Ohio Poetry Association Blog

  Poetry and performance to highlight historical significance in freedom movement The Ohio Poetry Association (OPA) and Poets Against Racism & Hate (PARH) USA will partner with the Ohio History Connection to present a very special celebration of Ohio’s role in the Underground Railroad on December 7, 2024. The Capstone Celebration will be the culminating event of the Ohio Underground Railroad Whistle-Stop Poetry Tour, a series of special poetry and history events held at various locations throughout the state this year. The Capstone Celebration will feature live poetry readings, music and dance, film, and a special panel discussion featuring local historians. Additionally, representatives from various whistle-stop sites will have exhibit tables to interact with visitors and tell them more about some of Ohio’s important Underground Railroad sites and educational resources. “This whole project has endeavored to draw inspiration from the unifying spirit behind the Underground R...

February 22, 202 2 – The Ohio Poetry Association is pleased to announce it will host a reading featuring the anthology I Thought I Heard A Cardinal Sing: Ohio’s Appalachian Voices, a one-of-a-kind collection of poetry focused specifically on the unique cultural experiences of Appalachian poets located in or connected to Ohio (Central) Appalachia. The event will be held Saturday, March 26, 2022, at 2:00 PM on the campus of Otterbein College, Towers Hall Room 112, 1 S. Grove Street, Westerville, OH 43081. The anthology was produced by Ohio Poet Laureate Kari Gunter-Seymour, who obtained a fellowship grant from the Academy of American Poets with funds from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Gunter-Seymour designed and edited the collection—a lavish mix of voices: Affrilachian, Indigenous non-binary and LGBTQ; from teens to those creatively aging; poets in recovery, some with disabilities or developmental differences; emerging and well established; some living in the state, others from...

The Ohio Poetry Association (OPA) is releasing a new ekphrastic poetry anthology, titled, A Rustling and Waking Within. The collection is a celebration of art and poetry in Ohio . The 139-page perfect-bound book contains poems written by friends and members of OPA in response to various forms of art featured in Ohio 's museums, galleries and many other venues, including homes. Works by Ohio artists, both older art and more contemporary, are included.   On the cover is a painting by Camille Pissarro (French, 1830–1903), titled, "The Roofs of Old Rouen , Gray Weather " used by permission from the Toledo Museum of Art. The project marks the culmination of four OPA writing events that were held in major art centers in Ohio . An initial release event, at which contributors will read their poems against a visual projection of the art to which they responded, is slated for Saturday, March 11, 2017, from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, at the Wexner Center for the Arts, 1871 N. H...

The Ohio Poetry Association annual picnic will be held on Saturday, July 18, at Jeffrey Park, Memorial Shelter,  1965 N. Parkview Ave., Bexley, Ohio 43209 . A short business meeting will be conducted from 10:30 am - 11:30 am. The carry-in style picnic will be from noon until 3. At 1 pm, poets Kerry Jensen Trautman, Steve Brightman, and Wendy McVicker, as well as Student Voices winners and other special guests, will read poetry. There is an open mic too, so bring a poem or two to share. You won’t want to miss the fellowship with other Ohio poets and the wonderful readings by featured poets. We’ve asked each of them to answer some questions about their poetry so we could get to know them better. We’ve already shared responses provided by Kerry Jensen Trautman and Steve Brightman . In this post, we get a small glimpse into the poetry life of Wendy McVicker.   Do you draw inspiration from other poetry? If so, whose and why? Poets who inspire me include Willi...

Last week, we shared responses provided by Kerry Jensen Trautman, one of the three featured poets who will be reading at the 2015 Ohio Poetry Association Picnic, to our five questions about the writing process. This week, we’re sharing responses from poet, Steve Brightman.  Steve Brightman Do you draw inspiration from other poetry? If so, whose and why? I draw inspiration from whatever is willing to offer its vein(s) to me: poetry, the weather, baseball, people I know, people I don't know, historical personae, the trees (my family's and the ones outside my window), words, numbers... What three words best describe your own poetry?   taut, accessible, concrete Do you have a writing routine? If so, describe it briefly. I do have a routine. I write every day. literally. Last week was the 2000th day in a row I've written a poem. Not all of them are good or deserve to see the light of day, necessarily, but they're poems. And they are strung toge...

The annual picnic is a favorite OPA event. Poets from all over the state gather in one of Ohio's beautiful parks for food, fellowship, and poetry. It's like a family reunion where every member of your family cares about poetry as much as you do. This year's event promises to once again deliver that spirit of camaraderie along with great poetry. It will be held at, Jeffrey Park, Memorial Shelter, 1965 N. Parkview Ave., Bexley, Ohio 43209 . A short business meeting will be conducted from 10:30 - 11:30 am. The carry-in style picnic will be from noon until 3:45. At 1 pm, poets Kerry Jensen Trautman, Steve Brightman, and Wendy McVicker, as well as Student Voices winners and other special guests, will read poetry. There is an open mic too, so bring a poem or two to share. As a lead up, we have asked each of the three featured poets to answer some questions about their poetry. We'll share their individual responses each week before the event. Kerry Jensen Trautman ...