First Families of Vancouver Event March 8

Connecting to Our Heritage Sunday, March 8, 2009 3:30-5:30PM WSU Vancouver Administration Building (VADM) 110 Light refreshments will be served. Admission and parking are free. On March 8 First Families of Vancouver's African American Community will present "Connecting to Our Heritage," a celebration of Black history and culture in song, dance, and the spoken word. The program will honor local and national heroes of color and highlight First Families, an NAACP-sponsored community project documenting the storiesof African Americans who moved to the city during World War II. This public event is free and all are welcome. For more information about the First Families project, visit http://sites.google.com/site/firstfamiliesvancouver. Melissa E. E. Williams, M.A. Managing Editor, Northwest Passage Education Department Washington State University Vancouver 14204 NE Salmon Creek Avenue Vancouver, WA 98686 meewilliams@vancouver.wsu.edu

NW Poetry Publishers' Forum Friday, February 27 (Seattle)

UNTITLED [INTERSECTION] presents NW POETRY PUBLISHERS’ FORUM – Moderated by DAVE JARECKI Friday 27 February starting at 7PM at The Phinney Center in Greenwood (Seattle) Featuring: DAVID BIESPIEL, JEREMY HALINEN, DAVID HOROWITZ, PAUL HUNTER, STEPHANIE LENOX and KIRSTEN RIAN Untitled [Intersection] presents NW POETRY PUBLISHERS’ FORUM with guest moderator and literary journalist, DAVE JARECKI. Join us for a lively discussion about how we are manifesting the poetry of our times. Panelists include six accomplished poet/publishers from Washington and Oregon who will read from their work and contribute to a discussion about what they are doing to make poetry widespread, beautiful and affordable. This 2-hour event includes a wine & cheese reception. It is open to the public for a donation of $5-10. Untitled [Intersection] is a monthly performance art & poetry series curated byA. K. “Mimi” Allin at The Phinney Center in Greenwood -http://www.phinneycenter.org/. We hope you can join us! It’s a greattime to check out the gallery show too! IN THE GALLERY “Earth and Sky” Fiber works by Cameron Anne Mason and Ann Maki February 6-27, 2009 Phinney Center Gallery Hours: Monday-Friday 9am-9pm, Saturday 9am-2pm www.cameronannemason.com… MODERATOR:DAVE JARECKI is the grandson of northeastern Pennsylvanian coalminers,and feels their work in his blood sometimes. He's been writing professionally since 1998, including articles, profiles, non-profitgrants and marketing communications. In 2004 he founded Breakerboy Communications, a strategic writing and messaging service that focuseson the communications needs of small businesses and non-profit organizations. Jarecki also facilitates youth and adult creativewriting workshops and independent studies throughout the GreaterPortland area. His creative work has appeared in Voices of Central Pennsylvania, IN/UR Magazine, BaseballSavvy.com, Poet's Hood online and 4&20 Poetry. He is in the midst of an interview project, and regularly posts conversations with professional writers and poets on his literary site, DaveJarecki.com. PANELISTS: DAVID BIESPIEL’s books of poetry include Shattering Air, Pilgrims & Beggars, & Wild Civility. A new book of poems, The Book of Men and Women, is due out in 2009. Among his honors are a Wallace Stegner Fellowship in poetry at Stanford University, a Lannan Fellowship in poetry, & a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in literature. He has taught at Stanford, George Washington University, University ofMaryland, & Portland State University, & he has been the Richard H.Thornton Writer-in-Residence at Lynchburg College in Virginia. He currently divides his teaching among three universities: in the fallas the Visiting Poet at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the spring as an Adjunct Professor at Oregon State University, & in the summer on the faculty of the low-residency M.F.A.Program at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. He's a contributor to American Poetry Review, Parnassus, Poetry, Slate, TheNew York Times Book Review, & The New Republic. Since 2002 he has been the columnist on poetry for The Oregonian. In 2005 he was named editor of Poetry Northwest. In 2008, in line with his belief that poets befully engaged with political and civic life, he became a contributor to Politico's Arena, a cross-party, cross-discipline daily conversation about politics and policy among more than a hundred current and former members of Congress, governors, mayors, politicalstrategists and scholars. JEREMY HALINEN is a poet and a coeditor and cofounder of KnockoutLiterary Magazine (knockoutlit.org). Some of his recent poems appearin Arroyo Literary Review; Best Gay Poetry 2008;Dos Passos Review; Pontoon: an anthology of Washington State Poets, Number Ten; QuarterAfter Eight; and Rio Grande Review. Halinen holds an MFA in creativewriting from Eastern Washington University, and he resides in Seattle. DAVID D. HOROWITZ founded and manages Rose Alley Press, which primarily publishes books featuring Pacific Northwest rhymed metrical poetry. His new poetry collection, from Rose Alley Press, is Stars Beyond the Battlesmoke. Other collections, from Rose Alley, include Wildfire, Candleflame; Resin from the Rain; and Streetlamp, Treetop, Star. Many of his poems have been published in fine literary journals, such as The Lyric, Candelabrum, and The New Formalist. Some of his recent essays have appeared in Exterminating Angel and the IBPA Independent, a journal specializing in helping small press publishers. In 2005, David won the PoetsWest Achievement Award. In 2007, he edited, as well as published, the Rose Alley Press anthology: Limbs of the Pine, Peaks of the Range. David gives frequent readings in andaround Seattle, where he lives. His Web site is www.rosealleypress.com. PAUL HUNTER has lent a hand where it was needed—whether as teacher, performer, grassroots arts activist, worker on the land, or shade-tree mechanic. For the past 14 years he has published fine letterpresspoetry under the imprint of Wood Works, currently including 24 booksand 60 broadsides. His poems have appeared in Alaska Fisherman’s Journal, Beloit Poetry Journal, Bloomsbury Review, Iowa Review, NorthAmerican Review, Poetry, Poetry Northwest, Prairie Schooner, RavenChronicles, The Small Farmer’s Journal, The Southern Review and SpoonRiver Poetry Review, as well as in five full-length books and threechapbooks. His first collection of farming poems, Breaking Ground, 2004, from Silverfish Review Press, was reviewed in the New York Times, and received the 2004 Washington State Book Award. A secondvolume of farming poems, Ripening, was published in 2007, and a third companion volume, Come the Harvest, just appeared in 2008. He was recently a featured poet on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. STEPHANIE LENOX received an MFA in poetry from the University of Idaho and a BA in English from Whitworth University. Her work can be found in Crab Orchard Review, Gulf Coast, Seattle Review, and Washington Square, among others, and online in DIAGRAM and AGNI. The Heart ThatLies Outside the Body, a chapbook of poems inspired by record holders, human superlatives, and ludicrous acts, won the 2007 Slapering HolChapbook Contest. Her work has been anthologized in Best New Poets 2006, nominated five times for a Pushcart Prize, and published as alimited-edition broadside by the Center for Book Arts. She is a recipient of a grant from the Oregon Arts Commission. She works as the promotions director at a children’s museum in Salem, Oregon, and edits the online literary journal Blood Orange Review. KIRSTEN RIAN’s poetry has appeared in national literary journals andanthologies, and was recently nominated for inclusion in the 2008 BestNew Poets anthology. She leads workshops internationally, including locations like Sierra Leone and Finland, using poetry as a tool for literacy, healing, and storytelling within the refugee/immigrant andhomeless communities. She resides in Portland, OR where she is a Poet-in-Residence through the Literary Arts Writers-in-the-Schools program. She co-authored with Sharon Wood Wortman the anthology, Walking Bridges Using Poetry as a Compass. Her anthology of Sierra Leonean poetry is forthcoming from Pika Press in 2009. She is poetry editor of the online literary journal, Writersdojo.org. Also an independent curator and writer, she has coordinated more than 375 exhibitions, and 65 books and catalogues.

