The Work Poetry Newsletter March 2025

There is no reason to deny it. We are experiencing a fascist coup. The resistance is already forming, and each of us will have to decide what we are willing to do. It is understandable to feel fearful, but we must not allow fear to overcome our righteous anger and disappointment. We must act.

Poets have a role to play in this resistance. We are communicators, and we know how to use strong imagery and rhythm to provoke thought and create emotion. We also perform the public service of articulating what many others are feeling but may not feel capable of putting into words.

Keep writing. Keep speaking. Don’t give up.

Thank you to Jacob Salzer for recommending Americans of Conscience Checklist and their good news email newsletter as an important resource: https://americansofconscience.com/subscribe/

If you are outraged and disgusted by the criminal, unconstitutional actions being perpetrated by Trump, Musk, and the GOP, Rachel Maddow recommends that you download and read INDIVISIBLE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO DEMOCRACY ON THE BRINK: Strategies, Tactics, & Tips For How Everyday Americans Can Fight Back Together Wherever We Live:

https://indivisible.org/resource/guide

Brittany Mishra’s poem about child marriage from a recent Tuesday Zoom edition of the Work is so important that I have decided to share it on Printed Matter Vancouver's website. Brittany writes, "Please share widely. The more people that know this, maybe the sooner we can make this place better."

https://printedmattervancouver.com/2025/02/03/brittany-mishras-poem-about-child-marriage-in-the-us/

My dear friend Brittany Baldwin will be the featured reader for Benjamin Fisher’s excellent In Memory Of open mic at Alberta Street Pub on Monday, March 17. Brittany’s writing is fierce and deeply moving. Don’t miss it: https://www.facebook.com/events/1408521043440131/1408521066773462

The marvelous Laura Stanfill of Forest Avenue Press recently recommended that I check out Chill Subs:

https://www.chillsubs.com/

This month’s newsletter includes an announcement about a reading Laura will be doing with Armin Tolentino to celebrate the publication of her new book, Imagine a Door, at Powell’s Books on April 1.

I have to cancel my March 22 and March 24 editions of The Work because I am going to be out of town.

However, you can still drop in from 2-5 on March 8 at Birdhouse Books or join us on Zoom on March 10.

Congratulations to longtime Ghost Town Poetry and The Work writer Alex Vigue on having two poems published in The Rumpus: https://therumpus.net/2025/02/27/alex-vigue/

I am looking for 2-3 additional writers to join my Thursday afternoon memoir workshop at Niche Wine Bar in downtown Vancouver. The next eight-week session begins March 6 and ends April 24. The workshop meets from 2-5 pm and costs $300. Open to all skill levels. The class will be limited to six participants. Join us every Thursday for eight weeks as we complete and discuss writing exercises based on Javier Zamora's moving memoir Solito.

Please share this information with others who might be interested.

2025 Niche Memoir Workshops

May 8 - June 19 (7 sessions, $262.50)

July 11 - August 28 (7 sessions, $262.50)

October 2 - November 20

Niche Wine Bar

Riverview Tower

900 Washington Street #130

Vancouver, Washington 98660

nichewine@gmail.com

You can learn about all of my 2025 memoir and poetry workshops on the Printed Matter Vancouver website: https://printedmattervancouver.com/creative-writing-workshops/

THE WORK

POETRY NEWSLETTER

MARCH 2025

TABLE OF CONTENTS

MARCH 7: First Friday Poetry Night! With Carey Taylor and Gina Hietpas at Birdhouse Books (Vancouver, WA)

MARCH 9: The Studio Series Poetry Reading & Open Mic Featuring Seven Poets from The Mortality Poems at Ross Island Grocery and Café (Portland, OR)

MARCH 11: Brittney Corrigan, Karen Rigby, Genevieve DeGuzman, and Joan Naviyuk Kane at Up Up Books (Portland)

MARCH 13: Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic Featuring Jim Martin plus Special Musical Guests Christopher Corbell and Stephanie Corbell of the Washougal Song Circle at Art At the Cave (Vancouver)

MARCH 15: Poetry and the Environment — An Invitation to Journey with Calrk County Poet Laureate Susan Dingle at Plas Newydd Farm (Ridgefield, WA)

MARCH 30: “Our New World” concert with Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington at Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (Portland)

APRIL 1: Armin Tolentino and Laura Stanfill read at a book launch celebration at Powell’s for Stanfill’s Imagine a Door, a “years-in-the-making book for writers.” (Portland)

APRIL 6: A Celebration of Poetry featuring this season’s Poetry Moves poets plus Robert Lashley, Susan Dingle and Christopher Diaz at the Magenta Theater (Vancouver)

SUBMISSION CALLS

MARCH 7

First Friday Poetry Night!

