LITERA


SAN FRANCISCO AVANT-GARDE NOVELIST V.O. Blum will kick-off Book People's June readings with selections from his novella Sunbelt Stories, Fri, June 2, 7pm, AT Book People, Sixth & Lamar. Blum will "hip" Austin novelists and screenwriters to West Coast opportunities (e.g. small presses, indy studies) after the reading. Call 472-5050 for details.
CAFEZINO is looking for a poet/writer/interested party to host and organize Wednesday night poetry readings and open mike. Call Linda at 444-7530.
GLOSSO BABEL and special guest Tammy Gomez and her band will perform poetry and music June 7 at Ruta Maya Coffee Shop. Show starts at 9:15pm.
BAD NEWS BINGO seeks submissions on education and/or rock `n' roll. Topics could be: what is education; what is r'n'r; why education; why r'n'r; help or hindrance; have you experimented with either; is rebellion necessary; can education be saved and why bother. Poetry stories photos drawings comics collages etc. Materials will not be returned. Do not send more than two 8-1/2x11 pieces. You will receive one free copy of completed issue. Deadline July 31. Send to: BNB, 1200 W. 49 1/2, Austin, TX 78756.
AUSTIN WRITERS' LEAGUE AGENTS! AGENTS! Conference is July 28-30. Wow. Too many to men-tion so register today. $135 for AWL members; $180 for nonmembers, but for $175 you get a membership and this conference. A deal. 499-8914.
CHRISTOPHER MAIER will lead a writers' roundtable for young writers who are in grades 6-8 on July 17 from 9am-1pm at 1501 W. 5th St, Suite E-2. $10 fee includes lunch. 499-8914.
OTHER SUMMER INFORMAL classes from AWL are: Freelance Writing: The Basics taught by Suzy Spencer; romance novels from setting to selling by Patricia Wynn Ricks; self-publishing by Michael Morgan of Morgan Printing; Writing the Mystery: From Arsenic-Laced Soup to Poisonous Nuts by Susan Rogers Cooper. Classes meet 7-9pm at Book People, 603 North Lamar. Call 499-8914.
LAURIE DRUMMOND will conduct an AWL workshop on fiction and essay at St. Edward's. 499-8914.
PATRICK MCKINNON, poet, editor of Poetry Motel, author of Cherry Ferris Wheels, will read from his work at the Electric Lounge on June 9 at 8pm or thereabouts. Plus Albert Huffstickler and W. Joe Hoppe. Hosted by Mike Henry. Highly recommended. Do fill the joint with your presence.
FLIPNOTICS COFFEESPACE, 1601 Barton Springs Rd., now has three new hosts for the Open Spoken Spew: Spot (1st Wed), David Space (2nd & 3rd Wed), and ? (4th Wed). 8:30-11pm. Sign-up & call-ins 322-9750 @ 8pm. Come one come all & spew yer poetry amateurs beginners pros cons & metas.
SISTERS IN CRIME monthly meeting is June 4 at 2pm in the BankOne Community Room, 3811 Bee Caves Road. The program is by Carolyn Banks on Problems with Developing Your Series Character. Congratulations to members: Mary Willis Walker who won the Edgar Award, Jeff Abbott, who won the Agatha Award, and Barbara Burnett Smith who was an Agatha nominee. 327-3704.
POET/PUBLISHER SUSAN BRIGHT and Plain View Press announces a call for entries for their 8th publishing lab, an eight-month workshop for serious writers who want to produce a first book. 441-2452.
COFFEEHAUS, the weekly poetry performance program on 91.7 KVRX hosted by Brett Holloway-Reeves et al., features poets on a weekly basis and as I heard the other day, yer basic boho music cuts. Lately they're hawking their anthol (see below) so I guess you'll have to excuse the cocky self-promotion. Shows air Mondays 7-7:30pm. Their schedule for June is: 5th KOOP's spoken word show; 12th Alli Aweusi; 19th Marlys West; 26th Ruby Turner. Haven't had time to listen to all their tape, that's the Word in the Haus project, but I did catch Winik's "On the Road and Off" from Telling, her version of what fun can be had in a car, and that alone is worth the price of admission. I mean if you've never been spotlighted by a rent-a-cop at a drive-in because of the rhythmic movement of your should-be-stationary car, well, such an event doesn't readily leave your consciousness. Send submissions to: Coffeehaus, c/o 91.7 KVRX, PO Box D, Austin 78713.
SUNSET VALLEY BOOKSTOP BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP meets on the second Tuesday of every month at 7pm. Suggestions or hostings to: CMHopper@aol.com or 892-1580 and ask for Christine. Their book for June is Michael Dorris' Working Men. Bookstop at 5400 Brodie Lane, Suite 1000. And there's a children's storytime every Saturday afternoon at 1pm.
CHILDRENS' STORYTIMES AT OTHER BOOKSTOP LOCATIONS are: Crossroads, Tues 6:30pm; Lincoln Village, Sat 1pm; Barnes & Noble, Wed 10:30am, Fri 7pm, Sat 11am; Central Park Sat 11am-12noon.
THE SECOND ANNUAL SAN ANTONIO POETRY FESTIVAL will be July 7-8 at the Jump Start Theater. Call Charlie Owsley at 210/530-0847.
