JL Kato's Poetry Notebook

Indy Reads bookstore

2012-02-15T08:53:00.000-05:00

Indy Reads, an Indianapolis adult literacy organization, is planning to open a bookstore the week of April 23 along the Cultural Trail on Mass Ave., where two sites are being considered.

The store, Indy Reads Books, is accepting donations of books, DVDs, audio books, and video games. No textbooks or magazines, please. Collection boxes are at:

The Best Chocolate in Town, 880 Massachusetts Ave.

Global Gifts, 446 Massachusetts Ave.

The Indy Reads office, 2450 N. Meridian St.

WFYI, 1630 N. Meridian St.

Nominate an author for the Glick Indiana Authors Awards

2012-02-10T13:57:00.001-05:00

Nominations for the 2012 Eugene & Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Award are being accepted through March 23.

Nomination forms and eligibility guidelines are available at http://www.indianaauthorsaward.org/nominate/. Any published writer who has lived in Indiana for at least five consecutive years is eligible.

A nine-member, statewide panel selects the winners in three categories, with these prizes:

$10,000 for a Hoosier author who has national recognition.

$7,500 for a regionally known writer.

$5,000 for an emerging author.

The awards are funded through The Glick Fund. The awards dinner will be held Sept. 29 at the Indianapolis Central Library.

Unbroken Bones Society

2012-02-10T08:58:00.002-05:00

The Unbroken Bones Society
Saturday, February 11th • 7:30 pm
Songwriters: Bill Price, Cara Jean Wahlers
Storyteller: Howard Boles
Humorist: Jeff Price
Poets: Emily Zimmerman, Monica Rose Kiesel

Roberts Park United Methodist Church
401 North Delaware St. • Downtown Indianapolis • 317.635.1636
Free Parking on east side of building near the corner of Alabama & Vermont
7:30 pm $10 at the door (children free)
Light refreshments available
20% of proceeds benefits Soup's On meal for those in need

Wednesday: Anne Waldman at Butler

2012-02-07T14:25:00.000-05:00

From Butler University:

The Butler University
Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series invites you to attend an evening with

Anne Waldman
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8
Eidson-Duckwall Recital Hall

The author of more than 40 collections of poetry and poetics, Anne Waldman is an active member of the Outrider experimental poetry movement, and has been connected to the Beat movement and the second generation of the New York School. She was one of the founders and directors of The Poetry Project at St. Mark’s Church In-the-Bowery, working there for 12 years.

Waldman also co-founded, with Allen Ginsberg, the celebrated Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University, the first Buddhist-inspired university in the western hemisphere, in 1974. Her publications include Fast Speaking Woman (1975), Marriage: A Sentence (2000) and, most recently, The Iovis Trilogy.

Her honors include grants from the Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, the Poetry Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, and she has received the Poetry Society of America’s Shelley Memorial Award. She has twice won the International Poetry Championship Bout in Taos, New Mexico. She divides her time between Boulder, Colorado, and Greenwich Village, New York.

This event is free and open to the public.

Learn more about Anne Waldman:
http://www.poetspath.com/waldman.html
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/523

Upcoming Visiting Writers Series Events

Simon Armitage • 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21 • Clowes Memorial Hall Krannert Room

Nicole Krauss • 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 6 • Atherton Union Reilly Room

Linda Gregg • 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 27 • Clowes Memorial Hall Krannert Room

Maile Meloy • 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 3 • Atherton Union Reilly Room

Jhumpa Lahiri • 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 16 • Atherton Union Reilly Room

Jenny Kander (with Feb. 9 update)

2012-02-05T22:57:00.006-05:00

I received word tonight (Sunday) that Jenny Kander has suffered a major stroke and is in the Bloomington Hospital. That's all I know. I'll update as soon as I learn anything else. Please keep Jenny in your prayers.

Jenny, as some of you may know, is a longtime fixture of Bloomington who organized community readings. For years, she ran a short radio program that highlighted poems by local poets. She also was the co-editor of And Know This Place, an anthology of Indiana poets.

UPDATE: I heard today (Monday) that Jenny will be released from critical care. No word yet on how the stroke has affected Jenny.

UPDATE: Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 7): Jenny has been moved out of critical care. Her daughter reports that Jenny is able to move and speak. Jenny, however, is having trouble with her eyesight.

UPDATE: Good news. As of Thursday (Feb. 9), Jenny is back home, recovering.

New blog by Karen Kovacik

2012-02-04T23:00:00.000-05:00

As Indiana's newest poet laureate, Karen Kovacik has started a blog titled No More Corn, which will focus on Indiana poets: http://karenkovacik.wordpress.com/

Joseph Heithaus' "Poison Sonnets" available

2012-02-03T16:32:00.001-05:00

DePauw's Joseph Heithaus announced his first volume of poetry, Poison Sonnets, is available for purchase. Details at joeheithaus.com.

He's begiining a reading schedule, one of which will be at Poetry on Brick Street at G. Simone's Cafe in Zionsville on March 1, and another at Bookmamas on Saturday, Feb. 25.

Hafiz book discussion (with date correction)

2012-01-26T14:15:00.002-05:00

CORRECTION: The date for this book discussion is Monday, February 13!

It's unusual for a book club to schedule a volume of poetry for discussion. But Hafiz's "The Gift" will be discussed by the Chatterbooks book club at 6:30 p.m., Monday, February 13, at the Beech Grove (Ind.) Public Library, 1102 Main St. the event is free and open to the public.

The Daniel Ladinsky translation will be used.

ApocaPoetry Contest

2012-01-26T11:55:00.000-05:00

From the Writers' Center of Indiana:

ApocaPoetry Contest Announced
Welcome to the Year of the Apocalypse. On 12/21/2012, Something Significant will happen - if we believe the foretellers, some kind of Apocalypse. Depending on your preferred soothsayer, the Something Significant will be nuclear war or the arrival of aliens or The Rapture. But there's also the reality that the Mother-of-All-Disasters we're approaching is already happening: the wholesale wrecking of our habitat through mindless consumerism, toxic pollution and greenhouse gasses growing out of control. So, rather than get all doomy and gloomy about it, we're having a poetry contest - or, rather, an apocapoetry contest.

In honor of the Year of the Apocalypse, Indiana Living Green, along with the Writers' Center of Indiana is announcing a poetry contest. Not just any poetry contest, but a contest with a theme: the Apocalypse. Here's the deal. You must write your poem in the style of James Whitcomb Riley. That's right, the Hoosier Poet himself. Write in the dialect, keep to the form and rhyme about the Apocalypse, with an Indiana angle.

Send your submissions (limit two) to apocapoetrycontest@indianalivinggreen.com.
The winner gets $250. We will print any we think are decent or hilarious. Deadline: Oct. 1, 2012; we'll announce - and print - the winner (and many of the non-winners) in December, of course, just in time for The Endtimes.

Turf Poets reading schedule

2012-01-25T17:39:00.001-05:00

Schedule for the Turf Poets reading Saturday, Jan. 28, at the TURF IDADA Arts Pavilion (former City Hall, Indiana State Museum and interim Central Library) 202 N. Alabama St., Indianapolis.

Come for food and drink. See the art. Stay around to be an audience and talk poetry. Have fun. Be spontaneous.

Parking in the north lot is $5; parking meters cost $1.50 an hour.

UPDATE: My apologies for the incorrect price of the nearby parking. It was $10 for all day. The incorrect $5 price came from information associated with the evet.

2 p.m.: Intro

2:15: open

2:30: Michael Collins

2:45: open

3:00: Amy Locklin

3:15: Elizabeth Weber

3:30: Richard Pflum

3:45: Deborah Sellers/Kit Andis

4:00 : “Air Poets” (Joyce Brinkman, Ruthelen Burns, Joseph Heithaus, and Norbert Krapf)

5:00: Jennifer Lemming

5:15: Karen Kovacik

5:30: JL Kato

5:45: Bonnie Maurer/Elizabeth Krajeck

6:00: Terry Kirts

6:15: T.J. Reynolds

6:30: open

6:45: open

Book Clubs at Bookmamas

2012-01-23T16:21:00.001-05:00

From Bookmamas, 9 Johnson Ave., Indianapolis, in the historic Irvington neighborhood.

Our book clubs have begun meeting again this month so we thank you for your patience. They will maintain the same schedule as in previous years unless holidays or other special events require adjustments. Shared Pages will meet on the 2nd Tuesday of each month and Literary Ladies will meet on the 4th Wednesday of each month. Of course, the month of February does require the adjustments to which we have already alluded. Shared Pages will be meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7 @ 7:00 pm and Literary Ladies will be meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 29 @ 7:00 pm. These changes are to avoid conflicts with Valentine's Day and Ash Wednesday.

Book Club Selections

Jan. 25 - When She Woke by Hilary Jordan (Literary Ladies)

Feb. 7 - The Pigman by Paul Zindel (Shared Pages)

Feb. 29 - Nature's Storyteller by Barbara Olenyk Morrow (Literary Ladies)

March 13 - Forgotten Hoosiers by Fred Cavinder (Shared Pages)

March 28 - Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell (Literary Ladies)

April 10 - Books by James Alexander Thom (Shared Pages)

April 25 - The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb by Melanie Benjamin (Literary Ladies)

May 8 - A Thousand Lives by Julia Scheeres (Shared Pages)

May 23 - Great Poems by American Women (Literary Ladies)

Our book clubs are open to anyone who wishes to attend so please feel free to join us for any or all of the above discussions.

