His flesh is flush
with innuendo
a part clothed
a part exposed
leaving onlookers
stripped of what
to know
Saturday, April 03, 2010
Partly Naked
His flesh is flush
with innuendo
a part clothed
a part exposed
leaving onlookers
stripped of what
to know
Prospero’s Books stages a 120-hour poetry marathon - KansasCity.com
Prospero’s Books stages a 120-hour poetry marathon - KansasCity.com: "Prospero’s Books stages a 120-hour poetry marathon
By TIM ENGLE ~ The Kansas City Star
GARVEY SCOTT (photo credit)
“Sometimes for poetry to be noticed, it has to be noticed in a big way,” said Connie Dover, who helped launch a marathon reading."
Five straight days and nights of poetry reading sounds like a colossal undertaking, but it all started Friday morning with one little boy and an even littler poem.
“Day by day the ghosts go past,” recited almost-5-year-old Riley Werner-Leathem, hoisted up to the microphone by his dad, Prospero’s Books co-owner Will Leathem. Riley dressed up for the occasion, wearing a paisley tie over his Prospero’s T-shirt.
Minutes earlier it wasn’t ghosts but an ill-tempered thunderstorm that passed by. Former Kansas poet laureate Denise Low of Lawrence acknowledged it with her work “The Bear Emerges,” part of which goes:
In bed we hear the rumble,
distant, as we find again
under blankets and skins,
the deep-set thud of heartbeats.
All through the hard winter
we forgot about rain and lightning.
Prospero’s, 1800 W. 39th St., is spending all weekend and part of next week celebrating National Poetry Month — and trying to beat a record for longest poetry reading. The round-the-clock marathon will feature 200-plus regional and national poets, most reading in 20-minute chunks and most performing their own work.
It got under way at 10 a.m. Friday with about two dozen spectators and will wrap up at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The actual record-breaking moment, however, should occur around 7 p.m. Sunday — that’d be the 57-hour mark. Organizers are hoping to wallop a record set in Cincinnati in 1978, when a poetry marathon lasted 56 hours, 25 minutes.
If all goes well, the local effort will rack up 120 continuous hours of poetry, more than double what those disco-era dudes did.
Complete Story
Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/02/1853420/prosperos-books-stages-a-120-hour.html#ixzz0k4a3uMVP
By TIM ENGLE ~ The Kansas City Star
“Sometimes for poetry to be noticed, it has to be noticed in a big way,” said Connie Dover, who helped launch a marathon reading."
Five straight days and nights of poetry reading sounds like a colossal undertaking, but it all started Friday morning with one little boy and an even littler poem.
“Day by day the ghosts go past,” recited almost-5-year-old Riley Werner-Leathem, hoisted up to the microphone by his dad, Prospero’s Books co-owner Will Leathem. Riley dressed up for the occasion, wearing a paisley tie over his Prospero’s T-shirt.
Minutes earlier it wasn’t ghosts but an ill-tempered thunderstorm that passed by. Former Kansas poet laureate Denise Low of Lawrence acknowledged it with her work “The Bear Emerges,” part of which goes:
In bed we hear the rumble,
distant, as we find again
under blankets and skins,
the deep-set thud of heartbeats.
All through the hard winter
we forgot about rain and lightning.
Prospero’s, 1800 W. 39th St., is spending all weekend and part of next week celebrating National Poetry Month — and trying to beat a record for longest poetry reading. The round-the-clock marathon will feature 200-plus regional and national poets, most reading in 20-minute chunks and most performing their own work.
It got under way at 10 a.m. Friday with about two dozen spectators and will wrap up at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The actual record-breaking moment, however, should occur around 7 p.m. Sunday — that’d be the 57-hour mark. Organizers are hoping to wallop a record set in Cincinnati in 1978, when a poetry marathon lasted 56 hours, 25 minutes.
If all goes well, the local effort will rack up 120 continuous hours of poetry, more than double what those disco-era dudes did.
Complete Story
Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/02/1853420/prosperos-books-stages-a-120-hour.html#ixzz0k4a3uMVP
Friday, April 02, 2010
Thursday, April 01, 2010
Shades of Blue
Will anyone care to read me…
I mean really hear
what I’m saying?
