Porcelains and Poetry in South Euclid: Rescheduled for Spring 2023

[UPDATE: due to unforeseen circumstances, this event will be be rescheduled for Spring 2023.]

On December 10th at 6:30 p.m., I'll have the privilege of being one of twelve area poets reading brand new ekphrastic work to raise funds for a very good cause. Porcelains & Poetry will be hosted by South Euclid Poet Laureate Doc Janning and One South Euclid at the Museum of American Porcelain Art.

From the press release:

"Enjoy readings by a dozen prominent local poets created in response to art at the American Museum of Porcelain Art with musical interludes by a string quartet from Charles F. Brush High School. Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served. Proceeds from the fundraising event will support a One South Euclid program that helps senior residents age in place."

Buy your ticket at https://www.onesoutheuclid.org/event-details/porcelains-poetry.

Participating poets:

Doc Janning
Raja Belle Freeman
John Burroughs
Ray McNiece
Shelley Chernin
Amy Kesegich
Jeremy Jusek
Cat Russell
Russ Vidrick
Barbara Marie Minney
Mimi Plevin-Foust
Abdul Ghani

Museum of American Porcelain Art
4645 Mayfield Road
South Euclid, Ohio 44121

Poets Against Racism: December 10th in Youngstown

Saturday 10 December from 1 to 3 p.m., I will participate in a special Poets Against Racism event hosted by Debbie Allen and Quartez Harris at Common Goods Studio, 2000 Canfield Rd Top, Floor Unit C, Youngstown, OH 44511.

"A diverse array of poets will share works addressing the social injustices of racism, bigotry, intolerance, and hate. We hope you’ll attend!"

 

https://poetsagainstracism-usa.org
https://www.facebook.com/PoetsARUSA

Video: My 11/1/2023 SpoFest reading, with Gregory Seth Harris & Shelli Jankowski-Smith

I had the privilege of being SpoFest's guest author on November 1st, and here is the video. Many thanks to James Bryant, Rick C. Christiansen and Judy Turek, as well as the featured poets and everyone who attended and shared in the open mic. And congratulations to Freddy Fonseca, who won a copy of my book, Rattle and Numb.

Follow SpoFest Poetry and Prose on Facebook for more events.

Join us November 12th at the Avon Lake Public Library!

This Saturday, November 12th, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Avon Lake Public Library, Crisis Chronicles Press and I will be sharing a table with Parma Poet Laureate Jeremy Jusek and the Ohio Poetry Association to promote Ohio poets at Read Write Local: Local and Regional Author Event. Hope to see you there!

Avon Lake Public Library
32649 Electric Boulevard
Avon Lake, Ohio 44012

See you 11/10 at Loganberry Books!

This Thursday, November 10th at 7pm, I'll have the honor of returning to Loganberry Books to be the featured poet for their monthly Broadsides and Ephemera reading series. Hope you'll come and bring something for the open mic.

Many thanks to Julie Beckers, who originally invited me, and to Elijah Perseus Blumov, the current host.

 

Loganberry Books
13015 Larchmere Blvd
Cleveland, Ohio 44120

www.loganberrybooks.com 

 

 

Join us November 5th for the release of Kan Zaman by Judith Mansour

Crisis Chronicles Press is thrilled to announce the imminent publication of Kan Zaman, a memoir in poetry and prose by Judith Mansour. ISBN: 979-8-88596-994-9. Pre-order now for $15 and receive free shipping. Or meet the author at our book release event on November 5th at Beaumont School in Cleveland Heights.

"Judith Mansour’s Kan Zaman is an irresistible evocation of the Lebanese household she grew up in. This magical book is both a love poem to her family and an invitation for all of us to revisit our childhood, that paradise to which we can only return through memory. Mansour’s writing, by turns both sensual and hauntingly lyrical, is as welcoming as a warm kitchen on a winter night."
— George Bilgere

You may also pre-order Kan Zaman from our friends at Mac's Backs Books on Coventry in Cleveland Heights.

Video of my Covid interview and 11/1 I'll be the guest author for SpoFest on Zoom

From their press release:

November 1st, 6pm CST [7pm Eastern], the next must-watch SpoFest!