Dan Wakefield on local radio

2012-01-20T14:57:00.000-05:00

Dan Wakefield, who recently moved back to Indianapolis, will be featured on nelson Price's Hoosier History Live radio program on WICR (88.7) at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 21.
https://app.e2ma.net/app/view:CampaignPublic/id:37939.11601628677/rid:eb7daedf0cdcc0dbd1c9456c215f4758

Wanted: Venues for haiku workshop

2012-01-20T13:27:00.000-05:00

A poet is planning to lead a haiku workshop in or near Indianapolis. She will focus on seniors (but not
necessarily). Are you aware of places that would be receptive to this? It would be a one-time free program, and can be conducted on a weekday. If you have no suggestions, leave a comment to this post or send a an emailt o jl.kato@sbcglobal.net.

TURF Poets lineup set

2012-01-19T16:11:00.001-05:00

From Bonnie Maurer:

POETS AT TURF

It’s happening! Jan. 28, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., Café Corner, Turf Art Pavilion Poetry Reading, Old City Hall/former Interim Central Library, corner of Alabama and Ohio streets, Indianapolis. As part of Super Bowl activities, come hear the following TURF poets: Indiana Poet Laureate Karen Kovacik, JL Kato, Elizabeth Krajeck, Amy Locklin, Elizabeth Weber, Bonnie Maurer, Jennifer Lemming, Deborah Sellers, Joyce Brinkman, Ruthelen Burns, Joseph Heithaus, Richard Pflum, Norbert Krapf. Sign up for open mic from 2 to 3 p.m. or 6 to 7 p.m.by contacting Bonnie at bmaurer@ibj.com. Free. http://www.idadaartpavilion.com/.

DePauw University Kelly Writers Series, spring 2012

2012-01-14T11:55:00.003-05:00

From http://www.depauw.edu/arts/kellywriters/:

The Kelly Writers Series brings world-renowned poets, playwrights, and authors of fiction and nonfiction for readings and discussion on DePauw's campus. Spring 2012 readings include:

IAN FRAZIER, WRITER

Wednesday, February 15 7:30 p.m. - GCPA, Thompson Recital Hall

Ian Frazier returns to DePauw as the 2012 Mary Rogers Field Distinguished University Professor of Creative Writing. Frazier is the author of Great Plains, The Fish's Eye, On the Rez, and Family, as well as Dating Your Mom, Lamentations on the Father, and Travels in Siberia. A frequent contributor to The New Yorker, he's been called one of the greatest living humorists as well as being a journalist, an essayist, a memoirist, and a travel and nature writer.

DANIELLE EVANS, FICTION WRITER

Wednesday, March 14 7:30 p.m. - Peeler Arts Center Auditorium

Danielle Evans is the winner of the 2011 PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize and a National Book Foundation 5 under 35 honoree. A graduate of Columbia University and the Iowa Writers' Workshop, her stories have appeared in The Paris Review, A Public Space, The Best American Short Stories 2008 and The Best American Short Stories 2010. Her collection of stories, Before you Suffocate your own Fool Self, is her first book. She lives in Washington, D.C and teaches at American University.

UIndy Kellogg Writers Series, spring 2012

2012-01-14T11:52:00.002-05:00

From http://www.uindy.edu/arts/kellogg-writers-series:

Each year UIndy brings several writers and speakers to campus through endowed lectures series, including the Kellogg Writers Series. Speakers come from many backgrounds and speak on very diverse topics. The Allen & Helen Kellogg Writers Series brings writers of distinction to campus for classroom discussions and public readings. All events are free of charge and open to the public. For more information, contact Elizabeth Weber at 317-788-3373 or eweber@uindy.edu

2011-12 Kellogg Writers Series

February 21

7:30 pm Kellogg Writers Series: Brian Turner

April 5

7:30 pm Kellogg Writers Series: Frank Bill

IUPUI Rufus Reiberg Reading Series, spring 2012

2012-01-14T11:50:00.000-05:00

From http://liberalarts.iupui.edu/english/index.php/reiberg:

The Rufus & Louise Reiberg Reading Series

The Department of English in the School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI Announces

The Rufus & Louise Reiberg Reading Series for Spring 2012

Founded in 1997 in honor of former IUPUI English Department chair Rufus Reiberg and his wife Louise, the series annually brings national and regional writers to the IUPUI campus to present their work. Past visiting writers have included Jane Smiley, Helen Prejean, Maxine Hong Kingston, Patricia Hampl, Richard Jones, Edward Hirsch, and Martin Espada.

Upcoming Readings:

February 15, 2012 Artist and Essayist Buzz Spector

Thursday, 7:30 p.m.

Herron School of Art and Design, Basile Auditorium
Franklin “Buzz” Spector is dean of the College and Graduate School of Art in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. An internationally recognized artist, Spector works in a wide range of media including sculpture, photography, printmaking, book arts, and installation. His work makes frequent use of the book, both as subject and as object, and concerns the relationships among public history, individual memory and perception.
This event is co-sponsored by the Herron School of Art and Design and the IUPUI Arts and Humanities Institute.

March 8, 2012 International Women’s Day

IUPUI University Library, Lilly Auditorium 6:30 p.m., Opening reception; 7 p.m.

Join community writers, artists and activists to celebrate women’s creativity around the world!

March 22, 2012 Fiction Writer Patricia Henley

Thursday, 7:30 p.m.

University Library Lilly Auditorium

Patricia Henley’s latest story collection, Other Heartbreaks, was published in 2011 by Engine Books. Her first novel, Hummingbird House, was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1999 and the New Yorker Fiction Prize in 2000. Her second novel, In the River Sweet, was published by Pantheon in 2002 and released in paperback in 2004. Her publications also include three collections of stories, Friday Night at Silver Star, The Secret of Cartwheels, and Worship of the Common Heart. She has taught in the MFA program at Purdue since 1987.

April 19, 2012 Etheridge Knight Festival Evening with the Legends

6:00 p.m. Reading featuring distinguished poets Amiri Baraka, Mari Evans, Haki Madhubuti, and Sonia Sanchez

8:00 p.m VIP reception

Indiana Landmarks Center, 1201 N. Central Avenue

This special reading brings together four outstanding poets of the Black Arts Movement — a historic first for Indianapolis. For tickets to the VIP reception call (317) 524-6951 or email EK@EKFestival.org.

This event is co-sponsored by the Olaniyan Scholars Program, the IUPUI Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the Multicultural Support Center and the Etheridge Knight Festival for the Arts.

All readings are free and open to the public. IUPUI’s University Library is located at 755 W. Michigan St. The Campus Center is located at 420 University Boulevard. Visitor parking is available in the North Street Garage, 819 W. North St. and the Vermont Street Garage, 1004 W. Vermont Street. Visitor parking will be validated. For parking information on the IUPUI campus, visit https://www.parking.iupui.edu/visitors.do. For more information about the series, contact Terry Kirts at tkirts@iupui.edu or (317) 274-8929.

The Rufus & Louise Reiberg Series is made possible by the generous support of the Reiberg Family; the Etheridge Knight Festival of the Arts; the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; the Office of Multicultural Outreach; the Office of Academic Affairs; University College; University Library; the Women’s Studies Program; and the Rebecca Pitts Fund.

CANCELLATION: Bartholomew County Writers Group

2012-01-12T14:35:00.000-05:00

The Bartholomew County Writers Group meeting scheduled for tonight (Thursday, Jan. 12) is cancelled because of the weather. the next meeting is 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9.

Stanza Poetry Association

2012-01-11T20:38:00.000-05:00

The Last Stanza Poetry Association is meeting at a new location this year: the Elwood hospital cafeteria (which is closed except to the writing group) at 1331 S. A St., Elwood, Ind. New dates: the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month at 7 pm. Still free and open to the public. All meetings are still workshops

Buter University Visiting Writers Series, Spring Semester 2012

2012-01-11T20:34:00.000-05:00

From Nonie Vonnegut-Gabovitch. Note: All readings are free.

Please join us for the following readings…
Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series
Spring 2012

Anne Waldman
Wednesday, February 8
Eidson-Duckwall Recital Room, Robertson Hall
7:30 p.m.
http://www.poetspath.com/waldman.html
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/523

Simon Armitage
Tuesday, February 21
Krannert Room, Clowes Memorial Hall
7:30 p.m.
http://www.thescaremongers.com/simonarmitage/home.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXVZseBCfiM

Nicole Krauss
Tuesday, March 6
Reilly Room, Atherton Union
7:30 p.m.
http://nicolekrauss.com/index.html
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2010/10/nicole-krauss-on-fame-loss-and-writing-about-holocaust-survivors/64869/
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/11335

Linda Gregg
Tuesday, March 27
Krannert Room, Clowes Memorial Hall
7:30 p.m.
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19260
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/linda-gregg

Maile Meloy
Tuesday, April 3
Reilly Room, Atherton Union
7:30 p.m.
http://www.mailemeloy.com/mailemeloy/Home.html
http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/m/maile_meloy/index.html

Jhumpa Lahiri
Monday, April 16
Reilly Room, Atherton Union
7:30 pm
http://www.barclayagency.com/lahiri.html
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89461076
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97418330

All readings are FREE and open to the public

Please direct your questions to :
Nonie Vonnegut-Gabovitch
Coordinator, Visiting Writers Series
317-940-9861

Winter Classes, Writer's Center of Indiana

2012-01-11T20:27:00.000-05:00

Winter classes are scheduled. Check the Writers' Center of Indiana link for topics, times, venues, and instructors.

