration, submit 5 poems, brief biographical note, and SASE. Approximately 15 poets selected to read (in a split bill with one other poet) on a Tuesday evening in June or July in Rock Creek Park, and receive an honorarium. Postmark deadline March 31. http://www.wordworksdc.com/miller_cabin.html
DC Commission on the Arts, Small Projects grants of up to $2,000. Deadline: April 8. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
If Poetry Journal seeks poems on the theme of music for the third issue. No previously published poems. Email 1-5 poems in the body of an email (no attachments) with basic cover letter by April 25. Email to Don Illich at ifpoetryjournaleditor@gmail.com. http://www.ifpoetryjournal.blogspot.com.
WORKSHOPS, EXHIBITIONS, AND SPECIAL EVENTS
Exhibit at Space 88, "Image/Word: Fusion of Poetry and Art," through March 6. Seven pairs of poets and visual artists collaborating on a single work on the theme of "creation": Sally Brucker & Ann Slayton, Bonnie Lee Holland & Anne Becker, James Landry & Greta Ehrig, Margot Neuhaus & Anne Dykers, Stephanie Sove Ney & Carol Beane, Howard Spector & Merrill Leffler, and Eric Wolinsky & Sydney March. 8211 Mayor Lane, Silver Spring, MD (301) 437-6652. http://www.space-88.com.
"Critique Your Complete Novel, Not Just a Couple of Chapters," workshop led by Richard Peabody. Fee: $500. Limited to 5 students. Meets every two weeks, mostly Wednesday nights from 7:30 to 10:00 pm in Arlington. Dates: March 4 & 18, April 1, 15, & 29, and May 13 & 19 (seven sessions). Information and registration: gargoyle@gargoylemagazine.com.
Virginia Festival of the Book, Charlottesville, VA, March 18-22. Authors include Rita Dove, Paul Muldoon, Lisa Russ Spaar, David Huddle, R.T. Smith, Victoria Chang, Ted Genoways, Jennifer Atkinson, Sarah Kennedy, Sandra Beasley, Dorianne Laux, Gregory Orr. Most events free. http://www.vabook.org/
24th Annual Mayor's Arts Awards, Monday, March 23, 6:00 pm. John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Concert Hall, Millennium Stage. Free Admission. Hosted by DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, sponsored by the DC Commission on the Arts. http://dcarts.dc.gov.
3rd Annual "Conversations and Connections" conference, Saturday, April 11, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Johns Hopkins University in DC, Dupont Circle neighborhood. Panels, keynote by Amy Hempel, "speed dating with the editors," book fair. Fee: $55. Sponsored by Johns Hopkins, Montgomery College, The Baltimore Review, Barrelhouse, and The Potomac Review. http://www.WritersConnectConference.com.
Bethesda Literary Festival, Bethesda, MD, April 17-19. Readings by novelists, journalists and poets, poetry slam, comedy night, family events, adult and youth writing contests. All events free. Authors include Stanley Plumly, E. Ethelbert Miller, Myra Sklarew. Also includes the15th Annual Writer's Center Small Press Fair on April 18 from 1-5pm, with displays of journals and literary presses. http://www.bethesda.org/specialevents/litfest/litfest.htm
AREA READINGS and PERFORMANCES
March 2
Cafe Muse: Joshua Poteat and Cedily Parks, plus classical guitar by Michael Davis and open mic. Hosted by Adele Steiner.
Monday, 7:00 pm
Free. Friendship Heights Village Center, 4433 S. Park Ave., Chevy Chase, MD. (301) 581-9439.
March 3
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Society's Hell: Surviving War, Strife, Crime and Oppression," featuring authors Elizabeth Bruce and Alivia Tagliaferri, translator Lila Guadamuz, tutors from DC Experience Corps, and photographer Heather Bradley Kubo. Moderator: Timothea Howard. Also includes an exhibit featuring Carly Sachs, Kathy Keler, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 3
Lannan Series: Ciarán Carson
Tuesday, Seminar at 5:30pm, reading at 8:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, Intercultural Center (Seminar in ICC 462, reading in Copley Formal Lounge), 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-6294.
March 4
Small Nations Poetry Reading: ambassadors of nine country read poetry from the countries they represent in English and their native languages, on the theme of the environment. Ambassadors from Austria, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, and Slovenia will participate
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
$18 Admission. National Geographic, Gilbert H. Grosvenor Auditorium, 1600 M St. NW, Farragut Square neighborhood, DC. (202) 857-7700.
