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X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Worcester County Poetry Association
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260114T173000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260114T190000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251230T171752Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251230T171756Z
UID:12549-1768411800-1768417200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:3Decker's 2nd Issue Launch with David Leach
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/3deckers-2nd-issue-launch-with-david-leach/
LOCATION:Preservation Worcester Board Room\, 61 Harvard St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01609\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260117T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260117T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251230T203359Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251230T203402Z
UID:12559-1768658400-1768665600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Booklover's Gourmet Open Mic
DESCRIPTION:BLG Open Mic Poetry  \n\n\n\nFeaturing Book Launch with Deb Mitsakos \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nIn addition to our regular open mic (1.5 hours)\, this month Deb Mitsakos will be the featured reader (20 minutes) to celebrate her new book Mystical Heart of Nature published by Metaphysical Fox Press. \n\n\n\nJoin us for our monthly round robin open poetry share\, moderated by Robert Eugene Perry. Bring original pieces to share in a friendly\, supportive environment. \n\n\n\nSpace is limited to 14 participants and usually fills up quickly. Please email deb@bookloversgourmet.com or call 508-949-6232 to sign up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/booklovers-gourmet-open-mic-15/
LOCATION:Booklovers’ Gourmet\, 72 E. Main St.\, Webster\, MA\, 01570
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260121T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260121T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260113T183516Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260113T183522Z
UID:12600-1769020200-1769025600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:
DESCRIPTION:Black Byrd is a  Poet/Actress. Byrd has performed in plays with 2 community theatre companies such as Oscar Mischeaux Family Theatre Boston and A Common Thread Theatre Framingham where she still holds a membership and is currently in rehearsal with OMFTC for an upcoming series called The Harlem Renaissance Revisited with a Gospel Flavor. Her first poetry album out now called Welcome 2 My Journey is available on ALL PLATFORMS including social media platforms such as Facebook\, Instagram\, Tik Tok and even threads and X (twitter).  \n\n\n\n“I love performing on stage and sharing my story and sharing historical figures stories like Ida B Wells who was a real life Journalist and a writer herself. My goal is to share my story and to help others get through their own trials and tribulations through my own experiences. Oh I am also a mother of 3 and everything I do is for them. I want them to know that their mother is not a failure and that she will always get back up after hitting her rock bottom more than once. Life is what you make it. Keep going! Show up for yourself\, love yourself and be great.” 
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/12600/
LOCATION:Spicy Water Distiller\, 108 Elm Street\, Millbury\, Massachusetts\, 01527\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260121T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260121T203000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251223T180339Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251223T180342Z
UID:12528-1769020200-1769027400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Extravaganza with Jeff Raymond
DESCRIPTION:Join us at The Mill in West Boylston on Wednesday January 21st. \n\n\n\nThe Mill is right off Rt 190\, has a spacious parking lot\, serves delectable apps\, entrees\, and desserts with a full bar. We have a separate room for our monthly shenanigans. Admission is still free. All of the Tip Jar proceeds go to the Feature. \n\n\n\nThe Poetry Extravaganza (PE) is the 3rd Wednesday of the month\, except for July from 6:30-8;30 pm. Sign up for the open mic at jfjr6969@gmail.com. Five minute maximum\, please! There are no language restrictions. We are not kid-friendly! \n\n\n\nOur Feature Poet on January 21st is the mercurial Jeff Raymond of Worcester Writer’s Collective. Mark Lewandowski of Lewandowski Painters sponsors our event. That’s how we pay the poets! Join the Fun on January 21st! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJeff Raymond is a lifelong resident of Millbury\, MA\, where he lives with his wife\, his son\, and his cat\, but not necessarily in that order. He is sometimes a writer\, sometimes a journalist\, sometimes an activist\, and sometimes an annoying gadfly. Under a pen name\, Jeff has also published more than a dozen short stories in various collections and literary magazines since 2021. A member of the Worcester Writers’ Collective\, he serves the group’s participants as a facilitator and editor-in-residence.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-extravaganza-with-jeff-raymond/
LOCATION:The Mill\, 185 W. Boylston Street\, West Boylston\, Massachusetts\, 01583\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260126T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260126T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T175124Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T175131Z
UID:12447-1769454000-1769461200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Writing Creative Prose with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Come spend five weeks diving into the nooks\, fields\, and sticking points of writing creative prose! Whether you’re hard at work at your novel or essay collection or not sure where to start in your writing journey\, this class is a supportive environment for writers of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, discuss the craft of the wonderful examples we’ll read\, and bring in a piece of your own (300 to 1500 words) to workshop. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nThrough our workshop sessions\, readings\, and discussions of narrative voice\, language\, character\, setting\, and plot\, we’ll sharpen our tools of the craft to inform and inspire our work. By the end of this session you will have five pieces\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of creative prose. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family.Age: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, January 12 to February 23\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m.No Class Dates: January 19 and February 16 \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\n$200 \n\n\n\nHopkinton Writing Center
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/writing-creative-prose-with-catherine-martin-2/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260107T164841Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260107T164848Z
UID:12586-1769540400-1769544000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:A Virtual Thirsty Lab with Terry Farish
DESCRIPTION:The Thirsty Lab poetry reading\, normally based out of Princeton\, MA\, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday January 27th virtually on Zoom with none other than Terry Farish\, our featured reader! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTerry Farish is the author of books for children\, young adults\, and adults. A reviewer called her stories full of synergy and it’s true that she loves to create unlikely friendships from which something brand new and unplanned might arise.  Her books include The Good Braider\, a novel in verse\, an American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults\,  Go Home written with Lochan Sharma\, winner of the NH Literary Award for Young Adult Lit\, and the picture book\, The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup with Barry Root.  She’s just finished a novel called “Somebody to Love” named for the Jefferson Airplane song sung by Grace Slick. It’s set in Viet Nam.  You can meet her at terryfarish.com.  