Short Story Contest

2012-01-11T20:22:00.000-05:00

The Bartholomew County Writer's Group is sponsoring a Short Story contest. $5 per submission. 1 to 2 pages Arial 12 pt font. Grand prize is $50 and a copy of Pen It! Magazine. 2nd place is a 1 year (6) issue subscription to Pen It! Magazine.

Send submissions to: Debi Hurt, 5110 W Co Rd 400 N, Scipio, IN 47273 Contest runs January 1 2012 to March 1 2012. Questions? Send email to debih7606@frontier.com

..

TURF poets

2012-01-11T15:34:00.003-05:00

From Bonnie Maurer:

ATTENTION POETS:

TURF, the IDADA Art Pavilion, is an art happening at the old Indiana State Museum on the corner of Alabama and Ohio streets, Indianapolis. On January 28th from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. the cafe corner will become the POETS TURF. Poets are invited to read up to 4 poems or 15 minutes. Stand your ground! Become a TURF POET. Come for the day, read your share, cheer on others. Bring your entourage. Sign up for a slot. Contact Bonnie at 317-850-7136 or bmaurer@ibj.com. (Visit www.TurfIndy.com for more info.)

Directory of events

2011-11-08T21:55:00.000-05:00

BUTLER UNIVERSITY VIVIAN S. DELBROOK VISITING WRITERS SERIES

Natasha Trethewey, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26.
Reilly Room
Poet Natasha Trethewey is the author of three collections of poetry: Domestic Work (2000), Bellocq's Ophelia (2002) and Native Guard (Houghton Mifflin, 2006), for which she was awarded the 2007 Pulitzer Prize. She is also the author of a book of creative non-fiction, Beyond Katrina: A Meditation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast (2010). Her fourth collection of poetry, Thrall, is scheduled for release in fall 2012.
Trethewey, a professor of English at Emory University, has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bunting Fellowship Program of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University and the National Endowment for the Arts. She is also the recipient of the 2008 Mississippi Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts and was named the 2008 Georgia Woman of the Year. In 2009 she was inducted into the Fellowship of Southern Writers and she was the James Weldon Johnson Fellow in African American Studies at the Beinecke Library at Yale University.

John Green 7:30 p.m. Tuesday Nov. 1
Clowes Hall
John Green is the New York Times bestselling author of Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines and Paper Towns. He is also the coauthor, with David Levithan, of Will Grayson, Will Grayson. He was 2006 recipient of the Michael L. Printz Award, a 2009 Edgar Award winner, and has twice been a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Green’s books have been published in more than a dozen languages.
In 2007, Green, who lives in Indianapolis, and his brother Hank ceased textual communication and began to talk primarily through videoblogs posted to YouTube. The videos spawned a community of people called Nerdfighters, who fight for intellectualism and to decrease the overall worldwide level of suck. (Decreasing suck takes many forms: Nerdfighters have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to fight poverty in the developing world; they also planted thousands of trees around the world in May 2010 to celebrate Hank’s 30th birthday.) Although they have long since resumed textual communication, John and Hank continue to upload videos to their YouTube channel, vlogbrothers. Their videos have been viewed more than 75 million times, and their channel is one of the most popular in the history of online video. John Green is also an active (if reluctant) Twitter user.

Richard Price. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8
Reilly Room

Richard Price’s novels include Freedomland, Clockers, which was nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award, Samaritan and Lush Life. In 1999 he received an Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His fiction, articles and essays have appeared in Best American Essays 2002, The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, The New Yorker, Esquire, The Village Voice and Rolling Stone. He has also written numerous screenplays, including Sea of Love, Ransom and The Color of Money.

Wabash River poetry blog

2011-11-02T22:53:00.000-04:00

Kelvin McKelvrey's blog:

http://writingthewabashriver.org/

Norbert, Mari; Mari, Norbert

2011-10-20T16:13:00.000-04:00

Norbert Krapf writes about meeting Mari Evans at a Marsh supermarket:

http://www.punchnels.com/editor/meeting-mari-evans-at-marsh/

Call for submissions

2011-09-30T07:40:00.000-04:00

Call for Submissions

Poets are invited to write poems in response to a quote by author and Indianapolis native Kurt Vonnegut in conjunction with the One City One Prompt activities sponsored by the Transformative Language Arts Network, the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library and Brick Street Poetry Inc.
The quote is:

“What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.” - Kurt Vonnegut

Poems are to be emailed by Dec. 1, 2011 to: kurtquote@brickstreetpoetry.org. All poems submitted will be considered for publication in the Winter 2012 edition of the Tipton Poetry Journal. One poem will be selected to receive $100 as the Editor’s Choice Award.

Events:
Friday, November 4, at 5:30pm – Readings on “community” by Poets Laureate Bruce Dethlefsen from Wisconsin and Norbert Krapf from Indiana. This is an IDADA First Friday event.

Saturday, November 5, at 10am – Public Discussion of Creating Community Through Words led by Joyce Brinkman.

Both events will be held at the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, 340 North Senate, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204.

This Brick Street Poetry event is made possible through a grant from Indiana Humanities, with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed on this website do not necessarily represent those of Indiana Humanities or the National Endowment For the Humanities.

Greg Knipe, sculptor

2011-09-21T11:22:00.000-04:00

Last year, I wrote a poem to be go along with one of Greg Knipe's dragin sculptures. (John Sherman did one, too.) Now, he's featured in the Indianapolis Star:

http://www.indystar.com/article/20110921/LOCAL01/109210369/Creative-spark-Welder-turned-sculptor-among-artists-creating-careers-Carmel?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|IndyStar.com

Update on Masterpiece in a Day, Sept. 17

2011-09-12T11:19:00.001-04:00

UPDATE (Sept. 18): Congratulations to Dawn Fable-Lindquist, winner of this year's writing competition in Masterpiece in a Day.

In a related matter, it is sad to report that only three people entered the music/songwriting contest. After being dropped a few years ago due to few entrants, I thought its revival would spark some interest. I wouldn't be surprised if the category is again dropped.

Overall, it seemed to me participation was down from previous years, which is attributable to the construction of the Cultural Trail, a glut of other all-day festivals in Indianapolis, and less prize money being offered.

EARLIER ENTRY (Sept. 12): Here is a link explaining the rules of the writing competition for Masterpiece in a Day on Saturday, Sept. 17. The annual event has a few changes this year.

For one, the rules specify prose, not poetry, and the work must include three elements that will be randonly assigned to each entrant. Length must not exceed 1.000 words. Prize money will be $300, $150, and $50 respectively.

And -- THE MUSIC COMPETITION is back! (You can read about it in the link.)

Please note that construction of the Cultural Trail has left the area a mess, but it should be interesting to see how the visual artists, musicians, and writers cope with the situation. Allow time to find a parking space.

Also, I will not be participating in the writing competition. This was a decision I reached last year after placing for the third time and winning twice. I just want to experience the fun without the pressure of a deadline. You might see me and my family at the event, and I've offered to do volunteer work. So come on down, say "Hi," and enjoy the day.

Norbert on 'Writer's Almanac," again

2011-09-09T20:56:00.000-04:00

Garrison Keillor will read Norbert Krapf's poem "Uncle," from "Somewhere in Southern Indiana" (1993) on the Writer's Almanac, NPR, Sept. 14. http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php

2011 Best Books of Indiana winners

2011-09-06T12:00:00.006-04:00

From the Indiana Center for the Book:

Embargoed for release until Noon (EDT) on Tuesday, September 6, 2011:

Headline: Seventh-annual competition names 2011 Best Books of Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS (September 6, 2011) - The Best Books of Indiana judging panels have named winners and finalists in each of the contest's four categories - children's/young adult, fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. This year's winners and fellow finalists are as follows:

Children/Young Adult Winner:
Sources of Light by Margaret McMullan (Evansville). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston.

Children/Young Adult Finalists:
·         Nature's Storyteller: The Life of Gene Stratton-Porter by Barbara Olenyik Morrow (Auburn, IN). Indiana Historical Society Press, Indianapolis.
·         Summer Sanctuary by Laurie Gray (Fort Wayne). Luminis Books, Carmel, IN.

Fiction Winner:
The Scorpion Trail by Larry Sweazy (Noblesville). Berkley Publishing Group, New York City.

Fiction Finalists:
·         Bedlam at the Brickyard by Brenda R. Stewart (Mooresville). Cardinal Publishing, Indianapolis.
·         The Boy from the O by Sandy Kendall (Indianapolis). Author House, Bloomington, IN.

Poetry Winner:
Shadows Set in Concrete by J.L. Kato (Beech Grove). Restoration Press, Indianapolis.

Poetry Finalists:
·         Poetry from Paradise Valley by Edward Byrne (Valparaiso). Pecan Grove Press, San Antonio.
·         Seeded Light by Edward Byrne (Valparaiso). Turning Point Books, Cincinnati.

Nonfiction Winner:
The Art of Writing Nonfiction by James Alexander Thom (Bloomington, IN). Writer's Digest Books, Cincinnati.

Nonfiction Finalists:
·         Blood Shed in this War: Civil War Illustrations by Captain Adolph Metzner, 32nd Indiana by Michael A. Peake (Corydon, IN). Indiana Historical Society Press, Indianapolis.
·         Growing Up with Bakers Corner by Ellen Swain (Champaign, IL). Hawthorne Publishing, Carmel, IN.
·         Maria's Journey by Ramon & Trisha Arredondo (Crown Point, IN). Indiana Historical Society Press, Indianapolis.