With Carey Taylor and Gina Hietpas

Friday, March 7, 2025

7:00-8:30 PM

Birdhouse Books

1001 Main Street

Vancouver, WA, 98660

Birdhouse Books and Christopher Luna welcome poets Carey Taylor and Gina Hietpas for March’s First Friday Poetry Night!

First Friday Poetry Night! is a poetry series featuring an everchanging slate of talented local poets hosted by Birdhouse Books and Christopher Luna. Catch us each First Friday at 7pm in the heart of VDA’s Art Walk. Drop by early to browse the books, soak in the art, and pick up some delicious treats upstairs at Short & Sweet before the show.

Carey Taylor is the author of Some Aid to Navigation and The Lure of Impermanence. She has been published both nationally and internationally. Carey is the winner of the 2022 Neahkahnie Mountain Poetry Prize, was a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominee, and a runner-up for the Concrete Wolf Louis Poetry Book Award. She has a Master’s Degree in School Counseling from Pacific Lutheran University. Carey has lived her entire life in the Pacific Northwest and had the rare childhood experience of living at three lighthouse stations. She lives in Portland, Oregon. https://careyleetaylor.com

Gina Hietpas provided the following information regarding her life and work: “I was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington. Working as a volunteer for Olympic National Park brought me to the Olympic Peninsula about 1974. The time I spent working for the Park Service forged a deep connection to wilderness. While my time in the mountains is more limited now, being outside on our farm still nourishes that connection.

“Journal writing has been a habit since I was an adolescent. These musings often became poems. “It was only after retiring from twenty-plus years of teaching language arts and history at Sequim Middle School that I deliberately expanded my poetry craft skills. I have studied with Kelli Russell Agodon and Susan Rich, Alice Derry, Holly Hughes, and Kim Stafford. Currently I am working with Gary Copeland Lilley. My poems have been published in Minerva Rising, New Plains Review, Rainshadow Anthology, Tidepools and The Broken City.

“The poems in Terrain have had a long evolution. Some early versions were begun thirty years ago. They chronicle the impact of illness on relationship, dreams and family life. They are from my perspective as a spouse and caregiver. They are also a celebration of place. Our farm and the wildlife which inhabits these acres have been respite when exhausted by medical challenges. Observations of animal behavior teach lessons in humor and acceptance. My ultimate goal with this collection is to encourage others to protect and pursue their creative interests. Creativity in all its forms is a way to ease grief, anger, and depression which rises when life feels out of control.”

MARCH 9

The Studio Series Poetry Reading & Open Mic

March 9, 2025 (Sunday) 7:00 PM

Ross Island Grocery and Café

3502 S. Corbett Avenue, Portland

Featuring Seven Poets from The Mortality Poems

Seven of the 25 nationwide poets included in The Mortality Poems anthology will share their poems on the impermanence of being and the passage of time, poems which explore the fragility of existence, prompting reflections on the meaning and legacy one leaves behind.

David Rutiezer has a background in arts education, music therapy, and geriatric wellness. He offers creative writing prompts to folks with Alzheimer’s and dementia to access memories and use cognition, language and intellectual skills.

Francis Hicks’ work has appeared in numerous print and on-line magazines and anthologies including Pine Cone Review, Emerge, Ariel Chart Magazine and The Way the Light Slants. His Debut novel The Long Ride, Learning About Life from an Outlaw Biker, was published by Black Rose Writing.

KC Gloer’s poems embody hope, love, intimacy and shining a light on a world that can often feel dark and overwhelming. Her latest poetry books are: Nothing but Love and Nothing but Love and Lace.

Marc Janssen’s poetry can be found all over the world in places like Pinyon, Slant, Cirque Journal, Off the Coast, Poetry Salzburg and his book November Reconsidered. Marc coordinates the Salem Poetry Project and occasionally the Salem Poetry Festival. He was a nominee for Oregon Poet Laureate.

Mary E Lowd is a prolific science-fiction and furry writer. She has had over 200 short stories and a dozen novels published. She has won many awards, and she has been nominated for the Ursa Major Awards more than any other individual.

