DiVerse Gaithersburg Poetry Reading and Open Mic

Big News–DiVerse Restart-New Host, New Day

Dear Poets and Community Friends,

I’ll give you the punchline first—the DiVerse Gaithersburg Poetry Reading is planning to re-start this winter on a new day and with a new host! Got your attention? Read on…

When the pandemic hit almost two years ago, never in my worst imaginings did I think that the DiVerse Gaithersburg poetry reading would be on pause for this long. As I write this, the Montgomery County libraries are still not open on Sundays and the meeting room at the Quince Orchard Library has not re-opened for use either. It is unclear whether the libraries will start operating on Sundays again, so with the help of Eve Burton, the librarian that we work with at Quince Orchard Library, we are moving the reading to 2nd Saturday afternoons beginning in January, exact time to be determined and information about any restrictions nearer to the date. I am grateful to Eve for all her work to make it possible for us to meet at the library.

And now for the really big news:

Like many people, I had plenty of time when things were shutdown to do some thinking about the work that I do and what I want moving forward. One of the things I realized is that after 50 plus years of organizing and community building of various kinds, I really want to be doing other things with my time. Which led me to start thinking about finding someone to take over hosting DiVerse. After some thought and talking it over with a few people (and thank you to those of you who helped me think it through!), I realized the choice was obvious and luckily the timing was right for her as well. I am thrilled to announce that my good friend and amazing poet Kristin Kowalski Ferragut will be taking over as the host of the DiVerse Gaithersburg poetry reading!

Over the next few months Kristin and I will be making that transition happen. She will be starting to look at programming for the spring and will start sharing that info when she is ready. We will be posting again on the website and facebook page, so keep an eye out for that.

I will remain as a resource person as needed until things are up and running and will no doubt be at many readings happily sitting in the audience.

Since I started organizing poetry readings in Gaithersburg, some 50 poets from a multitude of backgrounds have come to share their work with us, plus countless more at the open mics that followed, including some bravely reading for the first time. While always a work in progress, the diversity of our programming is something that I am proud of.

Since the reading began four years ago, DiVerse has become both a community and a community resource. Regular attendees have gotten to know each other, work on our craft together and become friends. And because we meet at the library, we often attract folks from the community who perhaps have never been to a reading before.

I know that Kristin shares my vision of how important these things are and will bring her own wonderful talent and ideas to continuing the readings. So please join me in welcoming her to this new role and for goodness sake, help her to get the chairs set up (if you’ve been to a DiVerse reading, you know what I mean)!

With gratitude to all of you for making the DiVerse Gaithersburg Poetry Reading a success!

–Lucinda Marshall

DMV Summer Poetry Readings

Although DiVerse Gaithersburg will not resume readings until fall, there are numerous other readings in the DMV that will be offering programming this summer. The following are some of the possibilities. The information below is from the organizers or the readings. While every attempt was made to include all readings, there are likely some omissions. Please feel free to add other listings in the comments.

1. Readings on the Pike (Arlington):

2. Inner Loop:
June 16 – Featuring Lauren Francis-Sharma
August 18 – Featuring D. Watkins
September 15 – Featuring Kyoko Mori
October 20 – Featuring Jose Padua
November 17 – Featuring Marion Winik

More information on these events will be posted on our Facebook page:

We are also updating our podcast The Inner Loop Radio for creative writers, which is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, SoundCloud, and most other podcast providers. We’re about to start our inspiration series, which will have writing prompts and ideas for writing routines and inspiration during the quarantine.

3. The Word Works:

Our monthly Café Muse program runs usually the first Monday of the month, including June 1 at 7 pm featuring Tommye Blount and Molly Spencer on Crowdcast.

Next up on Poets versus the Pandemic, a brand new series created by Henry Crawford for The Word Works, airs June 10 at 7 pm featuring Francisco Aragon on Crowdcast.

The Joaquin Miller Poetry Series will present four Zoom programs on Thursday evenings in June as follows and all at this link.

June 4 Barbara Crooker with our 2020 winners of the Jacklyn Potter Young Poets Competition Phoebe Price and Lauren Young with special guests Miles David Moore (reads Miller’s poem “Columbus”) and Hiram Larew (judge of the Potter Young Poets Competition) with hosts Karren Alenier, Rosemary Winslow and Julien Berman.
June 11 Henry Crawford and JoAnne Growney
June 18 Venus Thrash and Meg Eden
June 25 Terri Merz and Emilio Iasiello

4. Third Thursday Poetry Readings-Takoma Park:

The City of Takoma Park, after having to suspend its live Third Thursday Poetry Readings in March, began sharing recent poetry readings along with other recent arts performances at www.takomapark.gov/arts
and then starting in April, “gathering” the poets scheduled to read in March and April for on line readings. There will be one more monthly reading in June, and we are exploring possible summer online poetry events. The public can find the previous readings on YouTube and on our Facebook page, and sign up at www.takomapark.gov/arts to be notified of future readings.