University of Evansville English Professor Margaret McMullan became the competition first three-time winner this year. She won previously in 2008 (When I crossed No-bob) and 2005 (How I found the strong). The incomparable and award-winning James Alexander Thom won the nonfiction category with his first entry in the competition’s seven-year history. Poet Edward Byrne became the first entrant to have multiple finalist selections in a single year. Fiction category winner Larry Sweazy was a finalist in the same category last year (The Rattlesnake Season). The Indiana Historical Society Press led all publishers with three finalist selections. Since the competition began in 2005, IHS Press has had at least two titles selected as finalists each year.

"It is a privilege to recognize this terrific group of Hoosier authors," said Roberta Brooker, Indiana State Librarian. "One copy of each Best Book will permanently join the works of great Hoosier authors like Gene Stratton Porter, James Whitcomb Riley and Kurt Vonnegut within the State Library’s Indiana Authors Room."

Each category's winning title and author will be engraved on a plaque in the Indiana Authors Room. One copy of each finalist entry will remain housed in the Authors Room indefinitely. Two copies of all 2011 Best Books entries have been added to the State Library's collection. At least one copy of each entry will circulate. Indiana citizens can borrow any Best Books of Indiana title at the State Library or request to borrow a copy free of charge via interlibrary loan at their local public library.

The Indiana Center for the Books administers the Best Books of Indiana contest annually and accepts entries from Hoosier authors or books that have an Indiana theme or setting. The competition accepts books published between January 1 and December 31 of the previous year and consists of four categories - children's/young adult, fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. A panel of judges in each category considered all entries and chose finalists at their discretion. Entries were judged on the quality of writing, with organization and interpretation also considered. A complete list of this year's finalists and judges' comments, as well as past years' winners and finalists, can be found on the Indiana Center for the Book's website.

About the Indiana Center for the Book:
The Indiana Center for the Book is a program of the Indiana State Library and an affiliate of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. The Center promotes interest in reading, writing, literacy, libraries, and Indiana's literary heritage by sponsoring events and serving as an information resource at the state and local level. The Center also supports both the professional endeavors and the popular pursuits of Indiana's residents toward reading and writing.

-30-

Best Books of Indiana winners

2011-09-03T12:42:00.000-04:00

Expect an announcement identifying the winners on noon, Tuesday, Sept. 6. The competition, administered by the Indiana Center for the Book, a division of the Indiana State Library, awards annual "Best Book" designations in four categories: children/young adult, fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

Lyricist George Green dies at 59

2011-09-03T12:37:00.000-04:00

The conservative blog Advance Indiana ran a touching tribute to the lyricist of several of John Mellencamp's songs. If this link, http://advanceindiana.com/, diesn't take you the direct entry, then go to the August 31 posting.

Bloomington poet Doris Lynch attends a haiku conference

2011-08-24T15:01:00.000-04:00

Her column in the Bloomington Herald-Times:

"Mention that you're going to a haiku conference and you receive some jokes. Do they lecture in 5/7/5 syllables? Does it end in a hour? Do haiku artists bow ehen they meet?" Read more here.

Bruce Snider at James Merrill's home

2011-08-24T14:52:00.000-04:00

"I mean, I grew up in Indiana, a very small town in Indiana. If you tell people where I'm from that you're a poet, it's like a conversation stopper. It's like saying you're a giraffe."

Read more here.

Review of "Bringing the Shovel Down," by Ross Gay '96

2011-08-24T14:47:00.000-04:00

Ross Gay teaches at Indiana University, Bloomington. The review is here.

Follow-up: Artwork might not be removed at airport

2011-08-24T13:45:00.000-04:00

Airport officials have to make a quick decision abot the James Wille Faust mobile. Read the Indianapolis Star report here.

Levine is new U.S. poet laureate

2011-08-10T11:07:00.003-04:00

From AP: Pulitzer Prize winner Philip Levine, known for his detailed and personal verse about the working class, has been appointed the country's new poet laureate.
Click here for complete story.

Advertising dollars vs. art

2011-08-09T12:36:00.001-04:00

James Wille Faust's "Chrysalis" is being replaced by advertising at the Indianapolis International Airport:

http://www.ibj.com/airport-artist-complains-about-removal-of-public-art/PARAMS/article/28814

Best Books of Indiana 2011 finalists

2011-08-01T19:44:00.002-04:00

From the Indiana Center of the Book:

Finalists have been named for the Children/YA, Fiction and Poetry categories for the 2011 Best Books of Indiana Competition. Finalists for the fourth category, Nonfiction, will be named by August 19, 2011 due to volume of category entries.

This year’s Best Books of Indiana finalists are as follows:

CHILDREN/YA:
■Nature's Storyteller: The Life of Gene Stratton-Porter by Barbara Olenyik Morrow (Indiana Historical Society Press)
■Sources of Light by Margaret McMullan (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
■Summer Sanctuary by Laurie Gray (Luminis Books)

FICTION:
■Bedlam at the Brickyard by Brenda R. Stewart (Cardinal Publishing)
■The Boy from the O by Sandy Kendall (Author House)
■The Scorpion Trail by Larry Sweazy (Berkley Publishing Group

POETRY:
■Poetry from Paradise Valley edited by Edward Byrne (Pecan Grove Press)
■Seeded Light by Edward Byrne (Turning Point Books)
■Shadows Set in Concrete by JL Kato (Restoration Press)

NONFICTION:

Coming Soon

Winners in all four categories will be announced by August 31. All 2011 entries are now listed in the Indiana State Library’s catalog. One copy of each entry will remain in the State Library’s collections indefinitely. Another copy is available to most Hoosiers via interlibrary loan from their local public library.

Khabir Shareef reads Etheridge Knight

2011-07-30T09:20:00.001-04:00

Here is a recording of Khabir Shareef reading a poem by Etheridge Knight. His appearance was part of the Dead Poets Celebration at Crown Hill Cemetery in October 2010. The event was sponsored by Brick Street Poetry Inc.

A Poem for a Certain Lady on Her 33rd Birthday from ChiefFallingLeaf on Vimeo.

CIWA moving

2011-07-22T16:19:00.000-04:00

One of the consequences of Borders closing all of its stores is the loss of a monthly meeting place for he Central Indiana Writers Association, a southside Indianapolis group. CIWA had been conducting its meetings at the Borders on U.S. 31 north of Greenwood. The group is scouting two locations for possible relocation. More later.

Has the Borders closings affected your literary group? If so, let me know at jl.kato(at)sbcglobal.net.

Goodbye, Borders

2011-07-19T14:42:00.000-04:00

If you have a Borders gift card, now is the time to use it. The bookseller chain will wind down: http://www.ibj.com/borders-turns-the-final-page-will-close-all-stores/PARAMS/article/28366

Anthology of Indiana Poets

2011-07-16T13:31:00.001-04:00

The Indiana Historical Society has released the long-awaited anthology And Know This Place: Poetry of Indiana. It features 116 Indiana poets, including James Whitcomb Riley, Etheridge Knight, Jared Carter, Norbert Krapf, Dan Carpenter, Cheryl Moreland, William Vaughan Moody, Jessamyn West, and Mary Ellen Solt. Editors are Jenny Kander and C.E. Greer.List price is $24.95 and is available at the Indiana Historical Society's History Market, 450 E. Ohio St., Indianapolis.

Norbert Krapf poem on 'Writer's Almanac'

2011-07-13T22:54:00.002-04:00

Norbert Krap reveals that Garrison Keillor will read his poem "Boy Scouts Camping Out," from "Somewhere in Southern Indiana" (Time Being Books, 1993), on The Writer's Almanac on July 23. Congratulations, Norbert.

UPDATE: Norbert provided a link to the Writers' Almanac website, and you can preview his poem before the July 23 radio reading. Click here.

Poetry in Free Motion 2012 assignments

2011-07-13T13:25:00.000-04:00

Here is a list of the poets and quilters in the Poetry in Free Motion 2012 project::

Poet	Poem title	Quilter
Joyce Brinkman	Fluffing	Phyllis Highland
Barry Harris	State Road 13	Phyllis Fee
Mijiza/Saundrajo Holiday	Some Women Walk on Eggs	Sharon Freeland
Elizabeth Krajeck	Patterns in the Weather	Cynthia Holman
Jennifer Lemming	Camino	Suzanne Miller
Teresa Middleton	Genevieve Martine: #503	Diane Billiard
Betty Moebs	The Water's Edge	Sue Rumbaugh
Lylanne Musselman	Urban Birds	Carol Henke
Mary Sexson	Bend of the River	Tina Brauer
John Sherman	Forever	Mo Dean
Sarah Skwire	Utility	Jo Ann Gates
Shari Wagner	Winter Solstice	Mary Kenworthy

Each quilter will have until July 31, 2012, to complete her project. Quilts and poems will be displayed in September 2012. Details to come.

No Evening With the Muse this Sunday (July 10)

2011-07-09T09:01:00.001-04:00

Because of the death of Evening With the Muse founder Rohana McCormack, the usual second Sunday poetry reading at the Writers' Center of Indiana has been cancelled. It will resume at 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 14, with featured readers John Sherman and Chi Sherman. An open mic will follow.

Barb Shoup's tribute to Rohanna

2011-06-29T17:25:00.001-04:00

Writers' Center Executive Director Barbara Shoup pays tribute to Rohana McCormack, who died earlier this week. Rohana was afounding member of the Writers' Center. Click here.

