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5 JANUARY 2023 — thursday
- Green Apple Books presents short story writer Kate Folk, celebrating the paperback release of her debut collection, Out There, joined by novelist and editor Tomas Moniz, Big Familia, finalist for the 2020 PEN/Hemingway Award, novelist Claire Stanford, Happy For You, and poet Maw Shein Win, Storage Unit for the Spirit House, Green Apple Books, 1231 9th Avenue, San Francisco, free, 7:00 pm PST (More information here: www.greenapplebooks.com/event/9th-ave-kate-folk-tomas-moniz-maw-shein-win-claire-stanford)
6 JANUARY 2023 — friday
7 JANUARY 2023 — saturday
- Lone Glen reading series features poet and editor Jacob Kahn, editor of the chapbook press Eyelet Press, and poet Randy Prunty, celebrating his debut collection, Test Camp, recently published by BlazeVOX, Medicine for Nightmares Bookstore and Gallery, 3036 24th Street, free, 7:30-9:00 pm PST (More information here: medicinefornightmares.com/events)
- Jerome Rothenberg, poet, translator, performance artist and anthologist reads from In the Shadow of a Mad King and A Book of Infernos to the bass accompaniment of bassist, improviser, and composer Mark Dresser; this reading/performance will take place in a private Berkeley home with limited seating, 4:00 pm PST (To attend, email the event host at: Harry@fullplatemedia.com)
8 JANUARY 2023 — sunday
- Second Sunday Reading Series presents poet Shiksha Dheda, Washed Away, poet and translator Julia Guez, The Certain Body, and poet Matthew E. Henry, the Colored page, online via Zoom, free, 3:00 pm PST (Register to attend: secondsundayreadings.com)
9 JANUARY 2023 — monday
- Bird & Beckett Books and Records presents a reading with featured poets Joshua Merchant and poet Paul Corman-Roberts, founder of the literary festival Beast Crawl and author of Bone Moon Palace, among other collections, followed by an open mic, hosted by San Francisco Poet Laureate emerita Kim Shuck, Deer Trails, online via Zoom, free, 7:00 pm PST (More information here: birdbeckett.com)
- Rivertown Poets presents a reading with poet and translator William O'Daly, The New Gods, and poet Indigo Moor, Through the Stonecutter's Window, winner of the Northwestern University Press's Cave Canem Prize, followed by an open mic, three minutes per reader, online via Zoom, free, 6:15 pm PST (RSVP to attend/sign up for the open mic: aqus.com/rivertownpoets)
- Odd Mondays Reading Series presents author Gary Pedler, Couchsurfing: the Musical, poet James J. Siegel, How Ghosts Travel, and novelist Michael Alenyikov, Ivan and Misha, for an evening of nonfiction, poetry, and fiction, copies of the authors' books will be available for sale and signing at the event, Bethany Methodist Church, 1270 Sanchez Street, San Francisco, free, 7:00-8:00 pm PST (More information here: www.facebook.com/OddMondays)
- Left Margin LIT presents "New Year, New Words: Notebooking and Generative Writing," a workshop led by author and journalist Rachel Sarah, Girl Warriors: How 25 Young Activists are Saving the Earth, and poet Susie Meserve, Little Prayers, winner of a Blue Light Book Award from Blue Light Press; this workshop will focus on journal-writing, and attendees will respond to writing prompts and build a habit of steady, consistent writing, without judgment, class runs four Mondays, January 9-February 6, no class on January 16, online via Zoom, $275, 6:00-7:30 pm PST (Enroll here: www.leftmarginlit.org/new-year-new-words-2-sarah-meserve)
10 JANUARY 2023 — tuesday
- Cobalt Poets and VCP SoCal Poets present a reading featuring poet and spoken word artist Christian Perfas, with open mic to follow, online via Zoom, free, 7:30 pm PST (Register to attend: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
11 JANUARY 2023 — wednesday
- Bird & Beckett Books and Records presents a reading in remembrance and celebration of poet and publisher Robert Anbian (1949-2022), Night Horn Books publisher and a major figure in the San Francisco underground poetry scene, Bird & Beckett Books and Records, 653 Chenery Street, San Francisco, free, 7:00 pm PST (More information here: birdbeckett.com/robert-anbian-1-11-23)
12 JANUARY 2023 — thursday
- Medicine for Nightmares presents an evening of spoken word, featuring poet, actor, and singer Jozer Guerrero, Grab Your Rocks and Throw, spoken word artist Paul Flores, and poet JT Theodore, author of the forthcoming Paper Trail of Freedom, Medicine for Nightmares Bookstore and Gallery, 3036 24th Street, San Francisco, free, 7:00-9:00 pm PST (More information here: medicinefornightmares.com/events)