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/a-virtual-thirsty-lab-with-terry-farish-2/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260127T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260120T170614Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260120T170618Z
UID:12620-1769540400-1769544000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Author’s Voices: A Speaker Series
DESCRIPTION:New Dawn Art Center’s Writers Group proudly hosts a new local author on the fourth Tuesday of each month \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nElaine De Lisle Membrino is the author of On Being an Artist and Other Writings (Old Naughty Dog Books\, 2025).In a touching memoir of questions\, Elaine De Lisle Membrino traces her motivations and growth as an artist. Her stream of consciousness narrative portrays life in a small New England mill city from World War II through society’s changes in the 1960s and 1970s. Of French-Canadian descent\, Elaine ties her love of the arts and her family together. She is a visual artist\, poet and writer.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/authors-voices-a-speaker-series/
LOCATION:New Dawn Center\, 84 Main St.\, Ashburnham\, MA\, 01607\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260128T173000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260128T190000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260113T181345Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260113T181542Z
UID:12593-1769621400-1769626800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetorium Too with Kate & Rebecca
DESCRIPTION:Please join us for the very first double feature edition of 2026 of our monthly open mic and featured poetry reading series The Poetorium Too at TidePool Bookshop at 372 Chandler Street in Worcester on January 28th from 5 pm to 7 pm hosted by Paul Szlosek & (hopefully) Ron Whittle. It will be a full two hours of poetry and spoken word starting with a brief interview on stage with our two featured poets Kate Gregoire (organizer of the Worcester Rain Poetry Project ) and Rebecca Cross (winner of the 2023 Frank O’Hara Poetry Prize) followed by poetry readings by our two features\, a short intermission\, and then an open mic (with 5-minute slots for each reader if time permits). For more information\, please get in touch with us at poetorium@mail.com or visit our website. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nKate Gregoire lives and writes in Grafton\, Massachusetts. Her poetry covers themes of motherhood\, ecospirituality\, and incantation. She serves on the board of the Worcester County Poetry Association and organized the Rain Poetry project. She is an editor of Worcester County’s literary journal\, The Three Decker. You can find her work on Instagram @katherinegregoirepoet and at local open mics. \n\n\n\nRebecca Cross is a disabled writer and actress who lives in Vermont and worked for four years in Worcester. She has an MA in creative and critical writing from the University of Sussex. Her work has appeared in Poetry Daily\, The Southern Review\, Southern Humanities Review\, Hotel Amerika\, Quarterly West\, Poet Lore\, Beloit Poetry Journal\, and Image\, among other journals\, and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize\, Best of the Net\, and Best New Poets. She was the 2023 recipient of the Frank O’Hara Prize.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetorium-too-with-kate-rebecca/
LOCATION:TidePool Bookshop\, 372 Chandler St. Unit 101\, Worcester\, MA\, 01602
ORGANIZER;CN="Paul Szlosek":MAILTO:poetsparlor@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260129T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260129T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260105T170342Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260105T170346Z
UID:12574-1769709600-1769716800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Open Reading Night-Seeking Poets!
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/open-reading-night-seeking-poets/
LOCATION:MA
ORGANIZER;CN="Ali Mac Marketing":MAILTO:alimacmarketingconsultant@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260202T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260202T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T175319Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T175620Z
UID:12449-1770058800-1770066000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Writing Creative Prose with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Come spend five weeks diving into the nooks\, fields\, and sticking points of writing creative prose! Whether you’re hard at work at your novel or essay collection or not sure where to start in your writing journey\, this class is a supportive environment for writers of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, discuss the craft of the wonderful examples we’ll read\, and bring in a piece of your own (300 to 1500 words) to workshop. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nThrough our workshop sessions\, readings\, and discussions of narrative voice\, language\, character\, setting\, and plot\, we’ll sharpen our tools of the craft to inform and inspire our work. By the end of this session you will have five pieces\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of creative prose. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family.Age: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, January 12 to February 23\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m.No Class Dates: January 19 and February 16 \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/writing-creative-prose-with-catherine-martin-3/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260209T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260209T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T175438Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T175540Z
UID:12451-1770663600-1770670800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Writing Creative Prose with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Come spend five weeks diving into the nooks\, fields\, and sticking points of writing creative prose! Whether you’re hard at work at your novel or essay collection or not sure where to start in your writing journey\, this class is a supportive environment for writers of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, discuss the craft of the wonderful examples we’ll read\, and bring in a piece of your own (300 to 1500 words) to workshop. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nThrough our workshop sessions\, readings\, and discussions of narrative voice\, language\, character\, setting\, and plot\, we’ll sharpen our tools of the craft to inform and inspire our work. By the end of this session you will have five pieces\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of creative prose. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family.Age: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, January 12 to February 23\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m.No Class Dates: January 19 and February 16 \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/writing-creative-prose-with-catherine-martin-4/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260213T123000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260213T140000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260201T151203Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260201T151207Z
UID:12660-1770985800-1770991200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Parent-Writer Social Hour
