Jan 17

Poetry Festival Workshop Theme Announced

From our Special Guest Poet Indigo Moor:

Poetry is not naive. It is a concise language that artistically expresses an
emotionally constructed moment. Getting into and out of the poem should be akin to stepping into a flame and exiting a nearly frozen stream… or vice versa. Between these precise bookends, we must exercise a balancing of image and statement that neither obscures the meaning nor presents a stale representation of the poetic intent. This presentation and workshop will cover the artistic construction of poems, groups of poems, and a manuscript.

We will begin by examining and discussing the works of contemporary poets
writing in myriad styles. There will be several optional exercises and a chance to share at the end. The focus of this workshop will be to teach you the ruthless, practiced beauty necessary to make your poetry move and flow in your intended direction.

CLICK HERE to read more about the Festival and download a registration form!

Poetry on Sunday Series

Come join us at the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock for the first 2019 installment of our quarterly reading series! Click the image at right to download the PDF flyer, and see below for bios of our featured readers.

Derek D. Brown is an author, poet, and venture expressionist based in Los Angeles. His premiere collection of poems entitled Articulate Scars: Comfortable Silences and Reluctant Tears, was met with wide acclaim from poetry virgins and seasoned wordsmiths alike. He’s a highly coveted featured attraction throughout Southern California, whose mix of humor and truth in punchy poems has deeply embedded him in the fabric of the poetry scene.

Brian Dunlap is a native Angeleño who still lives in Los Ángeles. He explores and captures the city’s stories that are hidden in plain sight. He is the author of the chapbook Concrete Paradise (2018) from Finishing Line Press. Dunlap is the winner of the 2018 Jeff Marks Memorial Poetry Prize from december magazine judged by former Los Ángeles Poet Laureate Luis J. Rodriguez. His poems and book reviews have been published in Angel City Review, CCM-Entropy, California Quarterly and Dryland, among others. He runs the blog site www.losangelesliterature.wordpress.com, a resource to explore L.A.’s vast literary culture.

Susan Kelly-DeWitt is a former Wallace Stegner Fellow and the author of Spider Season (Cold River Press, 2016), The Fortunate Islands (Marick Press, 2008) and nine previous small press collections and online chapbooks.  Her work has appeared in many anthologies, and in print and online journals at home and abroad. She is also a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the Northern California Book Reviewers Association. For more information, please visit her website at www.susankelly-dewitt.com.

Second Tuesday @ Barkin’ Dog

Join us for the Second Tuesday Barkin’ Dog reading on February 12th at 6:00 at the Barkin’ Dog Grill in downtown Modesto. We’ll be featuring the poetry of beloved local poets Virginia Dall, George Rogers, and Lee Nicholson, read by members of the MoSt poetry community.

An open mic will follow the featured reading, so bring a poem or two to share.

MoSt Board Meeting

Our next Board meeting will be held on February 7th at 6:30 pm. If you are interested in attending, please contact us at info@mostpoetry.org.

Poetry Out Loud County Competition

Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation contest for students, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, and the Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is proud to announce that we will be holding our county-level competition at the MJC Little Theatre on February 6th. Last year, our county winner took third place at the state level, so don’t miss the chance to witness this year’s contest!