- Bird & Beckett presents poet and dancer Emily Keeler, celebrating her new book, Dark Days and a Black Dog, a powerful collection of linked poems, with a performance piece of the poems by Obie award-winning actor Andrea Snow, directed by Jael Weisman, founding member of the Dell'Arte Players Company of Northern California, Bird & Beckett Books and Records, 653 Chenery Street, San Francisco, free, 7:30 pm PST (More information here: birdbeckett.com)
- Open mic reading, anything goes, poetry, recitals, rants, rejoicings, come to read or to listen, and be a part of this collaborative experience, with musical accompaniment by Psi Process, every second Thursday of the month, The Ugly Mug Coffee House, 4640 Soquel Drive, Soquel, free, 5:30-7:15 pm PST
- The San Francisco Public Library presents Poem Jam, an event hosted by San Francisco Poet Laureate emerita Kim Shuck, Exile Heart, this month featuring poets published in the recently released anthology Beat Not Beat: An Anthology of California Poets Screwing on the Beat and Post-Beat Tradition, Latino/Hispanic Meeting Room A, San Francisco Main Library, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco, free, 6:00-7:15 pm PST (More information here: sfpl.org/events/2023/01/12/performance-kim-shucks-poem-jam-celebrates-beat-not-beat-poets)
- The Mechanics' Institute presents nonfiction writer Lawrence Weschler, Mr Wilson's Cabinet of Wonders, discussing his new book, A Trove of Zohars, an investigative tale that begins when Weschler tracks down Stephen Berkman, who claims to have discovered a trove of work by Shimmel Zohar, a photographer who chronicled the Jewish immigrant community in the Lower East Side during the nineteenth century, Mechanics' Institute, 57 Post Street, San Francisco, free for members, public sliding scale $5-$10, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.milibrary.org/events/trove-zohars-onsite-mechanics-institute-jan-12-2023)
13 JANUARY 2023 — friday
- Small Press Traffic presents writer and artist alex cruse and poet Benjamin Krusling, Glaring, both reading from their work as part of Antagonisms of Reality / Problems of Form, The Lab, 2948 16th Street, San Francisco, free, 7:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.smallpresstraffic.org/event/alex-cruse-benjamin-krusling)
- Beyond Baroque presents a reading by poets Nathan McClain, Previously Owned, Angela Peñaredondo, All Things Lose Thousands of Times, winner of the 2016 Inlandia Institute's Hillary Gravendyk Book Prize, and Marci Vogel, At the Border of Wilshire and Nobody, winner of the Howling Bird Press Poetry Prize, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, free, 8:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html)
14 JANUARY 2023 — saturday
15 JANUARY 2023 — sunday
- Desert Split Open Mic, this month featuring artist and filmmaker L Akinyi and a screening of their multimedia short film, MASKS + MIRRORS, a community poetry project that includes the poetry of several area writers, an open mic follows, six-minutes per reader, on the theme of masks and mirrors, Furstwurld, 8528 Desert Shadows Road, Joshua Tree, sliding scale $10-$15, no one turned away for lack of funds, 6:00-8:00 pm PST (Email: worldsplitopenpress@gmail.com to sign up for open mic; more information here: www.facebook.com/desertsplitopen)
- Beyond Baroque presents a reading with featured poets Sandra Simonds, Triptychs, Rodrigo Toscano, The Charm & The Dread, Prageeta Sharma, Grief Sequence, and Harmony Holiday, Negro Baseball League, winner of the Fence Books Motherwell Prize, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, 4:00 pm PST (RSVP to attend: www.beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html)
16 JANUARY 2023 — monday
17 JANUARY 2023 — tuesday
- San Diego Writers, Ink, presents the workshop Poetry: Learning from Modern-day Masters, led by poet and artist Anna DiMartino, attendees will read and discuss poems by modern-day American writers, $144 for members, $168 for nonmembers, runs 4 Tuesdays, January 17th – February 7th, at Inspirations Gallery, Suite 204, 2730 Historic Decatur Road, San Diego, 5:30-7:30 pm PST (Enroll here: www.sandiegowriters.org/2022-1-17-in-person-poetry-learning-from-modern-day-masters-with-anna-dimartino/)
- Cobalt Poets presents a reading featuring poet Nick Paleologos, Ad Versus Reaction, with open mic to follow, online via Zoom, free, 7:30 pm PST (Register to attend: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
18 JANUARY 2023 — wednesday
