Editor’s Note:
We gots lots of poetry to talk about, from Saturday’s Florida Bards anthology launch, to the Poetry Open Mic hosted by Keep St. Pete Lit., to upcoming features at the Kerouac House of St. Pete, Maureen McDole will be in the studio monthly for her new podcast Monthly Shot of Poetry, plus a shout-out to the Florida State Poets Association. We have lots to cover, so let’s get it going!
But first a little word about why I am doing Poetix here in the Tampa Bay area. I first created Poetix in the late 90s when I lived in Los Angeles. This was before social media had taken up such a major part of our lives. It covered the reading I was hosting (Poetic License) at the Moon Dog Café and a couple of other locations. Additionally, Poetix covered the myriad of readings that were going on back in the day. It was news about the poetry community, not a place to post poems. Poetix covered readings and book launches, etc. There was no real journalistic coverage of poetry back then, as there is no real coverage of poetic events today. We would like to fill that void with Poetix. Send your poetry info to us for inclusion and coverage. An email will do the trick, poetixnews@gmail.com!
Keep St. Pete Lit Open Mic
Keep St. Pete Lit has a monthly poetry open mic at The Studio at 620 in beautiful downtown St. Petersburg (620 1st Ave S Saint Petersburg, FL 33701). Next readings (last Wednesday of the month) are on 6/26 and 7/31 starting at 7pm. Come be part of the amazing poetry community! Sign up to read a poem when you arrive, but get your tickets in advance so they know how many chairs to set up! Not a writer? That is ok! Folks who just love to listen to poetry are highly encouraged to attend! Enjoy as part of the audience, discover the diverse local literary talent and provide them with valuable feedback on their work!
Poet & Writer/Founder & Executive Director of Keep St. Pete Lit Maureen McDole Goes Podcasting
Radio St. Pete News Director Nanette Wiser is a fan of poetry; it soothes the soul and explores life’s challenges. She announced: “We are pleased that acclaimed poet/writer/artist Maureen McDole will be in our studio monthly for her new podcast Monthly Shot of Poetry.” Maureen commented: “I am now a host of a “Monthly Shot of Poetry” podcast on Radio St. Pete, tune in at 11am on Tuesday, June 25th for my next segment. Thanks for listening!”
Gloria Muñoz to Feature at Jack Kerouac House of St. Pete!
St. Pete’s very own Poet Laureate will be featured at the Jack Kerouac House of St. Petersburg Sunday, June 30th at 3pm. Gloria is a Colombian American writer, translator, and advocate for multilingual literacy. She is proud to be St. Pete's first Latina poet laureate. You don’t want to miss this! Get your tickets here.
Featuring at Jack’s House
Our readings are normally the fourth Sunday at 3pm, except for June where we are the last Sunday so as not to conflict the Pride celebrations. Here’s a great acknowledgment from our friend, fellow poet and our first feature at Jack’s House Dr. Gregory Byrd:
“To read at Jack’s House is to be part of the best of the American coffee house readings from seventy years ago. There is awesome coffee beforehand, sure, and amazing muffins. There’s the sixties’ aura of Jack’s house and the reading room with the pine paneling and terrazzo floors.
“As a featured reader, you sit comfy and wait for Larry Jaffe’s energy to spark the poetry flame, and then the first two readers get up and read a couple of poems each. You never know who they will be—the Beat faithful, old geezers, traveling artists, a stay-at-home mom with a beat heart, a kid from the community college. And they come up with that image, that line!
“And then you’re called up, and the group is all ready for more poetry. No one is at the back of the hall, just at the back of the living room, maybe in the kitchen or standing in the doorway.
“As you’re reading your first poem, you think you see a dark-haired man in his forties with a cigarette hanging from his lips, but when everyone applauds the end of the poem, he’s not there anymore. You read your poems, and it doesn’t matter if you read from the page, if they’re sonnets or manifestos, imagistic forms or stream of consciousness, the crowd grooves with it. Then you sit down, and Larry announces a break.
“You get another cup of coffee, check out Jack’s bathroom, maybe the console stereo. Then the rest of the open mic readers come up and spin their songs and—damn!—there’s some good stuff there! You buy a t-shirt. You exchange email addresses with new friends. Poetry in your soul, you’re ready to face another week. — G.B.
Upcoming
June 30: Gloria Muñoz
July 28: Dennis Amadeus
August 25: Gianna Russo
November 24: Helen Wallace
We Should Belong to the Florida State Poets Association!
The Florida State Poets Association is an organization we as poets should belong to, and we can start our own chapter here for Gulf Coast Poets!
Some Of the Benefits Of Membership Include:
A local and statewide network of poets with knowledge of writing, critiquing, and publishing poetry.
A bi-monthly newsletter with information, updates, features, profiles, and poetry.
Discounts on poetry contests sponsored by FSPA and NFSPS.
Tips for becoming a better poet and a better marketer of your work.
A warm community of like-minded poets who want to experience your poetry.
Let me know if you decide to join so we can create our chapter.
SRO Crowd for Florida Bards Anthology Launch!
Saturday evening was a glorious one for poetry. It was standing room only as about 15 poets read. Lots of poets brought their whole families. It was truly a cultural event. You can order your copies here.
Relaunch of My Book Unprotected Poetry
I am very jazzed to let you know that my book Unprotected Poetry has been rereleased 25 years later. This book has some of my most favorite poems including Cattle Car, Miles Showed Me His Trumpet and of course Unprotected Poetry. You can get it from Amazon or from me directly (I will happily inscribe and sign it for you).
Overflowing with poetry news. Write on!