Ohio Poetry Association Blog

It is that time of year again when applications are open for the 2012 Columbus Art Festival show, June 1, 2, & 3.  We will be returning to the Riverfront! Please s hare with those you know.   The 2012 Poetry application became live at www.ColumbusArtsFestival.org on October 13, 2011.  Any interested applicants will need to download the application and return it before the deadline of February 17, 2012.  All applications must be submitted on-line through the following link: http://columbusartsfestival.org/apply/poet.php . If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please do not hesitate to contact Festival Coordinator, Shana Scott at sscott@gcac.org or phone at 614-221-8569. Please feel free to contact us with any questions. Good luck as you plan your 2012 festival schedule, and we hope to have you as a guest in Columbus, June 1, 2, & 3 ! Remember the deadline for poetry submission is January 13, 2012 Shana Scott Columbus Arts Festi...

Canyon Voices Literary Magazine Is Now Accepting Submissions   Canyon Voices, Arizona State University’s online literary magazine, is currently accepting submissions for its Fall 2011 publication. Our deadline for the current issue is Tuesday, Oct. 18 th .   As a literary and arts journal, Canyon Voices is dedicated to discovering the emerging talent of student writers, while also providing a forum for established artists.   We feature art, poetry, creative nonfiction, fiction, and short play scripts with the goal of expanding writing communities across the country.   We invite you to share this information with your students, your faculty and your personal writing circles.   Please visit our website at CanyonVoices.asu.edu for submission guidelines.   Sincerely, The Canyon Voices Editors

Call for Submissions (Submission Deadline: January 4, 2012) We are seeking poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays, interviews, photography, and web-friendly artwork for the inaugural issue of Belletrist Coterie, which will be published both in print and online. Belletrist Coterie was formed in an attempt to revive and spotlight the spirit and ebullience of storytelling craft and style. Although we are a new magazine, we have huge heart, and loads of enthusiasm about finding those stories that are truly well written and one of a kind. As our name implies, we refuse to limit ourselves in terms of genre or style. We are looking for essays, short stories, evocative poetry, beautiful artwork, fascinating interviews... anything that tells us a story, is somewhat culturally relevant, beautifully written, and contains the power to move and inspire. Too often these things can get lost in the rigors of structure and form, or the desire to create something generally desireable. We strive to...

A celebration of poetry and music at Sips Coffee House Tuesday, August 23, 2011 6:30 – 9:00 P.M.   101 South Main Street   Mount Vernon, Ohio 740-392-2233     Featured Poets David Francis Smith is a Columbus based poet with roots in Southwestern Ohio and the agricultural aristocracy of the New Deal family farm. Although largely unpublished in print, a selection of early work can be found on the Internet at www.davidfrancisSmith.com .  Several poems also appear on Ereignis at www.beyng.com – the English language website of 20th century German philosopher, Martin Heidegger.  Current projects include coffee house and bookstore readings and work on a teaching-book of poetics, Commonplace Things About Poems.  David is a member of the Greater Cincinnati Writers League, The Ohio Poetry Association and The Academy of American Poets.   Chuck Salmons is currently newsletter editor and secretary for the Ohio Poetry Association. He won the 2...

CONSEQUENCE is the international, literary magazine addressing the culture of war. Now in our third year, we publish each spring fiction, non-fiction, poetry, reviews, visual art, interviews, and translations. Our perspective is broad and includes the causes, actions, and consequences of conflict and social injustice throughout the world. We are interested in work that gives thoughtful readers a nuanced understanding of what is at stake for individuals and societies. CONSEQUENCE accepts unsolicited manuscripts between June 1st and November 1st. We invite you to visit our website at www.Consequencemagazine.org for more information, and guidelines for submitting work.

POETRY COMES TO KINGWOOD CENTER A class about love, hate, and the path not taken will be coming to Kingwood Center on Thursday evenings, July 21 through August 25 from 6:30 to 8 PM. Poetry in the Garden will examine the incredible ability of words to convey meaning beyond the page on which they sit. Each session will be led by a poet who will present poems from those who have inspired and influenced them throughout their career. Discussion of technique, structure, and meaning will follow. It is a class about the magic of words in a magical setting. Participants are to meet in the Workshop Courtyard. Registration required. No class fee.  No admission/parking fee after 6:00.  Call 419-522-0211 ext. 107 to register and receive readings. Kingwood Center is located at 900 Park Ave. West; Mansfield, Ohio. www.kingwoodcenter.org .