March 5
Jazz Harmonies: Brian Gilmore and Brandon Johnson read with a jazz trio led by Marshall Keys
Thursday, 6:30 pm
Donations accepted. The Phillips Collection, 21st at Q Street NW, Dupont Circle neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-2151
March 7
Film: "Counting Headz: South Africa's Sistaz in Hip Hop," featuring MC Chi, DJ Sistamatic, and Smirk. Followed by an audience discussion and performance with DC female emcees RaTheMC, Carolyn Malachi, and Porche 9-11
Saturday, 2:00 pm
Free. Historical Society of Washington, 801 K St. NW, DC. Reservations required: (202) 383-1828.
March 7
The African Continuum Theater Company presents: Abiodun Oyewole, one of the original Last Poets, performing with Kim Bey, Beny Blaq, and Jade Foster
Saturday, 8:00 pm
Admission $25, $50, and $100. Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Mount Vernon Square neighborhood, DC. (202) 529-5763.
March 8
Suheir Hammad
Sunday, 4:00 pm
Free. Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th Street NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 8
Iota Series: E. Laura Goldberg and JoAnne Growney, followed by open mic. Hosted by Miles David Moore.
Sunday, 6:00 pm
Free. Iota Club and Cafe, 2832 Wilson Blvd., Clarendon neighborhood, Arlington, VA. (703) 256-9275.
March 9
Nine on the Ninth Series: Hosted by Derrick Weston Brown.
Monday, 9:00 pm
$3 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 14th & V Streets NW, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 10
Poetry at Noon: "Abraham Lincoln," featuring Daniel Mark Epstein
Tuesday, Noon
Free. Library of Congress, Jefferson Blg., Whittall Pavilion, 10 First St. SE, DC. (202) 707-5394.
March 10
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Undone: Finding Refuge and Cultural Survival from Displacement," featuring authors Evelyn Torton Beck, Julia Garcia, and Laura Brylawski-Miller. Moderator: Lisa Pegram. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Ellie Walton, Timothea Howard, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 10
"Flirting with the Masters: Poets on Elizabeth Bishop," featuring Jehanne Dubrow and Michael Collier. Book signing and reception to follow. Hosted by Sandra Beasley.
Tuesday, 7:00 pm
Free. The Arts Club of Washington, 2017 I St. NW, DC. (703) 994-3166.
March 10
Speakeasy: Storytelling for Adults on the theme "Black Cats and Four Leaf Clovers: Stories about good and bad luck"
Tuesday, 8:00 pm
$10 Admission. Station 9, 1438 U St. NW, DC. (240) 888-9751.
March 11
Brookland Reading Series: "Name That Theme." At the end of the reading members of the audience will get to submit their best guess for what this month’s theme was. Prizes will be awarded for accuracy and originality.
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Brookland Visitor's Center, 3420 9th St. NE, DC. (202) 526-1632.
March 11
Writers Here & Now Series: Juliana Spahr and Selah Saterstrom
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. University of Maryland, McKeldin Library, Special Events Room 6137, College Park, MD. (301) 405-3820.
March 12
Third Thursday Series: Anne Becker and participants from her Writing a Village workshops
Thursday, 7:30 pm
Free. Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, MD (31) 891-7224.
March 13
11th Hour Poetry Slam: 2 rounds, audience chooses winner, prizes awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.
Friday, 11:00 pm
$5 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 14th and V Streets NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 14
"When the Word is Written" Series: conversation with Patricia Elam, author of the novel Breathing Room, hosted by E. Ethelbert Miller
Saturday, 2:00 pm
Free. Historical Society of Washington, 801 K St. NW, DC. Reservations required: (202) 383-1828.
March 15
Sunday Kind of Love: featured readers, followed by open mic. Hosted by Melissa Tuckey and Katy Richey.
Sunday, 4:00 pm
Free, but donations collected. Busboys and Poets, Langston Room, 14th & V Streets NW, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 16
"Write it QUEER! A reading of new queer work" featuring Eileen Myles, Nalo Hopkinson, and four writers randomly selected to share seven minutes of their own writing. Plus raffle of two books by each author, and reception and discussion to follow
Monday, 7:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, McShain Lounge, 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-7435.
March 16
Claudia Emerson and Natasha Trethewey
Monday, 7:30 pm
$12 Admission. Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 E. Capitol St. SE, Capitol Hill neighborhood, DC. (202) 544-7077.
March 17
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Intimate Betrayal: Voices of Survival," featuring authors Sistah Joy, Billye Okera, Deborah Harris O'Brien, and Cheryl Miner. Moderator: Linden von Eichel. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Carolina Mayorga, Irma Rivera, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 18
Poesis Series: Mary-Sherman Willis and Jeneva Stone with live music. Hosted by Simki Ghebremichael
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Pentagon City Borders, 1201 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA (703) 418-0166.
