The Mad Poets Blog

For those who haven’t heard yet, tomorrow 25 poetry organizations from throughout the Philly area are getting together at the Central Library in Philadelphia to mix, mingle, and make merriment & mayhem at the Philadelphia Poetry Festival.

Philadelphia Poetry Festival
April 23, 2011
12pm-4pm
Free Library of Phila., Central Branch
Montgomery Auditorium
1901 Vine Street, Phila., PA 19103 [get directions]

The Fest is going down from 12p-4p in the Montgomery Auditorium (that’s downstairs) and will include representatives from an eclectic mix of Philly poetry orgs, talking about their work and spotlighting one of their favorite poets. The Mad Poets Society is one of those organizations. (In fact, Eileen & I have been part of the organizing committee, along with Joanne Leva, Tamara Oakman & Leonard Gontarek). Eileen will do the talking for MPS & John Timpane will be our representative poet. We’ll hit the stage in the 3rd set, early in the 2 o’clock hour. Right after featured poet Nathalie Anderson. Come check us out, throw us some love & hang out with about a bazillion other hardworking poets and organizers.

If you’ve ever kicked yourself for not getting to this reading or that reading, now is the time to get a taste of what all the city’s various poetry orgs have to offer. No kidding. Check out the FULL SCHEDULE for more info. See ya there!!

This Friday, April 22nd at 7:15pm, the Mad Poets’ Poetry Aloud and Alive series presents Brian Sammond at the Big Blue Marble bookstore in Mt. Airy.

Poet Brian Sammond has hosted poetry readings for the Mad Poets at Delaware County Science Institute, and currently hosts the Seasonal Madness series at Media Borough Hall.  He has hosted readings at the Blend at Blue Bananas Cafe on South Street as well.  But Brian is more than a host.  He has been a featured reader for Mad Poets and Poetry Blam!  Brian is a founding member of the Poetic Arts Performance Project.  His poetry has been published in the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Mad Poets Review. Some of Brian’s poems have also been set to music.

Brian unwinds from the rigor(morti)s of his programming career by riding his mountain bike about the hills of southeast Pennsylvania, playing with nieces and nephews, and of course writing poetry.

Brian’s poetry is fully thought out and finely wrought.  He has a fine ear for nuance and appeals to all the senses, including the sense of humor.  It is poetry you can appreciate and enjoy.

The featured reading, which begins at 7:15pm, will be followed by an open-reading-go-round hosted by Mike Cohen.  All are invited to read a few minutes’ worth of their own poetry (or someone else’s) or just to listen and enjoy.

Big Blue Marble Book Store is located at:

551 Carpenter Lane
(Mt. Airy) Philadelphia, PA 19119
215) 844-1870
www.bigbluemarblebooks.com

Appearing on Friday February 25 at 7:15 PM at the Big Blue Marble bookstore, will be poet Glenn McLaughlin, presented by Poetry Aloud and Alive and the Mad Poets.

The Many Faces of Glenn McLaughlin

Host of the Pottstown poetry program, “Otherwise – Poetry at Churchill’s”, Glenn McLaughlin came to poetry with a background in chemistry.

Glenn pursued a career in the plastics industry which he attributes to early exposure to the film “The Graduate” at an impressionable age.  Though he spent decades in plastic, Glenn himself is one hundred percent natural, as is his poetry (although some of it merits laminating).

He has also been involved in the operation and building of stores where Slurpee machines were a dominant feature.  He found collaboration with Slurpee machines quite unfulfilling.  Much more gratifying has been Glenn’s experience in teaching (although dealing with students can be much more like dealing with  Slurpee machines than a non-teacher might guess).   Despite all the turmoil a teacher finds in that no-man’s land between students and administrators,  there are moments that can make the struggle worthwhile, moments when, as the title of a book of Glenn’s poetry proclaims, “SOMETHING CATCHES.”  Glenn had one of these exquisite moments when he was substituting for a music teacher and one of the students told him, “I remember you.  I had you in Honors Chemistry last year.  I remember you because you made the lesson really interesting, I got it and that was the only day in that class all year that I didn’t feel stupid.”  You won’t get that from any Slurpee machine.

As Glenn’s teaching makes chemistry comprehensible to adolescents, his poetry makes life more comprehensible for us all.  Glenn makes poetry that is more entertaining and accessible than chemistry, though he is not afraid to mix the two, sometimes with explosive results.