The Ohio Poetry Association Presents:   Summer Writers’ Retreat     Saturday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. to Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011 at noon at the Malabar Farm Hostel, Malabar Farm State Park, Lucas, Ohio   Adventures in creativity in the lap of nature! Featuring workshops by Terry Hermsen & Dionne Custer Overnight stay + breakfast: Only $25 Call 419-892-2055 to reserve a spot. Limited to 20 people; first come, first served.   H.I. Malabar Farm 3954 Bromfield Rd Lucas OH 44843    

The Ashland University MFA Program opens its craft seminars and evening readings to the public, free of charge!  Events are held Sunday, July 24 through Friday, August 5.  For more information on the upcoming speakers and to subscribe for daily updates on the residency, visit http://ashlandmfa.blogspot.com/ .

Construction , an online and soon-to-be print magazine which recently premiered at  www.constructionlitmag.com , was founded in Brooklyn and South Korea by four graduates of the creative writing MFA program at The City College of New York. While  Construction  may have a Brooklyn profile, its goal is to use fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, book reviews, and translations to create and support a community beyond New York City. We were proud to announce our first issue, which featured Nobel Laureate Ivan Bunin; critically acclaimed novelist Mark Wisniewski; an interview with Steve Hindy, the founder of Brooklyn Brewery and a former AP correspondent; political commentary from Lincoln Mitchell and Yuri Rashkin; and much more! But we've only just begun. In order for us to keep our content stimulating and innovative we need your help! Please visit our site at  http://www.constructionlitmag.com/submit.aspx  for instructions on how to submit.  ...

A Celebration of Music and Poetry at Sips Coffee House and Deli Tuesday, June 28, 2011 6:30-9:00 p.m. 101 South Main St. Mount Vernon, Ohio 740-392-2233 Featured Writers: The Write-On Writers Write-On Writers of Coshocton was formed in the late 1990’s through the encouragement of Pam Moore, now an editor for Holmes County Bargain Hunter, and her mother, Madge Saunders of Coshocton. Madge, Write-On Writers’ most published member, recently celebrated her 97th birthday. In 2011, the groups name was changed to the Write-On Writers Guild. The guild’s specialty and craft is words. A core group of 10-15 guild members with diverse educational and occupational backgrounds meets the first Monday of every month at Coshocton Public Library from 6-8 PM to encourage each others writing endeavors that range from non-fiction, to fiction, to poetry. New members and visitors are always welcome. The Write-On Writers are host for the Ohio Poetry Association Picnic on Saturday July 16, 2011 at t...

Calling all Poets!   We are calling for submissions for our second SRCA Open Poetry Chapbook Competition (to be judged by Colleen Clayton, Cindy M. Kelly, Gina Tabasso, and Tina Puckett). If you are not familiar with our organization, Standing Rock Cultural Arts is a non profit art and educational organization located at 257 North Water Street in downtown Kent, Ohio, whose mission is to build community through the arts. We are named after the historic Standing Rock that is situated in the Cuyahoga River in Portage County, Ohio. We received our 501(c)(3) status in 2000 and we routinely hold poetry readings in our North Water Street Gallery hosted by local poet, Maj Ragain. Our new Rock in the River Literary Series launched last year with our first competition winner Jeff Fearnside of Prescott, Arizona.   Deadline: Submissions open Jul 1, 2011 and end Sep 30, 2011 (postmark - September 30th).   Please visit our website at www.standingrock.net under our Literary ...

2011 Four Way Books June Open Reading Period   Submissions accepted June 1-30.   Four Way Books editors make selections.   Open to all poets and fiction writers.   Book-length poetry collections, story collections and novellas.   We do not publish novels, translations, or non fiction.   Submission guidelines are available at   http://fourwaybooks.com/general.php .