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/parent-writer-social-hour/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260217T203000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260202T191209Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260202T191213Z
UID:12670-1771356600-1771360200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Kathryn Nuernberger @ Assumption University
DESCRIPTION:Kathryn Nuernberger’s latest book is Held: Essays in Belonging\, which is about symbiotic mutualisms\, climate change\, and finding family at the end of the world. She is also the author of The Witch of Eye and the poetry collections\, RUE\, The End of Pink and Rag & Bone. Her first lyric essay collection\, Brief Interviews with the Romantic Past\, won the The Journal Non/Fiction Award. Other awards include the James Laughlin Prize from the Academy of American Poets\, an NEA fellowship\, and notable essays in the Best American series. She is a Professor of Creative Writing in the MFA program at University of Minnesota.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/kathryn-nuernberger-assumption-university/
LOCATION:TFAC Curtis Hall\, 500 Salisbury Street\, Worcester\, Massachusetts\, 01609\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="John Hodgen":MAILTO:hodgen@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260218T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260218T203000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260123T183703Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T183830Z
UID:12633-1771439400-1771446600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Extravaganza with Emma Couillard
DESCRIPTION:Join us at The Mill in West Boylston on February 18th.The Mill is right off Rt 190\, has a spacious parking lot\, serves delectable apps\, entrees\, and desserts with a full bar. We have a separate room for our monthly shenanigans. Admission is still free. All of the Tip Jar proceeds go to the Feature. \n\n\n\nThe Poetry Extravaganza (PE) is the 3rd Wednesday of the month\, except for July \,from 6:30-8;30 pm. Sign up for the open mic at jfjr6969@gmail.com. Five minute maximum\, Please! There are no language restrictions. We are not kid-friendly! \n\n\n\nOur Feature Poet on February 18th is the astounding Emma Couillard of Worcester Writer’s Collective and the Worcester County Poetry Association. Mark Lewandowski of Lewandowski Painters sponsors our event. That’s how we pay the poets! \n\n\n\nJoin the Fun on February 18th! \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEmma Couillard is a writer who works by day for a cancer research nonprofit. She has lived in Worcester since arriving at Clark University in 2017. Her poetry has appeared in The Three Decker and in the Worcester County Poetry Association’s Rain Poetry and Mapping Worcester in Poetry contests. She is a co-founder of the Worcester Writers’ Collective\, and her writing has been featured in the Blackstone Valley Story Walks and The Fairy Tale That Was Not Told projects. She was named one of Pulse Magazine’s 2024 People to Watch. Outside of writing\, Emma consumes reality television like it’s her job and constantly sings her own lyrics to every song imaginable.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-extravaganza-with-emma-couillard/
LOCATION:The Mill\, 185 W. Boylston Street\, West Boylston\, Massachusetts\, 01583\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260206T173911Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260206T173915Z
UID:12678-1771682400-1771689600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Booklover's Gourmet
DESCRIPTION:Join us for a monthly round robin style\, open poetry reading hosted by Robert Eugene Perry.  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nBring original pieces to share. \n\n\n\nSpace for the open mic is limited to 14 participants and usually fills up quickly. \n\n\n\nSign up to reserve your spot by calling 508-949-6232 or emailing deb@bookloversgourmet.com
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/booklovers-gourmet-12/
LOCATION:Booklovers’ Gourmet\, 72 E. Main St.\, Webster\, MA\, 01570
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260206T174536Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260206T174652Z
UID:12681-1771700400-1771707600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poets @ Large
DESCRIPTION:Poets at Large will begin its seventh year on February 21 st at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café\, 450 Deerfield Road\, in Pomfret\, CT. That Saturday night poets Denise Abercrombie and Sean Frederick Forbes take the stage.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAbercrombie’s work has appeared in numerous publications including Minnesota Review\, Fireweed\, Connecticut Review\, Phoebe: Journal of Feminist Scholarship\, Theory\, and Aesthetics\, Yale Global Health Review\, among others. She helps coordinate Curbstone Foundation’s Poetry in the Julia de Burgos Park series in Willimantic. Abercrombie teaches theater and creative writing at E.O. Smith High School\, and lives in Storrs\, Connecticut.  \n\n\n\nForbes is widely published and is the author of Providencia. Forbes is an Associate Professor at UCONN and a summer instructor for the Yale Young Writers Workshop at Yale University. \n\n\n\nThere will be no admission charge for this winter/spring series\, though donations are welcome. PAL Coordinator Karen Warinsky said\, “Due to the generosity of our sponsors this season\, we will be able to present these readings free of charge. We pay featured readers a small stipend for their time and travel. Our featured poets bring their books to sell\, so we are hoping patrons will be generous in supporting the poets by buying their books.” \n\n\n\nPoets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. This reading is made possible by a donation from Linemaster Switch. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poets-large-7/
LOCATION:Vanilla Bean Cafe\, 450 Deerfield Road\, Pomfret\, CT\, 06259\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Karen Warinsky%2C Poets At Large":MAILTO:karen.warinsky@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260221T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260217T173144Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260217T173943Z
UID:12774-1771700400-1771707600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poets At Large in February
DESCRIPTION:Poets at Large Readies for First Event of 2026! \n\n\n\nPoets at Large will begin its seventh year on February 21 st at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café\, 450 Deerfield Road\, in Pomfret\, CT. That Saturday night poets Denise Abercrombie and Sean Frederick Forbes take the stage.  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nAbercrombie’s work has appeared in numerous publications including Minnesota Review\, Fireweed\, Connecticut Review\, Phoebe: Journal of Feminist Scholarship\, Theory\, and Aesthetics\, Yale Global Health Review\, among others. She helps coordinate Curbstone Foundation’s Poetry in the Julia de Burgos Park series in Willimantic. Abercrombie teaches theater and creative writing at E.O. Smith High School\, and lives in Storrs\, Connecticut.  \n\n\n\nForbes is widely published and is the author of Providencia. Forbes is an Associate Professor at UCONN and a summer instructor for the Yale Young Writers Workshop at Yale University. \n\n\n\nThere will be no admission charge for this winter/spring series\, though donations are welcome. PAL Coordinator Karen Warinsky said\, “Due to the generosity of our sponsors this season\, we will be able to present these readings free of charge. We pay featured readers a small stipend for their time and travel. Our featured poets bring their books to sell\, so we are hoping patrons will be generous in supporting the poets by buying their books.” \n\n\n\nPoets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. This reading is made possible by a donation from Linemaster Switch. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poets-at-large-in-february/
