A Letter from the President
Dear April Fools,
We've come to the celebratory month for poetry and foolishness. We might as well be bold about it.
As John Bodwell Wood wrote,
What we do, let's do with boldness;
What we know, let's speak for aye!
And respect naught for its oldness
If it be not right to-day.
We started the month with a Poetry Trails event in Kershaw County at Camden Environmental Riverfront Park, 10 a.m., April 1. The Poetry Trails events are part of our "Every Corner, Every County" initiative, and they are continuing to be such a pleasure thanks to the leadership of board member Tina Baumis. This time around, it was just the two of us on a windy day, strolling around the grassy trail next to pond and marsh with cattails.
(photos by Tina Baumis) We stopped to admire the ducks and read a few poems: I shared a poem called "Neighbor" from the Georgia Poetry Society collection called The Reach of Song: 2020, and Tina read an ekphrastic one she had workshopped in a group in North Carolina. She showed me several photos from the incredible artist who inspired it, Zanela Muholi. Then we took ourselves to the Steeplechase Bar and Grill for lunch. It was only right on Carolina Cup day to have a Steeplechase martini, and we took the opportunity to leave flyers for the Poetry Society and my business card. I've been exploring the best platforms for me to share the whole collection of stories and reflections from the initiative, and right now I'm trying out Resilia, a technology platform for non-profits. When I've got something publishable, I'll be sharing with you. People and organizations are also reaching out to us, and there are several projects in the works that we can look forward to. For example, I'm conspiring with Evelyn Berry to start a workshop series that she will lead at The Living Room, the Columbia hub of the PSSC. How bold were you in March? What paths did you take up, and to achieve what ends? I'll tell you where I went ... and look forward to hearing from you about your own adventures.
Writers' Group at Bliss At the first meeting of this revived hundred year old tradition, now held at Bliss Spiritual Co-op in Mt. Pleasant, we read "The Song of the Nightingale is Like the Scent of Syringa," by Mina Loy. It was a lovely surprise for me because I studied Loy as a graduate student and prepared to write my masters thesis on the theme of maternal loss in her work. I shared some of the story of my project with Shayna and our two guests, and we enjoyed some conversation before getting down to the writing.
Shayna wanted us to see Loy's poem and hear its rhythms and its sounds, and then try something like it. For your pleasure:
Nightingale singing -- gale of Nanking
Sing -- mystery
of Ming-dynasty
sing
ing
in Ming
Syringa
Myringa
Singer
Song-winged
sing-wind
syringa
ringer
Song-wing
sing long
syringa
lingerer
After we'd read the poem, we chose an animal oracle card and used the animal's name as our prompt. My animal was "llama," and I actually came up with a more meaningful poem than I might have expected. This was one of three activities we did, including a poem made up of all six-syllable lines ("The Six-Syllable Memoir"), and all were wonderful. Please join us next time. We are meeting every third Saturday at 1164 Pleasant Oaks Drive.
What a remarkable night! Seats were full, and eyes wide -- first to Cora Schipa, the opening reader, who was introduced by our program chair, Danielle DeTiberus. A lovely beginning!Ed Madden, our featured reader, was introduced by Joseph Kelly, Professor of English and the Director of Irish and Irish American Studies at the College of Charleston. Ed gave us his first public reading of A Pooka in Arkansas, and it was brilliant!
The Saturday Seminar with Ed also went extremely well, with several in attendance in person and on Zoom. He prompted us to explore the mysterious countries of our imagination and to consider how ordinary encounters may hold something of the devine. I came away with three draft poems I'm still hopeful about and enjoyed hearing the other participants' drafts as well.
I attended the launch of Fall Lines at the Richland County Library, where I enjoyed the company of Susan Craig, Ruth Nicholson, Arthur Turfa, Cindi Boiter, Debra Daniel, Jo Angela Edwins, Lisa Hammond, Bentz Kirby, Ed Madden, Melanie McGehee and others. I met Aida Rogers, a friend of Melanie McClellan Hartnell's (love how the relationships are developing from around the state). I read Libby Bernardin's tender poem "Bird" on her behalf, and enjoyed listening to all the poems presented and seeing other PSSC members in the index. Finally, I spoke with Frances Pearce about her Society presidency and her memories about this job. I was inspired.
So there's your sketch of my March... now let's have our Member Spotlight. Also, don't miss the Member News section this month because there is so much to share! In fact, this is the busiest month I've reported on yet!