It features Martina McGowan, Gregory Seth Harris and Shelli Jankowski-Smith. Our guest author is US National Beat Poet Laureate, John Burroughs.

 

Sign up to read in our open mic, and enter your name in our book raffle for a chance to win a signed copy of John's book [Rattle and Numb: Selected and New Poems, 1992-2019]!

More info on the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/6516327535060416/.

Click here to watch our exclusive interview with John Burroughs [I was still sick and a little brain-foggy when it was recorded]:

https://www.facebook.com/100000344932418/videos/455607636641040/.

 

 

A Wreath of Golden Laurels: An Anthology of Poetry by 100 Poets Laureate

I feel greatly honored that my poem "I Am Not Ready to Die," written not long after the murder of George Floyd, appears in this new anthology published by Local Gems Press, alongside the work of so many fine poets.

A Wreath of Golden Laurels: An Anthology of Poetry by 100 Poets Laureate

Lit Youngstown Fall Literary Festival: October 20th through 22nd

Lit Youngstown's 6th annual Fall Literary Festival will be centered around the theme “The Places That Make Us,” a conversation about writing, publishing, teaching, community outreach, and inclusion.

Supported by Ohio Humanities, the conference aims to sustain and enhance discussion on real and imagined literary places that shape our memory, experience and identity.

This year’s featured presenters are film scholar & screenwriter Laura Beadling, fiction writer Kelly Fordon, filmmaker Karla Murthy, children’s author Candace Fleming & poet Joy Priest.

My Crisis Chronicles Press will be part of the festival's book fair.

For more information, to register, and to view the full schedule, click here.

Tested positive for COVID-19 around noon on October 7th

 

October 6th in Hamilton, Ohio: I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing anthology reading

October 6th at 7 p.m., the Hamilton campus of Miami University will host a reading by contributors to the recently published I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing: Ohio's Appalachian Voices anthology (edited by Ohio Poet Laureate Kari Gunter-Seymour and published by Sheila-Na-Gig). This event will take place at the Harr.y T. Wilks Conference Center, 1601 University Blvd. Hamilton, Ohio 45011

If you're in the area, we would love to see you there.

You may also order the book at:

https://www.karigunterseymourpoet.com/order-cardinal-sing.

Six-Pack of Events Coming Up [Edit: Make that Seven]

Paying bills and tying up as many loose ends as possible today, then hitting the road tomorrow. Looking forward to a lot of great events in the next couple of weeks:

 

10/1-2: Western Maryland Independent Literature Festival in Frostburg, MD,

10/4: Poetry Night at Sitwell's in Cincinnati, OH,

10/6: I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing, Appalachian anthology reading in Hamilton, OH,

10/8: Uncloistered Poetry Live - October (John Dorsey book launch) in Toledo, OH,

10/8: Oktoberfest at Serendipitous Sound in Monroe, Michigan,

10/9: Dorsey, Clevenger and Borsenik at Mac's Backs in Cleveland Heights, OH,

10/15: I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing, Appalachian anthology reading in Coshocton, OH.

Crisis Chronicles Press publishes Maple Leaf Zen by John Dorsey

Crisis Chronicles Press is thrilled to announce the publication of our sixth title of the year, Maple Leaf Zen by John Dorsey, on 3 October 2022. Maple Leaf Zen is a brilliant sequence of 124 original poems created by Dorsey through a process of erasure using selected works of the late New Orleans poet Everette Maddox as his source material.

Maple Leaf Zen is c. 140 pages, 6"x6", available in perfect bound paperback as well as a special limited edition (only 10 copies!) signed & numbered case bound hardcover. Cover image courtesy of @MapleLeafNOLA on Instagram.

The paperback (979-8-88596-996-3) is available for $12 from Crisis Chronicles Press, 535 Parkside Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44143 USA. 

Paperback: US or Elsewhere?

In the U.S. $12.00 USD International $17.00 USD

The special limited edition signed & numbered case bound hardcover (979-8-88596-995-6) is available for $40 directly from John Dorsey. Email him at archerevens@yahoo.com to get yours while supplies last.