YouTube link to the recent readings (corrected):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWpj3dkn7I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wj_fmKvGvYE

5. It Takes A Community :

June and July events are planned for Zoom, dates will be posted on Meetup when known.

6. Hyattstown Mill Open Mic:

4th Saturday of each month for the duration; 7:30 p.m.
Tentative dates: June 27th; July 25th; August 22nd
This event takes place via Zoom; an RSVP is required in order to receive the access link which will not be posted on social media. Poets are asked to sign-up prior to the event.

7. Poetry Open Mic at the New Deal Cafe

3rd Saturdays 1pm-3pm
• Open Reading (poetry)
• Free event
• Cafe specialty: Vegan cuisine
• We do not screen material; may not be appropriate for minors. Our intended audience is adults.
Via Zoom video conference until further notice
Contact for questions and to be placed on the mailing list for Zoom details

8. American Poetry Museum:

Mother Tongue multilingual open mic on 2nd Fridays on Facebook Live.

Also:

The Writer’s Center-various, see their website
Split This Rock-various, see their website
Busboys and Poets-various, see their website

Field Trip–Kensington Day Of The Book

DiVerse Gaithersburg is delighted to be participating in Kensington Day Of The Book’s poetry program, All The Imagination Can Hold, on April 26th, 2020. Many thanks to Kensington Day Of The Book Poet Laureate, Nancy Naomi Carlson, for including us. The DiVerse Gaithersburg roster will include poets who have been featured at our readings–Teri Ellen Cross Davis, Marlena Chertock, Kristin Kowalski Ferragut, and host Lucinda Marshall. Come join us for a day of poetry and literature!

Beth Riley’s Poem About The DiVerse Poetry Reading

I always look forward with great anticipation to the Open Mic portion of our readings. Sometimes a well established poet will try out new material or share a prize-winning poem. We’ve had poets who are reading at an open mic for the very first time. Some poems are sad, some funny, formal verse, rhyming verse, free verse, you never know what might be next. At our January reading Beth Riley, who was attending our reading for the first time, treated us to a poem that she wrote about the reading while it was going on. With her kind permission, here is Beth’s poetic observation about our January DiVerse reading:

My First Visit to QO Second Sunday
DiVerse Poetry Open Mic

Audience response is akin to going to the symphony.
After each piece there is no applause,
Just a pause.

But listen closely and you will hear the modest praise:
“Mmmmm” like after a good piece of chocolate.
Sometimes a thoughtful “hmmm.”
Sometimes a quiet sudden “Oh!”
Signaling that the point was well made.

And then there was that one response,
Just after the Vessel piece,
A descending “Mm, mm, mm.”

–by Beth Riley

Beth Riley of Frederick, MD is Lead Vocalist of local classic rock band SR3. She dabbles in poetry, sketching, and painting for catharsis from her day job as document formatter and editor of dry and lengthy medical research reports.

January 12th Reading With Ann Bracken, Tara Campbell, and Julie Bloss Kelsey

Please join us on January 12th, 2-4 pm, when our featured poets will be Ann Bracken, Tara Campbell, and Julie Bloss Kelsey. The reading will be at the Quince Orchard Library (15831 Quince Orchard Rd./Gaithersburg 20878) and is hosted by Lucinda Marshall and will be followed by an Open Mic. Please feel free to bring a poem that you have written to share (one page maximum).
Ann Bracken, an activist with a pen, has authored two poetry collections, No Barking in the Hallways: Poems from the Classroom and The Altar of Innocence, serves as a contributing editor for Little Patuxent Review, and co-facilitates the Wilde Readings Poetry Series. Her poetry, essays, and interviews have appeared in anthologies and journals, including Bared: Contemporary Poetry & Art on Bras & Breasts, Fledgling Rag, and Gargoyle. Ann’s poetry has garnered two Pushcart Prize nominations and her advocacy work centers around arts-based interventions for mental health, education, and prison reform.

Tara Campbell is a writer, teacher, Kimbilio Fellow, and fiction editor at Barrelhouse. Prior publication credits include SmokeLong Quarterly, Masters Review, Jellyfish Review, Booth, and Strange Horizons. She’s also the author of a novel, TreeVolution, and two collections, Circe’s Bicycle and Midnight at the Organporium. She received her MFA from American University in 2019.

