Note: This is my attempt to create a formal, easily referable answer to a question I get a lot. If this doesn’t answer your question, proceed. But if you haven’t stopped here first, I would ask that you do so.

If you just want to know when Writers’ Block Poetry Night slams in Columbus are, go to the link below. I don't usually assume that when ( Read more... )

I recently composed a very long treatise on Slam and where I thought it should go. I posted it online for public consumption and comment in December of 2011 (“Poetry Slam: The Next Level”). The last part of that document contained a section entitled “Death by Slam: The Competition and how it will kill NPS & Slam”. As notorious as it sounds, this ( Read more... )

I’ve had a really great front row seat to Slam in the last eleven years.
This is what I think should happen over the next eleven.

http://writersblockpoetry.rewritingovid.net/slamnext.pdf

To everyone who has ever slammed poetry:

I’m pulling a President’s card today by lodging an executive request of the whole of the Slam community: I am imploring all Old School slammers to re-take Slam stages next year.

Nationals, iWPS, WOWps, local level, regionals…I want to see Slam’s founders/old guard/old school/veterans in them.

I want those don’t ( Read more... )

I opened my feature/Q&A at Frederick Community College with this prepared statement, which I wrote at 6 AM this morning.The audience was mainly college students and faculty with no Slam experience. Between this statement, 40 minutes of my poetry, and a nice Q&A we had an awesome time.

Enjoy.

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Let me begin with this:

The short ( Read more... )

In the most recent issue of Columbus Monthly (October 2010), columnist Jory Farr penned an article entitled “My Problem With Poetry Slams”. Being not only a poet but someone who runs a poetry slam in the magazine’s target area and demographic, I was certainly curious to see what he had to say. Beyond that, I am the president of the only national- ( Read more... )