Member Spotlight: Dr. Oliver Bowman
By Jim Lundy
Oliver Bowman has been attending Poetry Society meetings for sixty years. It is likely that there is nobody alive today who has attended more. You might have noticed that I did not say he has been a member of the Poetry Society for sixty years. I will explain that later, but first we are going to go all the way back to the beginning…
Oliver was born in Holly Hill, S.C., on February 1, 1931. There was no hospital there. He was born at home, delivered by Dr. Wells. Soon thereafter, the family moved to the tiny, nearby town of Bowman, S.C., a cotton-farming community and the home of a lumber company and three commercial dairies. Its population then was around 750 people, which is almost exactly its population today.
Oliver’s father, an employee of the lumber company, was a great believer in education. He instilled in his children the expectation that they would attend college. Because he started school early and high schools of the time only went to the eleventh grade, Oliver was sixteen years old when he started his studies at Furman University in 1947. There he played violin and earned a bachelor’s degree in music. After Oliver’s senior recital, his father disabused him of any expectations for a bright future as a concert violinist with these words: “Son, you were good, but you didn’t make anyone cry.” Envisioning an unfulfilling future of playing in a community orchestra and giving violin lessons on the side, Oliver instead set his sights on becoming an English teacher. He earned a Masters in Education at the University of South Carolina in 1952 and began teaching high school in Summerville, SC.
Although he had thus far been fortunate in avoiding being drafted into the Korean War, his luck finally ran out. He was conscripted into the Army, completed basic training, and was shipped overseas. But there is a thread running through Oliver’s life story of being at the right place at the right time. While he was in transit to Korea, the armistice was signed. Due to his especially good skills at using a typewriter, Private Bowman was assigned clerk duties and spent the next two years typing for a legal team in Korea and Japan.
After the Army discharged him from active duty, Oliver taught high school in Anderson, SC, while working on a Ph.D. in English at the University of Georgia. He chose the characters of Tennessee Williams’s dramas for the topic of his dissertation. His dissertation advisor told him that he would never understand Tennessee Williams without studying Freud first. But once he was exposed to the academic world of psychology, that was it. He went on to earn a Ph. D. in psychology from the University of Georgia and accepted a job at Florida State University in 1963. Here again, fate stepped in at the right time. As the academic year approached, The Citadel’s one-and-only psychology professor quit, and Oliver was offered the position. Weighing the distinct advantages of being a big fish in a small pond, he took the job and called Florida State with his regrets. He would go on to develop and head The Citadel’s psychology department and serve as director of graduate studies there. He stayed at the school until retirement thirty-three years later.
Just after the start of his first academic year at The Citadel, another instance of kismet occurred in Oliver’s life. Although he had acted in school plays before—his first role was the pastor in a Tom Thumb wedding in grade school—he had never studied the craft but had a natural talent for it. To hone his skills, he enrolled in an adult theater workshop taught by Dottie D’Anna and Kit Lyons of the Footlight Players. At the time, they were in well into production of Noel Coward’s Blythe Spirit. The first day of the workshop happened to be the same day that noted local actor Bernard Hester dropped out of the play. The casting director sized up Oliver as an emergency replacement, noticing he used distinct pronunciation and was taller than the woman who would be playing his wife. When they found he owned his own tuxedo, he got the role on the spot. Oliver was able to act in numerous plays over the next three decades by working within breaks in The Citadel’s academic schedule.
Oliver’s interest in literature became his introduction to psychology, but it was no mere stepping stone. Poetry stuck around throughout his professional career and became an integral part of it. He authored several academic papers on using poetry in the therapeutical process and employed it extensively in his own counseling of Citadel cadets and private patients. Many of them had trouble talking about their problems, but they found that they could write about them. Sometimes cadets would write poems and slip them under his office door. This made it easier for them to talk about their feelings later.
Oliver’s introduction to the Poetry Society of South Carolina came almost immediately after his arrival in Charleston through fellow Citadel professor John Doyle, who had by that time been a leading force in the PSSC since before World War II. When Doyle learned of Oliver’s interest in using poetry as a tool in the therapy process, he invited him to give a talk to the Society in 1963. He was also a featured presenter in January 1969.
