READINGS & WORKSHOPS 2022
LIVE:
Fairfield Public Library 1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824 2nd Floor (ask at the front desk) Library policy: masks recommended |
ONLINE:
Zoom meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82753272756?pwd=N3YwdmQ1bHFDM0ZjN1JsRGxOaHp6UT09 Password: 101 (event is open; join anytime) |
In celebration of National Poetry Month and the decline of COVID, the Poets' Salon is holding a special indoor event at the Fairfield Public Library and online on April 23rd from 2-4:30 p.m. Led by Fairfield writers Edward Ahern and Alison McBain, we'll welcome poets Laurel K. Peterson, William P. Hayden, and Janet Krauss, who will read some of their latest poems and answer questions about the process of writing and publishing poetry. There will also be an open mic and special giveaways. If attending in person, we’ll be following the library’s COVID policy.
About the Poets
LAUREL K. PETERSON
Laurel S. Peterson is a Professor of English at Norwalk Community College. Her poetry has been published in many small literary journals. She has two poetry chapbooks: That’s the Way the Music Sounds, from Finishing Line Press (2009) and Talking to the Mirror from The Last Automat Press (2010). A full length collection of poetry, Do You Expect Your Art to Answer You? was released by Futurecycle Press in 2017. She served as poet laureate of Norwalk, CT from April 2016 – April 2019. WILLIAM P. HAYDEN William P. Hayden has long been an active member in Fairfield County’s literary and arts community. He was appointed the second poet laureate of Norwalk in 2019. He has a number of poetry publications, including work in Oysterville: Poems, Anthology of Norwalk Poets Tuesday Night Life, Anthology of Curley’s Poets, and The Little Apple Literary Magazine. JANET KRAUSS Janet Krauss, a widely published poet, has two collections: Borrowed Scenery (Yuganta Press) and Through the Trees of Autumn (Spartina Press). She was twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She retired in May 2017 after 39 years of teaching writing and literature at Fairfield University, where she received the Adjunct Award of the Year in 2006. In addition, she is co-director of the poetry program of the Black Rock Art Guild in Bridgeport, CT. |
We look forward to seeing you in April!
PAST READINGS & WORKSHOPS 2019
From Pages to Publication:
A Writer's Conference
Saturday, November 2 from 9am-4:30pm
The Fairfield Library
1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824
As part of the Fairfield Library's "From Pages to Publication: A Writer's Conference," the Poets' Salon's Edward Ahern, Alison McBain, paul Bluestein and David Boston will be joined by Fairfield poet Jack Powers for a discussion of poetic forms, a brief reading of their poetry, and a guided writing period with prompts. Join the poets on Saturday, November 2nd from 1-2pm, or stay for the whole conference from 9am-4:30pm.
Admission to the conference is free, but space is limited, so you have to sign up through the library's website HERE. There are only about a third of the allocated seats remaining with a week and a half to go, so sign up fast before all the spaces are filled! Hope to see you there!
Admission to the conference is free, but space is limited, so you have to sign up through the library's website HERE. There are only about a third of the allocated seats remaining with a week and a half to go, so sign up fast before all the spaces are filled! Hope to see you there!
Poetry Workshop
Sunday, June 23 from 2pm-3pm
The Westport Library
Grand Re-Opening Event
20 Jesup Road, Westport, CT 06880
The fearless leaders of the Poets' Salon, Edward Ahern and Alison McBain, will be joining local poets Ann Cefola, Ralph Nazareth, Neddy Smith, and Jerry Johnson in a poetry event at the Westport Library's Grand Re-Opening this Sunday, June 23rd in the Writing Center at the library.
From 2pm-3pm, we'll read a bit of poetry and lead a short, interactive workshop on the process of writing and submitting poetry for publication, including an opportunity to write a poem of your own. The panelists will also do a "drive-by poeting" at the end of the session, where they will be happy to hand-write a personalized poem for volunteer participants to take home with them.