Place their ear to the page
and listen for the sighs
or the tone in my voice
with its highs and lows.
Will they think
I’m just another
silly poem—
or figure
I’m too complicated;
too much like their last
relationship…
the one no one gets.
The one coded
with meaning
they never understood
and would not wish
upon another—
like I would want you
to feel my pain.
Like you could
know the quiet
that squeezes me
till I’m suffocating
and my biggest fear
is no one is there
to see—
and anyone
that would will not
until the Powder
turn Periwinkle
turn Maya
turn Iris
then Indigo.
Until it is just
too late.
National Poetry Month Has Arrived
Yes, I'm doing the poem-a-day challenge again this year. I'm still debating if I will post the drafts here or not. Stay tuned for my decision, but at a minimum, I will report the daily exploits in this journey. You can count on that.
Last year I completed the challenge and had maybe five decent poems that survived drafts that I had written during the 30 day period. I won't lie to you, this gets to be painful about 20 days in. I think it's more to aspect of writing to a set prompt then the writing part itself. Some days you just want to tell the prompt where it can go. But for now, the challenge is met with fresh enthueasam.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
120 hours of non-stop poetry!
The Pit at Prospero's [photo credit Prospero's]
The poetry filibuster, 120 hours of non-stop poetry is coming to Kansas City starting Friday April 2nd at 10:00 a.m. The longest poetry reading ever is planned for the Pit at Prospero's Books. The event is sponsored by Prospero’s, Write the Future and Spartan Press.
In celebration of National Poetry month, over 200 regional and national poets will gather in Kansas City to establish a world’s record for the longest poetry reading. The previously established record in 1978 as reported by the Associated Press and NPR’s All Things Considered, was in Cincinnati, Ohio where 50 poets performed 56 hours and 25 minutes of poetry.
The Kansas City event will be vidio taped and a live internet feed of the event is planned.
Some highlighted participants
Friday-
- Ron Jaffe: world renowned jazz-poet
- Connie Dover: winner of the Loft’s Speakeasy prize for poetry
- Denise Low: imediate past Poet Laureate of Kansas
- Jo McDougall: Pulitzer nominated poet and memoirist
- William Trowbridge: former editor of The Laurel Review, author of 5 books of poetry including the The Book of Kong and the Complete Book of Kong.
- Maryfrances Wagner: past President of Kansas City’s The Writers Place and author of 5 books of poetry.
- Wayne Miller: award-winning poet of 2 collections of poetry and editor of Pleiades: A Journal of New Writing.
- Jason Ryberg
- Jeanette Powers
- Marion S. Taylor
- David Morrissey
- Patrick Lamb
- Annie Rasmussen
- James Kneece Joseph Davis
- Valorie Engholm
- Eve Brackenbury
- Oshome
- Trudie Homan
- Trish Reeves
- Steven Proski
- Tony Plocido
- Greg Field
Saturday-
- Marc Smith: host of the Green Mill poetry series in Chicago, Ill.. PBS identified Marc as the founder of slam poetry in America. Smith will come off sabbatical to perform for the longest poetry reading record attempt.
- Mark Tom Hennessy: former front man for the Lawrence, KS grunge and PAW.
- Marc Zorn
- Mike Bannen + 7year old
- Carl Bettis
- Noon Jan Kroll
- Stan Banks
- Janet Banks
- Alarie Tennille
- John Peterson
- Stacey Donovan
- Lindsey Martin Bowen
- Carl Rowden
- Robert Stewart
- Michelle Boisseau
- Jeanie Wilson
- Pat Danneman
- Phyllis Becker
- Pat Lawson
- William Peck
- TJ Jude
- Marc Smith
- Ed Tato
- Mark Hennessy
- Jason Ryberg
- Margueritte Rappold
- Iris Appelquist
- Aaron Fuhr
- Thad Havercamp
- Ron Worley
- Jason Harding
- Vic Swan
- Joshua Upsha
- Creed Shepherd
- Michelle Nimmo
- Tommy Mason
- Jacob Johansen
- Steve Goldberg
- John Dorsey
- Brent Kinder
- Holly Stewart
- The Recipe: founding members of the Black Poets Collective, Pries and 337 define the word “LIVE” in poetry performance.
