First Draft, March 13, 2010

Because of the Women of the World Poetry Slam this week, Writer’s Block has the pleasure of holding its First Draft Poetry show during the Slam this month.

This Saturday, March 13, your regularly scheduled First Draft Poetry show will be happening 12:00 – 1:30 PM at the Columbus State Community College Ballroom. The Conference Center Ballroom is located on the 4th floor of the Center for Workforce Development Building (right next to the Discovery Zone Bookstore). Come out and share your new, never-performed poems on this show’s open mic hotness!

For the full schedule of WoWPS events, see the WoWPS 2010 Schedule of Events.

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WoWPS Finals @ the Lincoln Theatre, March 13, 2010

The finals for the 2010 Women of the World Poetry Slam will be held at the historic Lincoln Theater on Saturday, March 13 @ 8:00 P.M. (View Map)

Since the theater will most likely be packed and tickets will be more at the door, PSI suggests that you buy tickets ahead of time. They say “Ticketmaster charges you more. Or you can pay more at the door. Twenty-two bucks each to put your tail in the hottest show in town.”

For the full schedule of events, see the WoWPS 2010 Schedule of Events.

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Poetry Forum Annual Fundraiser Features Scott Woods, March 8, 2010

The Poetry Forum is having their annual Fundraiser show with featured poet Scott Woods on Monday, March 8, 2010.

The show starts at 7 p.m. and will be at the Poetry Forum’s home, the Rumba Café @ 2507 Summit Street, Columbus OH (View Map).

Some additional words from Steve Abbott from the Poetry Forum:

“No long pitch letter. Just the facts:

  1. The Poetry Forum has been presenting the best in central Ohio poetry for 26 years.
  2. We’re operating without grant support and need yours.
  3. Scott Woods will knock you out.

If you are not familiar with the poetry of Scott Woods, you owe it to yourself to invest an evening in getting acquainted with it and him. His work is lyrical, thoughtful, smart, and yes, often laugh-out-loud funny. He is a founder and coordinator of Writers Block, which has operated several poetry venues around Columbus for many years. Scott now hosts Writers Block’s weekly readings at Kafe Kerouac, north of OSU. He has several chapbooks of poems out, is on the Board of Poetry Slam International, and has coached slam teams from Columbus at national competitions. His appearance at The Poetry Forum will warm you up after weeks of cold that have made recluses out of many.

We’d like you to be there, and it doesn’t matter how much you can give. We know it’s a tough time for many people and that money for the arts is in jeopardy in many places. But we depend on lovers of the written and spoken word to keep us singing our lines and lighting the night.

We hope you’ll make a point of coming out March 8 at 7 PM to the Rumba Café, 2507 Summit Street (just south of Hudson Street). Bring your checkbook. Bring cash. Bring a friend or several—carpool if you can work it out. But come. First, because it will be worth it to hear Scott Woods, and second because your support is critical to our ability to keep The Poetry Forum alive.

There’s never an admission charge at The Poetry Forum, and we depend solely on donations to ensure that our impressive poets get a little payment for sharing their work with you every week. We ask only that you come and consider making a donation by cash or check (payable to The Poetry Forum). As always, we’ll have a special book raffle.

If you can’t be there in person, we hope you’ll send your support to The Poetry Forum, c/o Box 784, Worthington OH 43085. The numbers are simple: $25 from 25 people will provide much of what we need to match what we raise a dollar at a time passing the hat each week. A donation in any amount will help us continue The Poetry Forum into next year. If you want more information or want to know how else you can help, call 614-268-5006.

Your interest in poetry and your support for The Poetry Forum have been essential to its success over the past 26 years. We hope you can join us at 7 p.m. March 8 at Rumba Café, 2507 Summit Street (just south of Hudson Street) to enjoy the poetry of Scott Woods and the company of some pretty intelligent people.

And please forward this to friends and/or post it to your Facebook page.

The Poetry Forum has spread the word since 1984.
You can help us spread the word today.”

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Writer’s Block Hosts WoWPS Kickoff @ Callahan’s, March 10, 2010

Writer’s Block Poetry is hosting the kickoff for the Women of the World Poetry Slam at Callahan’s on March 10 (View Map).

The night will begin with the traditional Writer’s Block Open Mic from 8:00 PM until 9:00 PM, followed by the Last Chance Slam from 9:00 PM until 11:00 PM. Ladies, if you missed your chance the first time around to slam to get into WoWPS, this Slam is literally your LAST CHANCE to try to compete in WoWPS.

All of this is followed by the Welcome Party, which begins at 11:00 PM and goes until whenever.

For the full schedule of events, see the WoWPS 2010 Schedule of Events.

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Women’s Panel and Workshop @ Writing Wrongs, Thursday, March 11, 2010

WW Women's Workshop Flyer

The folks over at Writing Wrongs Poetry say, “stop by for an incredible workshop and panel with four of Poetry Slam’s most amazing Ladies!

Dee Matthews (Detroit), Gypsee Yo (Atlanta), Sonya Renee (D.C.) & Mahogany L Browne (Brooklyn) make up an amazing panel of poets that will be conducting a workshop during the Women of the World Poetry Slam. This event has been one of the highlights of the past couple of years and this promises to have the same impact.

