Verse of April 2018

in Verse of April's fourth annual year, we are delighted to share with you the 2018 trailer. it divines from the raw poetry of parisian musician and visual artist Baptiste de Chabaneix. please watch and share! we welcome you to add your voice to this 4th installment of the digital anthology of homage to the poets. we accept profiles, portraits of your favorite poet, visuals of your favorite poems, photos, comics, recordings (dramatic, experimental, or musical), video, collages, or other inventions. thank you for joining us.

Poets Live with Kate Noakes, April 26th

Join Kate Noakes and myself at Poets Live on Wednesday, April 26th at L'OpenBach (6-8 rue Jean Sebastien Bach, 75013 Paris) for poems and perhapses. 

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Thank you to everyone who made it out, and thank you to Malik Crumpler and Anaïs Pourrouquet for recording. Here I am reading an excerpt from my poem “transcendental ethel,” first published in Those That This.

Verse of April 2016

verse of april will launch on the 1st, bringing a year's new collection of voices celebrating poetry. it's an online, international "party" of homage that coincides with the united states' recognition of a national poetry month. the aim is to share many voices, comics, images, mixed-media pieces that in some shape or another talk to the world of poetry. if you’d like to participate, please send in your submission to verseofapril@gmail.com no later than april 15th. 

many thanks to triski nurani for her logo design. you can follow her on instagram @black_eyeliner.

Mozart in December

One of my favorite experiences to date, in this city or otherwise, has been adding my voice to the Symphonic Choir of the Académie de Musique. Please join us this December as we celebrate classical music and Mozart in four historic Parisian churches. 

National Poetry Month Project

In an effort to share with the world the power and vast reach of poetry, this year I am gathering voices from Paris, and beyond, in recognition of the art form, that which moves or teases the minds of those from around the world. 

Please consider following Verse of April. I hope it will continue through the years each spring as a way to celebrate the art which means so much to me and others. 

If you are interested in contributing to the project, please email verseofapril@gmail.com for more information. 

Joining the Team of Sundog Lit

I am absolutely thrilled to announce that I'll be joining the team of Sundog Lit as Assistant Editor. If you aren't already doing so, "like" and "follow" us on Facebook and Twitter. And, please, send in your poems, nonfiction and fiction stories, flash pieces, art and photography, and chapbook manuscripts! We want to read and celebrate your best!

Theme-issue (Letters from) the Road is live on the website now featuring pieces from Maria Aldrich, B.J. Hollars, and Christine Hyung-Oak Lee.

Choosing Paris

On September 6th, I'll depart from Atlanta to begin an adventure in Paris. I will deeply miss my home of New Orleans, Birmingham, and the South—my family and friends, writing community, and students. Still, I have always dreamed of an immersive experience in a European city, more specifically in Paris, and this opportunity arrived in exceptional time.

I'll be serving as an au pair for a sweet family, and I will continue work on my first full-length manuscript. Please keep in touch with me by email or contact me for my Parisian address. I'll be exploring, so if you have friends or ideas with which to connect me, I'd love to hear from you. 

Here is a picture of my friends and me on our first journey to the city in the summer of 2007. 

Stephanie Emens, myself, and Barclay Owens regard La Basillique du Sacré-Cœur. (Photo by Perry Guevara)

Sea Garden Reading: Women Poets at the Flower Farm

If you're in New Orleans this week, come out to the Pistil & Stamen Flower Farm and Studio on Thursday, July 17th, at 7:30 p.m. for the Sea Garden Reading to support local female poets (listed below) and flower-mothers (Denise Richter and Megan McHugh). 

Readings from—

Abi Pollokoff

Anne Marie Rooney

Aran Donovan

Carrie Chappell

Megan McHugh

Melissa Dickey

The Wigleaf Top 50 of 2014

I am very thankful to the editors of Wigleaf for selecting my prose poem, And Another Thing about the Blue (published in Juked), as one of the top 50 (very) short fictions of 2014. You can check out all of the selected pieces here.