Book Launch Party: Saturday January 28th

"Sycamore Row" by Alethaire Kelly

Hello!  The books (While the Water Rises Around Us, my recently published chapbook) finally shipped and are here for the devouring.  Come celebrate with us at Village Lights this Saturday from 5:00pm to 9:00pm.  Eat, drink, be merry, and listen to poetry and song (featuring Johnny Clifton Knight and The Chestnuts).  Stop in.  Stay awhile.

by Tom Kelly

cover art: "Sycamore Row" by Alethaire Kelly
author portrait: "Teacher, Poet, Lover" by Tom Kelly

SoMaA Readings

This is Johnny Clifton Knight, a fabulous emerging poet and a senior at Madison Consolidated High School.

South of Main Arts in the Alley

This Friday, there will be an "Arts in the Alley" event from 4-8pm in conjunction with Fourth Friday festivities in downtown Madison.  Kids can pick up a Treasure Map starting at 4pm on Mulberry.  From there, they can complete a scavenger hunt at local businesses.  In the alley, there will be artists doing plein air painting, The Chestnuts (my band will be playing), and perhaps most exciting (for followers of this blog, at least), poets will read their original works from the loading dock. 

Jack Ramey, featured above, will be one of the poets included, as will Angela Elles, Johnny Clifton Knight, and yours truly.  Note about the video: it's a tease-- my battery ran out!  So come out and see the whole poem this Friday.  Here's the line-up:

Line-Up for Music /Poetry on the Loading Dock

5:00-5:45 Chestnuts, Set 1

5:50-6:20 Poetry, Set 1  

6:25-7:10 Chestnuts, Set 2

7:15-8:00 Poetry, Set 2  

Hope to see you!
jk

Open Mic Rocked!

We had six readers: Jack, Pat (featured above), Harlan, Michael, Angela, and me!  There were over twenty people in the audience, which is a packed house at Village Lights.  Don't miss the next one: Fourth Friday in October.

Also, there's going to be poetry and music on the loading dock behind Village Lights Friday, September 23rd, coinciding with Madison's Chautauqua Festival.  Stay tuned!

Reading at Yellow Springs Art Gallery

My reading at the Yellow Springs Art Gallery was really enjoyable, despite a small turnout. I read with Adrienne Cassel, who you can see in the photo to the left. Read more of her work here. Thanks to Anthony Fife and Lauren Shows for inviting me. There's a video in the first link- Yellow Spings News Online Edition, which covered the event.

http://ysnews.com/news/2011/07/poetry-in-yellow-springs

and some photos and more about the other participants in the event here:

http://ayellowspringsblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/saturday-night-downtown-ys.html



-Matt

Open Mic at Village Lights

Just wanted to put out an early warning that I will be emceeing the bi-monthly poetry open mic next month at our local independent bookstore, Village Lights.  Save the date: August 26th!  Stay tuned for details.  Cheers, Jill

PS Madison is only an hour from Louisville, only an hour and a half from Cincinnati...

Reading Tonight

My old friend Anthony Fife has invited me to read tonight at the Yellow Springs Art Gallery in Yellow Springs, Ohio. I'll be reading poems from my manuscript in progress Domestic Violets. So excited!  More information about the event and other participants here.

Wish me luck.
-Matt