Download or read book Stand Up Poetry written by Charles Harper Webb and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Witty, sexy, gritty, outrageous, emotional, hilarious, honest, courageous. What do these words describe? A growing movement in American literary circles: Stand Up Poetry. Over twenty years ago, Charles Harper Webb discovered a vibrant and invigorating poetry scene in southern California. Featuring some of America's best contemporary poets, this scene, according to Webb, showed insight, imagination, craft, philosophical depth, but most of all, it was funny, and it was fun. Stand Up Poetry: The Poetry of Los Angeles and Beyond (1990) was the result of Webb's enthusiasm for this poetic genre. A decade later, the popularity of performance poetry, poetry slams, and poetry readings is on the rise, and Webb has expanded his anthology to include a greater sampling of poets from across the country. From Charles Bukowski to Billy Collins and Allison Joseph, the poets included in this collection are popular and emerging, classical and experimental, young and old; yet all exhibit the characteristics so important to Stand Up Poetry-humor, performability, accessibility, individuality. Most important, these poems are enjoyable when read silently or aloud, on the page or on the stage. Stand Up P

Download or read book The Future written by Neil Hilborn and published by Button Poetry. This book was released on 2020-03-12 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards - Best Poetry Book Finalist Filled with nostalgia, love, heartbreak, and the author's signature wry examinations of mental health, Neil Hilborn's second book helps explain what lives inside us, what we struggle to define. Written on the road over two years of touring, The Future is rugged, genuine, and relatable. Grabbing attention like gravity, Hilborn reminds readers that no matter how far away we get, we eventually all drift back together. These poems are fireworks for the numb. In the author's own words, The Future is a blue sky and a full tank of gas, and in it, we are alive.

Download or read book Touchscreen written by Marshall Davis Jones and published by . This book was released on 2014-04-10 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written in 2010, "Touchscreen" has been embraced by the tech community as a conversation starter and jumping point to explore technology's role in our lives. Whereas the question used to be, "What CAN technology do for us?," the real question has become, "What SHOULD technology do for us?" How do we balance our expanding online connections with our innate desire for authentic human interaction? Poet, spoken-word artist, and songwriter Marshall Davis Jones challenges us to ask these questions. Marshall Davis Jones found his voice in 2006 at the renowned Nuyorican Poet's Cafe. From there, he has been on a mission to touch the world and inspire others to believe in being human. His original works have been featured on the BBC World News Network, in two TEDx programs, and in the internationally renowned Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix Arizona.

Download or read book Not A Lot of Reasons to Sing but Enough written by Kyle Tran Myhre and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2022-03-01 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: OF WHAT FUTURE ARE THESE THE WILD, EARLY DAYS? An exploration of the role that artists play in resisting authoritarianism with a sci-fi twist. In poetry, dialogue and visual art the book follows two wandering poets as they make their way from village to village, across a prison colony moon full of exiled rebels, robots, and storytellers. Part post-apocalyptic road journal, part alternate universe history of Hip Hop, and part “Letters to a Young Poet”-style toolkit for emerging poets and aspiring movement-builders, it's also a one-of-a-kind practitioners' take on poetry, power, and possibility. NOT A LOT OF REASONS TO SING is a: -post-apocalyptic road journal -alternate universe history of Hip Hop -“Letters to a Young Poet” -toolkit for emerging poets and aspiring movement-builders it's also a one-of-a-kind practitioners' take on poetry, power, and possibility.

Download or read book Take the Mic written by Marc Smith and published by Sourcebooks, Inc.. This book was released on 2009-04-01 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Get on Stage and Perfect Your Performance Have you ever enjoyed a slam or two and thought, "I could do this," but felt apprehensive staring at that empty mic—or worse, you climbed up on stage and struggled? Let Marc Kelly Smith, the founder of Slam Poetry, teach you everything you need to be a confident performer, from writing a powerful poem, to stage techniques, to going on tour (if that's where your muse leads you). Take the Mic is filled with insider tips, backstage advice, and tons of examples of slam poems that wake up an audience. With this book, you'll also be able to link to the PoetrySpeaks.com community to listen to samples, meet poets, and unearth inspirations for your next performance. The Ultimate Guide to Writing and Performing with Power Take the Mic is an essential guide for lifting your poetry from the page to the stage. Marc Kelly Smith (So What!), grand founder of the Slam movement, serves as you personal coach, showing you how to craft stage-worthy verse and deliver a poetry performance that shakes the rafters and sparks thunderous applause. In Take the Mic, you discover how to... Pen poetry that's conducive to on-stage performance Overcome stage fright Practice powerful performance techniques Rehearse like a pro Shape a loose collection of poems into a killer set Connect with your audience — heart and soul Master the art of self-promotion Schedule your own slam poetry tour Transform your hobby into paying gigs Act professional to establish a solid reputation in the Slam community Take the Mic is packed with practical exercises you can do alone or in class to hone your skills and transform your body, mind, voice, verse, and spirit into an engaging stage presence. You'll also find a brief history of slam, the rules and regulations that govern official slam competitions, and a list of PSI (Poetry Slam, Inc.) Certified Slams, so no matter where you are, you always have a place to Take the Mic!

