the sound of Spokane

Since March, 2018, Spokane Public Radio, an NPR member station, has invited a distinguished local poet to select and read one poem each weekday for one week. The poem can be their own or by “poets they admire or find particularly poignant or relevant for the time of airing.” The poems are broadcast Monday through Friday at 9:00am (Pacific) or you can visit the Poetry Moment archives and listen in. Thanks, Spokane!

before it’s too late

If you’ve been meaning to see the white birds of winter, Empty Bowl has some good poetic reasons for making the drive (all dates 2019):

• Friday February 1, in Edison – Don Kruse, Jessica Gigot, and Georgia Johnson read at i.e. – 6:30pm
• Sunday, February 3, in Freeland – Clemens Starck reads at Unitarian Universalist Congregation – 10:00am
• Thursday, February 7, in Port Townsend – Clemens Starck and Finn Wilcox read at Northwind Arts Center – 7:00pm
• Friday, February 8, in Anacortes – Clemens Starck and Samuel Green read at Pelican Bay Books & Coffeehouse – 7:00pm
• Tuesday, February 12, in Anacortes – Don Kruse and Lorraine Ferra read at Watermark Books – 6pm
• Friday, February 22, in Anacortes – Michael Daley and Jeremy Voigt read at Pelican Bay Books & Coffeehouse – 7:00pm

. . . . .
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Coming right up: February

The shortest month brings more than Valentines. It’s National Haiku Writing Month (NaHaiWriMo) and it’s the LetterMo challenge. Surely there must be some way to tie those two together?

And while it may be short, there’s more to February than meets the eye. Do your part: celebrate.

planning ahead

September 27-29, 2019, may seem a long way off, but it’s not too early to register (and reserve accommodations) for LiTFUSE. Once again, Mighty Tieton, Washington, will host the weekend-long poets’ workshop, which combines writing, exploration, improvisation, meditation, camaraderie, natural beauty, and readings to ignite your muse.

Have a look at the 2019 faculty, review your registration options, and sign up!

on poetry

“When you feel you’ve got a line that’s pulling a lot of emotional freight with it, then you know you’ve probably started a poem.”
Harvey Shapiro
(January 27, 1924 – January 7, 2013)

. . . . .
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new titles

No sooner have the best-of lists gone away than the must-read lists begin. In case you don’t already have enough on your nightstand, have a look:

• Book Riot – 50 Must-Read Poetry Collections of 2019
• CBC – 20 works of Canadian poetry to check out in spring 2019
• The Millions – Must-Read Poetry: January 2019
• National Council of Teachers of English – 2019 Notable Poetry Books
• NPR – “I Reject Walls”: A 2019 Poetry Preview
• Nicholas Nichols – Lit Forthcoming Poetry Collections 2019

award season

The National Book Critics Circle has announced its 31 finalists in six categories — autobiography, biography, criticism, fiction, nonfiction, and poetry — for the outstanding books of 2018. The finalists in poetry are:

• Terrance Hayes, American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin (Penguin Books)
• Ada Limón, The Carrying (Milkweed)
• Erika Meitner, Holy Moly Carry Me (BOA Editions)
• Diane Seuss, Still Life with Two Dead Peacocks and a Girl (Graywolf Press)
• Adam Zagajewski, Asymmetry. Translated by Clare Cavanagh (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Terrance Hayes was also listed as a finalist in the Criticism category, for To Float in the Space Between: A Life and Work in Conversation with the Life and Work of Etheridge Knight (Wave).

The National Book Critics Circle Awards, begun in 1974 and considered among the most prestigious in American letters, are the sole prizes bestowed by a jury of working critics and book-review editors. The awards will be presented on March 14, 2019 at a free public event held at the New School in New York City. See the complete list of finalists in all categories here.

poets, podcasted

Love poets? Love podcasts? Listen in to The Poet Salon: “The Poet Salon is a podcast where poets talk over drinks. In each episode, we interview a poet we love over a drink we’ve prepared especially for them. Your hosts are Gabrielle Bates, Luther Hughes, and Dujie Tahat.” It’s brand new and you’ll find it at all the usual podcast locations: iTunes, Spotify, Soundcloud, Google Play, Stitcher, and so on.

Attention Whatcom teens!

Whatcom County teens in grades 6-12 are invited to enter their original poetry for inclusion in A Forest of Words 2019, a teen poetry anthology, which will be distributed to area schools and libraries. Accepted poets receive a copy of the book (and bragging rights!) if their work is accepted for publication. A panel of library staff and area teens select poems based on originality, creativity, and craft.

The deadline is Friday, March 15, 2019.

The guidelines are here.

(And of course, don’t forget to submit your poem to the Sue C. Boynton Poetry Contest, which is open for submissions during the month of March from poets of all ages .)

Friday in Anacortes

On Friday, January 25, 2019, at 7:00pm, Pelican Bay Books & Coffeehouse will welcome poets Elizabeth Austen and Ed Harkness for a late-winter reading. Singer/songwriter Erik Christensen will also perform. Join them.

The monthly reading series is coordinated by Michael Daley.