Please enjoy today’s selection: “Creative Writing 101” by Matthew Lane Brouwer, which appears in Verse on the Vine Anthology:

Creative Writing 101

I forget I know anything about writing poetry

I forget I have written 500 poems

I forget there is a box beneath my bed
with twenty dusty journals in it

I forget the binders in my desk
where I have stockpiled poems
like ICBM’s

I forget my transcript has a line on it which reads
“Creative Writing”

I forget I know the definitions of terms like
heroic couplet and nonrestrictive clause

I forget there is an open mic

I forget there is a darkened room
where I have read 50 times

I forget that there are 50 people in it
with the candlelight of expectation in their eyes

I forget the compliments I have received
I forget that I would like to receive more

I forget the title of the book I’m writing in my head

I forget the vision of seeing it on some Barnes and Noble shelf

I pour my breaths into a glass with ice in it
and sip them slowly like vermouth
I study the whiteness of the walls

until the minutes halt their drip
I ask the poem if it thinks it knows
who I am

and it replies

I am not a birth certificate
nor the name written in the blank

I am not a bottle of formaldehyde
in which to place the heart

I am not the scalpel
nor the surgeon’s well-trained hands

I am not a magistrate
nor the stone of his decrees

I am the pavilion through which the breeze
might freely blow

I am the hardwood floor
on which the wedding parties dance

I am the mesh through which the sun
can peek its skull

I am the lattice up which the climbing vine ascends

I am the dissipation of the cloud
into tiny drops of rain

I write down the last shape
I think it takes

Put out an empty glass
wait to see what it collects

The post Poem of the Day (04-26-2018) appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Please enjoy today’s selection: “Before I Gained All This Weight” by Molly Fisk, which appears in Verse on the Vine Anthology:

Before I Gained All This Weight

I was so self-conscious I could barely
walk into town for fear people
would stare. I thought I was hideous,
unlovable. Now I want to shake
that poor girl, even though it wasn’t
her fault, so afraid to be human —
rattle her cage of good grades, selftanning
lotion and green eye-liner,
fast-acting depilatory cream, tell her
to smile for God’s sake and kiss
the next boy she sees, life is shorter
than anyone imagines. Silver planes
plummet from clean skies, cancer gnaws
the marrow of even younger bones
than yours, wake up! There’s still time!
Everything around you is unbelievably
beautiful.

The post Poem of the Day (04-22-2018) appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Dec 4, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

It’s our last show of the year and we’re very proud to present two extremely talented and popular performers. Shawn Pittard’s poetry is beautifully brought to life by his lyrical poetic voice along with the musical sounds of jazz/blues musician Clemon Charles. The two of them have been performing all over Northern California for years. We invite you to step inside the art covered walls of Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery, sip some award winning wine, and join us for an evening of poetry & music.

We also invite you to celebrate two years of community, poetry, art and wine with the release of the Verse on the Vine Anthology, where you’ll find poetry from over 20 featured poets, including three Poets Laureate and several out-of-state poets, along with a photographic journey of all our performers and open-mic poets.

The post Verse on the Vine f. Shawn Pittard & Clemon Charles appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Oct 2, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Verse on the Vine presents two very talented poets: Molly Fisk & Stanley Zumbiel. We invite you to step inside the art covered walls of Petra Vineyard Tasting Room, cool off with a chilled glass of chardonnay, and join us for an evening of poetry & humor.

And perhaps if you’re brave enough, share your own poetic voice at the open mic.

To learn more about our featured performers, we invite you to visit their prospective websites:

The post Verse on the Vine f. Molly Fisk & Stanley Zumbiel appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Aug 7, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Hot August Nights: Poetica-Erotica & NSAA

Hot Temperatures and Hot Poetry just naturally go together!

Verse on the Vine presents Hot August Nights featuring the steamy, sultry poetic voices of Poetica-Erotica and the equally sexy, fun, always entertaining Lawrence Dinkins, Jr (NSAA). We invite you to step inside the art covered walls of Petra Vineyard Tasting Room, cool off with a chilled glass of chardonnay, and join us for an evening of sensual musings, humor, and a little bit of naughtiness.

And perhaps if you’re brave enough, share your own poetic voice at the open mic. This night, we especially welcome your sensual and erotic verse.

The post Verse on the Vine: Hot August Nights appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Triple Play: Laura Martin, Catherine Fraga & Matthew Brouwer

What do you get when you combine Zombie Haiku, Gary The Mattress Salesman & The Gospel According to Men with Canes? One hell of a show for June, that’s what!

Laura Martin is a freelance writer/photographer whose features, essays, poetry and images have appeared in multiple publications. She was the grand prize recipient of the Second Annual Pat Schneider Poetry Contest in 2012 and was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize for poetry. As an Amherst Writers and Artists affiliate, Laura leads private writing workshops in the Sacramento area.