Oliver was not a paid member of the group early on. “I spent all my money on memberships in as many psychological organizations and associations as I could afford on the salary of a college professor just starting out,” he recalls. He had been attending Society events regularly for a decade before finally paying dues. There is also a break in his membership for some years while he was focusing on the ever-increasing demands of his career in the 1980s and ‘90s. It was only after retirement in 1996, when he had more time for the PSSC, that he served as a member of the board in various capacities, including vice president. In all, he was on the board for a total of seven years, with an additional nine years as contest chairman and a recurring spot as the reader for every May Forum. His home was also very memorably the site of the PSSC's annual December Holiday Party for seven years.
When I asked Oliver to tell me what he likes best about the Poetry Society, or what he looks back on in fondness, he said, “The Society is to me a pleasant hour of hearing poetry, but more importantly it is a gathering of people who really enjoy each other.” To honor the person who introduced him to the Poetry Society sixty years ago, Oliver has sponsored the John Robert Doyle Jr. Prize for the last forty-three years. To honor Oliver, the Society’s board voted to elevate him to honorary membership status starting in 2013. Few have been given this honor over the last century.
2022-2023 Program
For those who are new: the Poetry Society's official calendar runs from September to May. visit the PSSC website for greater detail and to RSVP. The events are the second Friday of the month and the Saturday that follows it. Each poet presents a reading and seminar. With the exception of February and March, all events will take place on the second Friday of the month at the Charleston Library Society. February and March events will be held at the Unitarian Church in Charleston, 4 Archdale Street.
PSSC 2023 Calendar:
September 2022: Melissa Crowe October 2022: Han VanderHart November 2022: Jaki Shelton Green (canceled) December 2022: Holiday Party January 2023: Member's Open Mic February 2023: Gary Jackson March 2023: Ed McMadden April 2023: Raena Shirali May 2023: Glenis Redmond
This month's guest poet: Raena Shirali with opening poet Libby Bernardin
April 14, 7 p.m.
Charleston Library Society
164 King St.
Charleston
For the April reading, we're delighted to have Raena Shirali. She will also host a seminar/workshop on Saturday. You can register at the website.
Raena Shirali is the author of two collections of poetry. Her first book, GILT (YesYes Books, 2017), won the 2018 Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award, and her second, summonings (Black Lawrence Press, 2022), won the 2021 Hudson Prize. A former Philip Roth Resident at Bucknell University, Shirali is also the recipient of prizes and honors from VIDA, Gulf Coast, Boston Review, & Cosmonauts Avenue. Formerly a Co-Editor-in-Chief of Muzzle Magazine, Shirali now serves as Faculty Advisor for Folio—a literary magazine dedicated to publishing works by undergraduate students at the national level. She holds an MFA in Poetry from The Ohio State University and is an Assistant Professor of English at Holy Family University. The Indian American poet was raised in Charleston, South Carolina, and now lives in Philadelphia. We'd love it if you'd share our poster!
Topic: Raena Shirali Reading
Time: April 14, 2023 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Zoom link for Friday (open to the public):
Saturday's Workshop Topic: “Near” Persona vs. “Far” Persona: Writing the Other, Writing the Self
Writing from the perspective of another requires great investment and momentous risk, all with no promise of reward. So why do poets continue to explore persona as a creative approach in our work? In this seminar, we will explore Shirali’s scholarship on the persona spectrum—discussing “near” persona and “far” persona as ways of conceiving of our poems’ speakers, and ultimately engaging in philosophical exploration of the ethical stakes and creative potential inherent in stepping outside our own subjectivities.
Zoom link for Saturday (observation only): Topic: Raena Shirali Seminar Time: Apr 15, 2023 10:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81423338568?pwd=ZnREUWJJd0tVWFJvbXZtcXFFd1cxdz09 Meeting ID: 814 2333 8568 Passcode: 139076 Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdaHuGZhLN -- to participate in person, please register at the website or pay in person. Students and Zoom attendees are free, but may not have materials provided or interaction with the poet. (It is at the poet's discretion).
Opening Poet: Libby Bernardin
South Carolina poet Libby Bernardin is the author of Stones Ripe for Sowing (Press 53, 2018) and two chapbooks, The Book of Myth (SC Poetry Initiative, 2009) and Layers of Song (Finishing Line Press, 2011). Journal publications include The Asheville Poetry Review, Southern Poetry Review, Kakalak. She has won poetry awards from the Poetry Society of South Carolina and the North Carolina Poetry Society, and has served as co-director of the highly respected Litchfield Tea & Poetry Series until 2019. Her new book, House in Need of Mooring (Press 53, 2022), is yet another testament to the silver lining of the pandemic. A retired English teacher from the University of South Carolina, she leads poetry workshops for the Georgetown County Library. She is a lifetime member of the Board of Governors of the SC Academy of Authors. Buxton Books will have books available for purchase.