19 JANUARY 2023 — thursday
- Books Inc. Berkeley presents poet Heather Bourbeau, reading and discussing her new collection, Some Days The Bird, a poetry conversation with Irish-Australian poet Anne Casey, creating fifty-two poems in fifty-two weeks, Books Inc., 1491 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, free, 7:00 pm PST (More information here: www.booksinc.net/event/heather-bourbeau-books-inc-berkeley)
- Left Margin LIT presents "Writing Through Grief," led by former San Mateo County Poet Laureate Caroline Goodwin, Old Snow, White Sun, attendees will have a safe space to write through their grief towards healing, six Thursdays, January 19-February 23, Left Margin LIT, 1543 Shattuck Avenue, Suite B, Berkeley, $395, 7:00-9:00 pm PST (Enroll here: www.leftmarginlit.org/writing-through-grief-4-goodwin)
- City Lights Books presents nonfiction writer and activist Kavita Das, Poignant Song: The Life and Music of Lakshmi Shankar, discussing her new book, Craft and Conscience: How to Write About Social Issues, exploring ways in which writers can better engage with socio-political issues, the book also includes essays from numerous authors including James Baldwin, Roxane Dunbar-Ortiz, George Orwell, and more, co-presented with the Asian American Writers' Workshop, online via Zoom, free, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: citylights.com/events)
- The Mechanics' Institute presents editor and writer Kim Bancroft discussing her new book, Writing Themselves Into History: Emily and Matilda Bancroft in Journals and Letters, an insightful look into the lives of Emily Brist Ketchum Bancroft (1834-1869) and Matilda Corey Griffing Bancroft (1848-1910), first and second wives to the famous California historian Hubert Howe Bancroft, Mechanics' Institute Library, 57 Post Street, San Francisco, free for members, public sliding scale $5-$10, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.milibrary.org/events/events-activities)
- Speaking Axolotl, the monthly Latinx/Chicanx reading series, this event features printmaker and poet Fernando Martí and poet Manuel Rocha Jr., The Pain of a Warrior: Flower Poems Inspired by Prayer, the Ancestors, and Traditional Indigenous Flower Songs, followed by an open mic, ten open slots, this hybrid event is in person at Medicine for Nightmares Bookstore and Gallery, 3036 24th Street, San Francisco and online via Zoom, free, 7:00-9:00 pm PST (More information here: medicinefornightmares.com/events)
20 JANUARY 2023 — friday
- Bookshop West Portal celebrates Issue 22 of Alta Journal, which focuses on the landscape and communities of Western deserts, with readings by contributing writers Mary Ladd and Marcus Crowder, and contributing poet James Cagney, Martian: The Saint of Loneliness, winner of the 2021 James Laughlin Award, Bookshop West Portal, 80 West Portal Avenue, San Francisco, 7:00 pm PST (More information here: www.bookshopwestportal.com/event/alta-journal-issue-party)
21 JANUARY 2023 — saturday
- Beyond Baroque presents award-winning poet, novelist, and musician Will Alexander reading from and discussing his new collection, Divine Blue Light (For John Coltrane), published by City Lights Books, in conversation with poet and activist Kamau Daáood, Artistic Director and co-founder of The World Stage Performance Gallery, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, free, 7:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html)
- The San Francisco Public Library presents anthropologist Thomas McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, discussing his new book, Moro Warrior: A Philippine Chieftain, an American Schoolmaster, and the Untold Story of the Most Remarkable Resistance Fighters of World War II in the Pacific, a powerful story about Philippine Muslim guerrilla fighters during World War II, African American Center Exhibit Space, San Francisco Public Library, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco, free, 2:00-3:00 pm PST (More information here: sfpl.org/events/2023/01/21/author-thomas-mckenna-moro-warrior)
- Beyond Baroque presents Richard Modiano, poet and former Executive Director of Beyond Baroque, celebrating his new collection, Forbidden Lunchbox, joined in a reading by poet and founder of Punk Hostage Press Iris Berry, The Daughters of Bastards, poet and playwright Michael C. Ford, Emergency Exits, poet and performance artist S.A. Griffin, Dreams Gone Mad With Hope, and K.R. Morrison, Cauldrons, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, free, 2:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html)