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: RIDING A GRADIENT INVISIBLE DEADLINE EXTENSION: AUGUST 1ST, 2011 The Editors of the Carolina Quarterly are seeking innovative pieces that challenge the boundaries of space, time, and genre. Send us your poetic flash fiction, your flashy prose poetry, your twitter operetta, your post-pre-neo-un-oeuvre by August 1st to be considered for publication. No more than 500 words per experiment. We'll give you up to 4 shots per person to get our attention. No cover letters. Please, no cover letters. (Unless they constitute the entry.) The first-place winner will receive $300. Two runners-up will receive $75. All winners will be published in an upcoming issue and featured in our online edition. Contest entry fee is $9 -- or free with a one-year subscription to the Quarterly. To submit, go here: http://www.tellitslant.com/home/journal_details/21 Or visit the Carolina Quarterly homepage at: http://cqonline.web.unc.edu/ CONTEST JUDGE: AMY HEMPEL Author o...

Dear Ohio Writers: The Literature Section at Escape Into Life is making its first open call for submissions. Our hope is that you'll visit the site, submit, and help spread the word. All the best, Matt Dye Literature Editor Call for Submissions Escape Into Life is looking for the best in contemporary fiction, poetry, and creative non fiction, as well as reviews of new works and essays on the literary arts. An international online arts journal, Escape Into Life has a substantial audience and receives roughly 35,000 unique visitors per week. In an effort to cater to both readers and writers, our Literature Section publishes new creative works each week and reads submissions year round. For more information and writers' guidelines, please visit us online: http://www.escapeintolife.com/

Ohio Poetry Association Quarterly Meeting and Workshop featuring Stephen Haven May 21, 2011 Bexley Public Library 2411 E. Main Street Columbus, OH 43209 Stephen Haven is Director of the Ashland University MFA Program and Director of the Ashland Poetry Press. He has published two books of poems, Dust and Bread (Turning Point, 2008) and The Long Silence of the Mohawk Carpet Smokestacks (West End Press, 2004), and one memoir, The River Lock: One Boy's Life along the Mohawk (Syracuse University Press, 2008). For Dust and Bread , he was named 2009 Co-Ohio Poet of the Year by the Ohio Poetry Day Association. Haven has also published a chapbook of collaborative translations from contemporary Chinese poetry, The Enemy in Defensive Positions (Poetry Miscellany Chapbooks, 2008). He is editor of The Poetry of W.D. Snodgrass: Everything Human (University of Michigan Press, 1993) and coeditor of two anthologies of contemporary poetry. Haven's poems have appeared in The S...

Binge Press & 27 rue de fleures are seeking poetry written by women.   Please visit www.bingepressandproductions.com and www.27ruedefleures.com to get a feel for our aesthetic.   Binge is currently seeking mini chapbook and regular-sized chapbook submissions. 27 is currently seeking submissions for its "don't-call-it-a-comeback issue" expected to go live by the end of this summer.    All submissions can be sent directly jodianns777 @ gmail . com)   Thanks We look forward to reading the work!   -JodiAnn Stevenson & Rebecca Hardin Thrift

D. H. Lawrence Fellowship The original D. H. Lawrence Fellowship was established in 1958 to sustain a living tradition of artistic creation at the D. H. Lawrence Ranch, located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains some 20 miles north of Taos, New Mexico. Over the years, dozens of poets, fiction writers and dramatists enjoyed a month of quiet writing time amid the great natural beauty of the Ranch. Unfortunately, in 1992, the Fellowship had to be suspended because of the deteriorating condition of the writer's cabin and an uncertain water supply. While the Ranch remains open to visitors during the day, housing a writer-in-residence still is not feasible. In July 2000, the Taos Summer Writers' Conference reinstated the D. H. Lawrence Fellowship in modified form. The Fellowship is awarded to an emerging writer of fiction or poetry with one book in print or at press. The D. H. Lawrence Fellow will receive paid tuition for one weekend or weeklong workshop (a value up to $650), ...

Leo Love Merit Scholarships in Poetry and Fiction/Nonfiction The two Leo Love Merit Scholarships—awarded in poetry and fiction/nonfiction—are available to any potential Conference participant. Each Merit Scholarship pays tuition for a weeklong workshop or partial tuition for a master class (a value of $650). Each Merit Scholarship recipient is responsible for her or his transportation and/or lodging costs. Leo Love Merit Scholarship applicants must register for the Conference (including paying the deposit) at the time application is made for the scholarship. (By the time the scholarships have been awarded, we anticipate that many of the workshops will be closed. Thus, individuals applying for scholarships should be planning to attend the Conference, regardless of the outcome of the competition. These scholarships are meritorious awards, not financial assistance.) Application Procedure for Leo Love Merit Scholarships 1. Submit 10 pages of prose ...