Sulima Malzin is the author of Arms Filled with Bittersweet a hybrid memoir and three other books: Words that Dance, a collection of poetry, and All in the Soup Together and Tributaries: Poems of Homage & Gratitude.

Veronica Esagui’s poems can be found in Moments Before Midnight, Terra Incognita and Now We Heal--An Anthology of Hope. She is also the editor and publisher of the trilogy anthologies: Love Poems, Magic Poems and Mortality Poems.

The Open Mic is open to all audience members. Participants can sign up before the start of the reading or during the break. In the interest of time, Open Mic readers are asked to limit their reading to three minutes.

View clips of featured poets reading at the Studio Series on Instagram @poet_landia and on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/1281329966139780/

The Ross Island Grocery and Café is a cozy space with capacity for 40 or so people. Tables are available, so people who arrive early can enjoy a light supper (i.e., a sandwich, salad or burger) while waiting for the reading to begin. If we run out of table space, folding chairs are available. A mic will enhance the readings. There is plenty of unrestricted parking on the streets around the Café.

Questions? Please contact host Leah Stenson at leahstenson@comcast.net.

MARCH 11

6:30 p.m.

March 11, 2025

Up Up Books

1211 SE Stark Street

Portland, OR 97214

Text Us (503)360-8994

Brittney Corrigan, Karen Rigby, Genevieve DeGuzman, and Joan Naviyuk Kane Up Up Books at 6:30 p.m.

MARCH 13

Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic

Featuring Jim Martin

Author of Out of Chaos, Shapes

With music by Christopher Corbell and Stephanie Corbell

of the Washougal Song Circle

https://washougal-songcraft.org/wsf/category/events/

Hosted by Christopher Luna and Morgan Paige

7 pm

Thursday, March 13

Art At The Cave

108 E Evergreen Blvd

Vancouver, WA 98660

https://artatthecave.com

ANTI-RACIST, LGBTQ+ FRIENDLY, PRO-SCIENCE, ANTI-FASCIST,

PRO-CHOICE, ALL AGES, AND UNCENSORED SINCE 2004

https://printedmattervancouver.com/

$5 Suggested donation

No one will be turned away for lack of funds

Donations can be made in person or through Christopher Luna’s PayPal account (christopherjluna@gmail.com). Include a memo stating that the money is for Ghost Town Poetry.

This month’s featured reader has been attending Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic since the series was founded by Christopher Luna in November 2004. According to Jim Martin, “I was born here, in downtown Vancouver, on September 8, 1938. I’ve traveled around the world in various ways, but have always known that Vancouver is, for me, Home.

“In my travels through school, home, Clark County, and the World’s Oceans, my original world view of people, acquired at age nine, has been constantly affirmed: In large measure, we are all People, just People. That helped me to not become distracted by wealth or image, and freed me to spend a good part of my life thinking about Life, especially Human Life vs. All Other Species’ Life. A long journey, but it is paying off, even today, when we are governed by people who have neither the skills, nor an appreciation for the Writers of the Constitution’s concern that we might not increase in our ability to think clearly. Today, around the World, there is a large volume of people who are, in their own ways, moving back to knowing their neighbors, working together with all who wish to build a better World.

“During my working years, when I wasn’t tracing the paths, dinners, and behaviors of animals like crabs and snails, I also worked many hours each week helping K-12 teachers to become comfortable with teaching science. During that time, I discovered some wonderful ‘Happy Places’ where students, on their own, would find exciting questions to follow up on in inquiries they designed themselves. And to drift into thoughts about the lives and activities they discovered in those places.”

Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com or visit

to register to receive The Work, Christopher Luna's monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.

The Ghost Town Poetry community respectfully encourages you to support Niche Wine Bar, whose owner, Leah Jackson, provided a home for the reading series from 2015-2020. Stop by their new location at 900 Washington, Suite 130 Vancouver, WA 98660: https://nichewinebar.com.

UPDATED Statement on Healthy Spaces from Art at the Cave: We want to provide a healthy space to enjoy art. We have been practicing safety precautions such as regular cleaning, social distancing and mask wearing. As a result of the removal of the mask mandate effective March 12, 2022, we will no longer require the wearing of masks. We encourage you to continue to wear a mask if it makes you feel more comfortable, and we will supply masks and hand sanitizer at the door. As social distancing has become a norm, please be mindful some will still need a bit of personal space while inside the gallery.