Meet the author:

10/3/2022 at Truman State University, Kirksville, MO

10/8/2022 at Uncloistered Poetry Live - October, Toledo, OH

10/9/2022 at Mac's Backs-Books On Coventry, Cleveland Heights, OH

John Dorsey lived for several years in Toledo, Ohio. He 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), Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015), Being the Fire (Tangerine Press, 2016), Shoot the Messenger (Red Flag Poetry, 2017), Your Daughter's Country (Blue Horse Press, 2019), Which Way to the River: Selected Poems 2016-2020 (OAC Books, 2020), Afterlife Karaoke (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2021) and Sundown at the Redneck Carnival, (Spartan Press, 2022). His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the Stanley Hanks Memorial Poetry Prize. He was the winner of the 2019 Terri Award given out at the Poetry Rendezvous. He may be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com. 

[Photo of John Dorsey by Jeremy Proehl.]

Dogging Catastrophe Ships Today

Many thanks to everyone who has pre-ordered my new chapbook, Dogging Catastrophe, which is shipping today from The Grind Stone. I love the cover art Snow Mathews created for it. What a fine series of chaps they and Jonathan S Baker are creating.

Limited edition. https://checkout.square.site/buy/SYSV6CJZIBH7QZEFVP7HOUNU.

On the Road Again: Frostburg MD and Cincinnati OH!

I just (finally!) booked my lodging for this year's Western Maryland Independent Literature Festival hosted by the Frostburg State University Center for Literary Arts in downtown Frostburg, happening September 30th and October 1st. I'll be representing Crisis Chronicles Press at the book fair. Before the pandemic, I tried to attend every year. Always a good time!

 

After that, I'll be in West Virginia for a night before heading to Cincinnati to read for Poetry Night at Sitwell's on October 4th. So many good poets I'm looking forward to seeing there. If you can't attend in person, this event will also be broadcast via Zoom.

 

Between now and these two events, Crisis Chronicles Press is publishing new books by Brandon Johnson and John Dorsey. Plus I'm still catching up on email and commitments from before my last trip. So if I'm not on social media much in the next two weeks or fail to get back to you right away, please be patient.

 

Peace, love and poetry,

John

 

 

 

Dogging Catastrophe by John Burroughs - coming soon from The Grind Stone

I was on the road when this announcement was made, so I'm late to the sharing party. But I'm ecstatic that The Grind Stone will be publishing my chapbook, Dogging Catastrophe, in the very near future. They have a fine lineup of poets on tap and I feel honored to be among them. Many thanks to Jonathan S Baker and Snow Mathews for the vital work they do.

This will be a limited edition. You can pre-order here.

Please follow The Grind Stone on Facebook for updates.

Peace, love and poetry,
John 

Featured in WestVirginiaVille's Poetry Edition

I'm on the road and don't have a lot of time to Facebook (can that be a verb?) or blog, but I must say it means so much to me, on the eve of my induction as U.S. Beat Poet Laureate, to have some of my work and this interview featured alongside so many fine poets from West Virginia (where I was born and where so many of my family still live) in this fabulous magazine, WestVirginiaville. Many thanks to Douglas John Imbrogno who does such important work on so many fronts for taking the time and caring so much. Read here.

National Beat Poetry Festival and more in September!

I've been trying hard to catch up, friends. So many things to do, emails to answer, commitments to fulfill before I hit the road on the 1st. I feel like I need 30 hours per day - but I'll get there. So tired, but so grateful. I very much look forward to traveling again, seeing friends and hearing a mix of favorite and new (to me) voices at these upcoming events.

9/2 thru 9/4 in New Hartford, CT:
Nat’l & Int’l Beat Poetry Festival 2022
Where Jami Cassady, Ron Whitehead, Carl Spiby, Paul Richmond, Chris Vannoy, Annie Petrie Sauter, Pamela Twining, RescuePoetix, Sandra Feen, Dane Ince, Johnny Depp, Joe Kidd and I will be honored by the National Beat Poetry Foundation, Inc. and poets from all over will be reading. Congratulations to the other award recipients and many thanks to Debbie Tosun Kilday and the NBPF!