An interesting local blog

2011-06-28T17:31:00.003-04:00

Dawn Fable's poetry blog: http://dawnfablepoems.blogspot.com/2011_06_01_archive.html

Rohana McCormack's funeral

2011-06-27T14:57:00.004-04:00

Rohana McCormack's funeral will be 11 a.m. Tuesday morning (June 28) at Aaron Ruben Nelson, 11411 Michigan Road, Carmel.

Rohana died Sunday evening in a hospice. More details to come.

A poem by Rohana in the Tipton Poetry Journal: Poe-Bird Neither Raven Nor Parson

Obituary in The Indianapolis Star (6-27-11):
McCormack, Rohana J.,

Rohana Jeane Eagles McCormack was born December 23, 1926 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Rohana graduated Duke with a BA and an MA. There she met her husband, Tom McCormack. She received an ABD in Literature and Creative Writing from Purdue. Many of her poems were published in local and national publications. She was an active member of Beth-El Zedeck and IHC Synagogues. Rohana was the loving mother of five children, Gigi Seay, Tom Hans McCormack, David McCormack, William McCormack and Henrietta McCormack. She was the loving grandmother of 13 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. Services will be held at the Aaron Ruben Nelson Mortuary.

Batholomew County Writers poetry contest

2011-06-13T12:13:00.000-04:00

Bartholomew County Writers Group is sponsoring a poetry contest that runs May 15 through July 1. First submission $10, and $5 for each additional submission. Limit 4 poems per person. Grand prize will be $50. For additional information, email Debi Hurt at debih7606@frontier.com. Good luck!

Submit entries to: 5110 W. 400 N., Scipio, IN 47273

Last Stanza Poetry Association organizational meeting

2011-06-13T12:09:00.001-04:00

Got this Facebook message on June 13. I don't understand the May 31st reference, but enough information is here for you, the reader, to proceed if you are interested in participating the the newly formed Last Stanza Poetry Association.

On May 31st at 7:00 pm: Last Stanza Poetry Association tentatively to meet at the China Buffet at 7408 West St. Rd. 28 in Elwood. This is the preliminary meeting to discuss a permanent home for readings and critiques. Anyone in Elwood, Anderson, Tipton, Alexandria and surrounding areas is invited. The location may change, so sign up for membership and notifications at http://www.facebook.com/l/a4ce5aTWOCtO_ieKOs-yP8-KSdw/www.meetup.com or call 765-552-5000 to ask for details. The group will meet one evening per month for readings and one evening per month for critiques.

Ode for June 3

2011-06-03T00:01:00.001-04:00

It's the third of June, another sleepy, dusty delta day:

Elwood poetry group

2011-05-27T07:26:00.000-04:00

From Jenny Kalahar:

On May 31st at 7:00 pm: Last Stanza Poetry Association tentatively to meet at the China Buffet at 7408 West St. Rd. 28 in Elwood. This is the preliminary meeting to discuss a permanent home for readings and critiques. Anyone in Elwood, Anderson, Tipton, Alexandria and surrounding areas is invited. The location may change, so sign up for membership and notifications at http://www.facebook.com/l/cb20bOmry-2JgOPA5L01WlGxlCQ/www.meetup.com or call 765-552-5000 to ask for details. The group will meet one evening per month for readings and one evening per month for critiques.

2011-05-11T23:01:00.000-04:00

Indianapolis officials are improving Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street. The city is improving sidewalks, curbs, ramps, pedestrian crossings, and landscaping.
The Indianapolis Star reports:

Artist John E. Girton Jr., was retained to introduce five local black legends as urban landscape art that's being displayed on bus shelters along the corridor.
The five honorees in the "Living the Legacy" series are: Barbara Boyd, a retired telecaster; Marshall "Major" Taylor, a champion bicyclist at the turn of the 19th century; Ray Crowe, a champion high school basketball coach and athletic director at nearby Crispus Attucks High; artist William Ryder; and champion auto racer Charlie Wiggins.

Notice that three sports-related figures are honored, and only one artist. Local writer Michaal ll Collins is livid that poet Etheridge Knight is not honored. (Neither is Mari Evans.) Collins is campaigning to get recognition for Knight.

For details, click here.

Summer poetry workshop

2011-05-10T08:10:00.000-04:00

Alessandra Lynch, an instructor in the Butler University English Department, will teach a community poetry workshop from June 6 through July 13 in Jordan Hall 306.

The class will meet from 7:15-9:45 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays (except July 4).

Cost: $250. To register,email alessandralynch@aol.com or bdadkah@butler.edu.

For more information: http://www.butler.edu/absolutenm/templates/?a=2742&z=22

Details on next Indiana poet laureate

2011-05-09T22:35:00.002-04:00

From an IUPUI news release:

Karen Kovacik

The Indiana Arts Commission (IAC) recently announced the selection of IUPUI Professor Karen Kovacik as the Indiana State Poet Laureate. Kovacik, who teaches English and creative writing in the School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI, will serve a two-year-term beginning January 2012.

“This extraordinary accomplishment and distinction recognizes the prominence of Dr. Kovacik not only as a superb poet herself but as a representative of the creative field of poetry,” said William Blomquist, dean of the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI. “Her service as Indiana’s poet laureate includes reaching out around the state to promote and encourage this art form which adds so much to civilization and culture in Indiana and throughout the world. We are extremely proud to be Dr. Kovacik’s colleagues, and delighted for her as she receives this prestigious honor.”

During her tenure as poet laureate, Kovacik plans to write a literary blog on Hoosier writers, create a downloadable poetry-teaching toolkit for the Indiana Humanities Council, and sponsor events at schools and libraries throughout the state. “As a native Hoosier, I bristle at the notion, fostered by some, that our state is an uncultured backwater,” Kovacik said. “So many fine poets and writers live here, and I want everyone to know that.”

Kovacik also plans to bring together poets from around the state. “We often hear about ‘academic’ poetry versus spoken word or slam poetry. But I don’t believe in a town-gown divide,” the professor said. “I want to break down barriers and get diverse groups of poets talking together.”

Kovacik is director of the creative writing program and adjunct professor of women’s studies at IUPUI. Her poem “Invisible Movements” is featured in the “Moving Forward” public art project, a series of three custom-designed eco-friendly bus shelters that showcase original poetry by published writers along the Indianapolis Cultural Trail. The shelters are located on the south side of Virginia Avenue near Lexington Street, McCarty Street and Woodlawn Avenue along IndyGo bus routes 12, 14 and 22.

In addition to the “Moving Forward” recognition, Kovacik’s numerous awards also include the 2011 and 2007 Trustees’ Teaching Award; the 2006 Best Book of Indiana Award for Metropolis Burning; the 2007 Charity Randall Citation from the International Poetry Forum; and a Fulbright Research Grant to Poland.

Increasing the awareness of poetry and the power of the written and spoken word was the inspiration behind legislation signed into law in 2005 by Governor Mitch Daniels. The legislation provides for the development of specific educational programming coordinated between the Indiana Arts Commission, the Indiana Department of Education, and the State Poet Laureate. The executive director of the Indiana Arts Commission, along with seven members chosen by the commission who represent state supported and private institutions of higher education, select the Indiana State Poet Laureate.

Next Indiana poet laureate

2011-05-09T12:04:00.002-04:00

Karen Kovacik of IUPUI is Indiana's new poet laureate. More information to come.

Next state poet laureate

2011-05-06T11:28:00.000-04:00

Expect an announcement soon from the Indiana Arts Commision on the selection of Indiana's next poet laureate.

Sarah Skwire in Standpoint magazine

2011-05-02T18:58:00.000-04:00

The Indianapolis resident has four poems in the May issue of the British magazine Standpoint.

Coming this fall: 'And Know This Place'

2011-05-02T10:11:00.001-04:00

Coming this fall from Indiana Historical Society Press:

Edited by Jenny Kander and C.E. Greer, And Know This Place: Poetry of Indiana, features the work of 116 poets who live or who have lived in the state long enough to acquire a sense of the place. The book is the first collection of Indiana poetry to appear for more than a hundred years, with the last major anthology, Poets and Poetry of Indiana, published in 1900.

The list of poets in this volume include such notable figures from the past as James Whitcomb Riley, William Vaughn Moody, Jessayman West, and Marguerite Young, as well as such modern masters as Etheridge Knight, Mary Ellen Solt, Jared Carter, and Norbert Krapf. In addition, the book has a foreword, “An Extraordinary Legacy,” written by Roger Mitchell, former director of the creative writing program at Indiana University, where he held the Ruth Lilly Poetry Chair.

As Kander and Greer note in the book’s preface: “Our central criterion for selection was quality of the writing, and we chose those poems which cover the spectrum of experience in both place and time, in settings from city streets to wilderness tracks, covering the state from Goshen in the north to Floyd’s Knobs by the Ohio River, and from Gessie on the Illinois line to Cottage Grove a hundred and fifty miles east.”

JENNY KANDER’s poetry has appeared in Flying Island, California Quarterly, Bathtub Gin, Wind, Southern Indiana Review, and Shiver. Her chapbook Taboo was published by Finishing Line Press in 2004. She has compiled and edited two volumes of poetry, The Linen Weave of Bloomington Poets and Celebrating Seventy, both published under Wind’s logo.
C.E. GREER’s poems have appeared in Streets Magazine, Flying Island, Wind, and other publications. He has been active with the Bloomington Free Verse Poets, and he coedited, with Kander, Say This of Horses: A Selection of Poems, published by the University of Iowa Press in 2007.

