Congratulations to three Mad Poets on their awards in the annual Charlotte Miller Simon Poetry Contest given by the Ardmore Library.
Joseph Dorazio won first prize and both Linda M. Fischer and Amy E. Laub received honorable mentions. The winners will be reading their poems at the awards ceremony tomorrow, Sunday, March 17, at 2:00 p.m. in the Lower Merion Township Bldg., 75 East Lancaster Ave., Ardmore.
Come one, come all!
This week, don’t miss a special Mad Poets’ Event at the Community Art Center in Wallingford, Pa.
Participants in the Mad Poets’ Critique Circle will stop critiquing and just read! The poets include: Joe Cillufo, Sibelan Forrester, Missy Grotz, David Kozinski, Amy Laub, Joyce Meyers, Charlie Randall, and Tim Wade. (Check out their bios below.)
Come listen as these talented, hard working poets share their work. The featured reading will be followed by an open, so bring yours or your favorite poet’s work to share.
WHEN? Wednesday, March 6th at 7p
WHERE? Community Art Center, Main Gallery
414 Plush Mill Road, Wallingford, PA 19086
610-566-1713 / www.communityartcenter.org
NEED MORE INFO? email [email protected]
Joe Cilluffo is a practicing attorney who spends his free time writing, weeding his vegetable garden and playing with his three children. He recently was selected as a Finalist in Tiferet Journal’s 2012 Poetry Contest, and Joe’s poems have also appeared in Philadelphia Poets, Apiary, The New Purlieu Review and Adanna Literary Journal. Joe has read his work at venues across the Philadelphia area, including as a featured reader at the Moveable Beats Reading Series in Center City, the Philadelphia Poets Ethnic Voices series, and at the Manayunk-Roxborough Arts Center inaugural ekphrastic poetry exhibit.
Sibelan Forrester has published a number of poetic translations from Croatian and Russian, and she received the 2006 Heldt Prize for her translation of Dubravka Oraić-Tolić’s “American Scream” (from Croatian). She has published less of her own poetry. In her day job, she teaches Russian language and literature at Swarthmore College.
Missy Grotz is a member of the Wild Women Poets and The Round Robin Poets, and has had the pleasure of reading at many venues around the Philadelphia area. A series of children’s books known as the Aunt Missy Books, inspired by her 14 nieces and nephews, is in the works. She has a collection of cat poetry entitled Cat Chat that will be out one day soon.
David P. Kozinski was the featured poet in the Spring 2012 issue of Schuylkill Valley Journal. He won the 7th annual Dogfish Head Poetry Prize, which included publication of his chapbook, Loopholes. More than 100 of his poems have appeared in Apiary, The Broadkill Review, Confrontation, Fox Chase Review, glimmertrain.com., Mad Poets Review, and Margie, among others. Kozinski has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize twice.
Amy Laub has been a member of the Mad Poets Critique Circle since April 2003, and has been hosting it since Sept 2003. Her poems contain news and gossip about everyday events and the people in her life. She swims laps and works full time as a secretary for a public school district.
Joyce Meyers practiced law in Philadelphia for almost three decades. Her poems have appeared in Atlanta Review, Comstock Review, The Ledge, Slant, Iodine Poetry Journal, The Great American Poetry Show, and Common Ground Review, among others. She was awarded publication prizes in the Atlanta Review International Poetry Competition in 2010, 2011 and 2012, and second prize in The Ledge 2011 Poetry Contest. She has two chapbooks, Wild Mushrooms (Plan B Press, 2007) and Shapes of Love (Finishing Line Press, 2010).
Charlie Randall writes of himself, “My Grandmother was a musician & piano teacher. My dad, the physics prof, & I, in geology, rankled at her left-brain perspective. Now I’m glad I inherited a few of her genes which I continue to explore.”
Timothy Wade is a lifelong resident of Upper Darby and a staff chemist at Drexel University. He has been married for 33 years to his muse who endures his unending one liners with long-suffering grace. He is also an avid but unskillful trail runner. Don’t ask him what hurts.
FROM AMY LAUB, HOST OF THE MPS CRITIQUE CIRCLE:
Dear Poets wearing corduroy pants (or not, as several of you rushed to advise me),
I am cancelling Wednesday night’s MPS Critique Circle.
