On Saturday, April 11th, Long Beach will once again be taken over by the artistic mash-up that is Louder Than Long Beach. Music, poetry, and art will be dancing together at CALB on Pine Ave from 3-8 pm. Poetry magicians, Larry Duncan, Keayva Mitchell, Nancy Lynée Woo, and Kevin Ridgeway will be casting their spells along with a special dual reading by Raquel Reyes-Lopez and myself. Six bands and several artists, including Fernando Gallegos, will also be strutting their stuff. In addition, Lucid Moose Lit and Sadie Girl Press will have plenty of books to browse. The best part (like there needed to be a better reason) is that all of this is free! The Cultural Alliance of Long Beach (CALB) has the mission of bringing you incredible events like these for free, just to keep Long Beach the cultural bounty it is.
Month: March 2015
Prose, Rhythm & Noise
Prose, Rhythm & Noise is a FREE downloadable recording from our poetry & jazz filled night on March 15th. Listen to myself, G. Murray Thomas, Keayva Mitchell, Dave Williams, Shy But Flyy and more performing poetry with a improvisational jazz band. It was an honor to share a stage with these incredible musicians and poets. I promise this will be worth the few minutes to load it on your iPod or burn it to a CD and listen to on your way to work. mbtmusic.bandcamp.com
East Jasmine Review Volume 2 Issue 4
The new East Jasmine Review is out now! You can download this lovely literary journal for the price of a fancy coffee. It is packed full of amazing authors such as: Sean Gunning, John Brantingham, Kelsey Bryan-Zwick, Natalie Morales, Michael Cantin, and Zack Nelson-Lopiccolo. I am especially happy that two of my poems based around my dysfunctional family, “Both Wolves and Sheep Alike” and “Drawing Maps for the Lost”, are included. You can download it for many e-reader devices or on PDF.
Excursions: A Sight & Sound Festival on March 15th
Dave Williams is a fantastic musician, specializing in magical trumpet playing, also hosts Excursions: A Sight & Sound Festival. The event has music, poetry, and poetry with music! I am excited to be invited to participate reading poetry on Sunday, March 15th, from 5-8 pm, at CALB at the Shore located above Shenanigans Irish Pub in Shoreline Village. Even more excited to be joining two of my favorite Long Beach poets and friends, Shy But Flyy and Keayva Mitchell. Check out more details on the Facebook event page!
International Women’s Day Issue of Camel Saloon
Today is International Women’s Day and The Camel Saloon is celebrating with a special issue full of women poets. My poem, “Pulp-Plastered“, is one of many many poems by women, including my friend Robin Dawn Hudechek’s poem, “A Moth’s Cage” and Kelsey Bryan-Zwick’s “The Light That Shines Through”. Spend some time wandering around the Saloon. Enjoy your day, brought to you by all the women in the world. theeyeoftheneedle7.blogspot.com
NCCP Book Club
This is really a thing I am doing. Nancy Lynée Woo and I are part of a book club discussion from the National Center for Children in Poverty, which chose our book, Gutter & Alleyways: Perspectives on Poverty and Struggle. Sometimes I still feel like that girl living on the constant edge of chaos, fighting to survive. Then I see this photo of grown up me, all together and stuff. If you have the time to join the discussion on March 18th (11:00 am Pacific Time), I would be honored to share this moment with you. Follow this link to register nccp.org/bookclub.html. It’s not too late to order your copy of the book in time for the discussion if you haven’t already. sadiegirlpress.com/bookstore