The @City_Paper Short Fiction and Poetry Contest

The City Paper is having a short fiction and poetry contest for Maryland residents.  I think I entered this contest once before and didn't win, but that doesn't mean I can't enter again.  Last time, I only entered a poem.  This year I'd like to submit a flash fiction piece.  Technically, I consider the piece to be a prose poem, but if it wins the cash prize, they can call it whatever they like.  The deadline to submit is November 11th.

Click here for the rules so you can submit too ---> http://citypaper.com/arts/fictionpoetry

Oyin October Contest

I entered a YouTube contest with Oyin Handmade and won some Honey Money. My video is the toast one ---> http://t.co/kSJfUuaM

Blue Haiku

I swallowed the sky.
No other place could contain
the cavern of sad.

November Poem-a-Day with @RobertLeeBrewer

November is crawling down October's back and is carrying a month full of poems in his pocket.

This will be my second year participating in writing a poem each day in November.

For more details check here ---> bit.ly/qV0n38

Trying @Postagram

I am so behind on writing postcards for The Great Postcard Swap (#TGPS). I've decided to try a new app called Postagram to see if it will help.

Postagram helps you create a physical postcard using pictures you have taken yourself. It costs 99 cents for each card, unless you buy in bulk, which is cheaper than most postcards I've seen at the store. You are allowed 180 characters to write your message and you can include a profile picture if you choose.

I sent out a handful that should be in the mail as you read this post. If you receive one from me, let me know how it turned out.

Which books could speak for you?

Imagine that you had to pick ten books that could speak for you.  Ten books that a total stranger could read and have insight to who you are as a person.  Which ten books would you select?  Here are the ones I would choose (today):

1. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
2. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
3. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
4. Maud Martha by Gwendolyn Brooks
5. Honey, I Love and Other Love Poems by Eloise Greenfield
6. Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
7. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
8. The People of Paper by Salvador Plascencia

9. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

10. Coraline by Neil Gaiman

An Afternoon of @CaveCanemPoets

So this is super in advance, but it ran across my radar today and I don't want to forget.

On December 4th at 2 PM the Pratt Library will have an event with four Cave Canem poets: Derrick W. Brown, Evie Shockley, Iain Haley Pollock, and Khadijah Queen. The event will be hosted by Reginald Harris (who is also a CC Fellow).

I attended this event before and enjoyed myself, so I don't want to miss it.

Do you have favorites on this line up?

Poem Search

I'm searching around in my poetry archive to see if I've ever written a social justice poem. In the process of looking, I ventured over to the Little Patuxent Review to read the guidelines and see if they had any examples of poems that fit the theme. Not only did they have an example, but there are also interviews that took place after the Social Justice panel they held at the Baltimore Book Festival.

In one of the interviews Laura Shovan, the editor at LPR, made the comment that when working with young poets she jokes "about the assumption that all poems are about springtime, love, and flowers."

*gasp*

I think I am "that" poet. Maybe not springtime, but the winter for sure. I doubt I've written about flowers, but certainly poems about love or a lack of it. Not that I'm maple syrup about it, but I don't tackle social issues. Like I bet social justice poets have written about Troy Davis, or folks occupying wall street. Me, not so much.

Does it count that I wrote a haiku about unemployment?

Let me get back to searching for those poems.

#30Americans at the Corcoran Museum

Anyone who lives in the DMV area should take the time to visit the Corcoran Museum to view the 30 Americans exhibit. It will be available until February, so you have plenty of time to check it out.

I wish I had been able to take pictures of some of the work I saw, it could have inspired a poem or two.

Before you leave the museum, don't forget to grab a postcard or leave a message on their billboard.

P.S. While I was there I saw Danielle Evans, the author of *Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self* and also John Thompson III, who coaches the Georgetown Hoyas.

Statistics Haiku

your degrees will not
save you from joining the nine
percent unemployed

National Book Festival

I'm surprised at myself for not blogging about the wonderful time I had at the National Book Festival. Nothing could really top meeting Jacqueline Woodson at the first NBF I went to, but talking to Toni Morrison would have done it. However, the line to get to see her was so long it might still be there now.

I did get to meet a lot of authors: Rita Dove, Sherman Alexie, Yusef Komunyakaa, Rita Williams-Garcia (in the picture) and several others.

Already looking forward to next year.

#TGPS - The Great Postcard Swap

Today's postcard came from Ozbekistan. I'll have to look that up on a map.

I need to up my postcard game. I'm falling behind.

@HoCoPoLitSo Event

Last night I went to listen to Tara Betts & Terrance Hayes read poetry in honor of Lucille Clifton. It was fantastic, cerebral fun.

Poets are interesting people.

Also met Tim Singelton & Linda Joy Burke which was nice because I follow them both on Twitter and they recognized me from my avi. They both encouraged me to submit to the Little Patuxent Review, so guess what I'm going to do? Submit of course, but first I need to write a social justice poem because that is the theme.

Terrance, I mean, Hayes...uh. Hold up, if I've met a poet twice can I call them by their first name?

*ponders*

Anyway, during the event I was going to ask a question about feeling like a poet, but Terrance basically answered my question without me saying a word. He said he felt like a poet when he was writing or grappling with a poem, but other times he felt like a teacher.

I probably should call him by his last name, but he was wearing two watches. Two watches. He obviously doesn't get hung up on formalities and staying inside the box.

And Ms. Tara relayed a wonderful compliment from Afaa Weaver about one of my bop poems that made me feel snuggly inside. I'm going to hold on to it for a grey day. While she's in town, I hope I can get her addicted to the Black Velvet cupcakes at Midnite Confections Cupcakery.

Can't wait to check out more events from HoCoPoLitSo.