Today’s weather forecast says the snow will begin at 6:00 pm tomorrow, which means things could get slippery by 9:00 or 9:30 pm when we would normally wrap up. I don’t want anyone to have an accident, or near-accident, or stress out and worry about black ice and driving in crummy weather in the dark.
Stay home. Stay safe. Write more poems. Make fun of me for being a weather wimp. Throw darts at my photo.
Warm regards and whipped cream for your cocoa,
Amy
Last November, the poetry world lost an important man: Louis McKee passed away at the age of 60. McKee was a long-time Mad Poet, and this Sunday, we will celebrate Lou — his life, his work, and his friendship — at the Mansion Parlor in Media Borough Hall.
Read more →This Thursday, the Mad Poets is delighted — dare I say giddy! — to host the Round Robin poets at Milkboy in Bryn Mawr. The group, which include Mike Cohen, Steve Delia, Missy Grotz, and Barbara Wagner, will offer a dynamic, coordinated reading, featuring works that the poets have helped each other craft and refine throughout their 10 years together.
But this isn’t just a rare reading from the Round Robin poets. This is a farewell party for one of the group’s members: long-time Mad Poet, Byrn Mawr regular, and all around spunky poet, Barbara Wagner, who will soon be moving to sunny Florida. If you’ve heard Barbara read before, then you know why it’s important to catch one last reading before she goes. If you haven’t, you’ll be glad you got to meet her before the chance is gone.
The reading will begin PROMPTLY at 7pm, followed by an open mic.
Here’s a little bit more about Barbara Wagner & the other Round Robin poets:
The Round Robin Poets (l-r): Mike Cohen, Barbara Wagner, Steve Delia, and Missy Grotz
The Round Robin began over a decade ago, when a young Steve Delia suggested that some of the poets might help each other with new poems or revising old ones by critiquing works in progress, by mail. Â His idea was to have each member critique the poems that others had sent and then add a new poem to be critiqued on each round. The group began with five people, each would critique four poems, add his/her own, and eventually get their poem from the previous round and the 4 critiques of it. Â Of course with the proliferation of electronic communication, the temptation to succumb to the efficiencies of email was great, but thanks to Steve’s leadership the poets were able to resist, and maintain the Round Robin in its pristine, snail-mail state. Â Says Mike Cohen: “There is something about receiving a packet in the mail and having actual pages, to curl up and spend happy hours with those pages of thoughts from thoughtful, inspiring friends.” The fact that the Round Robin has been sustained for so long is testament to the pertinacity of the participants and to the reliability of the postal service. Â In all this time, they’ve not had an incident of anything “lost in the mail”; Â Postal workers may occasionally go on shooting rampages, but overall they do a very good job. The poets have also done a good job, and they have had no incidents of any of the members going on a shooting rampage… yet.
Those members are…
Mike Cohen: A person who appreciates poetry, art, and other dreams, Mike enjoys sharing perspectives on matters that matter and matters that don’t and how remarkably interchangeable the two types of matters are. Mike’s poetry has appeared in the Mad Poets Review, Fox Chase Review, Schuylkill Valley Journal, and the Philadelphia Daily News. His poetic presentations have been featured in programs at various schools, bookstores, coffee shops, and libraries. His poems have been aired on SKN radio. Mike has served as a judge in the Montgomery County Poet Laureate competition. Currently, Mike hosts Poetry Aloud and Alive, a popular monthly poetry program in its fifth year at Mt. Airy’s Big Blue Marble Book Store. He takes part in guiding tours at Woodmere Art Museum.  His articles on Philadelphia sculpture appear in the Schuylkill Valley Journal in which he is a contributing editor.
Steve Delia has been crumpling balls of paper for 33 years. The ones he keeps he calls poetry. His first love was music but he had zero musical talent. He tried writing song lyrics and gradually drifted into poetry. He has 5 chapbooks: Revisited, Revised and Retyped Volumes 1 and 2, 1622 Church Street, Haiku And Other Imagining and Zoo Poetry. He enjoys collecting cd’s, eating scrapple by candlelight, and playing naked twister.He dislikes heights, shoveling snow, being diabetic, and all feet including his own.