Facing Fate, Finding a Destiny An evening presentation with author, mythologist and storyteller Michael Meade Wednesday, May 11 ~ 7pm Temple Beth Shalom - 5089 Johnstown Rd ~ New Albany, OH Order Tickets According to ancient myths, each soul makes two agreements upon entering the world. The First Agreement binds the individual to a distinct destiny that becomes each soul’s great project in life. The second level of agreement entangles each person in specific limitations of fate, in family issues, and in the immediate dramas of culture. Whereas all second agreements can be renegotiated, the First Agreement of one’s soul is non-negotiable. At the same time, if a person doesn’t face their fate, they may never find their deepest resources and their natural gifts. Facing fate and risking destiny are the two great adventures that the soul must undertake if we are to become who we are intended to be in the world. Join us for a surprising evening of poetry,...

This is to inform that The Muse-An International Journal of Poetry is inviting original poems and research papers/essays on poetry for its first issue, i.e. June 2011 issue. Last date for submission of poems/research papers for June 2011 issue is May 10, 2011. For more details please visit http://www.themuse.webs.com .

  The first print publication of  ROAR  Magazine, a literary journal supporting fiction, nonfiction, poetry and  visual art  by women, is seeking submissions for its inaugural 2011 issue which will include an interview with Jill McCorkle! Please spread the word to your department and encourage your MFA students to submit. To submit your work please visit us at  www.roarmagazine.org . We're looking short stories,  flash fiction , personal essays, memoir excerpts, profiles, poetry, visual art, etc. We accept submissions on a rolling basis, but priority for the first issue will be given to those received by  April 15, 2011 .    Many Thanks, ROAR Staf

Main Street Readings & the Oberlin College Creative Writing Program invite you to a reading by CHRISTINE GELINEAU & LEE UPTON SUNDAY, APRIL 17, 8 P.M. SLOW TRAIN CAFE 55 E College St Ste 3 Oberlin, OH 44074 Christine Gelineau is the author of two recent books of poetry: Appetite for the Divine and Remorseless Loyalty, which was awarded the Richard Snyder Memorial Prize and subsequently nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Award.   She teaches at Binghamton University, where she is Associate Director of the Creative Writing Program.  Lee Upton is the author of a novella, The Guide to the Flying Island, winner of the Miami University Novella Competition;  five books of poetry; and four books of literary criticism.  Her many writing awards include a Pushcart Prize, the National Poetry Series Award, and the Georgia Contemporary Poetry Series Award.  She is Writer-in-Residence and Professor of English at Lafayette College. ...

  NOW OPEN  the 2011 Omnidawn 1st/2nd Book Contest   Accepting both electronic and postal poetry submissions   through June 30th .   Open to any poet writing in English   who has not published a second book of poems. (Chapbooks are not counted as books.)   Prize includes $3,000, Fall 2012 publication &   100 complimentary copies of book.   C.D. Wright will judge. photo of C.D.Wright taken by Forrest Gander The entry fee is $25.     All entrants with a U.S. mailing address who pay an extra $3 to cover shipping costs will be mailed a copy of any Omnidawn book of their choice, or a copy of the winning book when it is published in the fall of 2012. A complete list of all current Omnidawn titles is available  at www.omnidawn.com/catalog.htm .       For details of all Omnidawn Contests: http://www.omnidawn.com/contest/index.htm    ...

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: RIDING A GRADIENT INVISIBLE The literary icebreaker: "Hey, I'm Bill. I'm a poet." "Nice to meet you, Bill. I'm Rachel. I'm a fiction writer." Sigh. The editors of The Carolina Quarterly have grown weary of such small talk. Yearning for a post-genre world, we seek writing that cannot be described in an elevator talk, and yet could be delivered in one. Thus, we are unveiling an experiment in Show, Don't Tell. The Riding a Gradient Invisible Contest Send us your poetic flash fiction, your flashy prose poetry, your twitter operetta, your post-pre-neo-un-oeuvre by June 1st to be considered for publication. No more than 500 words per experiment. We'll give you up to 4 shots per person to get our attention. No cover letters. Please, no cover letters. (Unless they constitute the entry.) The first-place winner will receive $300. Two runners-up will receive $75. All winners will be published in an upcoming issue ...