This information came from IHS' Ray Boomhower.

Heads-up: A Busy Tuesday in Indy

2011-04-25T13:12:00.002-04:00

TUESDAY, APRIL 26
2 p.m.-4 p.m. Highlights of this event include a poetry café and open mic from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. with free refreshments and readings of students' favorite poems. The second hour will feature a program by the Airpoets, a group made up of Joyce Brinkman, Ruthelen Burns, Joseph Heithaus, and Norbert Krapf. They will be readings selections from their recently published book, Airmail From the Airpoets (San Francisco Bay Books). The North Meridian Center Building, Room 438, Ivy Tech Community College, 50 W. Fall Creek Parkway, Indianapolis. Part of the annual Poetry Awards Ceremony. Free. http://www.ivytech.edu/indianapolis/poetry.html. Contact: Jessica Placke, 317-917-5742 or jplacke@ivytech.edu

7 p.m. The Irvington Poetry Series presents Mary Sexson at Bookmama's, 9 Johnson Ave., Indianapolis. The reading will be in the store's Underground Studio 9. Sexson is the author of 103 in the Light (Restoration Press). An open mic follows the reading.

7 p.m.-9 p.m. Poem in an Evening: Everyday Objects. Instructor: Emily Watson. Where: Writers Center of Indiana, 812 E. 67th St., Indianapolis. $30, $20 to WCI members, $16 to students, teachers, and senior members of WCI. We pay little attention to the everyday objects that surround us but they can make great subjects for poetry and prose. Participants in this workshop will use published object poems as a springboard for hands-on exercises designed to bring forth rough drafts of their own poems about everyday objects. If you like, bring an interesting or important object to the workshop for creative inspiration-or surprise yourself and write about one of the intriguing objects that will be on hand. To register online: http://www.indianawriters.org/

Meg Irsay profile in Indy Star

2011-04-24T15:41:00.002-04:00

Meg Irsay talks abou her new book of poetry in The Indianapolis Star. Headline: Poetry of Life.

Irsay will be the next featured reader in the Poetry on Brick Street series. But the article contains an error. Because of a scheduling conflict with the usual venue, G. Simone's Cafe, the reading move next door to Plum's Upper Room, 112 Main Street, Zionsville. The event begins 6:30 p.m., Thursday May 5.

Video of Indiana Humanties celebration of poetry month

2011-04-23T21:42:00.002-04:00

Indiana Humanties posted this YouTube video of highlights from a celebration of National Poetry Month, recorded last Thursday (April 21). Featured are musician Gabriel Harley and poets John Sherman and Chi Sherman. Here is thelink: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTLmYG1IvNE&feature=youtu.be

Poetry on WITT-FM (91.9)

2011-04-20T22:59:00.000-04:00

Radio station WITT and Brick Street Poetry have recorded a program that features David Shumate, Shari Wagner, Donna Monday, Nancy Pulley reading some of their poetry, as well as a selection from Barry Harris. It will be broadcast throughout May. If I can get a schedule of broadcast times, I'll pass it along.

Heads-up: Food for Thought on Thursday

2011-04-20T14:57:00.002-04:00

THURSDAY, APRIL 21

5:30 p.m. Food for Thought: Poems, Songs, and Photos, featuring a poetry reading by John Sherman and Chi Sherman, a performance by singer/songwriter Gabriel Harley, and a viewing of John Sherman's large-format poetry/photo posters at Indiana Humanities, 1500 N. Delaware St., Indianapolis. Complimentary wine and nibbles.

Heads-up: Charles Simic at Purdue on Thursday

2011-04-20T14:55:00.000-04:00

THURSDAY, APRIL 21
4:30 p.m. Literary Awards pre-dinner reception for Charles Simic, Anniversary Drawing Room, Purdue Memorial Union (included with the ticket price for the banquet-see 5:30 entry.). West Lafayette.

5:30 p.m. Charles Simic at the Literary Awards Banquet, North Ballroom, Purdue Memorial Union. The Banquet includes dinner, the Literary Awards ceremony and remarks from Charles Simic about the creative process. All award winners will receive complimentary tickets. Other tickets ($17 students/$25 adults) can be purchased in Room 324, Heavilon Hall on the Purdue Campus; or call the English Department at (765) 494-3740.

8 p.m. Poet Charles Simic Fowler Auditorium, Stewart Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette. Free.

Kay Ryan wins Pulitzer Prize; Maurice Manning a finalist

2011-04-18T22:22:00.001-04:00

From The New Your Times:

POETRY: "The Best of It: New and Selected Poems" by Kay Ryan (Grove Press)

Ms. Ryan, 65, labored outside poetry’s mainstream for decades before she started gaining recognition for her sharp, aphoristic work, much of which is gathered in her eighth book. “I was trying to offer a review of a fairly long career that was not much remarked on for the first 25 years of it,” said Ms. Ryan, who last year was the 16th poet laureate of the United States. “My things are little, and it’s nice if you pile them up. It’s a bigger sock in the jaw.”

Finalists: "The Common Man," by Maurice Manning (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt); "Break the Glass," by Jean Valentine (Copper Canyon Press).

Note; Manning teaches at Indiana University.

Heads-up: Shari Wagner featured Friday in arts council shindig

2011-04-14T08:11:00.000-04:00

(shout), a reception for six recipients of 2009-10 Creative Renewal grants from he Arts Council of Indianapolis, includes the poet Shari Wagner. The event, at the Indianapolis Art Center, 820 E. 67th St., Indianapolis, allows the recipients to show off what they did with the grant. Wagner's project allowed to visit a Native American tribe in Louisiana. That journey sparked some though-provoking essays. Other recipients are musician Peter Hansen, painter Gayla Hodson, Eiteljorg Museum administrator Amy McKune.the {Phoenix Theatre's Bryan Fonseca, and choreographer Alyona Yakovleva. The reception is from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday. The exhibit runs through June 5. The exhibit is free. 317-255-2464 or http://www.indplsartcenter.org/. Here are Wagner's comments in the Indianapolis Star this morning:

The first part of my project reunited me with the Clifton-Choctaw, a Louisiana tribe I lived and worked with during the early 1980s as a Mennonite service volunteer. My family and I spent a week visiting tribal members we hadn't seen for 13 years.

The second part entailed writing essays that contrast Clifton traditions and values with details of my present life and the trends I see in contemporary society. Since my previous writing had mostly been in poetry, I spent considerable time immersing myself in well-written essays. By the time my fellowship was over, I had written the first two essays for a book and the first one, "The Snake in the Crawlspace," was published in The North American Review.

My relationship with the Clifton-Choctaw was a life-altering experience. I've had to consider how relationships at Clifton have shaped who I am and to what degree I live according to the insights I gained.

Click here for the Indianapolis Star article.

Poetry Garden, Issue 5

2011-04-13T17:43:00.000-04:00

Editor Mike Rogers reminds me that he isstill publishing his semi nnual poetry review, the Poetry Garden. Issue 5 is available for $5. For information on how to receive a copy, contact him at mikerogersciwa@aol.com, or send snail mail to 328 E. Southern Ave., Indianapolis, In 46225. Poets may also send submissions for consideration in future issues.

Heads-up: Lynn Emmanuel at IUPUI on Thursday

2011-04-13T17:38:00.002-04:00

Lynn Emanuel

THURSDAY, APRIL 14
7:30 p.m. Poet Lynn Emanuel at the Lilly Auditorium, IUPUI University Library, 755 W. Michigan St., Indianapolis. Free. Part of the Rufus and Louise Reiberg Reading Series. Emanuel is the author of the volumes The Dig (1994), Then, Suddenly(1999), and most recently Noose and Hook (2010), Emanuel has had her work included in the Pushcart Prize anthology, The Best American Poetry, and The Oxford Book of American Poetry. She's received two National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships and a National Poetry Series Award.

Last weekly Metric Monday at Local Only; on hiatus pending monthly format

2011-04-09T17:49:00.000-04:00

MONDAY, APRIL 11:

8:30 p.m. Metric Monday at Locals Only Art and Music Pub, 2449 E. 56th St., Indianapolis. Featuring Adrienne Nadeau of Tampa, Fla., an open mic, and a poetry slam. $5. Must be 21 or older. indypoetryslam@gmail.com.

The event will be on hiatus for several weeks while it gears up to position itself as a monthly event. This will allow the organizers time to plan and book artists as the event was originally conceived: a multi-act variety and music show with a featured poet and a slam. Details to be announced.

Heads-up: An Evening the Muse on Sunday

2011-04-09T12:10:00.000-04:00

It's a literary blowout, as 13 featured poets will take the mic.

SUNDAY, APRIL 10
7 p.m. An Evening With the Muse, featuring 13 poets who will read in honor of National Poetry Month. 812 E. 67th St., Indianapolis (just northwest of the Indianapolis Art Center). An open mic follows the reading. Featured poets are Stephen R. Roberts, Bonnie Maurer, Barry Harris, David Shumate, Shari Wagner, Terry Cunningham, Karen Kovacik, Jeffrey O. Pearson, William Armitage, Mary Sexson, Michael Brockley, Doris Lynch, and JL Kato. Free, including light refreshments.