MARCH 15

Poetry and the Environment — An Invitation to Journey with Susan Dingle

March 15 @ 10:00 am - 4:00 pm

$100.00

https://pnfarm.com/event/an-invitation-to-a-journey-discovering-our-relationship-with-the-environment-through-poetry/

Plas Newydd Farm

Plas Newydd Llc.

33415 NW Lancaster Rd.

Ridgefield, WA 98642

An Invitation to a Journey — Discovering our Relationship with the Environment through Poetry

In this one-day poetry workshop with Clark County’s poet-laureate Susan Dingle, writers of all skill levels will be invited to immerse themselves in the unique landscape of Plas Newydd Farm. We will practice mindfulness, learn how to notice features of the environment, consider our impact on the land. How does development exploit the land? How can we be a friend to the land. We will also read excerpts from works of eco-journalism and eco-poetry.

Light breakfast, coffee, tea and water will be provided. Please bring a notebook and pen, a sack lunch, water bottle and appropriate shoes and clothes to be out in the weather.

Please note: If you have accessibility needs, please reach out and we will work to accommodate you. While we strive to make our workshops accessible to all, we are located in a historical home that does not have accessible restrooms at this point; our lowest entrance has two steps to enter. We do not require masks at most events, but we do have masks available on site, and run high quality air filters, and ask that if you are not feeling well, please stay home. Refunds or credit for a future workshop can be made available.

We do have a scholarship fund! Reach out to arts@pnfarm.com to request financial aid for this workshop!

About the instructor: SUSAN DINGLE (née Susan Grathwohl) believes poetry empowers people of every age, race, gender, ethnicity or condition of life, to appreciate the diversity of our human experience. As Clark County Poet Laureate (2024-2026) Susan Dingle encourages emerging, established and future poets to discover and share their voices in workshops and events throughout Clark County. She received an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Illinois/Chicago, an MSW from SUNY Stony Brook and a Certificate in Congregational Leadership from Dubuque Theological Seminary. Susan is currently completing an MFA in Poetry at Pacific University. She has been writing, publishing and performing poetry since the ‘70s. In 2020, her first chapbook, “Parting Gifts” won honorable mention and publication by Local Gems (NY), and a second chapbook “In Pilgrim Drag” was published by Finishing Line Press (KY). You can learn more on her website.

MARCH 30

Across the country, LGBTQ+ organizations are facing an alarming rise in censorship, defunding, and erasure. The latest target? The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington (GMCW), whose Pride concert at the Kennedy Center was canceled without explanation—just after Donald Trump took over as chairman of the board. At the same time, the National Endowment for the Arts eliminated its Challenge America grants program, which supported DEI-focused arts initiatives.

This isn’t just a coincidence. It’s part of a growing movement to silence LGBTQ+ voices. Defunding our art is an attempt to erase our history, our culture, and our fight for equality. But we refuse to be erased.

PGMC stands in solidarity with GMCW and LGBTQ+ artists everywhere. We will not be silenced. We will keep singing—about love, struggle, and hope. Stronger than fear. Louder than hate.

On March 30, 2025, we’re taking a stand. Four LGBTQ+ arts groups are coming together for a historic event—"Our New World"—at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. This is more than a concert; it’s a statement. A declaration that we are here, we are loud, and we are not backing down.

Now, we need you.

Get your tickets today and stand with us! https://portland-gay-mens-chorus.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/instances/a0FPC000000d0Mj2AI

Can’t attend? Your donation helps amplify LGBTQ+ voices in the face of growing threats: donate.pdxgmc.org

Now more than ever, our voices matter. Help us make them heard.

With pride and solidarity,

Mark McCrary

Portland Gay Men’s Chorus

APRIL 1

Imagine a Door

$24.00

Foreword by Beth Kephart, author of Handling the Truth

On April 1, Laura Stanfill will appear with Armin Tolentino at Powell’s Books on Burnside to celebrate the publication of Imagine a Door, a “years-in-the-making book for writers.”

Here is the description of the book from the Forest Avenue Press website:

Imagine a Door intersperses craft insights, case studies, and checklists with personal stories about publishing and the emotional complexities of sending your work into the world. Is a writing routine worthwhile? How do you pinpoint the why behind your storytelling and use it to improve your manuscript? What makes a query letter stand out? What exactly is distribution? Does success mean selling a certain number of books or can we reframe our expectations in a less capitalistic way?