Opened in 2016, Buxton Books is located on King Street, the main thoroughfare in downtown Charleston. The bookstore specializes in ticketed, dynamic, book-included events both in the bookstore and at many different venues in the city, and they are proud to be the official bookseller for the Poetry Society of South Carolina.
May 12 and 13: Glennis Redmond
Charleston Library Society, King Street
Reading, Friday 7 pm
Seminar, Saturday 10 am
Glenis Redmond is a performance poet, a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, and a Cave Canem alumni. She is the author of three books of poetry: Backbone (Underground Epics, 2000), Under the Sun (Main Street Rag, 2002), and What My Hand Say (Press 53, 2016). She will have three more books published in 2022: Listening Skin (Four Way Books), Three Harriets & Others (Finishing Line Press), and Praise Songs for Dave the Potter, Art by Jonathan Green, and Poetry by Glenis Redmond (University of Georgia Press). She is presently working on a seventh collection, Port Cities: Portals of the Second (Domestic) Middle Passage.
Members in the News
Lots of news from Elizabeth Robin:
She is running an event on Hilton Head Island to celebrate the Finishing Line Press poets of SC:
She will also be reading at Mind Gravy on April 26, hosted by Al Black (at Cool Beans, Columbia) AND at Spoleto. Finally, she is excited to share this great news:
NEWS RELEASE Hilton Head Island Launching New Poetry Trail Hilton Head Island, SC—February 15, 2023
A poetry trail is coming to Hilton Head Island. How can this be? A marriage of technology, creative writing, public art, and arts-minded businesses brings a new way to see Hilton Head Island: through the eyes of the poets who live here. Grabbing wine for a dinner party from Rollers Wine & Spirits? Scan the sign placed near its gorgeous bar, and read Phil Lindsey’s “A Little Tipsy”! Confused, asking What is it?, as you stare at Carocol in Shelter Cove Park? Scan the trail sign and Elizabeth Abrams gives you one interpretation with “O’Keefe’s Woody Orchid.” It’s the kind of collaboration that makes the arts an experience. The project is a partnership between the Town of Hilton Head Island’s Office of Cultural Affairs and the Island Writers’ Network.
Fifteen sculptures and four businesses now await their signs, with five more pending approval. The trail’s opening will have two dozen stops and launch at the beginning of April, which is National Poetry Month. Along the trail are easy-to-find, numbered signs containing two QR codes. One takes you to a poem written by a poet living in the area. The other takes you to the trail’s Facebook page, where you can find the entire route, plan a full tour, or comment on the poem, the art, or the business you visited along the way. Scanning the sign allows the Office of Cultural Affairs to track traffic, key data that helps direct new projects in our arts community. A trail launch reading will be on the deck of Rollers Wine & Spirits, 9 Palmetto Bay, April 19 from 4 to 6 p.m. There, listeners can sample wine and hear the trail poets read in person.
The technology guru and idea man on the project is Bill Schmitt, who volunteers with the Arts Council, Concours d’Elegance and Camera Club of Hilton Head. He developed the logo, the sign design and Facebook page. Natalie Harvey, the new Director of Cultural Affairs formerly at the Coastal Discovery Museum, oversees the sculptures approved for the project and the affixing of signs near the public art installations. Award-winning poet Elizabeth Robin recruited the poets and the businesses that are participating. She emcees a monthly open mic for IWN, curates poetry for Local Life Magazine, and partners with arts groups to bring literati to Hilton Head Island. She has three books through Finishing Line Press, most recently To My Dreamcatcher (2022).