22 JANUARY 2023 — sunday
- Poetry Flash presents a reading by Joan Baranow, A Slight Thing, Happiness, and Tayve Neese, evolution psalms, online via Zoom, free, 3:00 pm PST (Register to attend: please click here; you will receive an email with a link to join the reading)
- Bird & Beckett Books and Records presents a reading for the environment featuring former San Francisco Poet Laureate devorah major, Califa's Daughter, poet Dee Allen, Boneyard, poet and activist John Curl, and poet, musician, and artist Avotcja, With Every Step I Take 2, Bird & Beckett Books and Records, 653 Chenery Street, San Francisco, free, 5:00 pm PST (More information here: birdbeckett.com/winter-reading-1-22-23)
23 JANUARY 2023 — monday
- City Lights Books presents novelist and critic Curtis White, Memories of My Father Watching TV, celebrating his new book, Transcendent: Art and Dharma in a Time of Collapse, in conversation with author and photographer Cheston Knapp, Up Up, Down Down, online via Zoom, free, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: citylights.com/events)
24 JANUARY 2023 — tuesday
- Left Margin LIT presents "The Making of a Poet," a workshop led by poet Mia Ayumi Malhotra, Isako Isako, a California Book Award finalist and winner of the Alice James Award, this workshop looks at "mothering" as a radical practice and examines elements of craft in the work of women and nonbinary poets, six Tuesdays, January 24-February 28, online via Zoom, $395, 6:30-8:30 pm PST (Enroll here: www.leftmarginlit.org/the-making-of-a-poet-malhotra)
- Cobalt Poets presents a reading featuring poet and spoken word artist Red O'Hare, Seaglass Strange, with open mic to follow, online via Zoom, free, 7:30 pm PST (Register to attend: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
- Left Margin LIT presents " The Arc of Picture Book Writing," a workshop led by children's book author Meera Sriram, A Gift for Amma, winner of the 2021 South Asia Book Award, this course teaches all about writing picture books, including topics of story arcs, voice, and emotional resonance, as well as the industry itself and submission processes, four Tuesdays, January 24-February 21, with no class on February 14, Left Margin LIT, 1543 Shattuck Avenue, Suite B, Berkeley, $275, 6:30-9:00 pm PST (Enroll here: www.leftmarginlit.org/the-arc-of-picture-book-writing-2-sriram)
25 JANUARY 2023 — wednesday
- The Mechanics' Institute presents a celebration of French writer and actor Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (1873-1954), featuring translator and publisher Paul Eprile, with two new translations of Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette's novels Chéri (1920) and The End of Chéri (1926), in conversation with biographer Judith Thurman, Secrets of the Flesh: A Life of Colette, moderated by playwright and poet Zack Rogow, members free, public sliding scale $5 to $10, online via Zoom, Noon PST (Register to attend: www.milibrary.org/events/f%C3%AAte-de-colette-intimate-worlds-colette-virtual-event-zoom-jan-25-2023)
- City Lights Books celebrates three new poetry books, with readings by LaTasha Nevada-Diggs, Village, Eleni Sikelianos, Your Kingdom, and Anne Waldman, Bard, Kinetic, online via Zoom, free, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: citylights.com/events)
26 JANUARY 2023 — thursday
- Writers Read Ukiah presents poet Gordon Black, Low Tech in the Great Northwest, followed by an open mic, Grace Hudson Museum, 431 South Main Street, Ukiah, free, suggested donation of $5, 7:00 pm PST
27 JANUARY 2023 — friday
- Come join a reading and conversation on ecopoetics, featuring Tonya M. Foster, A Swarm of Bees in High Court; CS Giscombe, Similarly; Judy Grahn, Hanging On Our Own Bones; former US Poet Laureate Robert Hass, Time and Materials, winner of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize; Brenda Hillman, Extra Hidden Life, among the Days; Gillian Osborne, Green Green Green; and Evelyn Reilly, Echolocation, Studio One Art Center, 365 45th Street, Oakland, free, donations welcome, 6:00 pm PST
- Beyond Baroque presents a reading by Pasadena Poet Laureate Ron Koertge, Olympusville, and Eloise Klein Healy, the first Poet Laureate of Los Angeles in 2012, and author of several collections, including A Brilliant Loss, both authors will read new and selected works, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice Beach, Los Angeles, free, 8:00 pm PST (Register to attend: www.beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html)
28 JANUARY 2023 — saturday