LOCATION:Vanilla Bean Cafe\, 450 Deerfield Road\, Pomfret\, CT\, 06259\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Karen Warinsky%2C Poets At Large":MAILTO:karen.warinsky@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260223T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260223T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T175736Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T175739Z
UID:12454-1771873200-1771880400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Writing Creative Prose with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Come spend five weeks diving into the nooks\, fields\, and sticking points of writing creative prose! Whether you’re hard at work at your novel or essay collection or not sure where to start in your writing journey\, this class is a supportive environment for writers of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, discuss the craft of the wonderful examples we’ll read\, and bring in a piece of your own (300 to 1500 words) to workshop. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nThrough our workshop sessions\, readings\, and discussions of narrative voice\, language\, character\, setting\, and plot\, we’ll sharpen our tools of the craft to inform and inspire our work. By the end of this session you will have five pieces\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of creative prose. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family.Age: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, January 12 to February 23\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m.No Class Dates: January 19 and February 16 \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/writing-creative-prose-with-catherine-martin-5/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260128T163800Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260128T163804Z
UID:12639-1771959600-1771963200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:A Virtual Thirsty Lab with Meg Kearney
DESCRIPTION:The Thirsty Lab poetry reading\, normally based out of Princeton\, MA\, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday February 24th virtually on Zoom with none other than Meg Kearney\, our featured reader! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nMeg Kearney is author of nine books\, including All Morning the Crows\, which was the winner of the Washington Prize for poetry\, a Pushcart Prize nominee\, a Silver Medalist in Foreword Review’s Indies Book Awards\, and made Small Press Distribution’s poetry bestseller list April through September\, 2021. Her second heroic crown of sonnets\, Cardiac Thrill\, was published in fall 2025. The Ice Storm (2020)\, her first heroic crown\, is now in its fourth printing; and Home By Now (2010) was winner of the PEN NewEngland L.L. Winship Award. She’s also author of three verse novels for teens and an award-winning picture book\, published by Scholastic and illustrated by E.B. Lewis. Meg’s poetry has been featured on Poetry Daily\, Ted Kooser’s “American Life in Poetry” series\, and Garrison Keillor’s “A Writer’s Almanac;” it was also included in the 2017 Best American Poetry anthology. A native New Yorker\, she lives in New Hampshire and is founding director of the Solstice MFA in Creative Writing Program at Lasell University in Massachusetts.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/a-virtual-thirsty-lab-with-meg-kearney-2/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260224T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260218T161645Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T161649Z
UID:12787-1771959600-1771966800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Author's Voices: A Speaker Series Featuring Mark Walsh
DESCRIPTION:Mark Walsh will be the visiting author reading at New Dawn Tuesday\, February 24th\, at 7:00 p.m.\, followed by an open mic. at 8:00 p.m. at 84 Main Street\, Ashburnham\, MA \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAbout Mark: Mark Walsh is an English professor at Massasoit Community College in Brockton\, MA. He is also an assistant editor at Lily Poetry Review. His Chapbook\, In The Garden of Fortune\, was published by Lily Poetry Review Books in May of 2024.  Recent poetry publications include Abandoned Mine\, Rituals\, Choeofpleirn Press and Nixes Mate Review. 
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/authors-voices-a-speaker-series-featuring-mark-walsh/
LOCATION:New Dawn Center\, 84 Main St.\, Ashburnham\, MA\, 01607\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260225T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260225T190000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260218T153618Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T153622Z
UID:12780-1772038800-1772046000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetorium Too Poetry Reading & Open Mic Featuring Carla Morrisey & Deborah Jane Mitsakos
DESCRIPTION:Please join us for a very special double feature edition of our monthly open mic and featured poetry reading series The Poetorium Too at TidePool Bookshop on February 25th from 5 pm to 7 pm hosted by Paul Szlosek & (hopefully) Ron Whittle. It will be a full two hours of poetry and spoken word starting with a brief interview on stage with our two featured poets Carla Morrisey (author of Lavender Skies) and Deborah Jane Mitsakos (author of Mystical Heart of Nature) followed by poetry readings by our two features\, a short intermission\, and then an open mic (with 5-minute slots for each reader if time permits). For more information\, please get in touch with us at poetorium@mail.com or visit our website https//poetorium.home.blog/2019/04/29/the-poetorium-at-starlite-2/ \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCarla Morrisey is a lifelong resident of Worcester. She is a retired school psychologist from the Worcester Public Schools. Carla also taught sociology and psychology classes\, as an adjunct instructor\, at Quinsigamond Community College for over 40 years. Carla has enjoyed writing novels and poetry for most of her life. Her poetry has appeared in The Lowell Review\, The Evening Street Review\, and Write Angles e-journal. Her novels include If You See Your Father\, Shoot Him\, Lavender Skies\, and In a Borrowed Suit. Carla’s previous publications were under the name Carlo Morrissey. \n\n\n\nDeborah Jane Mitsakos was born to a Greek Family in Webster\, Massachusetts. Inspired first by the truth-seeking lyrics of Bob Dylan\, Donovan\, and Joni Mitchell\, High School was where her love of poetry began after taking her first poetry class. Her writing went silent for a time while she entered into marriage\, fostered children\, and then adopted four of her own (she is now a grandmother). Deborah has always been drawn to the beauty of nature\, and her love of wandering inspired to begin writing again. She wishes to explain her gratitude to her dear friend\, Robert Eugene Perry\, whose unwavering support and spirit inspired the words to write her first book of poetry\, Mystical Heart of Nature\, which was published by Perry’s Metaphysical Fox Press in late 2025.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetorium-too-poetry-reading-open-mic-featuring-carla-morrisey-deborah-jane-mitsakos/