Julie Bloss Kelsey is a short-form poet based in Germantown, Maryland, best known for her haiku, scifaiku, and tanka. Her poetry has appeared in Rattle, Jersey Devil Press, Frogpond, The Heron’s Nest, Scifaikuest, Star*Line, among others. In 2011, she won the Dwarf Stars Award for one of her science fiction haiku. She won the Marlene Mountain Memorial Haiku Contest in 2018 and placed first in Sonic Boom’s Fifth Annual Senryu Contest in 2019. Julie is married and has three children, one dog, and three fish. Connect with her on Twitter (@MamaJoules) and Instagram (@julieblosskelsey).

December 8th Reading With Linda Joy Burke, Fran Abrams, and Sami Miranda

Please join us on December 8th, 2-4 pm when our featured poets will be Sami Miranda, Linda Joy Burke, and Fran Abrams. In addition to sharing their poetry, the poets will also be discussing their other artistic, performance, and artistic endeavors and there will be time for Q&A.

The reading will be at the Quince Orchard Library (15831 Quince Orchard Rd./Gaithersburg 20878) and is hosted by Lucinda Marshall and will be followed by an Open Mic (time permitting because of the expanded discussion time). Please feel free to bring a poem that you have written to share (one page maximum).

Linda Joy Burke is a 2002 Distinguished Black Marylander Award recipient for Art from Towson University’s Office of Diversity, a 2004 Coca Cola Company/NFAA Distinguished Teacher in the Arts nominee, a 2004 Poetry for the People Baltimore Legacy Award recipient, a 2008 Fox 45 Champions of Courage nominee, and a 2013 Howard County Women’s Hall of Fame inductee. She is a contributing editor to Little Patuxent Review, and co-hosts the Wilde Reading Series based in Columbia, Maryland. Burke’s poetry, fiction, op-ed columns, reviews, profiles and feature stories have appeared in numerous publications including: The Little Patuxent Review, Obsidian II Black Literature in Review, Beltway Quarterly, Passager, and many others. She blogs at Moods Minds and Multitudes, The Bird Talks Blog Too, and I Grew Up to Be the Neighborhood Nosey Lady, and is on Twitter @ljoybird, and Instagram as Birdpoet.

Fran Abrams holds an undergraduate degree in art and architecture and a master’s degree in urban planning. She worked in government and nonprofit agencies in Montgomery County for 41 years, writing legislation, guidelines and reports. In 2000, she began creating polymer clay wallhangings. In 2010, she retired from her job to spend more time on her artwork. Fran’s art has been shown in juried shows throughout the country and in numerous shows in the DC region. Her work has won many competitive awards. In early 2017, Fran decided to write poetry and began taking classes at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda. She continues to write, take classes and attend poetry readings and open mics and has recently published several poems.

Sami Miranda is a poet, teacher and visual artist from the Bronx who has made Washington, D.C. his home. His poetry collection, “We Is” was published this year by Zozobra Press and his chapbook, “Departure” was published by Central Square Press in 2017. He has performed his poetry at venues throughout the Washington, DC region, New York City, and Charlotte, NC. He holds an MFA in poetry from the Bennington Writing Seminars.

October 13th Reading With Reuben Jackson, Rose Solari, and Jay Hall Carpenter

Please join us on October 13th, 2-4 pm when our featured poets will be Reuben Jackson, Rose Solari, and Jay Hall Carpenter. In addition to sharing their poetry, we will be changing things up at this reading and asking the poets to also discuss their other artistic, performance, and artistic endeavors and there will be time for Q&A.

Reuben Jackson is an archivist with the University of the District of Columbia’s Felix E. Grant Jazz Archives. From 2013 until 2018, he was host of Friday Night Jazz on Vermont Public Radio. His poems have been published in over 40 anthologies, and in a volume entitled, Fingering the Keys, which will be reissued with new poems in October
by Alan Squire Press with the title Scattered Clouds. Jackson’s music reviews have appeared in The Washington Post, Jazz Times, Downbeat, Jazziz, the Jazz Journalists Association website, and on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered. He taught poetry for 11 years at the Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland and taught high school for two years in Burlington, Vermont. Jackson was also an archivist and creator with the Smithsonian Institution’s Duke Ellington Collection from 1989 until 2009.

SolariHeadShot Rose Solari is the author of three full-length collections of poetry, The Last Girl, Orpheus in the Park, and Difficult Weather; the novel, A Secret Woman; and the one-act multi-media play, Looking for Guenevere, in which she collaborated and performed with musicians, dancers, and visual artists. She has also performed her poetry with Word Dance Theater and Valerie Durham Dancers, two companies devoted to preserving and continuing the legacy of Isadora Duncan. She has lectured and taught writing workshops at many institutions, including the University of Maryland, College Park; St. John’s College, Annapolis, Maryland; the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University; and Oxford University’s Centre for Creative Writing in Oxford, England. Rose’s awards include the Randall Jarrell Poetry Prize, an EMMA award for excellence in journalism, and multiple grants.

