Monday, April 17, 2017

Monday Muse: Summer Writing/Poetry Festivals

It's not too early to begin thinking about and reserving your places for poetry and writing festivals scheduled for late spring and summer. Below are six such noteworthy festivals.

Mass Poetry Festival, May 5-9 ~ For its 9th annual festival in Salem, Massachusetts, the nonprofit Mass Poetry Festival offers nearly 100 poetry readings and professional development workshops, poetry slams, open-air readings, a small press and literary fair, and panel discussions. Scores of local and nationally known poets come together to support and discuss poetry. Looking for new collections by the state's contemporary poets? See the New Books section of the Website.

Mass Poetry on FaceBook

Iowa Summer Writing Festival, June-July ~ The 31st annual festival in Iowa City, Iowa, offers week-long and weekend workshops in fiction and nonfiction, memoir, short story, essay, children/young adult, and other writing. Workshops in poetry include "Writing the Short Poem" (June 17-18), "Think Twice/Think Again: Making Poems from Inspiration & Calculation" (July 9-14), "Spill Your Guts: A Confessional Poetry Workshop" (July 15-16), and ""Poetic Immersion: An Intensive Course for Beginning Poets" (July 16-21). Details about all the programs and the faculty can be found at the link. A print catalogue (see image to right), featuring illustrator Claudia McGehee's art on the cover, is available.

Iowa Summer Writing Festival on FaceBook

Chautauqua Writers' Festival 2017, June 15-18 ~ Lia Purpura and Marcus Wicker join Diana Hume George, Beth Ann Fennelly, Stewart O'Nan, and Ann Pancake, plus songwriters Scott Minar and Bruce Dalzell, for this summer's festival in Chautauqua, New York. The festival is sponsored by Clarion University, Penn State Erie, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, and Monmouth University.

Chautauqua Institution on FaceBook, Instagram, and YouTube

Brave New Voices — International Youth Poetry Slam Festival, July 19-22 ~ Scheduled in San Francisco's Bay Area, the 20th Annual BNV festival for teams of young poets comprises four days of workshops, slams, community service, and civic participation events. Many festival activities are free and open to the public. The festival is sponsored by Youth Speaks.

Brave New Voices YS on FaceBook, Instagram, and YouTube

The New York City Poetry Festival, July 29-30 ~ Attended by several hundred poets, this event, primarily on the 172-acre Governors Island, involves five boroughs and includes The Poetry Brothel, Typewriter Project, and Children's Poetry Festival for ages 2-18.

New York City Poetry Festival on Twitter

2017 Sunken Garden Poetry Festival, June-August ~ Celebrating 25 years, the 2017 festival at Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, Connecticut, includes readings and concerts, as well as conversations with poets, poetry jams, musical spoken word performances, and book signings. This year's featured poets are Billy Collins (June 21), Jamaal May and Tarfia Faizullah (July 9), Cornelius Eady (July 19), Mark Doty and Eileen Myles (August 6), and Ocean Vuong (August 16). "Young Poets Day", on August 16, presents the winners of the "Fresh Voices Poetry Competition". Events are ticketed. Details for events involving featured poets are provided at the separate links above.

Hill-Stead Museum on FaceBook and Instagram

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