Glenn’s poetry, rich with images and allusions, has appeared in local and regional journals and some online ezines.  His second collection of poems, “FORMS OF LECTIO”, was a finalist in the 2009 Eric Hoffer competition for best independently published literature.  His essay collection titled “OOPS” and recent poems and essays in “THE LAND I AM GIVEN” have been acclaimed for their subtlety, power, and truth.

Glenn McLaughlin has presented his poetry at the Philadelphia Library and in various venues across the mid-Atlantic area.  Please come help us welcome him to Mt. Airy and the Big Blue Marble book store.

The featured reading will be followed by the open-reading-in-the-round hosted by Mike Cohen.  All are invited to read a few minutes’ worth of their own poetry (or someone else’s) or just to listen and enjoy.

It’s a busy week, so I’ll skip all the witty preamble and get straight to the particulars. I’ll post more on each reading throughout the week. Be sure to follow us on twitter (@MadPoetsSociety) so you’re in the know.

Tues., Oct. 5th, 7-10pm: Open mic for poets & musicians at Steel City Coffeehouse in Phoenixville, hosted by Stu O’Connor and Mary Kathryn Morgeneier. Sign up at 6:30pm.

Wed., Oct. 6th, 7pm: Potpourri of Poetry, a new MPS series at the Park House Cafe in Ridley Park. The debut reading will feature Dave Worrell, followed by an open mic. This reading is free & open to the public. Hosted by Camelia Nocella.

Thurs., Oct. 7th, 7pm: Book party for Bill Van Buskirk, winner of the Mad Poets’ Joie DeVivre Book Award. Van Buskirk will read and sign copies of his winning book, This Wild Joy that Thrills Outside the Law, selected by renowned Philadelphia poet and editor Louis McKee. This free event will be held at the Delaware County Institute of Science.

Sat., Oct. 9th, 2-5pm: The Business of Words Workshop, led by Tamara Oakman, at the Blue Grotto in West Philadelphia.

Sat., Oct. 9th, 7pm: Therese Halscheid & Aaren Perry read for the Otherwise – Poetry at Churchill series in Pottstown.

Friday, September 24 at 7:15 PM Poetry is Aloud and Alive at the Big Blue Marble Bookstore in Mt. Airy.

Poet Bruce Niedt

This month’s featured reader is Bruce Niedt. A federal employee from southern New Jersey, Bruce is a “beneficent bureaucrat” as opposed to the other varieties.  For the past decade or so Bruce has been writing intensely.  Prior to that he was understandably distracted from his literary pursuits as he and his wife raised four sons.  He returned to writing with a vengeance, evidently having saved up lots of inspiration.

Bruce’s poems are accessible and surprising.  They make the reader rethink the commonplace.  In his hands an orange is not just fruit, a breeze is not just wind.  Bruce sees things very clearly and from unusual angles, and shares his vision in an exquisitely reader-friendly style.  His work has appeared in Writers’ Journal, The Fairfield Review, Byline, Red River Review, and Mad Poets Review, among many others in Australia and the U.K. as well as the U.S.  Bruce is a member of the excellent Quick and Dirty Poets and is co-editor of their journal Up and Under: The QND Review.

Bruce Niedt has won the Byline Short Fiction and Poetry Prize for 2003 and first prize for poetry at the Philadelphia Writers Conference (2006, 2007).  He also appeared as a contestant on the television game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Bruce is a poet, not a millionaire.

The featured reading will be followed by the open-reading-in-the-round hosted by Mike Cohen.  All are invited to read a few minutes’ worth of their own poetry (or someone else’s) or just to listen and enjoy.

It’s Memorial Day, so that means its officially summer, right? That may mean that the flow of poetry slows in some parts, but not these. This week, we’ve got two great events.

• Tuesday June 1st, 7 p.m.: Open mic poetry at Steel City Coffeehouse in Phoenixville. Hosted by Stu O’Connor and Mary Kathryn Morgeneier. Bring your poems, your instruments, and your enthusiasm. This event is free & open to the public.
• Thursday June 3rd, 6-8 p.m.: Light of Unity Association and Mad Poets Performance Series hits the University of Pennsylvania Bookstore in University City. This month’s line up features Jeffrey Ethan Lee, Dan Maguire, Quincy Scott Jones, Mel Brake, Tree Riesener, George McDermott, Bonnie MacAllister, and a musical/spoken performance by: Ian Wolf. Admission is $7 or $5 for students, seniors & MPS members. Proceeds benefit Philabundance.