Jay Hall Carpenter has been a professional artist for over 40 years, beginning as a sculptor for the Washington National Cathedral, and winning numerous national awards for his work. His first poetry collection, Dark and Light (2012), was followed by 101 Limericks Inappropriate For All Occasions (2017), and will be followed next year by a third, as yet untitled, collection. He has written poetry, plays, and children’s books throughout his career and now sculpts and writes in Silver Spring, MD.

September 8th Reading With Le Hinton, Jona Colson, and Kristin Kowalski Ferragut

Please join us on September 8th, 2-4 pm when our featured poets will be Le Hinton, Jona Colson, and Kristin Kowalski Ferragut. We will be in our new location at the Quince Orchard Library (15831 Quince Orchard Rd./Gaithersburg 20878). There is plenty of free parking and as you walk into the library lobby, you will see the room where the poetry reading is located just to your left before you enter the library. The reading is hosted by Lucinda Marshall and will be followed by an Open Mic. Please feel free to bring a poem that you have written to share (one page maximum).

Le Hinton is the author of six poetry collections including, most recently, Sing Silence (Iris G. Press, 2018). His work has been widely published and was nominated for the Pushcart Prize by Pittsburgh Poetry Review for “Interview with Cotton (Part 1/Dreams)” and the Best of the Net by the Summerset Review for “Uses of Cotton (Visibility).” His poem “Epidemic” was honored by The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, and his poem “No Doubt About It (I Gotta Get Another Hat)” was selected for inclusion in The Best American Poetry 2014. “Our Ballpark” can be found outside Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, incorporated into Derek Parker’s sculpture Common Thread.

Kristin Kowalski Ferragut is a regular contributor to open mics, at such venues as DiVerse Gaithersburg Poetry and Roots Studio. She has been the featured poet at Words Out Loud at Glen Echo and participates in local poetry and prose writing workshops, in addition to reading, hiking, teaching, and enjoying time with her children. Her work has appeared in Beltway Quarterly, Nightingale and Sparrow, and Bourgeon among others.

Jona Colson’s first poetry collection, Said Through Glass, won the Jean Feldman Poetry Prize from the Washington Writers’ Publishing House. His poems have appeared in Ploughshares, The Southern Review, The Massachusetts Review and elsewhere. His translations and interviews can be found in Prairie Schooner, Tupelo Quarterly, and The Writer’s Chronicle. He is an associate professor of ESL at Montgomery College in Maryland and lives in Washington, DC.

Fall, 2019 Reading Schedule

We have a wonderful lineup of poets this upcoming fall! All of our readings will be at the Quince Orchard Library, 2-4 pm, with an open mic following our featured poets.

September 8th:

October 13th:

November 10th:

December 8th:

We are excited to be dedicating both our October and December readings to poets who also pursue other creative work. In addition to sharing their poetry, the poets will also be discussing their other artistic endeavors and how they work with multiple creative forms of expression.

More details and poet bios will be posted approximately a month before each reading.

September 9th Reading With Steven Leyva, Nancy Naomi Carlson, and Hiram Larew

Please join us on September 9th for our first fall reading with featured poets Steven Leyva, Nancy Naomi Carlson, and Hiram Larew, upstairs at the Gaithersburg Library, 2-4 pm. The reading is hosted by Lucinda Marshall and will be followed by an Open Mic.

Steven Leyva was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and raised in Houston, Texas. His poems have appeared or are forthcoming in 2 Bridges Review, Fledgling Rag, The Light Ekphrastic, Nashville Review, Vinyl, and Prairie Schooner. He is a Cave Canem fellow and author of the chapbook Low Parish. Steven holds a MFA from the University of Baltimore, where he is an assistant professor in the Klein Family School of Communications Design.

Nancy Naomi Carlson, poet, translator, editor, and essayist, has authored nine titles (6 translated). She received a grant from the NEA to translate a poetry collection of Abdourahman A. Waberi, which was a “Best Translated Book Award” finalist, and her translation of Char’s Hammer with No Master was a finalist for the 2017 CLMP Firecracker Poetry Award. Her work has appeared in such journals as the American Poetry Review, The Georgia Review, and Poetry.

Hiram Larew’s work has appeared most recently in Little Patuxent Review, FORTH, vox poetica, Poetry Super Highway, Poets & Artists, Every Day Poems, Lunaris Review (Nigeria), Amsterdam Quarterly, and The Wild Word. Author of three collections, he’s been nominated for four national Pushcart prizes, is a member of the Shakespeare Folger Library’s poetry board, and organizes several events in Prince George’s County, MD and beyond including Poetry X Hunger and The Poetry Poster Project. He is a global hunger specialist, and lives in Upper Marlboro, MD.