LOCATION:TidePool Bookshop\, 372 Chandler St. Unit 101\, Worcester\, MA\, 01602
ORGANIZER;CN="Paul Szlosek":MAILTO:poetsparlor@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260226T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260226T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260120T171823Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260120T184926Z
UID:12623-1772130600-1772136000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Peace in Worcester: Our History
DESCRIPTION:An evening of dialogue and a screening of the   award-winning documentary   \n\n\n\nLocation: The Museum of Worcester\, 30 Elm Street\, Worcester\, MA  \n\n\n\n6pm: Reception with light refreshments. 6:30pm: Screening of the 70-minute film: The Berrigans: Devout and Dangerous 7:45pm: Worcester holds a high place in American Poetry\, and also in the history of thePeace Movement. Stay for the discussion with filmmaker Richard Dresser\, Claire andScott Schaeffer-Duffy\, David O’Brien and others.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe Berrigans: Devout and Dangerous tells the extraordinary story of the Berrigan brothers— both Catholic priests — and Philip’s wife\, Liz\, a former nun. Philip Berrigan\, who studied at College of the Holy Cross\, together with his wife Liz\, and brother Daniel they dedicated their lives to faith-based\, nonviolent resistance against war\, racism\, nuclear proliferation\, and institutional injustice within the Catholic Churchitself.  \n\n\n\nThe Berrigans: Devout and Dangerous weaves together live footage\, rare archival material\, and interviews with notable figures the Berrigans inspired — including Howard Zinn\, Martin Sheen\, Jim Wallis\, Daniel Ellsberg\, and members of the Berrigan family.  The Berrigans: Devout and Dangerous makes a compelling case that nonviolent direct action remains as vital and relevant today as it was during the height of the civil rights and anti-war movements.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/peace-in-worcester-our-history/
LOCATION:MA
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251226T195342Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260109T194239Z
UID:12531-1772373600-1772380800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:WCPA 2026 Annual Meeting
DESCRIPTION:The annual meeting of the Worcester County Poetry Association will be held in the ball room of The Salisbury House\, followed by a reading by new Worcester Poet Laureate Nicole “Nic” Jean Turner! \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nNicole Jean Turner is the poet laureate of Worcester\, Massachusetts for 2026-2028; a hand-patched\, sticker-smattered\, snagged-lace-layered writer. She writes in cursive to hide butchered spelling that mightotherwise raise suspicion about her master’s degree in writing. \n\n\n\nThat sleight-of-hand humor reflects Turner’s lyrical\, relatable style. Formally described as drawing fromminimalist traditions in a post-confessional mode\, her work intersects fragmented\, voice-driven burnt tongue with layered metaphor across both poetry and prose\, spanning a wide range of audiences\, from inspirational children’s poetry to award-winning formal verse. Turner prefers to be described as just another one of the writers you might find in the dive bar that Worcester’s longest-running weekly poetry event\, the Dirty Gerund Poetry Show\, calls home. A regular reader for more than a decade\, she coaches the slam team and organizes a traveling arm of the show\, repackaging its late-night literary ruckus for museums\, cafés\, and other all-ages audiences. Turner first emerged from the spoken word poetry scene of Syracuse\, New York\, in 2012 under the stage name Nic Jean. Since then\, she has strung literary heartstrings from the Pacific Northwest to New England\, connecting stages\, pages\, and workshop spaces with those drawn to subversive\, DIY\, community-centric work. \n\n\n\nTurner’s authenticity reflects her deep commitment to accessibility\, prioritizing art that meets people where they are. Whether working within more traditional literary spaces or mentoring emerging writers outside a dive bar\, she consistently encourages others to shed their preconceived ideas of what a writer should look or sound like and to claim their own distinct voices and stage presence. \n\n\n\nEducation: Turner holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy\, Fine Art\, and Creative Writing from Le Moyne College\, and a Master of Arts in Professional Writing from Regis College. \n\n\n\nBooks: to Unfurl (2023) – Limited copies available through TurnerWith Only Which She Could Carry (UWA\, 2020) – Available to booksellers through Ingram \n\n\n\nMedia Kit: www.pw.org/directory/writers/nicole_jean_turnerOfficial Website: www.NicoleJeanTurner.comContact: Hello@poetry-journal.com
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/wcpa-2026-annual-meeting/
LOCATION:Preservation Worcester Board Room\, 61 Harvard St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01609\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260302T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260302T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T180422Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T180425Z
UID:12457-1772478000-1772485200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260218T162126Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T162130Z
UID:12790-1772557200-1772568000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:The Openest Mic Featuring Brian Mosher & Fred Gerhard
DESCRIPTION:The poet\, Fred Gerhard\, recently published his mother’s poetry and will be reading from her works as well as his own. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn 2026\, Fred Gerhard\, author of Drifting to “Hello” (Khotso\, 2023) and Lilacs Still Bloom in Ashburnham (Local Gems\, 2023)\, will be reading his poems and poems from the recently published posthumous collection from his mother\, Rena Gerhard\, The Loving: Selected Poems (Petronella Press\, 2026). \n\n\n\nRena\, who died in 2014 wrote poetry for over five decades in Pennsylvania. Her work is well-crafted and insightful whether writing about love\, family\, God\, or surviving brain cancer. \n\n\n\nFred is widely published in magazines and anthologies. He is a winner of the Art on the Trails competition (2024) and the Poetry in the Pines competition (2023). He is also an editor at Quabbin Quills and Smoky Quartz. \n\n\n\nPraise for Fred’s and Rena’s poetry: \n\n\n\n“The poems in this welcome collection of Fred Gerhard’s work range considerably: from Victorian rooms to the Pennsylvania and New England landscapes he knows intimately; from the psychology of inner experience to the dance of interpersonal relationships; from the noise of the trains that run through all of our lives (and occasionally crash into walls) to the quiet of the ‘dark grape taste of twilight.’  Likewise\, Gerhard’s diverse poetic techniques run the gamut from lucid and conversational free verse to skillful and musical rhyme.  Throughout\, he crafts memorable lines and indelible images\, giving (as he puts it in his tribute to Edgar Allan Poe) ‘consonant to forlorn sound’—and to the sound of joy.” \n\n\n\n—Simon Hunt\, author of Lesser Magi and Endlings \n\n\n\n“As the middle of the Twentieth Century approached\, a young woman near Reading\, Pennsylvania\, took up poetry keenly aware of the thick\, heavy glass ceiling hovering over every line she wrote… \n\n\n\nThe silence seems too tense.One fears to breathe in case one mightThus doing\, cause offense.     \n\n\n\n…she quietly kept at it\, quietly riding that horse\, as she notes in ‘Strange Steed’: \n\n\n\nWhen the wise had gone to bedTo receive their well-earned rest\,Then I watched him as he fed\,And I sat his back\, a guestInstead.” \n\n\n\n—Rodger Martin\, author of The Sleeping Dogs of Lubec\, The Nemo Poems: A Martian Perspective\, The Blue Moon Series\, and For All the Tea in Zhōngguó \n\n\n\n“It is an honor to read Rena Gerhard’s poems\, to touch in after decades with her precision of imagination and her encounters with daily life\, laced with the generosity and intimacy of a ‘trembling heart.’ I love how Gerhard envisions herself standing ‘at the door of a dark night’ and whistling as ‘the beautiful words come running.’ Yet she also wrote herself through suffering. She recognized that she would have to ‘look through the hollows between the words.’  This memorial volume edited by her son\, the poet Fred Gerhard\, will stand as an enduring achievement.” \n\n\n\n—Heather H. Thomas\, author of Vortex Street (FutureCycle Press\, 2018)and former editor of Musings\, poetry column\, Reading Eagle newspaper
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/the-openest-mic-featuring-brian-mosher-fred-gerhard/
LOCATION:Canvas by Coff33 Corp.\, 326 Main Street\, Fitchburg\, Massachusetts\, 01420\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Laura DiCaronimo":MAILTO:laura.optician@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260307T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260307T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260215T201340Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260305T182006Z
UID:12751-1772892000-1772899200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Elizabeth Bishop's Motley Menagerie
DESCRIPTION:Due to February’s extreme cold and snow\, Mapping Worcester in Poetry had to put off the annual birthday celebration at Bishop’s grave in Hope Cemetery for a few weeks. Now\, come join us to hear local poets read her poems about cats\, roosters\, armadillos\, horses\, giant toads\, sandpipers\, dogs\, lions\, loons\, moose\, and more.  \n\n\n\nReaders include Elizabeth Bacon\, Rob Baker\, Lisa Connelly Cook\, Judith Ferrara\, the Rev. Daniel Gregoire\, Kate Gregoire\, John Hodgen\, Ann Lewis\, Evan Plante\, Susan Elizabeth Sweeney\, and of course Bishop herself. Animal costumes\, tiger stripes\, leopard spots\, kitten heels\, pigtails\, cowbells and plush toys are all welcome! \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nPhoto of Bishop’s cat Minnow\, courtesy of The Art Part blog\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSign up to read a poem here\, first come\, first served. \n\n\n\nDirections to Bishop’s grave in Hope Cemetery\, 119 Webster Street\,Worcester: Enter the main gate of Hope Cemetery and drive along Curtis Avenue. Take your fourth left onto Beech Avenue (after Elm\, Larch\, and Bush Avenues). Proceed for one short block until you see two trees next to each other on the left side of the road; Bishop’s grave lies behind the first tree (Fig. 7). There is ample space to park close to the gravestone\, and you won’t be able to miss us! \n\n\n\nFor more information\, check out the Mapping Worcester in Poetry webpage\, which includes a downloadable virtual\, driving\, and walking tour that ends at Bishop’s grave.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/elizabeths-motley-menagerie/
LOCATION:E.Bishop Grave at Hope Cemetary\, 119 Webster St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01603\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260308T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260308T150000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260218T202211Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T202215Z
UID:12793-1772974800-1772982000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poets @ Large: Women's Day Spoken Word/Poetry Rading
DESCRIPTION:The public is invited to a spoken word/poetry reading to celebrate International Women’s Day on Sunday\, March 8 th organized by Poets at Large. The free event will be held at The Rose Room\, 4 E. Main St.\, Webster\, MA from 1-3 p.m. Featured readers will be Fred Gerhard\, Meg Smith and Karen Warinsky. There will be an open mic as well. Donations are welcome. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nFred Gerhard is the author of Drifting to “Hello” (Khotso Publishing\, 2023)\, and Lilacs Still Bloom in Ashburnham (Local Gems Poetry Press\, 2023). His poems have been published in Amethyst Review\, BlazeVOX\, Entropy Magazine\, Friends Journal\, Pif Magazine\, POETiCA REViEW\, and other magazines and anthologies. He is one of the 2023 winners of Poetry in the Pines in New Hampshire\, is the 2024 poetry winner for Art on the Trails in Massachusetts and serves as an editor for Quabbin Quills and for Smoky Quartz. Gerhard is one of the founders of the New Dawn Writers’ Group in Ashburnham where he runs poetry workshops and open mics. Gerhard will also read some poems written by his mother\, Rena Gerhard. Mrs. Gerhard was a published poet who wrote for much of her life\, composed hymns and counterpoint musical pieces and taught Logic at the Penn State Campus in Altoona\, PA. \n\n\n\nMeg Smith is a first-generation Irish-American poet living in Lowell\, Mass. Her poetry has been published widely including in The Cafe Review\, Muddy River Review\, and Lowell Review. She currently serves as content editor for Worcester Magazine\, and as science columnist for the Telegram & Gazette. She is producer of Poe in Lowell\, celebrating Edgar Allan Poe’s visits to Lowell. She welcomes visits to megsmithwriter.com. \n\n\n\nKaren Warinsky is the author of: Gold in Autumn (2020) and Sunrise Ruby (2022)\, both from Human Error Publishing\, Dining with War (2023 Alien Buddha Press)\, and her new release Beauty & Ashes (Kelsay Books 2025)\, and she has published widely in numerous journals and lit magazines. Her poem “Mirage” won first place in the 2024 Ekphrastic Poetry Trust\, she is a Best of the Net nominee and a former finalist of the Montreal International Poetry Contest. Warinsky coordinates spoken word events in MA and CT under the name Poets at Large\, in various venues\, including The Vanilla Bean Café in Pomfret\, CT. She is retired from careers in media and teaching. \n\n\n\nWoodstock based Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poets-large-womens-day-spoken-word-poetry-rading/
LOCATION:The Rose Room Cafe\, 4 East Main Street\, Webster\, MA\, 01570\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Karen Warinsky%2C Poets At Large":MAILTO:karen.warinsky@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260309T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260309T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20251124T181347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T181423Z
UID:12460-1773082800-1773090000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin-2/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260311T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260311T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260224T170959Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260311T001856Z
UID:12818-1773255600-1773262800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:10th Annual Women's Reading!