First Thursday at Show and Tell Gallery March 5

Poetry Northwest Happy Hour March 5

Poetry Northwest Launch Party for Issue #6 Join the fun LITERARY FRIENDSHIPS Issue #6 THURSDAY, MARCH 5th 5:30--9pm The Blue Monk 3341 SE Belmont You like poetry Your friends like beer You don't need to choose between them. Writers, poetry appreciators, beer swiggers, and literary groupies Please join us... To celebrate the launch of our Winter '08/Spring '09 issue! Our March Happy Hour will focus on LITERARY FRIENDSHIPS Thursday, March 5, from 5:30 - 9:00 pm The Blue Monk, 3341 SE Belmont Words, drinks, & the usual shenanigans www.poetrynw.org For more information, please contact Caitlin@poetrynw.org

"Blue Rain" installation by SF artist Michael Brown

Check out videos and images of SF artist Michael Brown's "Blue Rain" installation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF7iqjh4EAE http://missionlocal.org/tag/bluerain/ http://sf.curbed.com/archives/2009/02/19/curbedwire_alien_hieroglyphs_ecohouse_in_the_sunset.php http://sfist.com/2009/02/19/bluerain.php

Toni Partington, Eillen Elliott, and Constance Hall at Three Friends Coffee House Monday Night, February 23

Three of the area's finest poets will be appearing this Monday night at Melissa Sillitoe's fantastic Three Friends reading series. Don't miss it! Here is Toni's announcement for the event: YOU ARE INVITED TO AN EVENING OF POETRY AND ART Three Friends Coffee House 201 SE 12th Avenue (at Ash) Portland, OR Date: February 23rd, 2009 - Monday Time: 7 PM Cost: FREE On Monday, February 23rd I will read poetry from my series, For The Love Of Agnes, and some new poems at Three Friends Coffee House in Portland. That night will be a 3-friends adventure -- I will be joined by two remarkable women, Eileen Elliott (poet and visual artist) and Constance Hall (writer and editor). Eileen will display glass and fiber art pieces and read poems written or inspired by these specific pieces. Constance will read poetry from her book about the Italian immigrant experience. We will conclude with a poem for three voices that will be performed for the first time. I hope you will be able to join us at 7pm. Three Friends Coffee House is an intimate setting that is well suited for poets and artists - and they have great coffee, tea and sweet treats. Melissa Sillitoe is our Host/Producer. You can see all of the great things she is doing on her website. Show and Tell Gallery: "Art. Caffeine. Collaboration. Good times."http://www.showandtellgallery.org/ See you soon! peace, toni Toni Partington tpartington@earthlink.net

Alli Warren, Brandon Brown, & Tom Fisher at Clinton Corner Cafe (Portland) February 28

Tangent presents Alli Warren, Brandon Brown, & Tom Fisher Saturday, February 28 7:00 pm Clinton Corner Cafe 2633 21st Ave. www.thetangentpress.org/readings.html ALLI WARREN and BRANDON BROWN, who organize the innovative reading series at 21 Grand in Oakland, CA, give their premiere readings in Portland for Tangent. They'll be joined by Portland's own TOM FISHER, a critical and much-beloved participant in Portland's poetry scene, and professor of English at PSU. ALLI WARREN was born in the 1980s and remains extant. Recent publications include No Can Do (Duration Press), and a collaboration with Michael Nicoloff entitled Bruised Dick. Alli co-curates The (New) Reading Series at 21 Grand, and lives in San Francisco's Mission District. Visit her blog, Organ Pleasure, at theingredient.blogspot.com. BRANDON BROWN is from Kansas City, Missouri. His friends have published his poetry in chapbook form including Memoirs Of My Nervous Illness (Cy Press), 908 1078 (Transmission Press), Kidnapped (Duration Press), Camels! (TAXT), and the forthcoming Wondrous Things I Have Seen (Mitzvah Chaps). He co-curates The (New) Reading Series at 21 Grand in Oakland and lives in San Francisco. Visit Brandon at HI: brandonbrown.blogspot.com. TOM FISHER is working on two manuscripts: one on not writing and modernism; one on songs, selves and sorceries. He lives in Portland, OR and teaches at Portland State University.

