Susan Rich's Blog, page 69

I am excited to be part of this journal - handmade and gorgeous

I learned about this journal when I was on a panel on publishing with Jennifer Borges Foster at Richard Hugo House last year. Ever since then, I knew I wanted to be part of this project. Jennifer is a visual artist and poet -- Filter is the artistic endeavor that brings her different talents together. Jennifer is also a superb gardener; she's someone in Seattle that I would like to know better. However, if you don't live in Seattle, you can still order copies of Filter. Each is a work of art and are collected by art collectors. How cool is that? (To order see the very end of this post!)

The Filter Vol. III Release Party will be: Friday, June 17th, 8p.m.at the Fremont Abbey, 4272 Fremont Ave North, Seattle, WA 98103

An evening of readings from Zachary Schomburg, John Osebold, Stacey Levine, Maged Zaher, Karen Finneyfrock, Ed Skoog, Elizabeth Colen, Elissa Washuta, Susan Rich and Sarah Bartlett . Freshly letterpressed copies of the book will be available for purchase.

Filter Vol. III has arrived. This 3rd issue of the entirely handmade journal is a box of wonder: The cover has a paint-by-numbers theme, and the box structure is letterpress printed by Kate Fernandez of Fernandez and Sons. The book will be filled with brilliant work in individually bound chapbooks of prose and poetry, with art postcards and posters that you can remove and display.The contributors in Filter III are:Yusef Komunyakaa, Zachary Schomburg, Stacey Levine, Amanda Manitach, Maged Zaher, Sharon Arnold, Martha Silano, John Osebold, Rebecca Brown, Counsel Langely, Ed Skoog, Karen Finneyfrock, Sean Ennis, Sarah Mangold, Gala Bent, Rachel Contreni Flynn, David Lasky, Elizabeth Colen, Sandra & Ben Doller, Brandon Shimoda, Ben Beres, Brandon Downing, Sarah Kate Moore, Dan Rosenberg, Susan Rich, Susan Denning, Sid Miller, Sarah Bartlett, Shawn Vestal, Marie-Caroline Moir, Lucy Corin, Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer, Jill McDonough, Jessica Goodfellow, Jessica Bonin, Friedrich Kerksieck , Erika Wilder, Elissa Washuta, David Bartone, Chris Dusterhoff, Britt Ashley, Becca Yenser, Anne Gorrick

Tickets for the Filter release party are on sale now through Brown Paper Tickets. Tickets are $8 in advance, $10 at the door, and $5 for students and seniors.http://www.brownpapertickets.com/even...

Copies of Filter may be purchased at: tickerfinch.etsy.com

What Makes This Writing Retreat DIfferent From All Other Retreats? Many Things ~

What makes Poets on the Coast different from any other writing retreat you might attend?

1. We will provide gourmet chocolate to inspire you.
2. The sound and scent and sight of the ocean will infuse your dreams with new poems (we expect).
3. You will have a private time to discuss your writing with Susan or Kelli at no extra charge.
4. There are two cats on the property to keep you company (or you can close your door).
5. As poets, we have been on many different retreats and given hundreds of workshops, but this is the first one we've actually designed. We are invested in making this an amazing weekend for everyone.
6. The weather on the Oregon Coast in early September is magical.
7. The breakfasts served (included with your room) are legion for style and size.
8. Optional morning yoga relaxation will be available to you from one of our participants (free).
9. Our group is diverse in age, geography, ethnicity... All women welcome regardless of genre.
10. And did we mention the dinners? Food, laughter, and lots of writing. What could be better?


Register by May 31st to receive a free copy of Crab Creek Review and a $50 discount!

Home Sweet Home

Sarajevo hard at workI am so glad to be back home in the craziness of end of the quarter (almost) grading and the sense that summer will come soon with (finally) time to devote to my writing. In the meantime, I capped off my year of travel with a marvelous weekend at the Massachusetts' Poetry Festival in Salem, MA. Organizers of this festival understood saw to everything from poetry trains and trollys to sessions on Lorca and Bishop. I've been to dozens of poetry festivals and the Massachusetts Poetry Festival ranks as a world class event.

I don't know all the names of the village of volunteers that made this event possible, but I do know that three key players were Michael Ansara, January O'Neil, and Jennifer Jean. I tip my poetry cap to you!

As a former organizer for Amnesty International USA, I know all the energy and months of planning it takes to pull off an event with an outdoor stage, several different venues, over a hundred (!) poets, and a series of musical acts. Please forgive me for not mentioning special projects like The Poetry Dress and other amazing things that were included in this festival. As a participant, I gave a workshop, "Speaking Pictures" and spoke on a panel on "Lives of the Poets" my job was easy. I worked with the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) and was overwhelmed with the warmth and cooperation that everyone I encountered there from Michelle Moon to the museum security guards showed me.

I'm still thinking about what made this event so important for me, but for now let me mention some personal highlights.

Mark Doty speaking on Dutch Still Life at the PEM

Lloyd Schwartz on Elizabeth Bishop at the PEM

Meeting an old friend in the women's bathroom at the PEM

Spending time with new friend poets Joseph O. Legaspi and Aimee Nezhukumatathil

Duende on deck
More to come!

