Saturday, Nov. 15: SC Young Poets Prize awards ceremony, Columbia, SC

SC Young Poets Prize
Saturday, November 15
10:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Columbia Museum of Art
Hampton & Main Sts., Columbia, SC

What a pleasure it was to judge this year's South Carolina Young Poets Prize competition, sponsored by the Split P Soup: Poetry for the Community and by the SC Poetry Initiative. There were 155 poems entered by 50 poets, whose ages ranged from 14 to 19. A difficult competition to judge indeed! The awards ceremony was held at the Columbia Museum of Art, with a morning workshop led by Jonathan Butler. In the afternoon the students held an open mic, and I was pleased to read and announce the five prize winners.

Sunday, Nov. 9: After Shocks anthology reading by 11 poets, Charlotte, NC

After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery
Anthology reading by 11 poets
Sun., Nov. 9
Joseph Beth Booksellers
Charlotte, NC

One of the most moving readings I've ever participated in was this one by eleven of the 115 poets in the anthology After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life-Shattering Events. Each poet read his or her own poem in the anthology, plus one by a poet who was not able to attend. After Shocks was compiled, edited, and published by Tom Lombardo, of Atlanta. It includes work by poets from all over the world. There are sections on death, divorce, abuse, and so forth--even one on "the stresses of living." Yet, despite the weight of these subjects, there is humor and much hope within its pages. I highly recommend this book.

Sunday, Nov. 9: After Shocks anthology reading, Charlotte, NC

After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life-Shattering Events
Anthology reading with other poets
Sunday, Nov. 9
2 - 3:30 p.m.
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
Charlotte, NC
Free & open to the public

Introduced and emceed by Tom Lombardo, who lives in Atlanta and is the editor of After Shocks. Other poets participating:

Anthony Abbott (Davidson, NC)
Cathy Smith Bowers (Tryon, NC)
Genie Cotner (Charlotte, NC)
Val Nieman (Greensboro, NC)
Gail Peck (Charlotte, NC)
Barbara Presnell (Lexington, NC)
Rhett Iseman Trull (Greensboro, NC)
Terri Wolfe (Charlotte, NC)
Susan Meyers (Summerville, SC, a native of Albemarle, NC)
Linda Ferguson (Charleston, SC, a native of Rhode Hiss, NC)
Ed Madden (Charleston, SC)

Nov. 1: Kakalak reading, Charleston, SC

Kakalak anthology reading
Sat., Nov. 1
4 p.m.
Blue Bicycle Books
420 King Street
Charleston, SC

Some of the area contributors--poets and artists--published in the 2008 Kakalak anthology read at Blue Bicycle Books on Saturday. Editors Richard Taylor and Beth Cagle Burt, of Charlotte, NC, were there to emcee the event, which gave the contributors a chance to celebrate the new anthology. The event included a lovely reception, and luckily the weather was warm enough to allow the reading to take place outside in a courtyard by the building. Poets reading included Libby Bernardin, Susan Fecho, Barbara Hagerty, Ann Herlong-Bodman, Sheridan Hough, Kit Loney, Michael Lucas, Susan Meyers, Dennis Ward Stiles, and Deborah Scott. Hosts were Jonathan and Lauren Sanchez, owners of Blue Bicycle Books.

Saturday, Nov. 1: Poetry Writing Workshop -- Mastering the Line

Poetry Writing Workshop: Mastering the Line
Sat., Nov. 1, 2008
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Waccamaw Higher Education Center
160 Willbrook Blvd.
Pawleys Island, SC 29585
OLLI at CCU class
Instructor, Susan Meyers

How do you know where to begin and end the lines of your poems? This workshop will look at how lineation affects a poem, how various poets have upheld the integrity of the line—whether lines are short, long, or a combination of the two. Includes writing activities and a resource packet. Please bring a copy of 2-3 of your in-progress poems.

Lunch can be purchased at a nearby deli, or bring your own.
Registration, $30: Coastal Carolina University Lifelong Learning,
843-349-4032 or www.coastal.edu/outreach.

Wednesday, October 15: Poetry program for Florence, SC, book club

Florence, SC, local book club program
Wed., Oct. 15
11 a.m.
Florence Public Library
Free & open to the public

Reading from Keep and Give Away, plus poetry discussion

Sunday, Sept. 21: Porter Fleming Writing Competition Awards Ceremony, Augusta, GA

15th Annual Porter Fleming Writing Competition
Competition Awards Ceremony
Sunday, September 21, 2008
1:30 p.m.
Morris Museum
1 Tenth Street, Augusta, GA

I was thrilled to be among the winners of this year's Porter Fleming Writing Competition and to read with the other winners of the contest. The reading was held in the auditorium of the Morris Museum in Augusta, GA, as a part of the Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival. Below are the winners of all four categories:

FICTION:
1st prize -- Michael Leslie, "Marathons, Mercurys, and Orphans"
2nd prize -- Angela Aaron, "The Tale of Tapanga"
3rd prize -- Dot Jackson, "Boy Lost"

NONFICTION:
1st prize -- Marina Brown, "Pieta"
2nd prize -- Elizabeth Estes, "How I Lost Fourteen Warts by Just Holding Hands"
3rd prize -- Marina Brown, "The Sweetness of Red Cabbage"

POETRY:
1st prize -- Allan Ryder-Cook, "Scapula"
2nd prize -- Gilbert Allen, "My Mother Teaches Me to Type"
3rd prize -- Susan Meyers, "Namesake"

PLAYWRITING:
1st prize -- Amy Richerson, "The Ex-Box"
2nd prize -- Thomas McConnell, "Colliding with Andromeda"
3rd prize -- Joseph Barry, "Bait and Switch"

This year's final judge for the poetry division was Stephen Corey, poet and editor of The Georgia Review. For more information, see Arts in the Heart of Augusta.

Friday, Sept. 19: Visit to Furman University class

I was recently invited to visit the undergraduate poetry workshop of Gil Allen, professor and poet at Furman University in Greenville, SC. The purposes of the visit was to give the students a chance to hold a small-group conversation with a working poet. What a pleasure! After I started our session by reading a poem, the twelve students in the class each told me about what for them seemed hard, and in turn what seemed easy, about writing poems. We also talked about such issues as where our poems come from, how we get started, and how much revising we do. I tried to emphasize the fact that my poems rarely begin with an idea; they're much more likely to begin with a line that comes to me. Typically I keep laying down one line after another, not really knowing where I'm headed. The more I write, the more I like the mystery of where the developing poem is taking me, its surprises and turns along the way. It's probably apparent, too, that I like to sit and talk about writing.

The students were eager for the exchange, which made my whole trip worthwhile. Thanks for inviting me, Gil. And thanks to the students--James, Christan, Rachel, Duncan, Drew, Sarah, Gwendolyn, Scott, Stephen, Keegan, Ait, and Helen--for voicing your concerns and ideas about the writing process. I was happy to be there for our conversation on poetry.