Verse in Person Wednesday, February 25

From Barbara LaMorticella: *Verse in Person, Wednesday February 25, 7-8 PM *Northwest Branch of the Multnomah County Library,23 & NW Thurman. Free Eugene Poet Gary Adams and Portlander Joan Maiers read. Joan Maiers coordinates the Moonstruck Poetry Series. Her poems have appeared in /Calyx, Mr. Cogito, Windfall, Oregon English Journal/, and numerous other collections or anthologies. Her manuscript /Specific Gravity/ is waiting to be published. Gary Adams is author of /Things Inside Other Things /(Traprock Books, 2008). His poems have appeared in such little magazines as /Fireweed/ and /Poetry Motel /as well as in online journals such as /Gin Bender /and/ Roguescholars.com./

Submission call: The Wild (Deadline May 15, 2009)

from Michael Nicoloff (via David Abel): THE WILD: CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: The human animal distinguishes itself from the common animal by driving cars and baking pies, sleeping in beds and slurping strawberry juliuses. The human animal keeps household pets like the sphinx cat, the chihuahua and the canary, while fearing panthers, spiders and other underminers of civilization. The human animal defines its borders with and against natural space, cutting paths through the wilderness to build homes and roads, and sprouting seeds on windowsills. Civilization makes incursions into the wild, and the wild makes incursions into civilization. The Wild is a project that investigates ideas about animals, wilderness, nature and their intersections with humans and culture. We have questions: What do we mean when we use the word wilderness? What is animal intelligence and/or emotion to humans? Where is the porous border between civilization and nature? Why do you love Fluffy so much? Please help us answer these questions, and ask some more. The Wild is a journal of literature and art. We are currently open to submissions of poetry, fiction, essays, and criticism around the theme of animals, wilderness, household pets, nature/culture, protozoa, parasites, etc. Submissions, questions and queries can be sent to the.wild.editors@gmail.com. The deadline for submissions is May 15, 2009. Please feel free to re-post this call for submissions.-- Alex Dumont & Laura Jaramillo, Editors

Alicia Cohen and Jules Boykoff at Powell's on Hawthorne February 22

Reading and book release: Alicia Cohen, /Debts & Obligations/ (O Books) Jules Boykoff, /Hegemonic Love Potion/ (Factory School) Sunday, February 22 4:00 pm Powell's on Hawthorne 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Free admission *Alicia Cohen* is originally from San Diego, California, but has spent her adult life in Portland, Oregon, and Buffalo, New York. /Debts and Obligations/ from O Books is her second collection of poems; her first, /Bear/, was published by Handwritten Press in 2000. She has also shown work in the visual and performance arts, including a gallery installation and "opera" entitled Northwest Inhabitation Log. She earned her Ph.D. in the Poetics Program at SUNY Buffalo and has taught at Reed College and Portland State University. Presently she lives in Portland, Oregon. *Jules Boykoff* is the author of /Hegemonic Love Potion/ (Factory School, 2009), /The Slow Motion Underneath/ (with Jim Dine, Steidl Editions, 2008), and /Once Upon a Neoliberal Rocket Badge/ (Edge Books, 2006). His political writing includes/ Landscapes of Dissent: Guerrilla Poetry & Public Space/ (co-authored with Kaia Sand) (Palm Press, 2008), /Beyond Bullets: The Suppression of Dissent in the United States/ (AK Press, 2007), and /The Suppression of Dissent: How the State and Mass Media Squelch USAmerican Social Movements/ (Routledge, 2006). He teaches politics and writing at Pacific University and lives in Portland where he curates the Tangent Reading Series with Rodney Koeneke and Kaia Sand.

Dickman, Goldhaber, & Hill at B&N Lloyd Center Feb. 18

Barnes & Noble Reading Series is delighted to present poets Matthew Dickman, F.I. Goldhaber, and David Hill When: Wednesday, February 18, 7:00 p.m. Where: Barnes & Noble1317 Lloyd Center // Gift sectionPortland, OR 97232503-249-0800 Hosted by: Tom Mattox **Matthew Dickman *won the APR/Honnickman First Book Prize for his book *AllAmerican Poem*. His poems have appeared in a wide range of publications,including The New Yorker, Tin House, and Lyric. When not attending awriter's residency, he works in a bakery, where he can "shape five baguettesin under three minutes." *F.I. Goldhaber's* second poetry book, *Pairs of Poems*, was publishedrecently by Uncial Press. She has written professionally for more than aquarter century and has won a number of awards for her fiction and poetry.She has had short stories, novelettes, poems, news stories, featurearticles, editorial columns, and reviews published in magazines, e-zines,newspapers, and anthologies as well as two erotica novels published underanother name. www.goldhaber.net *David Hill's* new book, Consumed (KenArnoldBooks), is "hugely entertaining,sometimes thought-provoking, and often controversial," according to ToddSwift, Oxfam Poet In Residence. It finds him "well on his way to becoming amajor poet — perhaps the first for the era of globalization," according toJames Bowman, the Times Literary Supplement's former American editor. Hostsof events where Hill has appeared praise his "charm, wit and intellect" and"polished performance and dry humor." His website is www.davidhill.biz.