- David Smith: author of White Time joins us from Las Angeles, CA.
- Dennis Weiser
- Kale Baldock
- Kathy Hughes
- Gary Lechtliter
- Sean Erixon
- Dean Fessenden
- Thomas Fessenden
- Kevin Rabas
- Josh Barker
- Jeff Tigchelaar
- Aaron Froelich
- Alyson Fuller
- Saira Jehangir Khan
- Faith Bemiss
- Britt Whitehead
- Blair Johnson
- Mickey Cesar
- Laura Kitzmiller
- Katie Longofono
- Jas Abromowitz
- Jeremy O'eal
- Lance & Rachel Asbury
- David Smith
- John Dorsey
- Abigail Beaudell
- Jacob Johansen
- Katie Kaboom
- Steve Goldberg (Jacob)
- Gretta Wilkinson
- Becky Barrera
- Lola Nation
- Duke Smith
- Diane Mora
- TJ Jude
- Janie Harris
- Evanne Miller
- James Canty
- Chris Beard
- Steve Bridgens
Monday-
- Connie Dover: winner of the Loft’s coveted Speakeasy Prize for Poetry.
- Nairba Sirrah: Book II of Paradise Lost: Satan Breaks Out Of Hell – 9 characters; 1005 lines; 59 minutes word for word memorized recital.
- Eric Gandara
- Megan Louise
- Larry Welling
- Mel Neet
- Paul Goldman
- Eve Brackenburry
- Lee Eliot
- Ken Buch
- Maggie Ammerman
- Dennis Weiser
- Dez
- Marion Dean McIrvin
- Kevin Hiatt
- Patrick Sumner
- Norma Marshall
- Jeremey Colson
- Patrick Dobson
- Stephen Karuska
- Connie dover
- Brian Harris
- Silvia Kofler
- Jose Faus
- Maria Vasquez Boyd
- Brandon Whitehead
- Steve Wolfe
- Megan Louise
- Mikal Shapiro
- Tracy Rockwell
- Jon Bidwell
- Arrika Brazil
- Duke Smith
- Rhiannon Ross
- Abigail Henderson
- Kara Werner
- Robert Moore
- Janie Harris
- Jon Bidwell
- Bob Chrisman
- Brent Kinder
- Lon Swearingen
- Philip Miller: the godfather of Kansas City poetry, founder of the Riverfront Readings series and author of 6 books of verse, joins us from Mount Union, PA.
- Dr. Patricia Cleary Miller: Rockhurst University Humanities Chair, four-term poet laureate of the Harvard Alumni Association.
- John Mark Eberhart
- Paul Goldman
- Susan Peters
- Jim Fox
- Maril Crabtree
- Jan Duncan-O'Neal
- Karin Frank
- Anne Baber
- Bob Chrisman
- Joseph Davis
- Missi Rassmussen
- Michael Wells
- David Morrissey
- Shawn Pavey
- Timothy Pettet
- Tom Wayne
- Philip Miller
- Patricia Miller
- David Arnold Hughes
- Jason Vaughn
- Steve Brisindine
- Sara glass
- Duke Smith
- Rhiannon Ross
- Tom Wayne
- Will Leathem
- Jason Ryberg
Wednesday-
- Victor Smith Memorial Reading: One of KC’s great ‘street’ voices, a poet’s poet, Smith published 5 chapbooks of poetry. A selection of poets will read Victor’s poems in honor of his untimely passing.
- 7-9pm VICTORY PARTY at The Conspiracy (at the Uptown Theatre). Live Music and much back slapping. $3 cover for the Kansas City literary arts nonprofit: Write the Future
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Poetry Reviews: What's The Point?
Publishers Weekly:
But in almost any conversation on the topic of poetry reviews, one question comes up: what's the point? This question isn't always asked with the flippant air that actually means "who cares?" Often, people really want to know: what is accomplished by poetry reviews? Do they help sell books? Do they keep the art form in line? Do they spur writers into creating better poetry or kick bad writers out of the halls of Parnassus? Do poetry reviews help readers?
Poetry Reviews: What's The Point?
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