Count Down to Massachusetts Poetry Festival - See You in Salem

The Massachusetts Poetry Festival has something for everyone. Here is a list of resources and events for teachers. And here is the schedule for all the cool events going on this Friday and Saturday. You can sign up for what you would like to attend (this is especially important for the workshops) or just browse the offerings. See you there -- along with Mark Doty, Jericho Brown, Brian Turner, and January O'Neil. PS Recognize the photo? It's a ceiling detail from Salem City Hall.

Best Women's Travel Writing Hits the Bookstores and iTunes

I'm happy to announce that The Best Women's Travel Writing, 2011 edited by Lavinia Spaulding and published by Traveller's Tales is now alive and well in the world. I'm thrilled to have my travel essay, Blue Gates, set during my time as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Zinder, Niger included in this strong collection. There are a dozen readings scheduled all over the United States --- two of these will be in Seattle. Mark your calendars for Wednesday, June 22nd at Elliott Bay Book Company. If you are traveling this summer you can catch up with us 7:00 pm Tuesday, October 4th at Wide World of Books and Maps.

Introducing the Jack Straw Writers - Hear Them This Friday @ 7pm

This September I was thinking about the fact that I am no longer a "young" writer, nor am I an "emerging" writer now that book three is out in the world. Somehow I've become a writer that is in a postion to help mentor other writers. Maybe we are all mentoring each other? I think so.

So when Joan Rabinowitz of Jack Straw Productions contacted me to curate this year's Jack Straw Writing Program it seemed the perfect opportunity to work with a group of writers. These writers (some with books, some not-yet published, some who are publishing books in 2011 for the first time ) were a delight to read (chosen from about one hundred writers) and great fun to get to know.

 Poets, fiction writers, memoir writers and non-fiction writers --- these men and women have more in common than I realized at first. Many of these writers are global travelers concerned with issues of immigration and migration of both people and goods; other writers tell of their own lives: a doctor concerned with women's health, a woman magician in a man's world, a former nun. Come to Jack Straw 7:00 pm this Friday, May 6th and you will hear Harold Taw, Nora Wendl, Ann Teplick and Maritess Zurbano. The Jack Straw Writers Program is celebrating its 15th birthday; come be part of the festivities. $5 suggested donation gets you a copy of this year's anthology and refreshments.

What is Jack Straw Writers Program? How can I apply to be a Jack Straw fellow? All information on the Jack Straw Writers Program is available to you right here.

Thankful Thursday on Tuesday: Jeannine Hall Gailey Reviews The Alchemist's Kitchen

Many thanks to Jeannine Hall Gailey who reviewed The Alchemist's Kitchen in the current issue of Rattle.
Here is my favorite part of Jeannine's review:


This is the kind of book you want to linger over and savor, as Rich's poems bring the reader into a circle of awareness: to the flavors, the undercurrents of poignancy in the familiar and the exotic, in the world around them.


You can read the rest of the review by clicking here.

Join Kelli Russell Agodon and me for "Poets on the Coast" ~ Register Now While Rates Are Low

I am still trying to figure out my summer plans, but I know where I will be the weekend of September 11th. There's something wonderful about a coastal retreat planned for early Fall. Before the weather changes, before school starts again, before the onslaught of our busy lives take over, and before new shoes --- we will gather to write together (and on our own) along the Oregon Coast. We have a few more spots left, and we've added an optional morning yoga class on the beach (optional!) for those that want to salute the sun before writing. Please consider joining us; it's going to be lovely and (we expect) seasonally warm!
Dwell in Possibility                                                         ~  Emily Dickinson 
Join Kelli Russell Agodon and Susan Rich for the first Poets on the Coast Weekend Writing Retreat September 9-11th, 2011 at the Sylvia Beach Hotel in Newport, Oregon on historic Nye Beach. We will gather to write, read and share our work inspired by the landscape and creative energy around us.  This retreat has been designed for women writers of all levels, from beginning poets to well published. Sessions on creativity, generating work, publication and one-on-one mentoring are included. 
 
We only have a limited number of spaces available and they will be filled on a first-come basis.
With the Sylvia Beach Hotel, designed to inspire writers with its literary-themed rooms, this retreat will offer you a unique experience to explore your writing and creativity. Come spend a weekend with other women poets. Be ready to be nurtured, inspired and creative. REGISTER for Poets on the Coast~Registration fees include all writing & workshop sessions, Friday evening, all day Saturday, & Sunday until 2 p.m. & one-on-one mentoring sessions.Please click here for the Registration Form (if you pay by PayPal, you are welcome to email the registration for to us at poetsonthecoast (a) yahoo.com)  
You can pay for Poets on the Coast with PayPal or by mailing a check to:        Poets on the Coast    Box 1524                                                       Kingston, WA 98346                                  along with the registration form. Registration Costs for Poets on the Coast: $305 – if you register by May 30, 2011

And the winners are ...Rita Mae ... Congratulations to you both!

True Random Number GeneratorAnd the winner is Rita Mae for enjoMin: Max: Result:17Powered by RANDOM.ORG

And the winners are ...poet Luke Johnson of Seattle, WA

And the winner is Luke Johnson of Seattlefor The Cartographer's Tongue!True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:28Powered by RANDOM.ORG