Submission Call: Heavy Bear

A submission call forwarded by Jason Mashak: Today I am sending out a second call for submissions to *Heavy Bearmagazine;* Spring edition. We have had some awesome commentary about issue 1,and am pleased to say it's been a pleasure to have you all a part of it! Some of you heard from me last time about me holding onto your poems I did not use from the last submission, no worries..if you have sent some previous, I will be going overthem for issue 2. I would like to encourage everyone to forward this call to all your very talented colleagues. It is going to again, be a fifty poet collective,with a feature artist. I look forward to seeing your unpublished material for this round. I'd like to clarify the guidelines for the process- Five poems only,no pdf's or word files, NO attachments-please simply embed inthe body of your email. Your deadline is May 15th, I have extended it by a month's time to get all of you wonderful authors in! Bios are still something I encourage you send, though at present there is no bio area,there may be in future as we expand, however..it also enables me to considerwriters for my shows,and get to know something more about you ! *http://www.heavybear.janecrown.com/ *Good luck, and send a query if you have any further questions.*Your publishing editor and comrade,**Jane Crown*

Jason Mashak and Dan Raphael in Heavy Bear

From Jason Mashak: hi favorite pdx-ers of mine, i've got poems beside Dan Raphael's -- humbly, in his shadow -- in 2journals! http://www.heavybear.janecrown.com/ and http://trs-poetryreview.synthasite.com/issue-6.php more honored than you can imagine, jason

Poet Jason Mashak on The Jane Crown Show

Jason Mashak is a poet, friend and Portland expat living in Prague, and he will be appearing on the Jane Crown Show Sunday, Feb 8, 5pm eastern/2pm pacific* Here's the link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/The-Jane-Crown-Show