For more information: Natalie Harvey, Office of Cultural Affairs 843-341-4703 natalieh@hiltonheadislandsc.gov www.culturehhi.org
Elizabeth Robin, Island Writers’ Network 843-505-5224 elizabethrobin.writer@gmail.com http://www.elizabethrobin.com
Libby Bernardin was featured at the Georgetown Library, Tuesdays With... House in Need of Mooring, her new book, which you can purchase at the link below.
https://www.press53.com/poetry-collections/house-in-need-of-mooring-by-libby-bernardin?fbclid=IwAR2susvGh234AW3RJhZzLihxjMZA2K3Jv0bZhzRX8ctWp5hAfmpT96sHGXw and you can watch Libby's reading here: https://youtu.be/71KNipacE7I
Ashley Crout has had work published in Juked and in Screen Door Review. Read the Juked piece here:
Nico Harnett has had two poems published in Convivium Magazine. You can read them both here: https://madconvivium.wixsite.com/convivium/post/the-tragedy-of-daisy-crowns
Ann Humphries introduced Jennifer Bartell Boykin, Columbia Poet Laureate, at Jennifer's reading at Still Hopes, Guinard Mansion, March 18. She is also one of the people profiled by Michael Nye:
Ann and “My Heart is Not Blind” Podcast Sharing something we can all celebrate…
Author and photographer of My Heart is Not Blind On Blindness and Perception, Michael Nye spent seven years listening. The book states, “These narrative histories focus on the deeply shifting pools of perception and mystery of transformation."
From Ann: "Michael's new podcast, “My Heart is Not Blind”, episode 12, available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts (links below). I also encourage you to listen to the other episodes in the series. They are only seven minutes long—like a daily devotional. Let them sink in. To spread the word of this remarkable project, please rate and review."
Spotify
Michael's book, My Heart is Not Blind On Blindness and Perception, can be purchased at Amazon and Trinity University Press.
The SC Writers Association, with whom we are collaborating to promote poetry throughout the state, invited us to share in their upcoming events:
THE SOUTH CAROLINA WRITERS ASSOCIATION CELEBRATES POETRY MONTH
On April 13, the South Carolina Writers Association will celebrate National Poetry Month with two remarkable poets: Candice Kelsey and Natalie Marino. Kelsey is a Georgia poet, educator, and activist. A former law student, her work has won praise and prizes, including the 2021 Two Sisters Micro Story Contest, the 2020 Rebecca Laird Poetry Prize, and the 2019 Common Ground Poetry Contest. Marino is a California poet, pediatrician, and mother. Her work has appeared in Barren Magazine, Bitter Oleander, EcoTheo Review, Literary Mama, Midway Journal, and Oyez Review. Her micro-chapbook Attachment Theory was published by Ghost City Press in June 2021. The celebration continues on May 4 with a conversation and readings by poets Kelli Russell Agodon and Jenna Le. Agodon’s most recent collection, Hourglass Museum, was short-listed for the Julie Suk Poetry Prize for the best book of poems published by a small press. She’s also the co-author of The Daily Poet: Day-By-Day Prompts for Your Writing Practice. Le is a New York physician and the daughter of Vietnamese refugees. Her first book, Six Rivers, was a Small Press Distribution Poetry Bestseller. Her second collection, A History of the Cetacean American Diaspora, won Second Place in the 2017 Elgin Awards from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association. South Carolina poet Arthur Turfa will host the two 7–8:30 p.m. events. The talks are free for SCWA members and $25 for nonmembers. To register, visit myscwa.org.
Kim Blum Hyclack has shared upcoming events and opportunities:
Sunday April 23, she has two great events happening up in Lancaster. Former NC Poets Laureate Cathy Smith Bowers is doing a reading from 2-4 (will include some local poets) at the Lancaster County Cultural Arts Center (where the Kakalak book launch was held), and immediately after will be a poets' reception for the poets of Vistas~Vision and Verse: An Exhibit of Ekphrastic Poetry and the Art that Inspired It. This will be held just down the street from the CAC at the Lancaster County Council of the Arts. Would love to have you join us! And submissions are open for Kakalak through May 31. Open to anyone!