While prioritizing genuine community over platform building, Laura Stanfill, publisher of Forest Avenue Press and author of Singing Lessons for the Stylish Canary, explores these questions from both sides of the desk. She peppers her material with original interviews with authors Fonda Lee, Amy Stewart, Wendy Chin-Tanner, Keith Rosson, Rosiee Thor, Kesha Ajose-Fisher, Emme Lund, Omar El Akkad, and agents, editors, and publishers.

https://www.forestavenuepress.com/bookshop/p/imagine-a-door

APRIL 6

Celebration of Poetry set for April 6

Afternoon of readings to feature Robert Lashley

VANCOUVER, Wash. — 'Poetry Moves,' created by nonprofit Artstra in partnership with C-Tran, will honor poets who have engaged, delighted, and inspired riders with poems on buses during this 14th season of the program. This free public event will take place Sunday, April 6, 2025, from 1–3 p.m. at Magenta Theater, 1108 Main St., in downtown Vancouver.

2016 Jack Straw Fellow Robert Lashley will be guest of honor and perform a reading. Clark County Poet Laureate Susan Dingle and award winning poet Christopher Diaz will also take the stage. To celebrate their achievement, the afternoon will include readings from this season's Poetry Moves poets.

"Poetry, like any art, should be available to the public," says Poetry Moves Manager Derek Klein, "and we are honored to bring the work of these poets to the local community, and grateful for their work being in the world."

Artstra, C-Tran, the Clark County Arts Commission, Humanities Washington, ArtsWA, and Magenta Theater have joined together in support of this event.

A Celebration of Poetry

A free public event honoring Artstra and C-Tran's 'Poetry Moves' poets.

1pm - 3pm April 6, 2025

Magenta Theater

1108 Main Street

Vancouver, WA 98660

About Poetry Moves

Poetry Moves is a program of Artstra in collaboration with C-Tran, providing poetry on bus channel cards in all C-Tran buses. Each year ten new poems by local and regional poets or student poets are selected. All buses in the C-Tran fleet display two different poem cards.

Poetry Moves website: artstra.org/poetry-moves

About Artstra

Artstra is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization advocating for the arts in Clark County and southwest Washington. The Artstra vision is for a vibrant arts economy, north of the Columbia, with public/private investments and facilities that sustain artists and enrich community. Artstra’s mission is to elevate the arts, build greater arts awareness, reward creative excellence, and expand arts accessibility.

Artstra website: https://artstra.org/

SUBMISSION CALLS

Submission call from Laurence Lillvik:

Skullcrushing Hummingbird - The International Arts and Lit zine is opening up submissions for Issue 6.

The theme for this issue is “This Machine Kills Fascists.”

Send me your fascist killing poetry, prose, photographs, visual art, essays, manifestos, lights in the dark, anger art, hope art, hate art and love art. Art that cannot die.

Fuck the fascists and those that lick their boots.

Long live the Hummingbird.

Details : The zine is black and white and standard 5.5” x 8.5”

Send submissions to larstonovich@gmail.com

Submissions are due on March 21.

The issue will be published before the end of spring, 2025.

Contributors will get a deluxe copy on heavy paper.

Past issues are viewable via links in bio. New website coming real soon.

Spread the good word!

- Laurence

From Carolyn Adams

2026 OREGON POETRY CALENDAR SUBMISSION WINDOW OPENS ON MARCH 1.

Heading into its fourth year of publication, Red Shoe Press accepts submissions March 1, 2025 through May 31, 2025 for the 2026 Oregon Poetry Calendar. The glossy wall calendar pairs expressive poems with compelling photographs. This year’s theme is “the water around us.” Work is accepted only from poets currently living in Oregon. Decisions sent no later than July 2025, perhaps earlier. Publication in August 2025. Poets whose work is published in the calendar receive one free copy. Submit 1-5 poems in a single Word document. Limit poems to 30 lines max. in length (including title and blank lines), and 50 characters max. in width (including spaces, letters, and punctuation). Previously published and simultaneous submissions are okay. There is no submission fee.

• For full guidelines and to submit (Link goes live on March 1st): https://redshoepress.submittable.com/submit

• For more info: redshoepress@5redshoes.com (No email submissions.)