Poetry Events in Vancouver and Portland

Happy Valentine’s Day, poets and poetry lovers, This poetry thing is bigger than both of us, baby, and it’s finally forced my hand. I have broken down and joined the ranks of the blogging masses. I promise to keep the self-indulgence to a minimum, and to continue to spread the word about the amazing words being slung here in the PNW and beyond. Welcome to Ghost Town, USA, so named because when you walk around Vancouver, WA in the middle of the day there are often no people on the street--a truly bizarre sight for a New Yorker like me. Check this space for poems and observations from the 'Couve. I will also be posting my monthly e-newsletter here as well. Looking forward to your feedback. Vancouver’s own Toni Partington, Eileen Elliott, and another friend TBA will be the featured readers at Three Friends Coffee on February 23. Toni will be reading from her series-in-progress, “For the Love of Agnes,” and Eileen will be sharing her poetry and fiber art. See item 1 below for more info on this great series curated by Melissa Sillitoe. Toni is also a new member of VoiceCatcher’s editorial board, and she will be reading at Barnes and Noble on February 11 to celebrate the recently released VoiceCatcher3, a spectacular anthology of local women writers. There is more information below, as well as the details regarding the open submission call for VC4 (deadline March 31). And of course, Open Mic Poetry hosted by Christopher Luna 7:00pm Thursday, February 12, 2009 (and every second Thursday) Cover to Cover Books 1817 Main Street, Vancouver (McLoughlin Blvd. & Main Street) For more info call 360-514-0358 or 360-694-9653 “always all ages and uncensored” featuring Catherine Warner, poet, herbalist, and author of Mira the Variable Star I am excited to announce that in May, three important California poets will be visiting Vancouver: on May 14, Michael Rothenberg (http://epc.buffalo.edu/authors/rothenberg_m/), David Meltzer (http://epc.buffalo.edu/authors/meltzer/index.html), and Joanne Kyger (http://epc.buffalo.edu/authors/kyger/) will read at Clark College and Cover to Cover Books. Any one of these three would be an exciting evening, so we’re very lucky. However, in order to defray the costs of their travel and expenses, I need to raise an additional $600. Please let me know if you can donate time, money, or your friend’s money to this effort. Hope to see some of you soon. Poetry is love, Christopher FEBRUARY E-NEWSLETTER TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Show and Tell Gallery/Three Friends Events for February 2. Voice Catcher 3 Readings: Barnes & Noble Vancouver Feb. 11, Press Club in SE Feb. 26 3. Matthew Dickman, F.I. Goldhaber, and David Hill at Barnes & Noble Lloyd Center February 18 4. A BLOSSOMING OF MEMORIES event celebrating Japanese culture Feb. 22 5. NW POETRY PUBLISHERS' FORUM Feb. 27 at the Phinney Center in Greenwood (from Mimi Allen in Seattle) 6. Plastic Ocean now available for only three dollars! (from Michael Rothenberg in California) 7. Bootstrap Productions Update (from Derek Fenner and Ryan Gallagher in Lowell, MA) 8. A few links from Jason Mashak (in Prague) 9. Brave New Words, a new poetry festival coming to Whidbey Island this Spring, announcement and call for donations and volunteers from Victory Lee Schouten SUBMISSION CALLS from VoiceCatcher, The Lenin Poem, and Floating Bridge Press 1. From Melissa Sillitoe Three Friends Coffee House 201 SE 12th Avenue (cross street = Ash) Portland, US Cost:FREE 02/05/2009 06:00 PM - First Thursday: Lea Keohane and Inkre:mentals Show and Tell Gallery @ Everett Station Lofts, 625 NW Everett Portland, US Cost: FREE Stop by for refreshments and a chance to meet the artist! AND there will be live music from 7-9 p.m. Lea writes: Whenever I sit down to create, I pull out a black marker and put it to paper or canvas without any planning. In this way, my work is entirely intuitive. At the same time, I feel that each image is a little piece of me, a looking inwards to discover what is there. What has come out of that recently is a group of very whimsical, highly stylized female characters. They are brightly colored, often with long curly hair. They are surrounded by circles and other shapes, which have come to represent to me some sort of thought patterns, spirituality, and interconnectedness. *AND from 8-9 p.m.*** *Inkre:mentals consists of two peculiar beings. Justin Eder aka red-E rocks the microphone with playful passion and with genius weaves together musical compositions with a boom bap flavor that exercise the neck muscles of children and the elderly alike. Jesse Gardner aka e-majyn really enjoys hearing his own voice rhyme english words through a microphone, and when people pretend to listen he feels significant. When the timing of the Spirit is right they re-unite through tele-transporting time travel to recite their written raps and freestyle about their adventures. *** 02/06/2009 06:00 PM - First Friday at Hopscotch Gallery (inside 3 Friends Coffee House) Three Friends Coffee House, 201 SE 12th Avenue (Ash) Portland, US Cost: FREE Celebrate this month's new art by Anne Renee Buffum and Maitland Jones. David Bennet will play live blues music. Anne writes: I have always just naturally created, and loved art keeping sketchbooks filled. My style is always changing and growing as I find better ways to reveal it. I search for a point of view that's mine, but also just human. The paintings are most often about relationships, between the characters in the work, and also with the viewer. The subjects are usually girls, women and animals. Stating the process with the drawing. I paint over what I don't like, redraw, and repaint, over and over, until I find the right colors or until something interesting develops, an expression, a feeling, or idea about what is going on in the painting. It's a discovery. Then as it clarifies itself I can finish it. When I'm participating in the process, but not controlling it. That's when it's best. I hope to do my art for the rest of my life. Submissions: If you are a creative person, please do submit your music, art, writing, or other invitation. Currently, we're especially in need of plays to read at "Let's Play." Beginners welcome! See you soon! *Hugs, **Melissa Sillitoe,* Host/Producer and *Nikia Cummings*, Marketing Coordinator Show and Tell Gallery: "Art. Caffeine. Collaboration. Good times." www.showandtellgallery.org 2. The VoiceCatcher 3 Anthology was released in November to rave reviews. VoiceCatcher 3, edited by Sara Guest exists because a group of women who love to read and write wanted to collect the voices of local women and offer them to the community. In its third year, VoiceCatcher represents a wide range of voices through a transparent and cooperative publishing process. Participation in VoiceCatcher provides an accessible opportunity for both burgeoning and proven local artists from a diverse, multi-generational community. Barnes and Noble Vancouver, WA Wednesday, February 11 at 7pm 7700 NE 4th Plain, Vancouver, WA 98662 360-253-9007 Readers: Toni Partington, Carolyn Martin, Shannon Pate, Diane Cammer, Helen Green ADDITIONAL VOICECATCHER READINGS IN FEBRUARY Press Club SE Portland Thursday, February 26 at 7pm Readers: Jenny Chu, Christi Krug, Mary McIntosh, Miriam Feder, Sage Cohen, Lilian Sarlos Press Club 2621 SE Clinton St. Portland, OR 97202 (503) 233-5656 Contact Us P.O. Box 6064 Portland, OR 97228-6064 editors@voicecatcher.org www.voicecatcher.org VoiceCatcher3 is available several places locally, including Powell's Books, 100th Monkey Studios, New Seasons Markets, Cover to Cover Books, and many other local, independent booksellers. 