Thursday, April 14 · 6:00pm - 8:00pm   OSU Urban Arts Space 50 W. Town Street, Suite 130 Columbus, OH   More Info   Join us for the first event of this literary series in which Columbus-based (and OSU alumni) poets Maggie Smith, Jason Gray, Jen Town, and Hannah Stephenson will read recent work. Stick around after for refreshments and conversation. Warning: poems may contain wild animals, references to Jersey Shore, and delicious sound play.   About the readers:   An Ohio native, Maggie Smith is the author of Lamp of the Body (Red Hen Press), The List of Dangers (Kent State University Press), and Nesting Dolls (Pudding House). Smith has received three Individual Excellence Awards from the Ohio Arts Council and a 2011 Creative Writing Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, visit her site: http://maggiesmithpoet.com/   Jason Gray is the author of Photographing Eden...

The Montreal International Poetry Prize will award $50,000for a single poem in any style and in any English dialect. As the Montreal Prize is a grassroots non-profit in its first year, we're appealing to everyone we can to help spread the word about our project. You can find out more about us at http://www.montrealprize.com or here . The early entry deadline for the competition is April 22.   

Mason's Road - Call for Submissions Fiction * Creative Non-Fiction * Poetry * Drama Deadline: May 1, 2011 Mason’s Road, sponsored by Fairfield University’s MFA in Creative Writing program, is now accepting submissions for Issue #3, to be published in July 2011. As a literary journal dedicated to the writing craft, the theme for Issue #3 is “arc." Not sure if your work fits? Let our editors decide, as we also seek to publish the most compelling pieces that come our way, regardless of theme. For submission instructions, go to: http://masonsroad.com/submissions For contest guidelines, go to: http://www.masonsroad.com/features/creative-writing-contest/ Thanks for considering Mason’s Road! The Editors, Mason’s Road http://masonsroad.com

The Cupboard's First-Ever Contest Deadline Extended Reading Feb 1 - April 4 Prize: $500 & publication Judge: Michael Martone The Cupboard has extended the deadline for its first-ever contest. We'll be accepting submissions through Monday, April 4. The winning author will receive $500 and the manuscript will be published as an upcoming volume. We're looking for prose submissions between 4k and 10k words. In the past, we've published short stories, essays, collections of flash fiction and prose poems, and combinations thereof. Send us your best work. Submissions are received and read anonymously, and all submissions are eligible for regular publication. Michael Martone will serve as final judge. To submit, go to: http://www.thecupboardpamphlet.org/submit.html Please email cupboard@thecupboardpamphlet.org with any questions. The Cupboard is published four times a year. Each volume features a body of work by a single author, except when it doesn't (s...

Four Way Books 2011 Levis Prize in Poetry  Claudia Rankine Judge January 1 - March 31, 2011 electronic or mail submissions accepted Publication of a book-length manuscript $1000.00 honorarium Featured reading in a New York City event sponsored Four Way Books Open to all poets regardless of publication history For complete guidelines, please visit www.fourwaybooks.com   Four Way Books P.O. Box 535 Village Station New York, New York 10014

Rose Metal Press Call for Hybrid Manuscripts Submission Deadline March 30, 2011   From February 15 through March 30, 2011, we will be actively seeking full-length hybrid and cross-genre manuscripts for consideration for publication in 2012. We are particularly interested in short short, flash, and micro-fiction; prose poetry, novels-in-verse or book-length linked narrative poems; flash nonfiction or book-length memoirs in shorts; and other literary works that move beyond traditional genres to find new forms of expression. The best way to see what we mean by hybrid is to take a look at our  catalog . We welcome submissions in all styles and on all subjects, and encourage a broad and expansive interpretation of hybridity.   http://bigother.com/2011/02/15/rose-metal-press-announces-its-2011-open-reading-period-for-full-length-hybrid-manuscripts/   Call For Submissions: The Fourth River Online Read...