July 6th Monday at Mahall's will feature Genevieve Jencson, Chuck Joy & Greg Michaels

This Monday will be my second-to-last time hosting the Monday at Mahall's poetry series, as Terry Provost will take over in October.  On July 6th at 7:30 p.m. we will feature three wonderful and wildly different poets:

Genevieve Jencson has an MFA in Poetry from Cleveland State University and the Northeast Ohio Master of Fine Arts Program (NEOMFA). Her work has appeared in H_NGM_N, Dressing Room Poetry Journal, and Alimentum: The Literature of Food. Her first chapbook, Lanugo, was recently published by Dancing Girl Press. She lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

 
Chuck Joy loves Mahall's. Look at Facebook, his photo, Mahall's. Chuck visits from Erie, Poets' Hall his home club. Erie, Poetry City. Chuck is bringing his new book, Said the Growling Dog. Chuck and Growling Dog went to New York City for a pair of featured readings. Left Bank Books and the Saturn Series. Chuck was guest poet at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry. Chuck appeared at the Erie Art Museum with the poetry and music concert show Exploring The Border (Music and Words). 

Greg Michaels is a native of Lorain, Ohio. He lived in California for 30 years where he performed stand-up comedy and wrote sketch comedy, humorous articles, song parodies and shtick for his comedy barbershop quartet. He became enamored with the humorous story-telling style of the cowboy poets, but he couldn't write about ranch life, of which he knew nothing. A movie title, Urban Cowboy, inspired him. He said “Someday I'll write Urban Cowboy Poetry, whatever that is.” Back in Ohio, he figured it out. He takes popular urban legends and retells them cowboy-poet style. He started performing them around town, and he is now part of the Cleveland poetry scene.

I, of course, will emcee an open mic following the featured poets.

You, Sirs

To You, Sirs

if you can't
be kind
count on me
to decline

*

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes Ghost on the Inside by John Dorsey!

Crisis Chronicles Press is pleased to present Ghost on the Inside, a new chapbook by John Dorsey published 27 June 2015.  It features the poems "steel city rope-a-dope," "icarus revisited," "sheboygan sean," "brian on n. 6th  street," "sheboygan 1," "sheboygan 2," "at 37: for mikey west," "harry’s diner poem: for mj taylor," "in his 60's," "on oak street: for everette maddox," "steve goldberg death poem" and "poem for christian o’keeffe."  As D.R. Wagner has said of John Dorsey, "Boy, this guy means it. What a fine poet, ladies and gentlemen."

Ghost on the Inside is 5.5" x 8.5", hand assembled, saddle stapled, with cover image by Steven B. Smith on white cover stock with black card stock endpapers and the poems printed on pale cottonwood paper.  Only $6 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 3344 W. 105th Street #4, Cleveland, Ohio 44111 USA.

Please choose US or International

US Orders $6.00 USD International $10.00 USD

John Dorsey is the author of several collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw’s Prayer (Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Natural Selection: Early Poems (Kilmog Press, 2014) and Imaginary Foxholes (Rusty Truck Press, 2015). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He may be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com.

Join us for the official release celebration on 27 June 2015 during Sylvania Avenue Performances in front of the West Toledo Library.

Toledo Saturday

This Saturday, June 27th, I'll be part of a marathon poetry and music event in Toledo.  These Sylvania Avenue Performances will take place in front of the West Toledo Library as part of their Make U Fair.  Four Crisis Chronicles Press authors will be among the performers, and we will also release John Dorsey's new chapbook, Ghost on the Inside, at this event.

Emcee/organizer: Jonie McIntire
10:00 - 10:15 am Cindy Bosley
10:15 - 10:30 am Kerry Trautman
10:30 - 10:45 am Michael Hackney
10:45 - 11:00 am Michael Grover
11:00 - 11:15 am Matt Sradeja
11:15 - 11:30 am Dan Denton
11:30 - 12:00pm Logic Alley
12:00 - 12:15pm The Raven
12:15 - 12:30pm Hod Doering
12:30 - 1:00 pm Women Unbound (Kayla Williams & Lorraine Cipriano)
1:00 - 1:15pm Huntor Prey
1:15 - 1:30pm Becca Wood
1:30 - 2:00pm Stayce Carey (music)
2:00 - 2:30pm John Dorsey & Cherie Myslinsky
2:30 - 2:45pm Tom Barden
2:45 - 3:00pm Alfred Frank
3:00 - 3:15pm Ash Pendell
3:15 - 3:30pm Arnie Koester
3:30 - 3:45pm Douglas Lutman
3:45 - 4:00pm William Fahey
4:00 - 5:00pm Dianne Borsenik, John Burroughs & William Merricle
5:00 - 5:15pm Marcus Nunn
5:15 - 6:00pm Stayce Carey (music)

West Toledo Branch Library, 1320 W Sylvania Ave, Toledo, Ohio 43612

Dog Gone Hungry

We moved the spider plant out of Leda's range. So now she's eating my patchouli.

