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Another national Poetry Month is nearing its end that has brought a variety of events to get involved in, from online readings to in-person workshops, many of which were facilitated by Red Room Poetry. Here’s a few that I attended.
First up was a poetry workshop based on the Dangerously Modern art exhibition with Jill Jones. Taking images from the gallery by pioneering Australian women such as those depicted above, we explored objects, interiors and thresholds in response to them through a series of writing exercises, some of which I plan to develop further to see where they take me.
I went along to a panel discussion next, Poetry as Medicine, with the poets above sharing what this means to them and excerpts from their work, that varied from the impact of chronic conditions on the self through to big picture impacts on the world around us. The questions were thought-provoking and produced some interesting answers, with the session culminating in a reading from Anna-Mei Szetu.
The last event was the online workshop Finger Exercises for Poets with American poet Dorianne Laux, who read extracts and exercises from her book by the same name, explaining how its concept was inspired by the finger exercises her mother did on the piano before playing a piece of music. It’s a book that definitely warrants spending time with.
In-between these events I’ve continued with my regular commitments – a monthly online feedback workshop with Cath Drake, meeting with a local poetry group and an online writing session that delved into using the senses with The Orange & Bee. I’ve also been pairing photos taken on my various walks with poetic quotes and sharing them on Facebook and Instagram to help keep the poetry conversation going, but also as a little relief from the daily onslaught of horror that’s called news. Give me a snowdrop thriving through a crack in cement any day.
August is poetry month here in Australia, a national celebration launched by Red Room Poetry to increase access to and awareness of our poetic landscape, and mine’s been filled with readings, applications and a writing retreat.
First up was the SA Poetry Month Showcase at the Wheaty, with readings by Jelena Dinic, Arantza Garcia, Tikari Rigney, Wallis Prophet and Dominic Guerrera. Hosted by Gemma Parker, it was a popular event. I liken Jelena’s work to a beautiful haunting and it was wonderful to hear from performance poets Arantza, Tikari and Wallis, with equally profound words from Dominic, who also hosted the open mic that followed.
Next was my turn to read in the bi-monthly Ern Malley series held at Australia’s oldest literary bar. These readings, courtesy of Stan Mahoney, take inspiration from Ken Bolton’s Lee Marvin ones (where I was also fortunate to read), by offering the same intimate experience equipped with desk and lamp. I shared work from my chapbook ice cream ‘n’ tar, as well as some new poems from the collection I’m working on at the moment.
Then I went on my first ever writing retreat at Island View Writers House! Run by the brilliant Heather Taylor-Johnson, this gorgeous place in Clayton Bay provides writers with the time and space to develop their writing, either through a focused or self-led residency. I chose the latter to further my collection and was absolutely amazed by what I managed to achieve over a long weekend there.
Having that thoroughly enjoyable immersive experience prompted me to apply for the annual fellowships with Varuna and Writers SA. Between them they offer a variety of opportunities to progress projects, and the application process helped me to focus the scope of my collection and identify what I want to achieve with its content, form and voice. So I have everything crossed one of them comes through!
J V Birch 