Kids are also very welcome to join in! The library has organized a ton of fun events, including musical and spoken performances, a Maker's Space, podcasting and more.
You can find the complete schedule of events on the library's website HERE.
Hope to see you there!
3rd Annual Poets, Writers and Storytellers Stage
Saturday, June 29 from 11am-1pm, 3pm-5pm
Norwalk Arts Festival
Mathews Park (by Lockwood Mathews Mansion Museum)
299 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT 06850
FREE Event, RAIN OR SHINE. The Poets, Writers & Storytellers Stage will be an all day extravaganza of poetry and prose! You can stop by and listen to the morning session, then check out the artists booths at the festival, grab a bite to eat and return to the stage to hear some more!
There will be features reading the day away and you will find a remarkable variety of readings and performance poetry throughout! Open mic and featured poets, plus lots of great poetry books for sale.
PROGRAM ONE - 11:00 AM - 1:30 PM
Jerry T Johnson, Poet — Host
— Laurel Peterson, Poet Laureate - Norwalk, Connecticut (2016-2019)
— Van Hartmann, Poet - Norwalk, Connecticut
— Janet Krauss, Poet - Bridgeport, Connecticut
— January Nicole Wilson, Poet - Fairfield, Connecticut
— Maria Lisella, Poet Laureate - Borough of Queens, New York
— Wayne Russell, Poet - Stamford, Connecticut (reading work of the late Gil Fagiani)
— John F McMullen, Poet Laureate, Town of Yorktown, NY - Jefferson Valley, New York
— Chachanna Simpson, Poet, Storyteller - Norwalk, Connecticut
— Mary Keating, Poet - Connecticut
— Bill Hayden, Poet Laureate Norwalk, Connecticut
PROGRAM TWO - 2:30PM to 5:00PM
Jerry T Johnson, Poet — Host
--Jack Powers, Poet - Fairfield, Connecticut
--Tarn Granucci, Poet Laureate Emeritus, Wallingford, Connecticut
—Chris Middleton, Poet - Connecticut
—Lynne Grobsky, Poet, Balladeer - Wallingford, Connecticut
--LG Neddy Smith, Poet, Spoken Word, Recording Artist/Musician - Norwalk, Connecticut
--Vincent Bell, Poet - Ardsley, New York
--Alison McBain, Poet, Author - Fairfield, Connecticut
--Ed Ahern, Poet and Author - Fairfield, Connecticut
Also: SUNDAY, June 30th 12 Noon - 3pm: Meet the Poets & Book Sales.
There will be features reading the day away and you will find a remarkable variety of readings and performance poetry throughout! Open mic and featured poets, plus lots of great poetry books for sale.
PROGRAM ONE - 11:00 AM - 1:30 PM
Jerry T Johnson, Poet — Host
— Laurel Peterson, Poet Laureate - Norwalk, Connecticut (2016-2019)
— Van Hartmann, Poet - Norwalk, Connecticut
— Janet Krauss, Poet - Bridgeport, Connecticut
— January Nicole Wilson, Poet - Fairfield, Connecticut
— Maria Lisella, Poet Laureate - Borough of Queens, New York
— Wayne Russell, Poet - Stamford, Connecticut (reading work of the late Gil Fagiani)
— John F McMullen, Poet Laureate, Town of Yorktown, NY - Jefferson Valley, New York
— Chachanna Simpson, Poet, Storyteller - Norwalk, Connecticut
— Mary Keating, Poet - Connecticut
— Bill Hayden, Poet Laureate Norwalk, Connecticut
PROGRAM TWO - 2:30PM to 5:00PM
Jerry T Johnson, Poet — Host
--Jack Powers, Poet - Fairfield, Connecticut
--Tarn Granucci, Poet Laureate Emeritus, Wallingford, Connecticut
—Chris Middleton, Poet - Connecticut
—Lynne Grobsky, Poet, Balladeer - Wallingford, Connecticut
--LG Neddy Smith, Poet, Spoken Word, Recording Artist/Musician - Norwalk, Connecticut
--Vincent Bell, Poet - Ardsley, New York
--Alison McBain, Poet, Author - Fairfield, Connecticut
--Ed Ahern, Poet and Author - Fairfield, Connecticut
Also: SUNDAY, June 30th 12 Noon - 3pm: Meet the Poets & Book Sales.