Everyone's Uh

Everyone's Uh

hypercritical
hypocritical
and everything
in between

 

10 in SOUL

10 of my poems appear in The Poetry of S.O.U.L.: An Anthology of Selected Works by Poets from Around the World, just published by the Soul Collective of Collaborative Arts in Farmington, Michigan.

The 10 are "Rain Blow," "Cover Girl," "Slipping Backwards Into Blue Eden," "Bier," Much Adieu," "Therefore (I Am)," "Statuesque," "Angler," "Mark This," and "John Cage Engaged and Uncaged."

This book also features poems by Zualteii Poonte, Chuck Joy, Nabina Das, Marc Creamore, Dianne Borsenik, William Burkholder, Hosain and Judy Mosavat, Matvey Troitsky, Brittany Farber and Carla Dodd.  127 pages in all.  $16.50.  All proceeds go to support the charity S.O.U.L. (Source of Universal Love).

Click here to buy your copy.

Believe In

Maybe this isn't a poem.  A haiku?  Well, it has two stanzas, so I'm gonna call it ku-ku.  Don't call me cuckoo - yet.  Written a few hours before game 6 of the 2015 NBA Finals, though it's about more than just that.

Believe In

Bought this 45
Just shy of 15.
My first Journey record.

Escape "next year."
Don't stop
This year.



#AllInCLE (Don't be shy of '15.)

Pulling Out

I used to pride myself on never missing a poetry event I was scheduled to read at or host, whether it meant driving hours in a blizzard, wearing a mask while wiped out with the flu or even going without sleep for several days.  But there are more important things than poetry events.

On April 28th I had to cancel a reading in Mount Vernon at the last minute (luckily, Dianne Borsenik was available to read in my place) and on June 12th I couldn't go to the big Crisis Chronicles Press book launch in Erie (Dianne was available again to make sure Tracie Morell's books got there in time).  On June 1st, I had to leave my monthly Mahall's event after 20 minutes (fortunately, Ray McNiece was there as guest host for the evening).  And now I've withdrawn from the Lake Effect Poetry team that is scheduled to represent northeast Ohio this weekend in Rockford, Illinois.  Team "Slaministrator" Vertigo Xavier knew this was a possibility and is prepared to step into my slot since he's making the trip anyway.

While I always hate to let my friends and fellow poets down, it is more important for me (and to me) to stay close to home for the time being while a loved one is having health issues and needs me near.  I realize that's vague, and I'm sorry, but I can't be more specific publicly and still respect that loved one's wish for privacy (which I hope you too will respect). 

So I won't be taking on any more out of state readings for the near future, though I am hopeful that I will still be able to keep my upcoming Ohio reading commitments since they don't require me to be as far from home for as long.

All this has also played a role (though it's not the only factor) in my recent decisions to hand off the reins to the Monday at Mahall's poetry series to Terry Provost this fall and to wind down the breakneck pace of Crisis Chronicles Press by the middle of next year, by which time I expect I will have fulfilled all our pending publication commitments.

More soon (maybe).  I remain grateful for your patience, support and good wishes.

Peace, love and poetry,
John

Crisis Chronicles Press celebrates Matilda's Battle Waltz by Tracie Morell

Matilda's Battle Waltz is a powerful new collection of poems by Tracie Morell, illustrated by Kris Risto, featuring wraparound cover art by Ken Paul Johnson. Perfect bound, 5.5" x 8.5", 89 pages, ISBN 978-1-940996-22-6.  Available for $10 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 3344 W. 105th Street #4, Cleveland, Ohio 44111 USA.