Download or read book Please Come Off Book written by Kevin Kantor and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2021-03-23 with total page 102 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Please Come Off-Book queers the theatrical canon we all grew up with. Kantor critiques the treatment of queer figures and imagines a braver and bolder future that allows queer voices the agency over their own stories. Drawing upon elements of the Aristotelian dramatic structure and the Hero's Journey, Please Come Off-Book is both a love letter to and a scathing critique of American culture and the lenses we choose to see ourselves through.

Download or read book Life of the Party written by Olivia Gatwood and published by Dial Press. This book was released on 2019-08-20 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A dazzling debut collection of raw and explosive poems about growing up in a sexist, sensationalized world, from a thrilling new feminist voice. i’m a good girl, bad girl, dream girl, sad girl girl next door sunbathing in the driveway i wanna be them all at once, i wanna be all the girls I’ve ever loved —from “Girl” Lauded for the power of her writing and having attracted an online fan base of millions for her extraordinary spoken-word performances, Olivia Gatwood now weaves together her own coming-of-age with an investigation into our culture’s romanticization of violence against women. At times blistering and riotous, at times soulful and exuberant, Life of the Party explores the boundary between what is real and what is imagined in a life saturated with fear. Gatwood asks, How does a girl grow into a woman in a world racked by violence? Where is the line between perpetrator and victim? In precise, searing language, she illustrates how what happens to our bodies can make us who we are. Praise for Life of the Party “Delicately devastating, this book will make us all ‘feel less alone in the dark.’ ”—Miel Bredouw, writer and comedian, Punch Up the Jam “Gatwood writes about the women who were forgotten and the men who got off too easy with an effortlessness and empathy and anger that yanked every emotion on the spectrum out of me. Imagine, we get to live in the age of Olivia Gatwood. Goddamn.”—Jamie Loftus, writer and comedian, Boss Whom Is Girl and The Bechdel Cast “I’ve read every poem in Life of the Party. I’ve read each of them more than once. In some parts of the book the spine is already breaking because I’ve spent so much time poring over it and losing hours in this world Olivia Gatwood has partly created, but partly just invited the reader to enter on their own, caution signs be damned. This book is enlightening, inspiring, igniting, and f***ing scary. I loved every word on every page with a ferocity that frightened me.”—Madeline Brewer, actress, The Handmaid’s Tale, Orange Is the New Black, and Cam

Download or read book Never Catch Me written by Darius Simpson and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2022-10-25 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2023 Midwest Book Award Winner 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist Darius Simpson’s debut collection Never Catch Me centers on Black boyhood in the midwest and familial disintegration over time. Simpson pulls back the curtain, exposing the violence enacted against and upon, Black bodies, and yet, still, each poem is saturated in revolution and hope. Never Catch Me is the anthem necessary to organize a community that is committed to a better right now–one that can only be achieved with an intensity and action that goes far beyond the page.

Download or read book Can I Touch Your Hair written by Irene Latham and published by Lerner Digital ™. This book was released on 2020-01-01 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! Two poets, one white and one black, explore race and childhood in this must-have collection tailored to provoke thought and conversation. How can Irene and Charles work together on their fifth grade poetry project? They don't know each other . . . and they're not sure they want to. Irene Latham, who is white, and Charles Waters, who is Black, use this fictional setup to delve into different experiences of race in a relatable way, exploring such topics as hair, hobbies, and family dinners. Accompanied by artwork from acclaimed illustrators Sean Qualls and Selina Alko (of The Case for Loving: The Fight for Interracial Marriage), this remarkable collaboration invites readers of all ages to join the dialogue by putting their own words to their experiences.

Download or read book I ll Fly Away written by Rudy Francisco and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2020-12-08 with total page 125 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2023 Midwest Book Awards Finalist 2021 Feathered Quill Book Awards Bronze Medal Winner 2021 Goodreads Choice Awards - Nominee Language so often fails us. In his highly anticipated follow up to Helium, Francisco has created his own words for the things we cannot give name to. English is the shiniest hammer I own, but it's also the only thing in my toolbox. Nolexi noun no·lex·i | \ nō-lek-si \ Definition of nolexi: 1 : a word or phrase that does not exist or has no direct translation in a particular language I'll Fly Away uses Francisco's invented lexicon as the palette to paint an intimate portrait of Black life in America — one that praises joy and grace without shying away from the hard truths confronting all of us today.