9/7 in Portsmouth, NH:
The Hoot Poetry Reading at Portsmouth Book and Bar
Where Maggie Dietz and I will be the featured poets. Many thanks to Claire Conroy and the Portsmouth Poet Laureate Project!

9/9 in Cleveland, OH:
Inkubator Conference at the Cleveland Public Library. Many thanks to Literary Cleveland!

9/10 in Toledo, OH:
Uncloistered Poetry Live! at The Attic On Adams
Where Pauletta Hansel, Miles Budimir, Jennifer Pullen and I will be the featured poets. Many thanks to Jonie McIntire!

And more to be announced soon!

 

 

 

 

Work in two new anthologies from New Generation Beat Publications

New Generation Beat Publications - Part of NBPF, Inc. has three new books out and I'm honored to have work in two of them. So many good poets between these covers! Thanks to Debbie Tosun Kilday and the National Beat Poetry Foundation, Inc. for keeping the fires burning!

My poem "Redux Isn't Pronounced Ray Do But That Hasn't Stopped Me" appears in New Generation Beats: National Beat Poetry Foundation, Inc. 2022 Anthology. I wrote it in July as part of Tupelo Press' 30/30 Project.

My poem "Let's Not and Say We Did" is in Remembering Jack Kerouac on His 100th Birthday. I began writing it during a trip to New England in September 2019 and completed it in February of this year in time to include it in my limited edition chapbook You Can't Trust It to Remain [Between Shadows Press].

On the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition Blog

"It should not come as a surprise that we count a Beat poet among urban Appalachians...."

I recently had the pleasure of talking with Mike Templeton for the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition blog. Read at https://uacvoice.org/2022/08/john-burroughs-urban-appalachian-and-national-beat-poet-laureate/.

Reading for the Bronx Book Fair August 13th

Next up, I'll have the privilege of sharing poetry with these fine folks on Saturday, August 13th as part of this year's Bronx Book Fair, happening on Zoom. Please send a message to Executive Director Lorraine Currelley at bronxbookfair@gmail.com to register.

4:00 PM

Marion Deutsche Cohen, Edward D. Currelley, Arlene Klein, Alison Koffler, Stephen Kuusisto, Prince A. McNally, Deedle Tomlinson, Tim Tomlinson, and Dayl Wise

4:45 PM

John Burroughs, William F. DeVault, Dane Ince, Patricia Ince (aka Tish The Writer), Debbie Tosun Kilday, Carlo Parcelli, Chryssa Velissariou, and Ron Whitehead

5:30 PM

Makeela B. Amani, Robert Anthony Gibbons, Bobby Gonzalez, Jesus Papoleto Melendez, Mutiu Olawuyi, Eva Lianou Petropoulou, Julia Stein, and Danielle Stelluto (aka Poetical Dee)

6:15 PM

Roxanne Hoffman, Pierre Joris, Michael Lally, Linda Lerner, Abiodun Oyewole, Nicole Peyrafitte, Zev Torres, Tony Towle, George Wallace, and Joseph Weil

Bronx Book Fair 2022 Theme: And Still We Rise!

My July, August & September 2022 Readings

I am so looking forward to seeing friends and sharing poetry at the following special events in the next several weeks.

16 July 2022 beginning at noon near Richwood, West Virginia
The Baber Mountain Poetry Festival will feature poets and musicians from throughout the Appalachian region. Baber Court, 26261. 

30 July 2022 in Portsmouth, Ohio
Noise Complaint at the Warehouse will feature live music by D.J. Everman, Commercial Television, and Soft Pain, plus poetry by Dianne Borsenik, John Burroughs, and Tony Brewer. 2134 Gallia Street Apt. B, 45662.

31 July 2022 at 6 p.m. in Cincinnati, Ohio
Word of Mouth Cincinnati presents a reading by John Burroughs plus open mic at MOTR Pub, 1345 Main Street, 45202.