3. *Barnes & Noble Reading Series is delighted to present poets Matthew Dickman, F.I. Goldhaber, and David Hill When: Wednesday, February 18, 7:00 p.m. Where: Barnes & Noble 1317 Lloyd Center // Gift section Portland, OR 97232 503-249-0800 Hosted by: Tom Mattox * *Matthew Dickman *won the APR/Honnickman First Book Prize for his book *All American Poem*. His poems have appeared in a wide range of publications, including The New Yorker, Tin House, and Lyric. When not attending a writer's residency, he works in a bakery, where he can "shape five baguettes in under three minutes." * F.I. Goldhaber's* second poetry book, *Pairs of Poems*, was published recently by Uncial Press. She has written professionally for more than a quarter century and has won a number of awards for her fiction and poetry. She has had short stories, novelettes, poems, news stories, feature articles, editorial columns, and reviews published in magazines, e-zines, newspapers, and anthologies as well as two erotica novels published under another name. www.goldhaber.net * David Hill's* new book, Consumed (KenArnoldBooks), is "hugely entertaining, sometimes thought-provoking, and often controversial," according to Todd Swift, Oxfam Poet In Residence. It finds him "well on his way to becoming a major poet — perhaps the first for the era of globalization," according to James Bowman, the Times Literary Supplement's former American editor. Hosts of events where Hill has appeared praise his "charm, wit and intellect" and "polished performance and dry humor." His website is www.davidhill.biz. 4. A BLOSSOMING OF MEMORIES: Local authors Ritz Kyoko Mori, Leah Stenson, Joan Maiers read poetry during a program commemorating Japanese/American culture on February 22 at Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe in downtown Lake Oswego [45 S. State Street]. Michael Whelan, storyteller and Peter Zisa and Yukiko Vossen, koto performers, are also included in this program. Free and open to the public. Canned goods or donations welcomed to support the Oregon Food Bank. Contact: 503-697-7097 This Moonstruck event collaborates with the annual LET'S READ choice of Lauren Kessler's book, The Stubborn Twig. www.lakeoswegoreads.org 5. Untitled [Intersection] NW POETRY PUBLISHERS' FORUM Moderated by Dave Jarecki Friday 27 February @ 7P The Phinney Center in Greenwood Featuring: ---------------------------------- DAVID BIESPIEL JEREMY HALINEN DAVID HOROWITZ PAUL HUNTER STEPHANIE LENOX KIRSTEN RIAN UNTITLED [INTERSECTION] presents a NW POETRY PUBLISHERS' FORUM with guest moderator and literary journalist, DAVE JARECKI. Join us for a lively discussion about how we are manifesting the poetry of our times. Panelists include six accomplished poet/publishers from Washington and Oregon who will read from their work and contribute to a discussion about what they are doing to make poetry widespread, beautiful and affordable. This 2-hour event includes a wine & cheese reception. It is open to the public with a requested donation of $5-10. Untitled [Intersection] is curated by A. K. "Mimi" Allin for The Phinney Center in Greenwood http://www.phinneycenter.org/. We hope you can join us! MODERATOR DAVE JARECKI is the grandson of northeastern Pennsylvanian coalminers, and feels their work in his blood sometimes. He's been writing professionally since 1998, including articles, profiles, non-profit grants and marketing communications. In 2004 he founded Breakerboy Communications, a strategic writing and messaging service that focuses on the communications needs of small businesses and non-profit organizations. Jarecki also facilitates youth and adult creative writing workshops and independent studies throughout the Greater Portland area. His creative work has appeared in Voices of Central Pennsylvania, IN/UR Magazine, BaseballSavvy.com, Poet's Hood online and 4&20 Poetry. He is in the midst of an interview project, and regularly posts conversations with professional writers and poets on his literary site, DaveJarecki.com. PANELISTS: DAVID BIESPIEL's books of poetry include Shattering Air, Pilgrims & Beggars, & Wild Civility. A new book of poems, The Book of Men and Women, is due out in 2009. Among his honors are a Wallace Stegner Fellowship in poetry at Stanford University, a Lannan Fellowship in poetry, & a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in literature. He has taught at Stanford, George Washington University, University of Maryland, & Portland State University, & he has been the Richard H. Thornton Writer-in-Residence at Lynchburg College in Virginia. He currently divides his teaching among three universities: in the fall as the Visiting Poet at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the spring as an Adjunct Professor at Oregon State University, & in the summer on the faculty of the low-residency M.F.A. Program at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. He's a contributor to American Poetry Review, Parnassus, Poetry, Slate, The New York Times Book Review, & The New Republic. Since 2002 he has been the columnist on poetry for The Oregonian. In 2005 he was named editor of Poetry Northwest. In 2008, in line with his belief that poets be fully engaged with political and civic life, he became a contributor to Politico's Arena, a cross-party, cross-discipline daily conversation about politics and policy among more than a hundred current and former members of Congress, governors, mayors, political strategists and scholars. JEREMY HALINEN is a poet and a coeditor and cofounder of Knockout Literary Magazine (knockoutlit.org). Some of his recent poems appear in Arroyo Literary Review; Best Gay Poetry 2008;Dos Passos Review; Pontoon: an anthology of Washington State Poets, Number Ten; Quarter After Eight; and Rio Grande Review. Halinen holds an MFA in creative writing from Eastern Washington University, and he resides in Seattle. DAVID D. HOROWITZ founded and manages Rose Alley Press, which primarily publishes books featuring Pacific Northwest rhymed metrical poetry. His new poetry collection, from Rose Alley Press, is Stars Beyond the Battlesmoke. Other collections, from Rose Alley, include Wildfire, Candleflame; Resin from the Rain; and Streetlamp, Treetop, Star. Many of his poems have been published in fine literary journals, such as The Lyric, Candelabrum, and The New Formalist. Some of his recent essays have appeared in Exterminating Angel and the IBPA Independent, a journal specializing in helping small press publishers. In 2005, David won the PoetsWest Achievement Award. In 2007, he edited, as well as published, the Rose Alley Press anthology: Limbs of the Pine, Peaks of the Range. David gives frequent readings in and around Seattle, where he lives. His Web site is www.rosealleypress.com. PAUL HUNTER has lent a hand where it was needed—whether as teacher, performer, grassroots arts activist, worker on the land, or shade-tree mechanic. For the past 14 years he has published fine letterpress poetry under the imprint of Wood Works, currently including 24 books and 60 broadsides. His poems have appeared in Alaska Fisherman's Journal, Beloit Poetry Journal, Bloomsbury Review, Iowa Review, North American Review, Poetry, Poetry Northwest, Prairie Schooner, Raven Chronicles, The Small Farmer's Journal, The Southern Review and Spoon River Poetry Review, as well as in five full-length books and three chapbooks. His first collection of farming poems, Breaking Ground, 2004, from Silverfish Review Press, was reviewed in the New York Times, and received the 2004 Washington State Book Award. A second volume of farming poems, Ripening, was published in 2007, and a third companion volume, Come the Harvest, just appeared in 2008. He was recently a featured poet