RUTA MAYA COFFEEHOUSE is sponsoring a quarterly prose reading/audio literary magazine. Submit tapes to Ruta Maya, 218 W. 4th, Austin, TX 78701 Attn: Scott. FoMoInfo 472-9637.
KOOP RADIO NEEDS YER original short plays, fiction, poetry, satire, rants, etc. for possible production & airplay. Obviously visuals have no place on radio so a rewrite may be necessary before you dust off some of yer older bits. 10 minute maximum, but later maybe they'll go longer. Send to: Charlotte Keith, editing committee, 810 W. Annie, Austin, TX 78704. Include phone number and address.
CAFEZINO, a coffee bar and bistro located at 5414 Parkcrest (off Northland, west of MoPac), continues its series, Do the Write Thing, EVERY WEDNESDAY night. June 7 Susan Bright and Plain View Press poets; June 14 Open Mike; June 21 Catfish Poets Society members read their stories and poems; June 28 San Antonio Poets with host Rod Striker, editor of Poetic Time. Open mike reading to follow programs. 453-2233. All programs start at 7:30. No cover.
Wammo is hosting a slam at the Electric Lounge on Tuesday nights at 9pm. Cash prizes. Winners will eventually form the Austin Team for the National Poetry Slam in Ann Arbor, MI.
BARNES & NOBLE BOOKSTORE, 10000 Research at the Arboretum offers free poetry the first & third Thursdays of the month in the mezzanine & hosted alternately by John Berry and Herman Nelson of the Auricles of Delphi. June 1 is Dennis Ciscel; June 15 is David Oliphant and Kathrin Gann. A poetry workshop hosted by Jill Timmons will be held same place, same time on the 4th Thursday each month with the next being June 22. Poetry Workshop from 7:30-10pm. Bring 6-8 copies of any one page original poem. Please note italicized change from previous announcement. All events sponsored by B&N, Austin Writers' League, and the Texas Commission for the Arts. 928-0619 or 837-8693 for readings; 335-7078 for workshop.
Red Salmon Press continues its ongoing "poetic action" series with canto libre/open mike sessions and featured readings held on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month. Resistencia Bookstore, 2210-B South First. 7:30pm. 482-8793 for info or Resistencia Bookstore @ 416-8885.
POET OF THE NIGHT will also become Poet of the Week when chosen by the audience at Cafe Solaire, 717 Congress, on Monday nights at 7. There are featured readers and open mike. Open readers have 5 minutes, featured readers have 15 minutes. June 5 Auricles of Delphi featuring Neva Biggs, Jill Timmons, Gale Sprinkle, Katya Walters, Barbara Carr, Byron Cosen, Herman Nelson, and John Berry; June 12 Garland Thompson, Jr., and friends; June 19 Richard Loranger, Ken Hunt and friends; June 26 Sharla Clos, Fran Carris, and, friends; July 3 Alli Aweusi and friends; July 10 John Cutaia with Glosso Babel and friends; July 17 Meera Sundram and friends; July 24 Jenny Pronechen and friends; July 31 Jeff Parker Knight and friends; Aug 7 Thom the World Poet returns from UK summer tour. The audience decides poet of the night. To be a featured reader call 416-7435. Free. Refreshments available.
THE ELECTRIC LOUNGE hosts spoken word thangs every Friday at 8:30 with the schedule being thus: 1st Frid is Blue Plates (Pasha, Tammy Gomez, W. Joe Hoppe, Marlys West, Mike Henry, and Robert S), 2nd Frid is hosted by Robert S., 3rd is Nashville Bill and Como, and 4th is Speakeasy with cutting edge poetry hosted by Mike Henry. All events are $2 with open mike readers in for free. Sign up at 8. Remember Wammo on Tuesdays with a slam for cash at 9pm.
RUTA MAYA features open mike poetry the 1st & 3rd Sundays of each month. Next one is June 4. Sign up at 8pm. Hosted by Robert S and Mike Henry.
KAIROS! COMPANY will be hosting spoken word nights entitled WRITERS SPEAK in San Marcos continuing June 4 and every other Sunday thereafter at the Kismet Cafe, 220 Edward Grey Dr. with sign-up at 9pm at the words flowing at 9:30. That ask that you bring your most bizarre and not to be embarrassed because everything is misunderstood. 512-396-0877 or 512-754-6760.
CHICAGO HOUSE OPEN MIKE continues Tuesdays at 8pm with the following hosts: 1st Tuesday is Phillip T. Stephens, 2nd Tuesday is Herman Nelson, 3rd is Darla McBryde, 4th is Robert S, 5th is Mike Henry. Call at 7pm the night of the show for a 10-minute slot. Call 473-2542.

More poetry! Doing difficult things is always easier than dealing with the fear prior to their being done or the regret of not doing them at all. Keep moving, keep breathing. Be compassionate. Respect life. Keep your dignity. Ok. Attend. Vaya con Dios.

Poem of the Issue
the seed of myself grows
in the soil of every soul
be it great or small,
gentle or hard,
at peace or in turmoil.
with one breath sighs
the million breaths
of myself within the life
of every life yet lived
or to be lived.
- Andrew Urbanus, "juxtaposition" (excerpt 2)

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