Heads-up: Elizabeth Weber at Poetry on Brick Street on Thursday

2011-04-06T21:50:00.002-04:00

Elizabeth Weber

Poetry on Brick Street will present Elizabeth Weber as the featured poet and speaker at 6:30 pm Thursday April 7 at Black Dog Books (115 South Main Street in downtown Zionsville, Indiana). Please note that this month’s poetry reading will be at a different location than usual. Black Dog Books is located directly across the street from G. Simone’s, on the corner of Main and Oak Streets in Zionsville.

Elizabeth Weber has published three books of poetry, Small Mercies, The Burning House and Porthole Views of the World: Watercolors and Poems (in collaboration with watercolorist Hazel Stoeckeler). Her poems have appeared in such literary magazines as The Florida Review, The Graham House Review, Calyx, among others. One of her poems, “City Generation,” was chosen to be part of Indianapolis’ Cultural Trail. She teaches creative writing at the University of Indianapolis where she also directs the Kellogg Writers Series.

An open mic for poets will follow the featured speaker.

Heads-up: Restoration Press Poets Tour on Wednesday in Shelbyville

2011-04-05T07:38:00.001-04:00

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6
7 p.m. Restoration Press Poets Tour at the Strand Theatre, 215 S. Harrison St., Shelbyville. Dan Carpenter (More Than I Could See), JL Kato (Shadows Set in Concrete), Thomas Alan Orr (Hammers in the Fog), and Mary Sexson (103 in the Light) will read their poetry and sign copies of their books. The events is sponsored by Three Sisters Books and Gifts.

Heads-up: Etheridge Knight Festival of the Arts on Saturday

2011-04-01T13:43:00.000-04:00

Two events at the Glick Auditorium in the Indiana History Center:

SATURDAY, APRIL 2

2 p.m. Po-Rap-Try, a youth performing arts competition, at the Indiana History Center, 450 W. Ohio St., Indianapolis. Free. Winners of the Etheridge Knight Poetry Contest will be announced. Essence of a Poet, a dramatic interpretation of Etheridge Knight's work, will be presented, directed and choreographed by Mijizaa yaa Soyini.

8 p.m. The Symphony performs The House That Etheridge Built at the Indiana History Center, 450 W. Ohio St., Indianapolis. Free. Part of the Rufus and Louise Reiberg Reading Series and the Etheridge Knight Festival of the Arts. The Symphony is composed of four African-American poets who combine their voices into four movements that form one song: a multitudinous story of love, prison, fatherhood and the denizens of cities often absent from the American verse. The four are Reginald Dwayne Betts, Marcus Jackson, Randall Horton, and John Murrillo. The House That Etheridge Built is part lecture, and part poetic suite. It is an introduction to the work of Etheridge Knight and an introduction to the voices of his literary descendants; all who aim to have their words live on the lips of ordinary people.

Dan Carpenter on Etheridge Knight

2011-03-30T10:35:00.002-04:00

Etheridge Knight

Indianapolis Star columnist Dan Carpenter writes about the poet Etheridge Knight, whose legacy will be celebrated in weekend activities: http://www.indystar.com/article/20110330/OPINION05/103300314/

Heads-up: International Women's Day Celebration on Thursday

2011-03-29T22:29:00.000-04:00

THURSDAY, MARCH 31
7:30 p.m. International Women's Day Celebration at the Lilly Auditorium, IUPUI University Library, 755 W. Michigan St., Indianapolis. Free. Part of the Rufus and Louise Reiberg Reading Series, featuring Sandy Reiberg, Saundrajo Holiday, Lida Rogers, Tiffany Kyser, Meg Rainwater, Andy Buchenot, Sarah Neville, Jennifer Thorington Springer, and others. Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.

Heads-up: Marilyn Chin at Butler on Monday

2011-03-27T02:06:00.001-04:00

MONDAY, MARCH 28
7:30 p.m. Marilyn Chin in the Krannert Room of Clowes Hall, Butler University, 4600 Sunset Ave., Indianapolis. http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/90

Heads-up: Indianapols Poetry Grand Slam on Monday

2011-03-26T19:01:00.000-04:00

At Locals Only, 2449 E. 56th St., Indianapolis.

From the Indianapolis Poetry Grand Slam Facebook page:

The Indianapolis Poetry Slam has finally arrived at the Grand Slam! The top twelve ranked poets from throughout the season will meet on the stage to slam for a slot on the IPS team, and to crown the grand slam champion. Twelve will enter, and only four will remain standing. The team will represent Indianapolis at the Rustbelt regional poetry slam, the national poetry slam, and the champion will compete at the Individual World Poetry Slam.

Our feature will be Sierra Demulder.
In 2009, Sierra DeMulder was awarded Best Female Poet at College Union Poetry Slam Invitational, ranked 9th in the world at the Individual World Poetry Slam, and won the National Poetry Slam in West Palm Beach, Florida. In 2010, she made Final Stage at the Women of the World Individual Poetry Slam and coached Macalester College to Final Stage at CUPSI. Her first full-length manuscript was published by Write Bloody Publishing, and she has dedicated her year to hosting writing workshops and performing at rehab facilities, prisons, high schools and colleges across the country.

Qualified Poets:
Anna Rees
Adam Henzbo Henze
Eddie Hoke
Terry Odis
Gabrielle Patterson
Erin Livingston
Devon Ginn
Heather Aanderud Chaulk
William Smerph Winburn
Corey Ewing

There will be three rounds, which cuts after each. This will be a standard PSI rules slam. No music, props, or costumes. There will be a special guest host, TBA soon. The cover for this event will be $8. This is too pay our excellent feature, and to begin the fundraising for the National Poetry Slam. Lastly, don't forget we are a nonsmoking event!

Questions for this event can be sent to 465slam@gmail.com.

Vouched featured in The Indianapolis Star

2011-03-26T10:33:00.002-04:00

Chris Newgent's labor of love involves promoting local presses and journals. He "vouches" for them by selling their titles at events or organizing readings featuring their writers. Hence the name of the group, Vouched. Here's what The Indianapolis Star had to say about Chris and his organization: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011103240309

The Vouched website is here.

Heads-up: Tonight in Fountain Square

2011-03-26T10:19:00.002-04:00

7 p.m. Vouched presents a fundraiser for Second Story, featuring Ashley Ford, Nate Pritts, Micah Ling, Drew Blanchard, and Derrick Harielle at Big Car Gallery, 1043 Virginia Ave., Indianapolis. Free. Second Story is an organization that helps kids find joy in writing. For special instructions on how to get to Big Car Gallery, click here.

Barry Harris on the radio today

2011-03-26T09:49:00.003-04:00

Barry Harris, who is editor of the Tipton Poetry Journal, can be heard reading his poem "This is how it ends" on WITT-FM (91.9) during the "Pattern Hunger Radio Show" at 12:30 p.m.

I'll check to see whether a podcast is available. If so, I'll post the link here.
UPDATE: No podcast exists.

Heads-up: Bloomington on a Friday night

2011-03-23T21:37:00.001-04:00

Bloomington is host to three poetry events this Friday, March 25:

7 p.m. The Blue Light Reading Series presents poets Steve Scafidi, Erika Meitner, and Curtis Bauer at the University Club, Indiana Memorial Union, Indiana University, Bloomington. Steve Scafidi is the author of Sparks from a Nine-Pound Hammer (2001) and For Love of Common Words (2006), both from Louisiana State University Press. He works as a cabinetmaker and lives with his family in West Virginia. Erika Meitner is the author of Inventory at the All-Night Drugstore (Anhinga Press, 2003), and Ideal Cities (HarperCollins, 2010), which was a 2009 National Poetry series winner. Her third collection, Makeshift Instructions for Vigilant Girls, will be published by Anhinga Press in 2011. Meitner's poems have appeared most recently in APR, Virginia Quarterly Review, Indiana Review, The New Republic, and on Slate.com. She is currently an assistant professor of English at Virginia Tech, where she teaches in the MFA program. Curtis Bauer is the author of the poetry collection Fence Line (BkMk Press, 2004), which won the 2003 John Ciardi Poetry Prize. A founding member of the poetry collective, 7 Carmine, and the publisher of Q Ave Press chapbooks, Bauer’s poetry, nonfiction and translations have appeared in Barrow Street, The Iowa Review, The North American Review, Rivendell, Runes, and numerous other journals. After living for several years in Mexico, Spain and Iowa, he recently moved to Texas, where he is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing and Spanish at Texas Tech University.

7 p.m. Hart Rock Poetry Series and Open Mic at Rachael's Cafe, 300 E. Third St., Bloomington. The theme of the community open mic is Lions and Lambs. Special host: Peggy Squires. Free. Every fourth Friday of the month, except July andf August. Come to listen and to share poems, songs and stories of your favorite poets. Open-mic participants have three minutes. poetry@hartrock.net or bloomingtonpoetry@gmail.com, 812-330-1882.

7:30 p.m. Poets Patricia Coleman and Julia Dadds, plus the a capella group Kaia, will perform at the Bloomington Unitarian Universalist Coffee House, 2120 N. Fee Lane, Bloomington.

Congratulations to Karen Kovacik

2011-03-22T11:51:00.001-04:00

IUPUI's Karen Kovacik was one of 17 faculty members from four Indiana University campuses to have been awarded project grants through the 2011 New Frontiers in the Arts and Humanities program.

Karen Kovacik's project is Calling Out to Yeti: An Anthology of Polish Women Poets.

For the full story, click here.