Download or read book The Spoken Word Revolution written by Mark Eleveld and published by Sourcebooks, Inc.. This book was released on 2005-03-01 with total page 456 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A dynamic and clarifying volume chock-full of fresh and informative commentary...and an exciting array of knock-out poems." —Booklist Starred Review "Accompanied by a terrific CD that showcases the great variety of styles performance poetry embraces, from the purest of recitations to seductive musical presentations, this dynamic anthology embodies the thrilling and mutually beneficial rapprochement between the traditionalists and the slammers, something that seemed about as likely 10 years ago as that proverbial cold day in hell." —Chicago Tribune The Spoken Word Revolution brings to life the written and performed works of more than 40 of the most influential slam, hip hop, performance art and contemporary poets in the world today. This defining collection of spoken word poetry captures today's electrifying words and voices, in text and immediately live on one audio CD.

Download or read book Killing Poetry written by Javon Johnson and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-17 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2019 Lilla A. Heston Award Co-winner of the 2018 Ethnography Division’s Best Book from the NCA In recent decades, poetry slams and the spoken word artists who compete in them have sparked a resurgent fascination with the world of poetry. However, there is little critical dialogue that fully engages with the cultural complexities present in slam and spoken word poetry communities, as well as their ramifications. In Killing Poetry, renowned slam poet, Javon Johnson unpacks some of the complicated issues that comprise performance poetry spaces. He argues that the truly radical potential in slam and spoken word communities lies not just in proving literary worth, speaking back to power, or even in altering power structures, but instead in imagining and working towards altogether different social relationships. His illuminating ethnography provides a critical history of the slam, contextualizes contemporary black poets in larger black literary traditions, and does away with the notion that poetry slams are inherently radically democratic and utopic. Killing Poetry—at times autobiographical, poetic, and journalistic—analyzes the masculine posturing in the Southern California community in particular, the sexual assault in the national community, and the ways in which related social media inadvertently replicate many of the same white supremacist, patriarchal, and mainstream logics so many spoken word poets seem to be working against. Throughout, Johnson examines the promises and problems within slam and spoken word, while illustrating how community is made and remade in hopes of eventually creating the radical spaces so many of these poets strive to achieve.

Download or read book Black Movie written by Danez\ Smith and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2020-01-31 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2014 Button Poetry Prize Winner "These harrowing poems make montage, make mirrors, make elegiac biopic, make 'a dope ass trailer with a hundred black children / smiling into the camera & the last shot is the wide mouth of a pistol.' That's no spoiler alert, but rather, Smith's way–saying & laying it beautifully bare. A way of desensitizing the reader from his own defenses each time this long, black movie repeats."–Marcus Wicker "Danez Smith's BLACK MOVIE is a cinematic tour-de-force that lets poetry vie with film for the honor of which medium can most effectively articulate the experience of Black America."–Rain Taxi

Download or read book Egghead written by Bo Burnham and published by Grand Central Publishing. This book was released on 2013-10-01 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A strange and charming collection of hilariously absurd poetry, writing, and illustration from one of today's most popular young comedians?Ķ Bo Burnham was a precocious teenager living in his parents' attic when he started posting material on YouTube. 100 million people viewed those videos, turning Bo into an online sensation with a huge and dedicated following. Bo taped his first of two Comedy Central specials four days after his 18th birthday, making him the youngest to do so in the channel's history. Now Bo is a rising star in the comedy world, revered for his utterly original and intelligent voice. And, he can SIIIIIIIIING! In Egghead, Bo brings his brand of brainy, emotional comedy to the page in the form of off-kilter poems, thoughts, and more. Teaming up with his longtime friend, artist, and illustrator Chance Bone, Bo takes on everything from death to farts in this weird book that will make you think, laugh and think, "why did I just laugh?"

Download or read book Hey You C mere written by Elizabeth Swados and published by Scholastic. This book was released on 2002 with total page 47 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes sixteen poems about subjects ranging from the weather, to family, to food.

Download or read book Slam Your Poetry written by Miles Merrill and published by NewSouth. This book was released on 2020-02-01 with total page 255 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "No props. No music. No costumes. Just you, your words and a mic-you've got two minutes to make the crowd scream your name. Miles Merrill, spoken word artist and founder of Australian Poetry Slam, and award-winning teacher Narcisa Nozica will take you from novice to spoken word superstar in no time. Twenty years after Merrill introduced poetry slams to Australia, there’s a national competition with a live audience of 20 000 people, and it’s taught in schools across the country. It’s been nothing short of a revolution! With tips from stars of the Australian poetry slam scene, including bestselling author Maxine Beneba Clarke, Slam Your Poetry provides step-by-step instructions and exercises that will inspire you to: 1. Write a poem that pops 2. Rehearse like a winner 3. Wow your audience 4. Beat stage fright 5. Run a winning competition for your school or community group Part how-to guide, part masterclass, part manifesto, this book will help teachers, students and wannabe spoken word artists of all ages slam like a pro."

Download or read book Where There s Muck There s Bras Lost Stories of the Amazing Women of the North written by Kate Fox and published by HarperCollins UK. This book was released on 2022-03-17 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From rebels to writers, athletes to astronauts, join Kate Fox takes on an entertaining and eye-opening journey through the lives of these extraordinary women whose lives and achievements have too long been hidden.