- The Ina Coolbrith Circle presents poet Amy Miller, reading from her new books, Astronauts, winner of the 2022 Chad Walsh Chapbook Prize from Beloit Poetry Journal, and The Trouble With New England Girls, hosted by Suzanne Bruce, free, online via Zoom (More information here: www.coolpoetry.org/meetings.html )
- The San Francisco Public Library presents Poetry from the Pandemic, a reading of San Francisco poets highlighting how they discovered their inner resources and resilience during the pandemic, featuring Karen Melander-Magoon, John Curl, Rainbow Weather, and Mahnaz Badihian, Ask the Wind, North Beach Library Community Room, 850 Columbus Avenue, San Francisco, free, 2:00-3:00 pm PST (More information here: sfpl.org/events/2023/01/28/performance-poetry-pandemic)
- Book Passage presents novelist and essayist Peter Orner, Am I Alone Here?: Notes on Living to Read and Reading to Live, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism, discussing his new book, Still No Word From You, an intimate collection of essays about love and loss, hope, despair, and literature, in conversation with novelist Tom Barbash, The Last Good Chance, California Book Award-winner, Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera, free, 11:00 am PST (More information here: www.bookpassage.com/event/peter-orner-tom-barbash-still-no-word-you-corte-madera-store)
- The San Francisco Public Library presents a deep reading of Just as I Am, the memoir of iconic actor Cicely Tyson (1924-2021), led by author and historian Linda Jackson, The Religion of Slaves, African American Center Exhibit Space, San Francisco Public Library, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco, free, 1:00-2:30 pm PST (More information here: sfpl.org/events/2023/01/28/book-club-deep-read-linda-jackson)
- Point Reyes Books presents novelist Selby Wynn Schwartz, The Bodies of Others: Drag Dances and Their Afterlives, finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, celebrating her new book, After Sappho, longlisted for the Booker Prize, in conversation with bookstore co-owner Molly Parent, Dance Palace Church Space, Point Reyes Station, free, donations welcome, 4:00 pm PST (More information here: www.ptreyesbooks.com/event/selby-wynn-schwartz)
- Fourth Saturdays presents a reading with poets Amy Shimshon-Santo, Catastrophic Molting, and Brendan Constantine, Dementia, My Darling, free, Claremont Helen Renwick Library, 208 N. Harvard Avenue, Claremont, 2:00 pm PST
29 JANUARY 2023 — sunday
- Occidental Center for the Arts presents Sonoma County Poet Laureate Elizabeth Herron, Desire Being Full of Grace, celebrating her new collection, In the Cities of Sleep, followed by Q&A and book signing, Occidental Center for the Arts, 3850 Doris Murphy Court, Occidental, free, donations welcome, 2:00-4:00 pm PST (More information here: www.occidentalcenterforthearts.org/upcoming-events/xhw0a8i3c4drag3pqa6tq9xs2wm1yr)
- Skylight Books presents poet and performance artist Linda Ravenswood, The Stan Poems, reading and discussing her new book, Cantadora: Letters from California, a collection of forty-four hybrid texts that read as maps, diary entries, dream fragments, and lists, spanning the 500+ years from the Spanish Conquest of Mexico to the present day, Skylight Books,1818 N. Vermont Avenue, Los Angeles, free, 5:00 pm PST (More information here: www.skylightbooks.com/event/skylight-linda-ravenswood-presents-cantadora)
- Village Poets of Sunland-Tujunga presents a reading by poets Sharmagne Leland St. John, A Raga for George Harrison, The Trip, and William Scott Galasso, Saffron Skies, Bolton Hall Museum, 10110 Commerce Avenue, Tujunga, Los Angeles, free, 4:30 pm PST (More information here: villagepoets.blogspot.com)
30 JANUARY 2023 — monday
31 JANUARY 2023 — tuesday
- Cobalt Poets presents a reading featuring poet and essayist Darius Atefat-Peckham, How Many Love Poems, with open mic to follow, online via Zoom, free, 7:30 pm PST (Register to attend: www.poetrysuperhighway.com/cobalt/calendar.html)
- City Lights Books presents nonfiction writer Thomas Crow, The Long March of Pop: Art, Music, and Design, 1930-1995, discussing his new book, The Artist in the Counterculture: Bruce Conner to Mike Kelley and Other Tales from the Edge, examining the influence of West Coast artists on California's counterculture of the 1960s to 1980s, in conversation with art historian Carrie Lambert-Beatty, online via Zoom, free, 6:00 pm PST (Register to attend: citylights.com/events)
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