The Fantastic and the Felial: A Speculative Evening with Edward Ahern
PoemAlley
Tuesday, May 7 at 7pm
Curly's Diner
62 Park Place, Stamford, CT 06901
Edward Ahern read at PoemAlley as the featured poet on May 7th at 7pm. He was joined by a number of other wonderful poets who shared their new and old work with the group.
PoemAlley meets every Tuesday at 7pm and, according to their website:
Welcome to PoemAlley, Stamford, Connecticut's eclectic venue for poets, poetry reading and discussion! Open to anyone living in Fairfield County and the surrounding area, we meet Tuesday nights at 7:00 pm at Curley's Diner on 62 Park Place (behind Target) . Come contribute, get something to eat, or simply listen!
They often feature great local poets like Ed, so it's worth stopping by sometime, grabbing a cup of coffee, and sharing your poetry!
Four Fairfield Poets
Sunday, May 5 from 2pm - 4pm
Fairfield Public Library
1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824
Four local poets who will be doing a poetry reading at the Fairfield Public Library as a continuation of celebrating April poetry month. The poets include Alison McBain, Edward Ahern, Jeff Schwartz and Jack Powers. We'll each read for about a quarter of an hour, then take questions and chat afterwards. The event is free, and all are welcome to attend!
For more info, check out the library's event page HERE.
For more info, check out the library's event page HERE.
Poetry Month Celebration
Saturday, April 13 from 1:30 PM - 4 PM
Fairfield Public Library
1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824
Memorial Room (2nd Floor)
April is poetry month, so please join us in a poetry reading, open mic and seminar on getting poems published at the Fairfield Main Library. (It will be held after our regularly scheduled meeting from 10am-noon.) The Poets’ Salon is chairing the event, which will be an inclusive meeting of current and hopeful poets. Read a poem of your own, or feel free to come by just to listen.
If you'd like to read, please email Alison McBain at [email protected] so I can add you to the list. Or just show up! We will have a section for open mic, and several mini poetry workshops. The session will conclude with a briefing on how to get your poetry critiqued and published. Drinks (soda and water) and snacks (sandwiches, pastries, veggie and fruit trays) will be provided.
Here’s a loose approximation of the schedule – all of this is flexible, depending on the number of attendees and how many poets would like to read, so this is just a guideline about the topics we’d like to cover.
1:15-1:30pm - Attendees trickle in, grab some food and drink. We will have mini croissant sandwiches, pastries, veggie tray, fruit, sodas and waters.
1:30 - We introduce the Poets' Salon and what we do.
1:40pm – READING: First 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
2:00pm - WORKSHOP: the process of writing poems (open discussion for all). We'll talk about what inspires us to write poems, the different formats we enjoy writing, how we edit our poetry. Any particular stories you'd like to share about a specific work that you’re reading that day would be great.
2:20pm – READING: Next 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
2:40pm – WORKSHOP: writing your own poem (open for all). We will have pads, pens, and prompts for all the poets, and will engage in about 15 minutes of writing time to compose a poem of your own.
3:00pm – READING: Next 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
3:20pm – WORKSHOP: submitting your poetry to get published (open discussion for all). We’ll go through a step-by-step process of how to format your poem for publication, websites to help you choose where to submit, and take a volunteer example of an attendee’s poem and suggest a list of places where it might be a good fit. We’ll briefly talk about journals, poetry contests, and similar, including highlighting a few opportunities of good places that actively encourage new poets to submit.