“Tracie Morell’s work exhibits a lyrical acuity which illuminates and devastates. She leads us on a harrowing and electrifying journey through the life of Matilda, a being who dances on the brink of existence between what is marginalized and what has risen above to live in rarified air. Morell has no fear; our eyes blaze and dilate with Matilda, as we bear witness to our collective ruin. Morell’s poems celebrate the connections between the interior and exterior world and in doing so, take us closer to both.”

     —Kelly Boyker, Poetry Editor at Menacing Hedge 

“Tracie Morell is the patron saint of every woman that is tough, beautiful...and pissed off. The thing I admire about her the most is, she doesn't bitch about life's short comings, she resolves conflict with a love that is bulletproof. Matilda's Battle is her recent attempt at reminding the world that if you want to be happy...you better ask questions.”
     —Danny Klecko, author of Houdini in St. Paul

These are not to be read with eyes — it takes but a few lines before you feel her words writing themselves into you, burning the beauty and the pain on the insides of your eyelids and the long bones of your ribcage. Tracie's poems are scrimshaw and snowflakes: permanent, yet glittering."
     —Amanda Gowin, author of Radium Girls 

"Reading Matilda’s Battle Waltz is succumbing to a mesmerizing liturgy of literary moves that includes Matilda’s pontifications, navigations, poetic landscapes, work woes, and foreign loves. The reader travels the path of a most beautiful way of living that does not deny or distinguish between the glorious and the seedy, but sees each poem as a song, a part of the poetic whole. Indeed, the roots of Matilda’s experience grow with you upon every read and you find yourself tapping your foot to her poetic rhythms as the highs and lows pull you into her life’s dance."

     —Kathleen D. Gallagher, author of I See Things are Falling

Tracie Morell — by Kris Risto

Tracie Morell was raised on the savannah by a pack of feral gazelles. At a young age, she learned to bend iron bars with naught but her teeth and sheer determination. During her school years, she consistently wowed her teachers and mentors with her ability to dodge skepticism while performing feats of whimsical magic. In adulthood, she has birthed miniscule acrobats who assist her in her day-to-day tasks of smashing the banality of various poverties. In her spare time, she enjoys semaphore, scrimshaw, collecting rejection letters, and working on cars for the love of artistry and craftsmanship, despite her loathing of vehicular landscapes and the smell of ethanol. She resides in a land beyond your reach. Only Ben Frasier knows how to find her.  

Join us for the official book launch for Matilda's Battle Waltz on Friday June 12th 2015 at 5:30 p.m. during Poets and Painters at PACA, 1505 State Street in Erie, Pennsylvania.  

The launch event will feature poetry readings by Marisa Moks-Unger (whose chapbook, Mud and Stars, will be released that night by NightBallet Press), Tracie Morell, Shawn King, Veronica Hopkins, Juliet Cook, Dianne Borsenik and John Burroughs - plus music by Rodger Montgomery and an exhibition of work by Kris Risto and Ken Paul Johnson.  Not to be missed!

My Mid-2015 Midwestern Poetry Tour

Looking at my list of upcoming readings, I think I'm gonna start calling this my Midwestern tour:

6/6 - Barberton, OH - Lake Effect Poetry Art Auction Fundraiser
6/12 - Erie, PA - Poets and Painters at PACA (where Crisis Chronicles Press will release Tracie Morell's new book, Matilda's Battle Waltz)
6/19-20 - Rockford, IL - with the Lake Effect Poetry team at Rustbelt Competition 2015 Rockford IL
6/27 - Toledo, OH - West Toledo Branch Library
7/25 - Cleveland, OH - Mad Sing You PoetryMusic Fest at the Barking Spider Tavern
8/1 - Cleveland, OH - Expedition: SPACES!!! A Journey of Words, Sights & Sounds at SPACES
8/4 - Painesville, OH - Words and Wine at Your Vine or Mine
9/19 - Cleveland, OH - BeatStreet Cleveland 2015 - The National Beat Poetry Festival (where my new chapbook, Beat Attitude, will be released by NightBallet Press)
10/15 - Cuyahoga Falls, OH - Third Thursday Poetry at The Root Cafe

Plus I'm acting as host for two more installments of the Monday at Mahall's Poetry and Prose Series in Lakewood, OH:

7/6 - Monday at Mahall's feat. Genevieve Jencson, Chuck Joy & Greg "Urban Cowboy Poet" Michaels
8/3 - Monday at Mahall's feat. Mike Finley, Danny Klecko, Marisa Moks-Unger & Tracie Morell