on poetry

’Tis the witching time of night,
Orbed is the moon and bright,
And the Stars they glisten, glisten,
Seeming with bright eyes to listen.

John Keats
(October 31, 1795 – February 23, 1821)

. . . . .
quote from A Prophecy: To George Keats in America
portrait of John Keats by William Hilton

Friday on Lopez

Three fine writers, Erika Davis, Susan J. Erickson, and Judith Works, will be featured at “Local Writers Read” on Friday, November 3, 2017, 7:00pm, at the Lopez Bookshop on Lopez Island. Erika Davis will read her original poems on “how to get through each day … with all the chaos and stillness and beauty.” Susan Erickson will give voice to women from her book of poetry, Lauren Bacall Shares a Limousine. Edmond author Judith Works will read from her memoir, Coins in the Fountain.

Winter Witch*

2017 Walk Award
By Mariah Brown-Pounds

I have a craving for crocuses.
I have a deep down belly ache
for little green bud nubbins on the indian plum,
for fuzzy nettle noggins that poke up in muddy meadows.
I have an urge for the urgency of bursting bulbs,
for pink flashes of salmonberry in the shadows,
for apple blossom rain on my nose,
the surprised bee who surprises me.
Fluorescent forsythia why have you forsaken me?

Someday when there are flowers again
I will make a potion
of all the green plants that I can find.
I will pull them up by the roots:
boil them in spring water
with sky blue robin eggs, bumble
bees, and the song of frogs
with salt and pepper to taste.
I will distill every last detail of Spring
into a delicious broth
to tide me through the winter months.

. . . . .
*Copyright 2017 by Mariah Brown-Pounds. Broadside illustrated by Christian Smith.

something different

The interdisciplinary art and design collective Point in Passing has published Grid Poems Vol. I. Written by Brian Isett and designed by John Soat, the book presents text in a grid that can be read horizontally and vertically. Have a look.

Some Days – a walking poem

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Kent State University College of Nursing had a big idea. In collaboration with the Kent State University Wick Poetry Center and Each + Every, a Kent, Ohio, design firm, a series of Healing Stanzas writing workshops were offered, at which more than 600 nursing students, faculty, and alumni wrote about the nursing profession. Wick director David Hassler then connected the lines and stories to create a single poem, “Some Days,” that became part of a “walking poem”/mural, 6.25 feet tall and 40 feet long. Read the story and read the poem.

on poetry

“I love my rejection slips. They show me I try.”
Sylvia Plath
(October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963)

. . . . .
quote from The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath
photo

is that a poem in your satellite?

If you’re interested in the intersection of art and technology and how it might look in the future, tune in to Does Technology Need The Arts To Build A Better Future? This happy hour conversation will include Juan José Diaz Infante, who launched the poetry-bearing Ulises I Mexican nanosatellite, and Tavares Strachan, a multidisciplinary contemporary artist who has trained in the Russian cosmonaut program. They’ll be discussing the desirability of connecting (quite literally!) the arts and sciences. If you happen to be in Washington, DC, today (Thursday, October 26, 2017), RSVP and attend the event at New America. If not, the event will stream, 6:00pm – 8:00pm Eastern, on this New America page.

Saturday workshops!

Just a reminder that there will be two terrific workshops in Bellingham this Saturday, October 28, 2017, to benefit the Sue C. Boynton Poetry Contest — and you!

From 10:00am – Noon, Nancy Pagh will offer Corresponding Intimacy: The Letter Form in Creative Writing. From 1:00 – 3:00pm, Neil Aitken will present Writing at the Threshold of Loss and Desire.

Workshops will be held at the Chuckanut Center in Fairhaven Park, 103 Chuckanut Drive North. Registration is required: $30 for one workshop or $50 for both workshops offered the same day, paid by check or cash at the workshop. Register by sending an email to boyntonpoetrycontest@hotmail.com indicating the workshop(s) you wish to take and including your name and a phone number. Please bring writing materials.

See the complete descriptions on the Workshops page.

what’s in a name?

Wondering what to name your next book? At the Chicago Review of Books, Sarah Blake talks about titles with poets Aditi Machado, Jennifer Chang, kathryn l. pringle, and Vanessa Angelica Villareal.

what would e e cummings say?

Whatever you may think of Calvin Klein, Jake Gyllenhaal, or fragrance advertising, it’s a rare convergence when what they have in common is the E.E. Cummings poem [i carry your heart with me(i carry it in]. Read the story and watch the video: Vanity Fair.