Missy Grotz has followed a gypsy’s jaunt, including education at Penn State and a myriad of careers.  Her poetry has been published in the Mad Poets Review and Dining and Entertainment Weekly. Missy is a member of the Wild Women Poets and The Round Robin Poets, and has had the pleasure of reading at many venues around the Philadelphia area.  A series of children’s books known as the Aunt Missy books, inspired by her 14 nieces and nephews, is in the works. She has a collection of cat poetry entitled Cat Chat that will be out one day soon.
Barbara Wagner has performed her poetry and fiction throughout the Philadelphia and New Jersey area, including the Philadelphia Fringe Festival and the televised Café Improv program in Princeton, NJ.  Her work has appeared in several literary publications as well as on the internet, most recently Poets for Living Waters, created in response to the Gulf oil spill. Her children’s story The Giggling Ghost is featured on Smories.com. Her poetry awards include the Philadelphia Writers’ Conference.  In addition to poetry, she writes fiction and has recently completed her second novel.
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As always, the featured reading will be followed by a mixed-genre open mic. We’re just halfway through our annual open mic contest — which means there’s still plenty of time to snag enough votes to win a featured reading slot in December. So come on out! Bring your open ears, your open mind & your best poems!
Tomorrow night, the Mad Poets is super excited to present a special poetry reading and art show of multi-talented local artist — and long-time Mad Poet – PETER BAROTH. This event will take place in the Community Art Center, 414 Plush Mill Road, Wallingford , PA 19086. The featured reading & show will start at 7pm, with an open mic to follow. Light refreshments will also be provided.
"Self Portrait," by Peter Baroth
Peter Baroth is a writer, artist, and musician based in Philadelphia. He was born in Chicago, raised in Norman, Oklahoma, and graduated from Washington University in St. Louis and Temple Law School. He has published a novel, Long Green, with iUniverse; and his most recent chapbook is Ski Oklahoma, published with Wordrunner Chapbooks. His poetry has appeared in Mad Poets Review, Schuylkill Valley Journal, Philadelphia Poets, Legal Studies Forum, The Awakenings Review, E Pluribus Unum – An Anthology of Diverse Voices, Apiary, and elsewhere. He was the 2009 recipient of the Amy Tritsch Needle Award in poetry. He is also on the editorial board of Philadelphia Stories magazine.
You can read some of Peter’s poems here, here & here.
And you can check out Peter’s facebook album to view more of his exciting artwork.
Thursday! Thursday! Thursday! Join the Mad Poets for some sweet mixed genre action at Milkboy Acoustic Cafe in Bryn Mawr. This month we’ve got two poets & a novelist/essayist. Of course, we’ve also got our always exciting open mic, including the ongoing open mic contest where you can for a featured spot on this year’s schedule.
The really big news, however, concerns all of you (like me) who operate on poet time: We will be starting ON TIME. That’s right. Our schedule says 7pm, and we plan to have that ball a-rolling by 7:05p… okay, maybe 7:07p if that line for lattes is extra long. And here’s why. Our gracious hosts at Milkboy are holding steadfast to a 9pm closing time, and we as their grateful guests must abide. So, get there early. If you’re worried about dinner, don’t. Milkboy has some good grub — sandwiches, snacks, sweets, etc. Besides, you won’t want to miss a minute of this reading!
J.R. Bouchard is originally from upstate New York. After living in both Portland, Oregon and Philadelphia for academics, she is re-locating to Dallas, Texas and hopes to have a life long affair with academia. She just completed her MFA at Rosemont College, and is shopping around her thesis project, a full length collection of poems, called “The Body’s Discourse, Etc.” Â Her work can be found in journals: Camroc Review, The Foundling Review, Mad Poets Review, The Promethean, Adirondack Review, Melee Live, WordRiot, and pieces forthcoming with Cantalonian Review.
Writer & teacher, Matt Jordan
Matthew Jordan teaches English and Writing at Holy Ghost Preparatory School and Montgomery County Community College. When grading doesn’t demand too much of his time, he writes essays, short stories and poems, and is currently working on a novel. Some of his essays have been published by Philadelphia Stories, where he also serves as an editor. He lives in East Falls.
Sarah Spath, poet
Sarah Spath (who was originally slated to read for us in March, but had to reschedule thanks to a yucky flu) is a poet and educator who is relatively new to Philadelphia. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University–Los Angeles and is a graduate of the Transition to Teaching program at Indiana University. Currently, she works as the Tutorial Coordinator at Philadelphia University.