Admission is Free for participants, volunteers and staff for the Women of the World Poetry Slam. $5 for General Admission.”

When: Thursday, March 11 from 1:30 – 4:00 PM
Where: Urban Spirit Coffee Shop, 893 E. Long Street, Columbus OH (View Map)

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Rachel McKibbens Features @ Writing Wrongs, March 9, 2010

THE Rachel McKibbens will be featuring at Writing Wrongs Poetry on March 9, 2010.

Yes, you read right.

She will feature there, shortly before the Women of the World Poetry Slam. She is also competing in the slam.

The founders of WW have this to say about the show:

Rachel McKibbens is many, many things including the author of the beloved ‘Pink Elephant’ and the 2009 Women of the World Poetry Slam Champion. She is coming back to Columbus to do a full set for Writing Wrongs and you don’t want to miss it.

There will also be an 8 woman slam off comprised of some of the nation’s best.

All this plays up to a night you CAN’T miss.”

When: March 9, 2010 @ 8:00 PM
Where: Writing Wrongs Poetry Slam @ Urban Spirit Coffee Shop, 893 E. Long Street, Columbus OH (View Map)

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Video Performance of “Angels” On YouTube!

I just posted a performance of “Angels” that was taped at Writing Wrongs Poetry on January 26, 2010. I performed a slightly ad-libbed version of the poem during the open mic that night, which preceded the 2nd Annual All-Ohio Battle Slam. You can watch the clips below:

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Raven’s Wing Press Page Updated!

As part of my effort to redesign this blog, I have changed the Raven’s Wing Press page to a new layout. The page should be easier to navigate, and now includes sub-pages for each book I’ve published. Sample poems from each book are now in HTML format.

I have designed them with a new WordPress theme in mind, so they won’t quite look the same when I complete renovations. My target date to complete the redesign is March 1, 2010.

Please take a few moments to look at the new pages, and let me know what you think via comments on this post or backchannel (ravenswingpoetry AT gmail DOT com). Your input is much appreciated.

-Nicole Nicholson
Founder, Raven’s Wing Poetry

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Dan Vaughn, T Miller, and Eboni Hogan to Feature @ Writing Wrongs in February 2010

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Dan Vaughn, T Miller, and Eboni Hogan will feature at Writing Wrongs Poetry Slam in February!

Dan Vaughn will feature first on February 16. According to WW, Vaughn “has been a staple in the Milwaukee Poetry Slam scene since its conception, representing Milwaukee 8 times at the National Poetry Slam. Don’t miss the opportunity to see this Midwest Force in person.”

T Miller and Eboni Hogan will both feature at WW on February 23. Some info about these ladies from WW follows below:

T Miller is a Detroit native that is a two time WOWPS Finalist and multiple Detroit National Team Representative. Eboni Hogan is an Urbana Poetry slam Grand Champion and two time Nuyorican Poetry Slam team member, including the 2009 National Poetry Slam Finalist team. You don’t want to miss these two Femme Fatales do their thing at Writing Wrongs.”

WW also notes that “there will be an Open Mic and Slam that night too, so get there early to sign up. With such a packed schedule, WE WILL START ON TIME!” So no Poet Standard Time, folks.

All shows start @ 8:00 P.M. and are held at Urban Spirit Coffee Shop, 893 E. Long Street, Columbus, OH (View Map). Cover for each event is $5.00.

Oh yeah — and don’t forget about the next slam for NPS contention @ WW, scheduled for February 9.

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Writer’s Block Poetry Announcing Start of Its 2010 NPS Slam Season

Writer’s Block Poetry announced the beginning of its 2010 National Poetry Slam season on Tuesday The first preliminary slam was on Wednesday, January 27. From the WB Listserv’s latest email:

“January marks the traditional beginning of our NPS season, where we have preliminary slams to pick our team for the trip to NPS in August. The season runs 6 preliminary slams, and then a Grand Slam to pick the top 4 poets that will make up the team. We added a preliminary slam to the season this year, so good luck!”

A complete schedule follows below for those interested in either watching or competing this season to be on the team representing the WB at the 2010 National Poetry Slam, which will be held in St. Paul, MN in August (dates and more details will be released later this year — check http://nationalpoetryslam.com/ or http://www.poetryslam.com/ for more details).

  • February 24
  • March 24
  • March 31
  • April 28
  • May 19

The final Grand Slam will happen on May 26. The top 8 scoring poets from this slam season will compete for placement on the WB Team.

For additional details, check out the links below:

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Writing Wrongs Poetry 2010 NPS Slam Season Schedule

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Writing Wrong Poetry Slam posted its 2010 National Poetry Slam season schedule. The first slam was on January 12, with Nicole Homer and Omar “Ion” Holman featuring before the first contention slam. The rest of the schedule is listed below:

  • February 9th
  • February 23rd
  • March 23rd
  • April 13th

The Grand Slam, which will determine the four team members that will represent Writing Wrongs at the 2010 National Poetry Slam, is scheduled for April 27th.

You can find current WW Slam Season results here.

The 2010 National Poetry Slam will be held in St. Paul, MN in August (dates and more details will be released later this year — check http://nationalpoetryslam.com/ or http://www.poetryslam.com/ for more details).

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