Len Lawson is hosting the following important event: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12, 2023 AT 3 PM – 5 PM Rally to Appoint the Next South Carolina Poet Laureate SC State House Al Black is hosting the following events: TUESDAY, April 4, 7 PM – 9 PM Simple Gifts Presents: Poet, Sarah Cooper and Singer/Songwriter, Sydney Alexandre McMath at 120 Pisgah Church Road, Columbia and... WEDNESDAY, April 5, 7 PM – 9 PM Mind Gravy Presents: Poet & Weaver of Magic, Amy Alley at Cool Beans, 1217 College Street, Columbia Evelyn Berry is hosting a special event for National Poetry Month: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1595884527193049 A message from Evelyn: It's the most wonderful time of the year... National Poetry Month! During April, many poets challenge themselves to write 30 poems in 30 days. This year, I'll be sharing unique poetry prompts based on particular elements of craft. These prompts are designed to help you get back into the habit of poem-writing and flex your creative muscles. You can join below via private FB group, on Twitter, or by watching the daily prompt videos on Instagram Reels or TikTok. Happy Writing, Poets! #NationalPoetryMonth #3030Challenge Tina Baumis has had a haiku shared by The Irmo Cherry Blossom Festival ... and has shared a Berkeley County contest with us: https://holycitysinner.com/2023/03/21/bcls-hosts-poetry-contest-in-three-age-levels-sponsored-by-friends-of-the-berkeley-county-library/
Janet Kozachek shared the following reflection on a poetry course she took with Miho Kinnas:
Poems of All Sizes: Haiku, Tanka, and Japanese Poetic Forms with Poetry Society of South Carolina member Miho Kinnas.
It is a challenge to be spare. In spareness, every word counts. Taking Miho Kinnas’ poetry course last month, Poems of All Sizes: Haiku, Tanka and Japanese Poetic Forms, was a poignant reminder of this principle. I originally took the course in order to explore poetic forms that might complement a series of figural ink drawings that I had made, based upon xie yi brush painting techniques (sumi-e in Japanese). These too, can be minimal and abstract. The poetry course was much more, however, than a potential tool for creative remarks upon visual art. Poems of All Sizes, offered through Writers.com, provided a broad historical overview of Japanase Haiku, Tanka and Rengay. international developments, as well as their English language incarnations, along with a rich bibliography and glossary of terms. Professor Kinnas was refreshingly organized and thorough in her professional presentations and analyses. Between classes, she scrutinized our homework assignments with great care, observations and suggestions for improvements. Critiques were dispensed with an encouraging, yet firm guiding hand. This was an excellent course, and probably the best poetry course that I have taken to date. It is a highly recommended for both seasoned writers of Haiku and Tanka who seek to polish their word craft as well as for those just getting acquainted with this poetic art form. This course will be offered again September 14 and 21. Twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Miho Kinnas is a Japanese poet and translator living in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. She is the author of Today, Fish Only and Move Over, Bird (both from Math Paper Press) poetry collections. In addition, a book of twoness poems, We Eclipse Into The Other Side, collaborated with a poet and literary activist, E. Ethelbert Miller, is forthcoming from Pinyon Publishing this summer. Elaine Etui selected her poem, Three Shrimp Boats On The Horizon, for Best American Poetry 2023. She also leads poetry workshops on short Japanese poetic forms at various venues, including Shanghai Literary Festival, Harvard University Art Museum, the Pat Conroy Literary Center, Writers.com, and local schools.
Janet also did work on ink paintings to go with the Tanka and Haiku poetry.
Professor Nathaniel Wallace chaired the panel English Representations of the Soul and Its Influences at The Renaissance Society Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, March 9. Panelists were Brice Peterson from Brigham Young University, and Eileen Sperry from Skidmore College. Professor Brice presented a paper on the British poet Aemelia Lanyer and her poetic connections to river iconography. Eileen Sperry, presented her paper on Lady Hester Pulter and the concept of resurrection in her poetry.
Aemelia Lanyer ( 1569 - 1645) was the first woman to produce a book of poetry in the English language.
Lady Hester Pulter (1605 - 1678) has been a subject of academic interest since the rediscovery of her poetry manuscript in the University of Leeds Brotherton Library in 1996.
The presentations on these two extraordinary 17th century female poets were engaging and thoughtful.
Moving on from Lady Hester Pulter in 17c England to poetry in contemporary Puerto Rico, Nathaniel and his wife Janet had a brief look into The Poet’s Passage, founded by Lady Lee Andrews.
https://poetspassage.com/ Tuesday night was Open Mic night, and there was a sizable and enthusiastic crowd gathered to hear local poets and musicians among colorful art and a festive atmosphere.
Nathaniel Wallace is an English Professor at South Carolina State University. He holds degrees from the College of Charleston and Rutgers University. He has refereed and non-referred articles, as well as book and exhibition reviews. A founding member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists, he was also a co-editor of the group’s newsletter, Groutline. With a doctorate in Comparative Literature, his teaching and research interests include Word and Image studies, East-West comparisons, and Early Modern. Wallace has published a book-length study, Scanning the Hypnoglyph (Brill, 2016), that deals with representations of sleep and dreams during modernism and later. He is currently completing a monograph on depictions of the experience of awakening.