Catherine Fraga teaches writing at Sacramento State University. Her poems have been widely published in numerous journals and anthologies. She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and has been the recipient of several poetry awards. Her book, Running away with Gary, the Mattress Salesman, is published by Poet’s Corner Press.

Matthew Brouwer is the touring author of The Gospel According to Matthew and Men Who Walk with Canes. Matthew’s work bridges the worlds of spoken word and literary poetry to create a style that can be both evocative and subtle, enlivening and profound. He has performed in cities throughout the west. He teaches creative writing in Bellingham, WA public schools and facilitates a writing circle for people suffering chronic medical conditions.

The post Verse on the Vine: Triple Play appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Nationally Acclaimed Poet, Indigo Moor

Indigo Moor was born in 1964, in Charlotte, North Carolina and currently resides in Sacramento, California. His collection, Tap-Root, was published in 2006 as part of Main Street Rag’s Editor’s Select Poetry Series.

Indigo is a 2003 recipient of Cave Canem’s Writing fellowship in poetry. He has also received fellowships for the Napa Valley Writer’s Conference and the Idyllwild Summer Arts Academy. He is the vice president of the Sacramento Poetry Center, and editor for the Tule Review.

He is the winner of the 2005 Vesle Fenstermaker Poetry Prize for Emerging Writers. Indigo’s work has appeared in the Xavier Review, LA Review, Mochila Review, Boston University’s The Comment, The Ringing Ear, the NCPS 2006 Anthology, and Gathering Ground.

Other honors include: finalist for the T.S. Eliot Prize, finalist for the Naomi Long Madgett Award, Saturnalia Book Award finalist, and finalist for the Crab Orchard First Book Prize.

The post Verse on the Vine f. Indigo Moor appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Feb 6, 2013
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Poet Laureate of Sacramento, Jeff Knorr!

Jeff Knorr is the author of the three books of poetry, The Third Body (Cherry Grove Collections), Keeper (Mammoth Books), and Standing Up to the Day (Pecan Grove Press). His poetry and essays have appeared in numerous literary journals and anthologies including Chelsea, Connecticut Review, The Journal, North American Review, Red Rock Review, Barrow Street, and Like Thunder: Poets Respond to Violence in America (University of Iowa).

Jeff has edited, judged, and been a visiting writer for various conferences and festivals. He was the founding co-editor and poetry editor of the Clackamas Literary Review. He has also been an invited judge for contests such as the DeNovo First Book Contest, the Willamette Award in Poetry and the Red Rock Poetry Award. He has appeared as a visiting writer at such venues and festivals as Wordstock, University of Pennsylvania’s Kelly Writer’s House, The Des Moines Festival of Literary Arts, and CSU Sacramento’s Summer Writers Conference. He currently directs the River City Writer’s Series at Sacramento City College. Jeff has been the Chair of the English department at Sacramento City College and he has also served on the Sacramento County Office of Education Arts Advisory Board.

Jeff Knorr lives in Sacramento, California and is Professor of literature and creative writing at Sacramento City College.

The post Verse on the Vine f. Jeff Knorr appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Nov 19, 2012
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Our Final Show of the Year
Todd Cirillo & Phillip Larrea

Todd Cirillo was born of bastard lineage in the dark waters outside New Orleans. To this day, he retreats there – whenever heartbreak or hangover hit him. He is a co-founder, editor and publisher of the notorious Six Ft. Swells Press and one of the originators of the After-Hours Poetry movement. Cirillo is the author of five chapbooks of poetry and is a co-author of the infamous book, Roxy. Cirillo is another legendary poet who has been a featured reader all over the United States and an alleyway in Paris. Cirillo’s new book, Sucker’s Paradise, was released in October. You can find him on at afterhourspoetry.com, or underneath the neons…somewhere.

Phillip Larrea is a syndicated columnist and wealth adviser in Sacramento, CA., U.S.A His poems have recently appeared internationally in Outburst Magazine, The Poetry Bus Magazine and thefirstcut #7 from Issuu. In the U.S., Phillip has been recently published in Decade Review, FourPlay, Nostrovia To Writing, and the Brooklyn Voice.

The post Verse on the Vine f. Todd Cirillo & Phillip Larrea appeared first on The Poetry Box.

Wednesday, Oct 10, 2012
7:00-9:00 pm

Verse on the Vine Poetry Series

at

Petra Vineyard Wine Gallery
627 Sutter Street (Old Town Historic Folsom)
Folsom, CA 95630

Love & Lust Times Three

As cooler weather approaches, we’re heating things up a bit.

Breathe in the sensual poetry of these three women known as “Poetica Erotica.” Cynthia Linville, Lytton Bell and Shawn Aveningo have been sharing the stories of love, lust, and naughty humor throughout Northern California.

Come enjoy musings that stir the soul & the libido.

The post Verse on the Vine: Love & Lust Times Three appeared first on The Poetry Box.