DESCRIPTION:On March 11th\, 2025\, the WCPA is proud to host its annual Women’s Zoom Reading. If you would like to attend\, please CLICK HERE. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nHere is the reading list & order of readers: \n\n\n\n1.        Catherine Zebrowski grew up in Worcester County. Worcester has been an inspiration for hertwo novels Sleepwalking Backwards and Through a Bakery Window\, along with poetry\, songsand most recently a memoir\, Me\, Fran and the shadow man\, due to be published in April. \n\n\n\n2.        Rhett Watts has poems in The Worcester Review\, Spoon River Poetry Review\, Naugatuck RiverReview\, The Ekphrastic Review\, One Art\, and other journals. She facilitates writing workshops.Her poems are included in the anthologies: The Mud Chronicles: A New England Anthology\,Knitting into the Mystery\, The Black River: Death Poems\, and The Best Spiritual Writing 2000.Rhett’s books are: Willing Suspension\, The Braiding\, and The Double Nest. She lives with herhusband and Siberian cat twenty-five feet from a brook in MA. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n3.        Linda Warren has worked as a teacher\, Romance novelist and software analyst.  She has published a dozen novels and had poems published in in The Worcester Review\, Diner\, Whiskey Island Magazine\, Naugatuck River Review\, Writing the Land\, and other books and journals.  She fishes the trout and salmon rivers of New England and New Brunswick as often as she can\, and this collection is inspired by those rivers and the hours she has spent standing in them\, casting for fish and for words.  Her first chapbook of fishing poems\, They Say\, has recently been published by Finishing Line Press. \n\n\n\n4.       Susan Elizabeth (Beth) Sweeney’s poems have appeared in Diner\, Worcester Review\, Journal of Irish Literature\, and elsewhere\, and have won an Academy of Poets Prize\, a Frank O’Hara Poetry Prize\, and other awards. Her chapbook\, Hand Me Down\, was a semifinalist in the 2012 New Women’s Voices Competition. Close and Apart\, a sequence of nine poems\, was adapted by composer Matthew Jaskot and performed by a dozen musicians at a world premiere in 2023. A past president of the Worcester County Poetry Association\, Beth now directs Mapping Worcester in Poetry\, an initiative supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; she guest-curated the exhibit “The Poem Next Door” at the Museum of Worcester in 2024 and recently established the Worcester Poetry Archive there. She holds the postion of Distinguished Professor of Arts and Humanities at the College of the Holy Cross. \n\n\n\n5.        NANCY BAILLIE STRONG lives in Manchester\, NH.  She has workshopped with Jim Beschta  at the Worcester Art Museum and participates in Susan Roney-O’Brien’s virtual workshop. Her work has been published in TOUCHSTONE (PSNH) and SMOKY QUARTZ (Monadnock Writers’ Group)\, and she is featured in OFF THE MARGINS (offthemargins.com). \n\n\n\n6.        Cindy Snow’s writing has appeared online and in the Massachusetts Review\, Peace Review\, Worcester Review\, Crannóg\, and Maria Sibylla Merian: Changing the Nature of Art and Science.  Her poetry has been nominated for a Pushcart\, and her chapbook\, Small Ceremonies\, was published by Slate Roof Press.  Cindy served as a Platte Clove Artist in Residence and was a writing fellow at Cill Rialaig\, Ireland.  She holds an MFA in Poetry from Drew University\, works at Greenfield Community College\, and lives in Shelburne Falls\, MA\, with her family. \n\n\n\n7.         Karen Elizabeth Sharpe lives in Rutland\, Massachusetts with her partner and two rescue dogs. She is the author of Prayer Can Be Anything and This Late Afternoon. A poetry editor for The Worcester Review and executive committee member of the National Baseball Poetry Festival\, her poems appear in SWWIM\, Whale Road Review\, The MacGuffin\, and others. \n\n\n\n8.       Eve Rifkah: was co-founder of Poetry Oasis\, Inc. (1998-2012)\, a non-profit poetry association dedicated to education and promoting local poets. Founder\, and editor DINER\, a literary magazine.She is the 2021 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz award. She lives in Worcester\, MA. The play\, Outcasts the Lepers of Penikese Island\, was based on her first book. She has 6 published books\, none self-published. \n\n\n\n9.        Rev. Dr. Catherine Reed is a graduate of Clark University\,  Kaleo School of Ministry\, Hartford Seminary BMCP\,  Brigham and Women’s Chaplaincy Program\, and attended Boston University School of Theology.    She served as the associate pastor of John Street Baptist Church\, Campus Minister atClark University\, and Protestant  Chaplain of  The College of The Holy Cross.  She is a mother\, grandmother\, and great-grandmother.  Rev. Dr. Catherine Reed is the author of the following publications: Crossing Boundaries\, Between Midnight and Dawn\, Sankofa\, and Fire Goes Out Without Wood and the winner of the Barbara Pilon Poetry Contest and the Dark Horse Third World Contest.  She hosted WCCA TV’s “A Journey of Words.” \n\n\n\n10.   Jina Ortiz holds an MFA from The Solstice MFA Program at Pine Manor College. Her first poetry collection\, Miss Universe (Broadstone Press\, 2025) is a series of persona poems in the voices of the African descendant Miss Universe contestants who have won their country’s crown. Her poetry has been published in Sahara\, Afro-Hispanic Review\, Calabash\, Poui\, New Millennium Writings\, The Caribbean Writer and New Works Review\, Solstice Literary Magazine\, and Worcester Review. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n11.  Muriel Nelson’s publications include Part Song\, winner of the Dorothy Brunsman Poetry Prize (Bear Star Press)\, and Most Wanted\, winner of the ByLine Chapbook Award (ByLine Press). Nominated four times for the Pushcart Prize\, her poems have appeared in Beloit Poetry Journal\, Four Way Review\, Front Porch Journal\, Hunger Mountain\, National Poetry Review\, The New Republic\, Northwest Review\, Ploughshares\, Prairie Schooner\, and Superstition Review\, and on Verse Daily and Poetry Daily. Italian Culture published her critical essay on Eugenio Montale. She holds master’s degrees from the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers and the University of Illinois School of Music. \n\n\n\n12.  