3:50pm – READING: Any remaining poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems.
4:00pm – END: Chat and nosh on snacks.
For more info, check out the library's event page HERE.
If you'd like to read, please email Alison McBain at [email protected] so I can add you to the list. Or just show up! We will have a section for open mic, and several mini poetry workshops. The session will conclude with a briefing on how to get your poetry critiqued and published. Drinks (soda and water) and snacks (sandwiches, pastries, veggie and fruit trays) will be provided.
Here’s a loose approximation of the schedule – all of this is flexible, depending on the number of attendees and how many poets would like to read, so this is just a guideline about the topics we’d like to cover.
1:15-1:30pm - Attendees trickle in, grab some food and drink. We will have mini croissant sandwiches, pastries, veggie tray, fruit, sodas and waters.
1:30 - We introduce the Poets' Salon and what we do.
1:40pm – READING: First 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
2:00pm - WORKSHOP: the process of writing poems (open discussion for all). We'll talk about what inspires us to write poems, the different formats we enjoy writing, how we edit our poetry. Any particular stories you'd like to share about a specific work that you’re reading that day would be great.
2:20pm – READING: Next 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
2:40pm – WORKSHOP: writing your own poem (open for all). We will have pads, pens, and prompts for all the poets, and will engage in about 15 minutes of writing time to compose a poem of your own.
3:00pm – READING: Next 3 poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems. Please bring 1-5+ poems. If we have open mic readers, 1 of the 3 will be an open mic reader. Each poet will get about 5-7 minutes.
3:20pm – WORKSHOP: submitting your poetry to get published (open discussion for all). We’ll go through a step-by-step process of how to format your poem for publication, websites to help you choose where to submit, and take a volunteer example of an attendee’s poem and suggest a list of places where it might be a good fit. We’ll briefly talk about journals, poetry contests, and similar, including highlighting a few opportunities of good places that actively encourage new poets to submit.
3:50pm – READING: Any remaining poets will stand up, introduce themselves (what they write, if they've been published, and perhaps some places they've been published) and read their poems.
4:00pm – END: Chat and nosh on snacks.
For more info, check out the library's event page HERE.
PAST READINGS & WORKSHOPS 2018
From Pages to Publication: A Writer's Conference
Saturday, November 3, 2018 from 9 AM-4:30 PM
Fairfield Public Library
1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824
Fairfield County is always wonderfully welcoming to writers - the libraries all have excellent writers' programs and conferences, and almost all of them are free to attend. This is a place where you can interact with all levels of writers, from those just starting out to those topping bestselling lists.
The Fairfield Public Library continued this great tradition of supporting writers by hosting a one-day writers' conference Saturday, November 3rd, 2018, in celebration of NaNoWriMo. There was something for everyone - from nonfiction writers to short story writers, from poets to novelists.
This was the first poetry event The Poets' Salon participated in, from 1-2pm, called: "Poetry: Writing, Readings and Getting Published." Panelists included Laurel S. Peterson, Jack Powers, William McCarthy, David Boston, paul Bluestein, Bill McCarthy, Edward Ahern, Alison McBain, and Alice Green.
Here are a few photos from the event. A hearty thank you to the library, the panelists, and the attendees for making it such a great success!
The Fairfield Public Library continued this great tradition of supporting writers by hosting a one-day writers' conference Saturday, November 3rd, 2018, in celebration of NaNoWriMo. There was something for everyone - from nonfiction writers to short story writers, from poets to novelists.
This was the first poetry event The Poets' Salon participated in, from 1-2pm, called: "Poetry: Writing, Readings and Getting Published." Panelists included Laurel S. Peterson, Jack Powers, William McCarthy, David Boston, paul Bluestein, Bill McCarthy, Edward Ahern, Alison McBain, and Alice Green.
Here are a few photos from the event. A hearty thank you to the library, the panelists, and the attendees for making it such a great success!