SC County Youth Poet Laureate--Debut Reading August 4th
In this issue of For Better or Verse, I bring news of Dina Lusztig Noyes’ first public reading as County Youth Poet Laureate on Sunday August 4th at Brommer Park (1:30—more below). I’m including another full lineup of events, publication opportunities and poetry news. Note: there are several overlapping events taking place these next couple of weeks. If only we could be everywhere, all at once.
Speaking of which, I am writing this week from the Sewanee Writers’ Conference in Tennessee, enjoying the chance to think about my own craft and be reminded of the expansiveness of creative writers across genres of playwriting, non-fiction, fiction and poetry. It’s a sweet way to get some mid-summer perspective and feels like a renewal of my own belief in wordsmiths everywhere. I hope you’ve found writing or writers lately who are doing that for you, too. Read on for some local options, and hope to see you at a couple of them!
Events
Friday Aug 2, 6-7pm. Dion O’Reilly, Lit Chat with Catamaran Literary Reader at Tannery Arts Center, 1050 River St, Studio 118. Dion will read and discuss her second full-length book, Sadness of the Apex Predator. More information here.
Friday Aug 2, 7-9pm. Satori—Open Mic. After the Tannery event, head over to Satori Arts to hear featured reader Madeline Aliah. Madeline is the author of chapbook of poems, This is My Body: Poems by a Teen Trans Fem, and a finalist for SC County Youth Poet Laureate. Details about this event here.
Sunday Aug 4, 1:30-3:30. Poetry and Music in the Park returns, back at Brommer Street Park. Poets Chloe Gentile-Montgomery, Dina Lusztig Noyes and Roberto Efren Osorio read from 2-3pm; bring a picnic and spread out on the grass. As I mentioned, this is the debut reading from our county Youth Poet Laureate, Dina. Musician Matt Harrison will open and close the event. Bios of the poets here.
Sunday Aug 4, 2:30-4pm. Several poets will be part of the Filipino American Literature Reading @ the AAPI Cultural Festival, for a Watsonville is in the Heart presentation. The 418 Project, 155 River Street S, Santa Cruz. The festival itself will run from 12:00-4:00pm and feature performances, music, artwork, food vendors, and community organization tables.
Tuesday Aug 6, 7pm. Inter|Act Spoken Word Open Mic. Featured Poet Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) has local ties. At Satori an artist space, 815 Almar, Unit 9, Santa Cruz.
Thursday Aug 8, 5-6:30pm. Catamaran Literary Reader hosts an online launch of their summer issue, including poets Michelle Bitting, Brendan Constantine, Kathryn Jordan, Kathleen Winter and Gail Wronsky.
Workshops
Saturday, July 27, 10:30-12:30. Poetry as Practice at the Felton Public Library. Led by Magdalena Montagne. “In this workshop we’ll remember the reasons why we write! …We’ll examine rituals that can help us maintain a practice that is good for us in so many ways, and we’ll commit to better awareness that will help us develop and sustain a rich writing life.” Note that this workshop begins in the morning! Register using this link: https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/event/12398740.
Every Monday, 4 pm -5:30 pm. Santa Cruz Poetry Project Poetry Workshop. Downtown Santa Cruz Branch Library, Life Literacies Center room. The Santa Cruz Poetry Project facilitates poetry and writing workshops throughout Santa Cruz County with the mission to bring poetry to underserved populations. We do this through our Poetry in the Jails project, which offers poetry to incarcerated people. We are pleased to once again bring workshops to the downtown library, in partnership with the Life Literacies Center. Anyone who would like to establish a writing practice in a safe and encouraging environment is welcome. Feel free to drop in—this library program is free & open to all! Event info on the SCPL site here.
The Círculo de poets & Writers summer conference will be held both in-person and online. The in-person conference will take place on Saturday, August 17th at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History in Santa Cruz, while the online conference is the following Saturday, August 24th, via Zoom. You can attend both or just one date. Both dates include opportunities to get to know each other, attend workshops, and more, concluding with an open mic for all participants. Register and find out more about scholarships available for BIPOC participants here.
Submission Opportunities
The annual Morton Marcus Memorial Poetry Prize is now open for submissions. Poets may submit one poem (one entry only), up to two pages in length. The winner of the prize will receive $1,000, and an invitation to read their winning poem at The 15th Annual Morton Marcus Poetry Reading at UC Santa Cruz on November 7th. This year’s reading will feature Santa Cruz poet Ellen Bass. This year’s judge is Santa Cruz poet Brad Crenshaw.
Porter Gulch Review seeks submissions of poetry, prose and visual art. Extended deadline is now September 1. See graphic below for more info, or email pgrsubmissions@gmail.com.
Let me know your news, events, and other opportunities so I can share them here!