Hope to see ya there!

Okay… so it’s Tuesday… I was hungover from all my Easter treats.

Tuesday, Monday… it’s all the same on the internet, really. So, lets get Shameless!!!! What are you doing this week? Reading, hosting, playing, performing, publishing??? Let us know.

We’ve got some good stuff happening. Here it is:

*Week of April 5*

• Tues., Apr. 6, 7p.m.: Open mic at Steel City Coffeehouse. Open to poets, songwriters & musicians!
• Thurs., Apr. 8, 7p.m.: John Yamrus & Minna Duchovnay at Milkboy Acoustic Cafe. Featured readers followed by an open mic – come through your hat into our open mic contest & try for the chance to win a featured spot at Milkboy this November!
• Sat., Apr. 10, 2p.m.: Open poetry workshop with Tamara Oakman at the Blue Grotto in West Philly. Bring your poems for critique and conversation.
• Sat., Apr. 10, 7p.m.: Otherwise – Poetry at Chuchill’s featuring a reading by the Mad Poets Hosts! The tables turn and those fearless leaders who show up month after month to host readings and workshops will get the chance to share their own poems. Come on out and show them some love!

It’s Monday… and again with all this rain! Blech!

Oh well, we press on into Spring, and as we press, we pause every once in a while for a great reading, a new book, a unique performance, etc. etc. etc. You just point us where to go. Get shameless and post a comment promoting yourself and your upcoming events!

Here’s what we’ve got going on this week. Thursday is a doozy for us!!

*Week of March 29*

• Thurs., April 1, 7:30p: Daniel Hoffman, former U.S. Poet Laureate, will read at the Swarthmore Public Library. This very special event kicks off National Poetry Month! It’s free and open to the public, and will be hosted by Linda Fischer.
• Thurs., April 1, 6p-8p: The Light of Unity Association and the Mad Poets Society present the 1st Thursdays performance series at the University of Pennsylvania Bookstore. This month, the line-up includes Deborah Derrickson Kossman, Peter Baroth, Michael Steffen, Denice Frohman (Ms. Misconception), Cole Larry Eubanks, Shani Sheryl Asantewaa, Strothers, and music by Jafar Barron & Anthony Mohammed. Admission is $7, with proceeds split between the performers and OIC International.

It’s Monday again. That means time to get Shameless with your good news. Reading coming up? Book getting published? Website we should check out? Type it in the comments & let us know. Or tweet it with the hashtag #ShamelessMonday. (And of course, if you’re not following us – @MadPoetsSociety – you should be!)

As for us, we’re really getting back in action this week!

*Week of Feb. 8, 2010*

• Wed, Feb 10, 6:30-8:30 p.m.: The MPS Critique Circle meets at the Coffee Club in Media, Pa. Please note, this is a new location & a new time for 2010. The critique circle is free, open to the public, and will convene in the Coffee Club’s glass-enclosed conference room.
• Thurs, Feb 11, 7 p.m.: We kick off our series at the Milkboy Acoustic Cafe in Bryn Mawr with our annual pre-Valentine’s Love/Anti-Love open mic. This is always LOTS of fun! No featured readers — just you, you, and you reading your poems about love, hate, lust, repulsion, and everything in between.
• Sat, Feb 13, 2 p.m.: Tamara Oakman’s Business of Words poetry workshop moves to the Blue Grotto (at Community Education Center) in University City. The workshop will meet monthly on the 2nd Saturday, Feb thru Nov.
• Sat, Feb 13, evening: The Mad Poets series in Pottstown kicks off… I don’t have full details, yet, but I’ll update later.

So, it’s Tuesday. So, it’s been a month since our last call for Monday Shamelessness. Are we the only ones who fell into the black hole of September??

Without further ado, we invite and encourage your shamelessness.  Where are you reading or performing? Where are you publishing? What the heck is going on in your world??? We want to know!

It’s fall, so things are picking up for us again.  This week is a little light, but we do have our biggest & best event of the year — the Mad Poets Festival — coming up on Sunday.  Check it out!!

*Week of Sept 28*

• Wed., Sept. 30, 6-7:30 p.m.: The Self & Place in Poetry, A workshop with Leonard Gontarek at the Walnut Street West Library (note this is a change of venue!)  The workshop is free, but registration is required. Click above for more info.
• Sun., Oct. 4, 12-5 p.m.: The Mad Poets Festival (woot woot!) at Media Borough Hall.