Prior to arrival at SCSU, Wallace taught for several years in mainland China and in Europe. He was a visiting lecturer at the University of Konstanz in Germany and, later on, a Fulbright lecturer at the University of Bergen in Norway (2011-‘12) and at Alexendru Ioan Cuza University in Romania (2021-‘22). He has also held fellowships from the NEH and the Camargo Foundation in France. A photographer as well as a writer of poetry, Wallace maintains three websites: Barns of South Carolina, Bergen South and North, and The Toppled Shack. Visit: http://www.bergensouthandnorth.com/
Eugene Platt recently visited and read poetry to fellow veterans receiving care at the local Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC). This is the second event in his ongoing special project with veterans. Read more about what Eugene is doing at http://www.plattwrites.com Tamara Miles and Lucinda Clark (Georgia Poetry Society president) will host a workshop for women veterans with the V.A. in Charleston via Zoom on April 21. Tamara will also be reading with Northern Irish poet Mark Burns on April 18 in a Tuesday Duets Redux hosted by Wm Epes.
Yvette Murray's chapbook, Hush, Puppy, is currently in pre-sales from Finishing Line Press.with cover artwork by Linda Fantuzzo. The link to Yvette's page on Finishing Line's website is below.
Yvette will also be featured along with Miho Kinnas on April 20:
Marjory Wentworth has shared information on upcoming SC Reads events:
The Charleston event will take place on April 19 from 5-7 at Buxton Books. Florence, Francis Marion event: April 23 (probably 1 PM-3 PM or 4 PM) an event is also being planned at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College on April 20 COLUMBIA Press Release #ReadAcrossSC Happy Hour at All Good Books Thursday, April 20 5-7 PM All Good Books, 734 Harden St, Columbia, SC As you are likely aware, book challenges are on the rise in South Carolina and most of the books receiving challenges are those of marginalized groups. We hope to celebrate these books and educate the community about what they can do to ensure that our curiosity, intellectual freedom, and reading life is as rich and powerful as possible! To make this a family friendly event, there will be USC students who will read aloud from banned picture books in the bookstore’s beautiful children’s area from 5-6 PM while adults grab a drink, check out the displays, and mingle. Then starting at 6 PM, there will be a reading of banned books by local writers, celebrities, and public figures including the new City of Columbia Poet Laureate, Jennifer Bartell Boykin, as well as Dr. Cassie Premo Steele, Colbi J, Evelyn Berry, Darion McLeod, Dr. Len Lawson, Marty McGuy, Dr. Nancy Tolson, and more! Contacts: Valerie Byrd Fort, valeriebyrdfort@gmail.com Cassie Premo Steele, cassiepremosteele@gmail.com
Angelo Geter has announced the 3rd annual One Word Poetry Festival in Rock Hill from April 27-30, 2023. The week Is full of an adult open mic w/live band, workshops, a youth arts showcase, poetry slam competition and a poetry brunch which will feature a reading and panel discussion from all the SC Poets Laureate. Columbia, SC: Jennifer Bartell Boykin (recently appointed) Greenville, SC: Glenis Redmond (recently appointed) Charleston, SC: Asiah Thomas (recently appointed) PeeDee area: Jo Angela Edwins Edgefield, SC: J. Drew Lanham Rock Hill, SC: Angelo Geter Rock Hill Youth Poet Laureate: Abigail McClune
And you? What are you up to? Send me word. I'm planning to go to Every Corner, Every County. Going boldly, Tamara
Hey-ho, we now have PSSC hats. I love my PSSC mug for sipping espresso, and Tina Baumis looks fabulous in her long-sleeve shirt. Take a look at what else is available. A portion of the proceeds goes to the Poetry Society. You can look sporty and support the important work of the Poetry Society with each purchase. Click here to visit the website. You can also pick up a copy of The History of the Poetry Society of South Carolina from Amazon --- and if you enjoy it, please leave a review.
The Poetry Prompt Contest is a monthly contest where we encourage you to submit a piece inspired by the new prompt found below. The winning poem or flash fiction is published in the following month's newsletter. We also offer the winner the opportunity to record a video of him or herself reading the poem to be posted to the Poetry Society's Youtube channel. There is no obligation to record the video, it is only there as an offer if the winner feels comfortable doing so.
The Prompt Contest will take a hiatus until further notice. Stay tuned..
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