Irvington Poetry Series set for spring/summer

2011-03-22T08:53:00.001-04:00

The Irvington Poetry Series's spring/summer schedule has been set at 7 p.m. the fourth Tuesday of the month at Bookmamas, 9 Johnson Ave., Indianapolis. The readings will be in the bookstore's Underground 9 Studio. An open mic will follow each reading, time permitting.

The lineup:

April 26: Mary Sexson.
May 24: boB Henning.
June 28: Thomas Alan Orr
July 26: Richard Pflum.

New chapbook by Lylanne Musselman

2011-03-21T12:43:00.001-04:00

Winged Graffiti is the title of a new chapbook by Lylanne Musselman. It will be released in August. To order a copy, click here. You'll have to scroll down (lthe books are listed in alphabetical order by author). Cost is $14 plus shipping cost.

Lylanne's website is here.

Tipton Poetry Journal No. 20

2011-03-21T12:38:00.002-04:00

From Barry Harris, the editor of the Tipton Poetry Journal:

The print version of Issue #20 (Winter 2011) has been published.
Poetry by Gilbert Allen, Zino Asalor, Matthew Brennan, Karen Bryant, John Cardwell, Jared Carter, Lindsay Faber Chiat, Katie Clare, Joan Colby, Lauren Davis, Liz Dolen, Sarah Frost, Mary Gillot, Carol L. Gloor, Zachary Harbison, Joseph Heithaus, Tyler Lacoma, Stephen Lefebure, Jennifer Lemming, Theodore Lucero, Marjorie Maddox, James Murdock, Thomas O’Dore, Kenneth Pobo, Marco Ray, A.L. Rodenberg, Gaar Scott, Laura Smith, Noel Sloboda, Jeanine Stevens, Charles Tarlton, Beth Towle, Raymond Wachter, Shari Wagner, Ann Walters, Howard Winn, and Kirby Wright.

Translation: Rita Dahl’s “Haukka leikkii kyyhkysellä” self-translated from Finnish to English as ”A hawk plays with a pigeon.”
Special Feature: Norbert Krapf’s “Four Internal Movements”: ekphrastic poetry inspired by the sculpture of Chris Quigley

Heads-up: Taylor Mali at Butler on Tuesday

2011-03-21T11:51:00.000-04:00

TUESDAY, MARCH 22
7:30 p.m.: Taylor Mali at Atherton Union Reilly Room, Butler University, 4600 Sunset Ave., Indianapolis. Free. Part of the Vivian S. Delbrook Writers Series. http://www.taylormali.com/

Another Borders bookstore closing

2011-03-18T11:51:00.003-04:00

According to The Indianapolis Star, the Borders bookstore at The Shops at River Crossing, 8675 River Crossing Blvd., will close.

It will join two other Indianapolis-area stores: the Downtown Borders at 11 S. Meridian St., and the Carmel store at 2381 Pointe Parkway (near 116th Street and Keystone Avenue).

The closings are part of a bankruptcy reorganization by Borders Group Inc.

Four stores will remain open: 13145 Levinson Lane, Noblesville; 6020 E. 82nd St., Indianapolis; 7565 U.S. 31 South, Indianapolis; and the Indianapolis International Airport location.

Statewide, the Fort Wayne Borders was added to the list of closings, as well as the ones in West Lafayette, Evansville, Merrillville and Mishawaka. The Borders in Highland will be the only other Indiana store to remain open.

Joseph Heithaus manuscript accepted for publication

2011-03-17T22:48:00.001-04:00

Joseph Heithaus

Joseph Heithaus, of DePauw University, revealed today that his book manuscript, Posion Sonnets, has been accepted for publication by WordTech Publishers. The book is scheduled for release in February 2012.

Heads-up: Micah Ling and Katharine Rauk on Friday

2011-03-16T17:53:00.001-04:00

FRIDAY, MARCH 18

7:30 p.m. Poetry reading with Micah Ling and Katharine Rauk at the Writers' Center, 812 E. 67th St., Indianapolis.Ling's new book is Sweetgrass; Rauk's new chapbooks is Basil. Suggested donation: $5.

Micah Ling

Micah Ling completed her BA at DePauw University as an English major. She earned her MA in 20th Century American Literature and her MFA in poetry at Indiana University. Ling has taught in the English departments at Indiana University, Butler University, DePauw University, and Franklin College. She is currently teaching at Franklin College and in the MFA program at Butler University. She taught for the 2010 Indiana University Writers, Conference in Bloomington, Indiana. Ling's first full-length collection, Three Islands, was published in September, 2009 by Sunnyoutside Press. The collection deals with three figures: Amelia Earhart, Robert Stroud (the Birdman of Alcatraz), and Fletcher Christian. Ling's second collection, Sweetgrass, (Sunnyoutside, 2010), is almost entirely prose poems about south-central Montana. Ling also writes for and manages a book review website: www.bookpunchreviews.com. She was one of three finalists for the 2010 Indiana Authors Award.

Katharine Rauk

Katharine Rauk earned a M.A. in Humanities from the University of Chicago and a M.F.A. in poetry from the Bennington Writing Seminars. Her chapbook, Basil, will be published by Black Lawrence Press in early March, and she has poems published or forthcoming in Harvard Review, Georgetown Review, Cream City Review, Zone 3, Copper Nickel, and others. Rauk's poem "Psalm" inspired a musical piece composed by Daniel Cavanagh, which was performed at Willamette University by the University of Oregon big band last April. Another collaboration with Cavanagh will result in a chamber ensemble concert at Steinway Hall in Dallas this May. Rauk is an assistant editor of Rowboat: Poetry in Translation. She lives and teaches in Minneapolis.

Worst song lyrics ever?

2011-03-15T10:56:00.003-04:00

I often defend song lyrics as a kind of poetry. But, yes, I'll admit that a lot of lyrics are insipid. And then there's this song that takes it to a lower level. This is a viral video, "Friday," by Rebecca Black. What would Cole Porter think? He'd probably laugh. Take a listen:

UPDATE: As long as we're laughing, just imagine what this song would sound like rolling off the tongue of, say, Bob Dylan. Well, here's the send-up:

I have a feeling this threa could be endless. Here is a version of the video with reworked lyrics as interpreted by a bad lip-reader. The lyrics are more interesting.

A personal message

2011-03-13T12:37:00.002-04:00

More than a few of you haven spoken to me or e-mailed me with your worries about my relatives in Japan. I have explained to most that the few who have direct connections to are no longer alive. That said, I appreciate the concern, and I ask that you direct that attention toward helping the survivors of the quake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdowns.

We exist at the mercy of things beyond our control. It is my hope that we continue to work to make the world a safe place.

One more thing: I know a few of you are consumed with the disheartening developments being unraveled in news reports. Please, turn off the TV for a while, and enjoy life. You can always return to the depressing coverage of events. Life is too short to let opportunities for happiness pass us by.

Head-up: Tracy Mishkin at An Evening With the Muse on Sunday, March 13

2011-03-11T13:52:00.001-05:00

7 p.m. Sunday, March 13: An Evening With the Muse at the Writers' Center of Indiana, 812 E. 67th St., Indianaplis. Free. An open mic follows the featured reading by Tracy Mishkin.

Tracy Mishkin is a career immigrant. Born in academia, she taught in Georgia and published two books on African-American literature and then disappeared, resurfacing in the land of non-profits with the Bureau of Jewish Education. Three years later she was spotted across the border working retail at the Uniform House before she immigrated to the corporate world, where she provides top-notch customer service at Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. Along the way she has published 6 books of poetry, and her work has been featured in the Tipton Poetry Review, FlyingIsland, Poetica, and on PoetsUSA.com. Her most recent book, Rime of the Middle-Aged Mariner, debuts at this reading.

Heads-up: Restoration Press Poets at Calvin Fletcher's Coffee Company on Friday

2011-03-09T21:19:00.003-05:00

The four poets published by Restoration Press will read at Calvin Fletcher's Coffee Company at 8 p.m. Friday, March 11. Calvin Fletcher's, recently voted the area's No. 1 coffeeshop by readers of Metromix, is at 615 Virginia Ave., Indianapolis. The poets, Thomas Alan Orr (Hammers in the Fog), Mary Sexson (103 in the Light), Dan Carpenter (More Than I Could See), and JL Kato (Shadows Set in Concrete), will also be on hand to sign their books.

Famous Writers Club

2011-03-08T11:43:00.002-05:00

This writers group, led by Beth Mink, will resume meeting next Monday, March 14, and every other Monday thereafter, at the Writers' Center of Indiana, 812 E. 67th St., Indianapolis. Sessions will last from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Contact Beth at elizabethmink@aol.com.

UPDATE: The start time has been changed to 9 a.m., beginning March 28.

Abraham Lincoln: the other Hoosier Poet?

2011-03-07T12:53:00.000-05:00

Abraham Lincoln
his hand and pen
he will be good but
God knows when

The Indianapolis Monthly weighs in with an article about Abraham Lincoln's poetry, including some he wrote as a youth living in Southern Indiana (see above). Click here to read all about it.

African-American poets

2011-03-07T09:34:00.000-05:00

Nuvo writer and blogger Chi Sherman began telling readers about Terrance Hayes, who read receintlky at the University of Indianapolis. Then she recommended other African-American poets. Check her posting here.

No RopeWalk Writers Retreat this year

2011-03-06T13:45:00.003-05:00

According to the RopeWalk website, cuts in funding to the University of Southern Indiana means that the traditional format of the weeklong RopeWalk Writers Retreat won't take place this year. For details, read this letter from English Department Stephen Spencer.