This Thursday, we’re gonna do it big at Milkboy. Not only are we celebrating National Poetry Month, we’re also celebrating my birthday (that’s Autumn Konopka, your effervescent hostess with the mostess)! To make sure we do it up right, we’re bringing in 4 of our newest voices to light up the stage: Christine Chiosi, Lola Georg, Howard Lieberman, and Susan H. Robbins.
Retiring early from the practice of medicine, Christine Chiosi now spends her time writing poetry and short fiction. Her poetry can be found in Carpe Articulum, and she anticipates June publications in Cloudbank and the Sierra Nevada Review. She has been favorably reviewed in NewPages.com, an on-line source for literary journals. Christine has recently returned to the Philadelphia area after living and teaching in central Chile, where she completed a collection of bilingual poems. Most recently (last week!) she was just selected by NPR to read her tweet of a poem (140 characters or less!) on air, for their National Poetry Month feature, which selects one tweeted poem per day, during the month of April. She is currently looking for a job to sustain her first love, which is drifting, thoughtfully, through the mine-fields of memory.
Lola Georg
Lola Georg works professionally in Business and Finance, with 25 years of management experience, predominantly in the non-profit sector. She volunteers as a counselor at Daemion Counseling Center in Berwyn, where she works with people who can not afford traditional therapy fees. Poet-wise, she has written poetry over the years because it is therapeutic, and she spends a lot of time thinking in metaphor. For fun, she likes to ski, hike, bike, and spend time outdoors.
Howard Lieberman started out as a neurosurgeon, but has been writing for years. His work has been published in about 10 journals, and even in the NY Times. Now, he primarily writes every day as his main hobby (others include: an obsessive chess playing mania along with a mania for collecting things: etchings, coins, pottery, antique books, anything that doesn’t run fast enough). He adds on endlessly to my poetry web site, artpoetry.com , where along with many poems, are poems combined with pictures (not his), notes on whatever is obscure, and a history of the last 100 years of poetry.
Susan H. Robbins
Susan H. Robbins, Ph.D., only recently discovered her ‘poetic voice’ after more than 25 years as a research professional evaluating education and health and human service programs. She received two awards for her poetry at the 2010 Philadelphia Writers Conference. Two of her poems were published in the most recent volume of the Mad Poets Review. Susan has also performed her poetry at Grounds for Sculpture in New Jersey and at the Mad Poets Society 2009 and 2010 Festivals. She truly hopes you enjoy her poetry.
Of course, we’ll round out the evening with the poetic stylings of our always eclectic open mic gang. That could include you, if you show up & bring some poems. Oh yeah, and we’re running our 2011 open mic contest, which means if you do read in the open mic, you just might get yourself a feature slot in December! So be there:
Mad Poets Mixed-Genre Reading & Open Mic
Milkboy Acoustic Cafe
824 West Lancaster Avenue
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
Reading starts at 7pm, open mic follows.
If you haven’t already heard, it’s National Poetry Month… and if you haven’t heard, you probably live in a remote village, with limited access to the internet & only this website enabled. Because it’s everywhere! And of course we couldn’t be happier!!!!
We’re celebrating all month long, but tonight we’ve got an extra special event at Swarthmore Public Library, featuring nationally acclaimed poet Gregory Djanikian. The reading, which will be hosted by loyal Mad Poet Linda Fischer, will begin promptly at 7 pm. Refreshments will be served.
Gregory Djanikian, poet
Gregory Djanikian is the Director of the Creative Writing Program at the University of Pennsylvania. He has published five collections of poetry, The Man in the Middle, Falling Deeply into America, About Distance, Years Later, and most recently, So I Will Till the Ground, all with Carnegie Mellon University Press. His awards include a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Eunice Tietjens Prize from Poetry magazine, and the Anahid Literary Award from the Armenian Center of Columbia University. You can read about him and preview some of his amazing poems here, here, and here.
Host Linda Fischer says: I heard Gregory Djanikian read some years ago under the auspices of the Mad Poets, and I became an immediate fan! His poetry is completely accessible and always very moving, whether somber or humorous. This is an evening you will really enjoy!”