2 August 2022 at 5:30 p.m. in South Euclid, Ohio
South Euclid poets including Doc Janning, Raja Belle Freeman, Amy Kesegich, Shelley Chernin, Michael Ceraolo, Adrian Schnall, Amanda Terman and John Burroughs will read during the annual Bexley Bash at Bexley Park, 1630 Wrenford Road, 44121.

6 August 2022 in Erie, Pennsylvania
Poetry during Erie's Blues & Jazz Festival will feature poets including Thasia Anne, Chuck Joy, Mabel Howard, Niecy Nicole, Dianne Borsenik, John Burroughs and an open mic at Frontier Park, 1501 W. 6th Street, 16505.

13 August 2022 at 4 p.m. - ONLINE
The Bronx Book Fair will present a reading by National Beat Poetry Foundation honorees including William F. DeVault, Dane Ince, Patricia Ince, Carlo Parcelli, Chryssa Velissariou, Ron Whitehead and John Burroughs, facilitated by Debbie Tosun Kilday.

2 thru 4 September 2022 in New Hartford, Connecticut
The National and International Beat Poetry Festival will feature poets from around the world and John Burroughs will be officially christened the U.S. National Beat Poet Laureate for 2022-2023.

10 September 2022 at 4 p.m. in Toledo, Ohio
Uncloistered Poetry presents readings by Pauletta Hansel, Mary Biddinger, Lylanne Musselman, Miles Budimir and John Burroughs, hosted by Lucas County Poet Laureate Jonie McIntire at The Attic, 1701 Adams Street, 43604.

I'm participating in Tupelo Press' 30/30 this month

I am participating in Tupelo Press' 30/30 this month to raise money for their vital work and to give me an extra incentive to write daily. My first three days' poem/drafts are now online, along with those by the other participants. Many thanks to the friends who have donated so far to sponsor me in this poem-a-thon. 

Anyone who donates at least $25 through my link will receive a complimentary copy of my next book when it's out as a token of my appreciation. Of course I will revise and refine these pieces later. I was tentatively planning to christen this series "30 Days in the Hole" (after Humble Pie) until I remembered that there are 31 days in July.

My goal is to raise $500 for Tupelo Press (as well as 31 poems for myself).

Athens Poet Laureate Chalks My "Half Write"

 

Many thanks to Athens Poet Laureate Wendy McVicker! I've been enjoying her sidewalk poem posts on Facebook and feel incredibly honored that she chose one of mine this time.

This poem appears in my book Rattle and Numb: Selected and New Poems, 1992-2019, published by Venetian Spider Press.

I've been selected to serve as the 2022-2023 U.S. Beat Poet Laureate

OMG. I have been pretty much speechless since hearing the news earlier today. There are so many worthy candidates across our nation and I'm a bit incredulous that I've been selected. But I promise I will do everything I can to be worthy. Poetry saves lives. Someone asked me if I really believe that and I do. It saved mine.

Immense gratitude to the National Beat Poetry Foundation and everyone who has supported me over the years and has helped me evolve and continue evolving as a poet and person.

Performing June 21st in Evansville, Indiana!

I'm looking forward to performing at the Bokeh Lounge in Evansville this Tuesday at 7 p.m Central. This event is part of the Poetry Speaks: Readings and Performances series hosted by "Hoosier Bill" Sovern, the recent Indiana Beat Poet Laureate. It will be my first reading in that state since 2017. Looking forward to seeing area poet friends and hearing new voices!

Bokeh Lounge
1007 Parrett Street
Evansville, IN 47713.

NFSPS Convention in Columbus Next Week!

 

You now have until June 19th to register for the National Federation of State Poetry Societies Convention that is happening in central Ohio on June 23rd through 26th, hosted by the Ohio Poetry Association. 

Hanif Abdurraqib will be their convention Keynote speaker. If you can't attend in person, there is also an option to attend virtually.

More info: https://www.ohiopoetryassn.org/nfsps-2022-convention.

I'll be participating in two events there:

A reading by contributors to I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing: Ohio's Appalachian Voices on 6/23 at 8 p.m. and a Poets Laureate panel on The Power of Literary Citizenship on 6/24 at 1 p.m.

Hope to see you!