on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. STEPHANIE LENOX received an MFA in poetry from the University of Idaho and a BA in English from Whitworth University. Her work can be found in Crab Orchard Review, Gulf Coast, Seattle Review, and Washington Square, among others, and online in DIAGRAM and AGNI. The Heart That Lies Outside the Body, a chapbook of poems inspired by record holders, human superlatives, and ludicrous acts, won the 2007 Slapering Hol Chapbook Contest. Her work has been anthologized in Best New Poets 2006, nominated five times for a Pushcart Prize, and published as a limited-edition broadside by the Center for Book Arts. She is arecipient of a grant from the Oregon Arts Commission. She works as the promotions director at a children's museum in Salem, Oregon, and edits the online literary journal Blood Orange Review. KIRSTEN RIAN's poetry has appeared in national literary journals and anthologies, and was recently nominated for inclusion in the 2008 Best New Poets anthology. She leads workshops internationally, including locations like Sierra Leone and Finland, using poetry as a tool for literacy, healing, and storytelling within the refugee/immigrant and homeless communities. She resides in Portland, OR where she is a Poet-in-Residence through the Literary Arts Writers-in-the-Schools program. She co-authored with Sharon Wood Wortman the anthology, Walking Bridges Using Poetry as a Compass. Her anthology of Sierra Leonean poetry is forthcoming from Pika Press in 2009. She is poetry editor of the online literary journal, Writersdojo.org. Also an independent curator and writer, she has coordinated more than 375 exhibitions, and 65 books and catalogues. 6. From Michael Rothenberg: Plastic Ocean is a publication for creative, critical thinkers, published as often as possible, whenever we can. Plastic Ocean is dedicated to exploring our ever changing relationship to Nature and Culture, and resists the notion that either can be understood separate from the other. We recognize all forms of the written word as valid journalism and acknowledge that Art is just another word in the middle of the word Earth. Named from the swirling mass of plastic about 1000 miles off the coast of San Francisco, this premiere issue of the literary tabloid, Plastic Ocean, contains poetic rants & coy non-fiction, as well as short stories and poetry written by homeless, self-published poets as well as established writers, indie historians and back street Marxists, punk rock lyricists, sentimental anarchists and witchy intellectuals This issue features the writers David Meltzer, Gloria Frym, Michael Rothenberg, Terri Carrion, Chris Carlsson, Josh Wilson, David Lincoln, Sara Wallace, Jess Rowland, D.S. Black, J.Lee, Antonette Goroch, Marina Lazzara, Kristen Steele, Chris Stroffolino, Armando Rendon, David Johnson, Sam Sebren, Adriana Camarena, Jennifer Shagawat, Shellhead, Rick Alley, Malaika King Albrecht, Jeff Conant, Swan, Twilight Greenaway, Ellen Catalina, Alan Weinerman, Raven, kenne, and Kalindi Chatterton. Visual artists included are Glen Bachman, Cheyenne Coles, Sam Sebren, Chris Streng, Jim Swanson, Greg Turner and Chris Carlsson. Plastic Ocean was compiled by Marina Lazzara and designed by Chris Carlsson. Copies $3.00. Contact marinapoet@yahoo.com for more information. *A year in boots (update on our straps)* 7. Hello Bootstrappers, 2008 was a productive year. The quick update is that Bootstrap has (unfortunately) been denied a bailout by the federal government. Unfortunately, we produce products (books and art) and the bailouts seem to be going to companies that sell financial theory, speculation and / or loans. How did we artists miss the boat on the whole "dream selling" thing anyway? We digress. On the brighter side, we did produce eight books this year of which we are very proud. They include: Poetry: • The Riot Act, by Geoffrey Young • The Complete Poems of Catullus, trans. By Ryan Gallagher • Parish Krewes, by Micah Ballard • The Morning, by Roger Snell (This was the first of a new series in Plein Air Editions, curated , edited, and funded by Tom Morgan and Tyler Doherty.) Nice work boys. We also teamed up with Bill Corbett et al from Pressed Wafer Press and produced two titles in a new series B is for Beans, which produces book length titles from our Boston area community of poets): • Soft Launch, Jim Dunn • Another Alley, Mike County And we have two new books of Fiction: • I No Longer Believe in Sun: Love Letters to Katie Couric, by Derek Fenner (which includes 100 pages of images) • Rancho Weirdo, by Laura Chester (which also includes almost 50 full-color illustrations by Haeri Yoo.) We were also involved with the first MASS Poetry Festival which featured Eileen Myles, Ed Sanders and Joseph Torra as readers; we also curated the small press fair for over 25 presses in our beautiful city of Lowell, MA that weekend. We jumped on board Lowell's United Village Art Series (UVAS) run by Dave Robinson, which pays artists and writers to read in Lowell's National Visitor Park Theater. In short, our boots are a little worn-out and our straps a bit frayed, so we have had to cut back on some plans for next year: • We are retiring the Union Square Poetry Series. We went five seasons and supported 60+ poets in the series. Thank you all: We especially thank Dan Bouchard for starting the series with Derek and for being such a fantastic collaborator. • We are also going on a hiatus for reading submissions; we have work in the queue that we would like and need to get into the world. For those of you who signed up for our bootscription (thank you again), we still have John Wiener's A New Book From Rome as our next title, and will send it out when it appears. We need some time to make sure the book is done right, with deference to Wiener's intentions in his hand written journal, and we also need to come out of the cadmium red in our budget. (We were also denied some local grants thank we were banking on for early 2009.) So, we are going to focus a bit more on "selling" our titles and all that comes with that. We owe it to our financial sustainability, all the angels that have supported us over the years (and who have, frankly, been so generous that we don't feel like it's fair to keep "tapping" in these economic times,) and (most importantly) the artists whose work deserves to be spread around. Be sure to keep up with all the bootstrap action on our blog at http://bootstrapproductions.blogspot.com/ . We have invited the protagonist of Derek's novel, I NO LONGER BELIEVE IN THE SUN: LOVE LETTERS TO KATIE COURIC, to be a regular blogger. He also wanted us to let you know that he is now available to you for spiritual advice or to answer any questions you may have via email at derekfennertheprotagonist@gmail.com and by phone at 978 399 9984. We wish you grace for 2009. In bootstraps, Derek and Ryan Derek Fenner and Ryan Gallagher Bootstrap Productions www.bootstrapproductions.org bootstrapproductions@gmail.com 8. From Jason Mashak (in Prague): Thought I'd letcha know 'bout a travel site outta Copenhagen I been writin' for... yo, all freelance and shit (in addition to full-time daygig), based on my own experiences living here in the land of dungeons and dragons. http://en.momondo.com/blogs/mashak/default.aspx 9. PRESS RELEASE Prestigious Literary Non-Profits ELIZABETH GEORGE FOUNDATION and HEDGEBROOK Offer Generous Support to Whidbey's New Poetry Festival, BRAVE NEW WORDS Challenge Grant Calls for Matching Donors! Whidbey's fledgling poetry festival, "Brave New Words", has been the recipient of support from two highly regarded non-profits, the Elizabeth George Foundation and Hedgebrook. The Elizabeth George Foundation makes grants to