and meanwhile in L.A.

Whatever you may think of the 5-7-5 rule of haiku, it’s nonetheless gratifying to see that poetry is getting marquee treatment at the Ace Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. Read the story in Variety, including the list of featured poets through the end of 2020, and, while you’re at it, read Michael Dylan Welch’s essay on the urban myth of 5-7-5.

(Here’s a postscript courtesy of Michael Dylan Welch: a similar project was done some years ago in New York City and a book of postcards with photos of the marquees was published in 2008, Haiku on 42nd St.: A Celebration of Urban Poetry and Art.)

good old-fashioned vispo

If you tend to think of visual poetry as a fairly recent phenomenon (if you think of it at all, that is), have a look at this collection of Early Visual Poetry on UbuWeb.

. . . . .
image: Juan Caramuel de Lobkowitz, “Primus calamus ob oculos ponens metametricam” Rome 1663

meanwhile, in Vermont

When Mary Ruefle was appointed Poet Laureate of Vermont in October 2019, she probably was not imagining that her first year (of four) in office would be defined by a pandemic. (Or, for that matter, that her latest collection, Dunce, would be one of two finalists for the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in poetry.)

Each laureate envisions projects for their tenure and Ruefle decided to send 1,000 poetry postcards to Vermont residents. Selecting recipients from the phone book using her own quirky system, she sends poems that seem to have a particular resonance to the current moment.

Read about Mary Ruefle’s postcard project here.

. . . . .
photo by Matt Valentine

sign of the times

Banned Books Week (September 27 – October 3, 2020) begins today and, along with lists of challenged books and downloadable infographics, the American Library Association (ALA) is offering a variety of items for purchase, including face masks for kids and adults.

no fest

In case you missed the announcements, the Skagit River Poetry Festival (October 1-4, 2020) has been cancelled. Watch the Skagit River Poetry Foundation website for updates and read more about the Foundation’s Poets in the Schools program.

on poetry

“Fundamentally,
I started writing
to save my life.”
Cherríe L. Moraga
(b. September 25, 1952)

. . . . .
photo

poetry to watch

A couple of months ago, we published a guest post by Kelli Russell Agodon about her pandemic poetry collaboration with Melissa Studdard.

I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast (Saint Julian Press, 2014) is a poetry collection by Melissa Studdard, a poem in the collection, and a short film by Dan Sickles made from the poem. Watch “I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast” on YouTube.

last chance!

LiTFUSE 2020 starts the evening of Thursday, September 24, and continues through Sunday the 27th with a stellar lineup of readings, workshops, and other virtual gatherings.

Bring all the LiTFUSE poets to your house this year. Registration is still open.

reading autumn

It’s the first day of fall and many of us are likely to keep spending more time at home over the coming months, so here are some additional suggestions for stocking the book larder:

• 49th Shelf – Most Anticipated: Our 2020 Fall Poetry Preview
• Book Marks – 11 of the Most Anticipated Poetry Collections of Fall/Winter
• Book Riot – 5 Books To Get Your Buddhism Through Poetry
• Book Riot – 5 Poetry Collections As History Lessons
• Library Journal – Provocations: 10 More Poetry Collections for Fall
• The Millions – Must-Read Poetry: September 2020
• Poetry Book Society – Autumn 2020

If you’d care to recommend a recently published book of poetry, leave a comment!

NBA long list

The National Book Foundation this week announced the long list of ten poetry books being considered for the 2020 National Book Award. They are:

• Rick Barot, The Galleons, Milkweed Editions
• Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, A Treatise on Stars, New Directions
• Lillian-Yvonne Bertram, Travesty Generator, Noemi Press
• Tommye Blount, Fantasia for the Man in Blue, Four Way Books
• Victoria Chang, Obit, Copper Canyon Press
• Don Mee Choi, DMZ Colony, Wave Books
• Anthony Cody, Borderland Apocrypha, Omnidawn Publishing
• Eduardo C. Corral, Guillotine, Graywolf Press
• Natalie Diaz, Postcolonial Love Poem, Graywolf Press
• Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, The Age of Phillis, Wesleyan University Press

Five finalists will be announced on October 6 and winners will be announced at the invitation-only National Book Awards Ceremony and Benefit Dinner on November 20 in New York City.

(And of course you knew that when we said NBA we meant National Book Awards, right?)