Diane V. Mulligan is a teacher\, writer\, and artist from Worcester. Her most recent novel is What She Inherits. She has published poems\, essays\, and short stories in many literary magazines over the years including Cognoscenti\, The Ocean State Review\, and Glassworks.Publications: Watch Me Disappear (2012)\, The Latecomers Fan Club (2013)\, and What She Inherits (2017). \n\n\n\nThe poet Jennifer Militello (USA)\, New York\, New York\, June 6\, 2024. Photograph © Beowulf Sheehan\n\n\n\n13.  Jennifer Militello is the Poet Laureate of New Hampshire. She is the author of the hybrid collection Identifying the Pathogen (Tupelo Press\, 2026)\, named a finalist for the FC2 Ronald Sukenick Innovative Fiction Prize\, the memoir Knock Wood\, winner of the Dzanc Nonfiction Prize\, and five collections of poetry\, including\, most recently\, The Pact (Tupelo Press/Shearsman Books\, 2021. Her work has appeared in Best American Poetry\, Best New Poets\, American Poetry Review\, The Nation\, The New Republic\, The Paris Review\, and Poetry. She teaches in the MFA program at New England College. (photo credit: Beowulf Sheehan) \n\n\n\n14.  Carolyn Howe writes poetry to help make sense of the inner and outer worlds that shape our experience of being human. She has published in The Worcester Review and the anthology The Senior Class: 100 Poets on Aging (ed. Laurence Musgrove). She has a chapbook\, Across the Street\, and is working on a collection of poems that speak to challenges facing our nation and world\, tentatively titled Looking Out\, Looking In. Carolyn is Associate Professor\, Emerita at College of the Holy Cross\, end enjoys her retirement with painting and writing poetry at her home on Patch Reservoir in Worcester. \n\n\n\n15.  Kathleen Granchelli spent her career in communications and community relations at a not-for-profit R&D organization following four years teaching English on the high school and freshmancollege levels. Upon retirement\, she reignited her passion for poetry with a focus on writing. Herchapbook\, “For the World\, She Said\,” scheduled to be published later this year\, is drawn fromexperiences living in Australia and Greece and other travels. She lives with her husband\, DavidGranchelli\, in Massachusetts. \n\n\n\n16.  Claire Golding is a freelance writer and editor. She was the 2003 recipient of the Worcester County Poetry Association’s Frank O’Hara Prize\, and has self-published a chapbook\, Poems and Other Offerings (Lulu Press\, 2009). She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her poetry has been published in The Worcester Review\, New Millennium Writings\, Contour (as part of the 2017 Tale of Two Cities International Poetry Project with Worcester\, Massachusetts and Worcester\, England)\, The Scenes and Seasons of a Small New England Village\, Penning the Pandemic\, and Last Stanza Poetry Journal. She lives in Princeton\, Massachusetts. \n\n\n\n17.  Polly Brown has happily resettled a family place in western Maine\, where she is growing poems and a few green beans. Her new book\, Stitching\, follows Pebble Leaf Feather Knife\, Each Thing Torn From Any of Us\, and Blue Heron Stone. A new website\, with blog posts\, can be found at pollybrownpoet.com.  \n\n\n\n18.  Robin Boucher: She has taken classes at the Worcester Art Museum\,  Grub Street\, Stanford University and attended workshops like those held at the Stanley Kunitz home\, the Frost Place\, and Mount Monadnock Pastoral Retreats. In 2023\, she was the inaugural poet for the Shawna Shea Foundation’s Library Poetry Tour. Her work has appeared in the Tale of Two Cities Projects\, in a collection of poems from the Slightly Off Beat Poets series\, Worcester Magazine and the Shivering Mouse Art & Poetry Review Vol. One 2025.  \n\n\n\n19.  Cheryl L. Bonin is a bourbon sipping\, baseball watching\, pirate loving\, Neil Diamond singing\, cancerous wench of the breast variety who writes snark filled stories and poetry because it’s cheaper than therapy. Her rantings have been encouraged\, tolerated\, published and/or acknowledged by: her Good Sport Hubby\, random unsuspecting open mic attendees\, The Worcester Review\, Worcester Magazine\, Three Decker\, The National Baseball Poetry Festival\, The Eastport (Maine) Library Review and the 2022 Frank O’Hara Poetry Contest. \n\n\n\n20.  Kathleen Aguero’s most recent book of poetry is World Happiness Index from Tiger Bark Books.Her other poetry collections include After That\, Investigations: The Mystery of the Girl Sleuth\, Daughter Of\, The Real Weather\, and Thirsty Day.She has co-edited three volumes of multi- cultural literature for the University of Georgia Press (A Gift of Tongues\, An Ear to the Ground\, and Daily Fare). A former contributing edior at Kenyon Review\, she is poetry Faculty-at-Large in the Solstice low-residency M.F.A. program at Lasell University and also teaches in Changing Lives through Literature\, an alternative sentencing program. Kathleen has been awarded a 2026 Creative Individuals Grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. \n\n\n\n21. Eleanor Wilner has nine books of poetry\, most recently Before Our Eyes; New and Selected Poems 1975-2017( Princeton University Press); her awards include the 2019 Frost Medal of the Poetry Society of America for lifelong achievement\,  fellowships from the MacArthur Foundation and the NEA\, the Juniper Prize\, and three Pushcart prizes. She is currently a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets\, and is a lifelong activist for civil rights and peace.  \n\n\n\n22. Susan Roney O’Brien earned an MFA from Warren Wilson College. Publications include Earth and Farmwife\, Legacy of the Last World\, Bone Circle and Thira. Her work has been translated into Mandarin and Braille\, Susan has been nominated for many Pushcart Prizes and published widely. She was the 2020 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz Medal for Poetry She teaches\, organizes monthly poetry readings and facilitates free poetry workshops. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nI
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/10th-annual-womens-reading/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Only
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260313T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260313T113000
DTSTAMP:20260610T161629
CREATED:20260302T194515Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T194518Z
UID:12861-1773396000-1773401400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Parent Writer Social Hour #2
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/parent-writer-social-hour-2/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
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