unpublished fiction writers, to poets, to emerging playwrights and to organizations benefiting youth. Hedgebrook benefits women who write by providing them with space, and privacy to create significant work, and by developing an international network to connect writers and audiences. The Elizabeth George Foundation awarded the new festival a $3,000 Matching Grant. "We are so thrilled to receive this financial support, and the vote of confidence means a lot to us as well. Thanks to this matching grant challenge other donors will double the value of their tax deductible gifts to BNW," said Festival Director Victory Lee Schouten. "This is a tremendous boost for our budget and morale!" Another well known non-profit, Hedgebrook, has been exceedingly generous to the festival in a very creative way," continued Schouten. "They have made available to BNW the time and skills of their Director of Alumna Relations, Gitana Garofalo. "Gitana was one of the first people to get in touch and offer to help," says Schouten, "Her writing, organizational and promotional skills and broad base of connections have been invaluable. Via Gitana, Hedgebrook has donated literally hundreds of hours of staff support to the festival. We could never have afforded to hire this caliber or amount of help. Hedgebrook has been and continues to be a major sponsor of Brave New Words." "In fact, our other core committee member, Faith Wilder, came to us via Hedgebrook, so we have them to thank for her skills and help as well! Faith, a retired corporate executive, has donated countless hours. She has especially taken on the youth component, and leads our fundraising efforts." "'Brave New Words' is intended to be an event supported by our regional community. If this festival is to flourish, we must attract generous and committed sponsors and volunteers. Enthusiastic community support and donations are essential. "Brave New Words" is fortunate to be under the auspices of Greenbank Farm, a qualified 501 C-3 under the laws of Washington State. Thus all donations to BNW are tax deductible. "I hope the generous support of the Elizabeth George Foundation, Hedgebrook, and the Greenbank Farm will encourage other non-profits, businesses, and individuals to step forward and actively support Brave New Words," said Schouten. Anyone wishing to make a donation or volunteer for Brave New Words can contact Schouten at her hoome number: (360) 331-7099 or, Gallery number: (360) 222-3070 ( or victory@robschoutengallery.com. Donations can also be mailed to: Brave New Words 765 Wonn Road - #C-103 Greenbank, WA 98253 Please make out checks to: "Greenbank Farm / BNW". Under "memo" please write: "For Brave New Words". ---------------- Don't miss Saturday, April 18, 2009 10:30 AM - 7:30 PM Brave New Words The Celebration of Inspiration! Poetry at Whidbey's Greenbank Farm All Day Tickets $20 for Adults, $10 for Students Renowned Award-Winning Poets Hot New Poets "Page to Stage" Workshop Hosted Open Mic Whidbey Youth Poets Tlingit Drumming, Singing and Dancing Festival Bookstore Living Wall of Poetry Art/Poetry Installations Whidbey Island's historic Greenbank Farm is excited to host Washington's newest poetry festival, Brave New Words, Saturday, April 18, 2009 a dynamic and diverse all-day celebration of poetry. An exceptional event in an exceptional location! Festival-goers can not only enjoy a day filled with poetry, music and community, they can also take in the expansive water views, miles of beautiful walking trails, the delicious offerings of the Whidbey Pies Cafe, tasting Washington wines at the Farm's Wine Shop and Tasting Room, and the outstanding art and gifts from the adjacent fine art galleries. Brave New Words; Poetry at Whidbey's Greenbank Farm. Saturday, April 18, 2009 -10:30 AM to 7:30 PM. All Day passes are only $20 for adults and $10.00 for students! Festival sponsors include Greenbank Farm, Hedgebrook, and the Island Arts Council. For more information concerning Brave New Words 2009 Contact: Victory Lee Schouten Festival Director 360-331-7099 victory@robschoutengallery.com --------------------------- Greenbank Farm, http://www.greenbankfarm.com/ is located on Whidbey Island, at the corner of State Highway 525 and Wonn Road in Greenbank, 18 miles north of the Clinton Ferry dock. Accommodations: (Langley, Freeland and Greenbank Addresses will be closest to the festival site) http://langleychamb.whidbey.com/ http://www.whidbeycamanoislands.com/ Victory Lee Schouten Festival Director Brave New Words Celebration of Inspiration! At Whidbey's Greenbank Farm Saturday, April 18, 2009 For More Information Contact: Home Phone Weekdays: 360-331-7099 Gallery Phone Weekends: 360-222-3070 SUBMISSION CALLS 1. Dear Portland Writing Community, We are excited to announce that the submission window for the FORTH edition of VoiceCatcher opens on February 1, 2009. We are accepting new poems, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Like last year, you can bring your submission package to any one of our four readings this winter and spring. It is truly amazing to hear someone read their writing out loud. We have four reading events in the next few months, with a wonderful line up of authors. Please come support and connect with your fellow writers and bring your manuscripts to submit, too! We hope to see you out and about this spring. And we hope to read your lovely words. The VoiceCatcher Editorial Collective editors@voicecatcher.org VoiceCatcher4 Open Submission Window: February 1- March 31, 2009 We accept poetry, short fiction, novel excerpts, and creative nonfiction. For complete submission guidelines, please visit our website: www.voicecatcher.org. Work must be postmarked March 31, 2009. We will also accept submissions at our February and March readings. 2. WRITE THE LENIN POEM. The Fremont Lenin has long needed a poem. A poem in bronze, a verse to lift and root, to explain, to challenge. Emma Lazarus saw the Statue of Liberty as a beacon to the world. When you look at the Fremont Lenin, what do you see? This isn't a call. This is a challenge. Write the Lenin Poem. Now accepting commemorative poems for the Lenin Statue. All ages, languages and genres accepted, but plaque-sized please, bronze ain't cheap. There is no strict word count. Send your poems by 1 April 2009 to mimiallin@gmail.com. The winning poem will be cast in bronze and the (best of the) rest will appear in a chapbook. A "public pouring" of The Lenin Poems will take place on 4 July 2009 at The Lenin Statue in Fremont. The statue may go, but the poem will stay. More info online at: www.thepoetessatgreenlake.blogspot.com. Thank you, Fremont. 3. Floating Bridge Press is now accepting submissions for the 2009 Floating Bridge Chapbook Award. Deadline is February 15, 2009. Only Washington State Poets may submit. Reading Fee: $12.00 check or money order, payable to: Floating Bridge Press. All entrants will receive a copy of the winning chapbook, and individual poems will be considered for inclusion in the 2009 issue of Floating Bridge Review. Winner will receive $500 and 15 copies, as well as a Seattle reading. Finalists receive $50 and a Seattle reading. Winner to be announced in May 2008. Reading in September 2008. Mail to: Floating Bridge Press, P.O. Box 18814 Seattle, WA 98118. Questions? Send SASE to the above address, or email (replace (at) with @) No electronic submissions at this time, please. Please see complete submission guidelines: http://www.scn.org/floatingbridge/submit.html Previous Winners: Joannie Kervran, Nance van Winckel, Donna Waidtlow, Bart Baxter, Molly Tenenbaum, Chris Forhan, Joseph Green, Kelli Russell Agodon, Michael Bonacci, Timothy Kelly, Annette Spaulding-Convy, Holly Hughes, Nancy Pagh