March 18
Michael Dirda, author of Classics for Pleasure
Wednesday, 7:30 pm
$10 Admission. JCC of Greater Washington, 3125 Montrose Rd., Rockville, MD. (301) 348-3769.
March 18
Poetry and Prose reading: Dunya Mikhail and Bruce Weigl
Wednesday, 8:00 pm
Free. American University, Butler Pavilion, 6th floor, Butler Board Room, DC. (202) 885-2973.
March 19
Intersections series: readings, discussion, and open mic. Hosted by Fred Joiner.
Thursday, 8:00 pm
Free, but donations accepted. Charles Sumner School, 1201 17th St. NW, DC. (202) 249-0253.
March 19
Cheryl's Gone Series: Hosted by Wade Fletcher.
Thursday, 8:00 pm
Free, but donations accepted. Big Bear Cafe, 1st and R Streets NW, DC. (202) 470-5543.
March 21
Reading from the anthology Post Traumatic Stress featuring Camillo “Mac” Bica, Thomas Brinson, Marc Levy, Walt Nygard, Jim Murphy, Jay Wenk, Dan Wilcox, and Dayl Wise. Followed by open mic. Book proceeds to Veterans for Peace. Hosted by Melissa Tuckey. Sponsored by Split This Rock Poetry Festival, DC Poets Against The War, and Busboys and Poets
Saturday, 5:00 pm
Free. Busboys and Poets, 14th & V Streets NW, historic U Street neighborhood, DC. (202) 387-POET.
March 22
Sabor Sundays: Brandon Johnson and Deanna Nikaido, plus visual art by Samuel Miranda and Ronald Chacon, and live music
Sunday, 1:00 pm
Free. Sabor Cafe, 6209 Georgia Ave. NW, DC (202) 829-3322.
March 24
Dan Vera, sponsored by GLOBE
Tuesday, Noon
Free. Library of Congress, Madison Blg., 101 Independence Ave. SE, DC.
March 24
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "Psyche's Pain: The Struggle for Psychic Health and Healing," featuring Sarah Pleydell, Carolyn Joyner, Lisa Schamess, and Leslie N. Smith. Moderator: Cynthia Matsakis. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Kimberly Gaines, Patricia Henske, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
March 25
A Space Inside: Greg McBride and Ann Knox
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Riverby Books, 417 E. Capitol St. SE, Capitol Hill neighborhood, DC. (202) 543-4342.
March 25
Lia Purpura and Stephen Corey
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
Free. Kensington Row Bookshop, 3786 Howard Ave., Kensington, MD. (301) 949-9416.
March 25
Sparkle Series: Jona Coleson, followed by open mic. Hosted by Regie Cabico.
Wednesday, 8:30 pm
$3 Admission. Busboys and Poets, 5th & K Streets NW, DC. (202) 315-1320.
March 29
"Salt Lines Tour," featuring Sonya Renee, Andrea Gibson, Tara Hardy and Denise Jolly
Wednesday, 7:00 pm
$10 Admission. Warehouse Theater, 1021 7th St. NW, DC. (202) 783-3933.
March 30
Lannan Symposium: Cry Havoc! Poetry of War and Remembrance, 1968-2008. "Fifty Years of Truth" panel, featuring Daniel Berrigan, Seymour Hersh, and Amy Goodman
Thursday, 7:00 pm
Free. Georgetown University, International Cultural Center, Copley Formal Lounge, 37th and O Streets NW, Georgetown neighborhood, DC. (202) 687-7435.
March 31
Lannan Symposium: Cry Havoc! Poetry of War and Remembrance, 1968-2008. Includes "Terror and Image" with U Sam Oeur, "Sorrows of Baghdad" with Brian Turner, Dunja Mikhail, and Saadi Youssef, and "War and Remembrance" with Yusef Komunyakaa, James Fenton, and Carolyn Forché
Friday. Panels at 10am, 1:30pm, 4:00pm, and 7:30 pm
Free. Complete schedule information at http://lannan.georgetown.edu/symposiumfestival.htm
March 31
Women Artists/Women Healing Panel: "The Fragile Body: Restoring Health and Healing," featuring authors Jade Foster, Kat Parrish, Cheryl Somers Auburn, visual artist Sharon Burton, and dancers Andrea R. Thompson and Veronique Tran. Moderator: Eileen Wasaw. Also includes an exhibit featuring Kathy Keler, Gloria Quirarte, Rosabel Goodman-Everard, and others
Tuesday, 6:00 pm
Free. Centro Nia, 1420 Columbia Rd. NW, DC. (202) 841-7182.
