Improve your prowess in poetry publishing and promotion at this FREE conference hosted by the Ohio Poetry Associatio n. Join us for a day packed with insights\, inspiration\, and networking w ith publishers and other experts.
\nThe O hio Poetry Association (OPA) was first organized in Columbus\, Ohio\, in 1 929 as the Verse Writers' Guild of Ohio. We incorporated as a 501(c)(3) no nprofit in 1978 and are affiliated with the National Federation of State P oetry Societies. The OPA seeks to promote and support poets of all levels of expertise\, as well as elevate the art of poetry and the people it touc hes. We conduct annual contests\, publish poetry books\, and organize quar terly workshops and readings\, as well as our biennial Sun &\; Moon Fes tival and the James Wright Festival. We publish a quarterly newsletter\,&n bsp\;Workshopping Our Words\, and an annual members-only poetry journal\,& nbsp\;Common Threads. For more information on membership and our upcoming events\, please visit our website: ohiopoetryassn.org
\nCONFERENCE AGENDA
\nAll D
ay / Writers' Center Meeting Room
Book and Resource Fair with
Ohio-Based Publishers
Including:
betweenthehighway press
(alex benedict)
Blood Pudding Press (Juliet Cook)
Bottom Dog Press
(Larry Smith)
diVERSES (Geoff Anderson)
Ethel Zine &\; Micro Press<
/a> (Sara Lefsyk)
Green Panda Press / Least Bittern Books (B
ree)
NightBallet Press (Dianne Borsenik)
Outlandish Press
(Kyle Osborne)
10:00-10:15 / Meeting Room ABC
\ n
10:15-11:15 / Meeting Room ABC
Naming\, Aiming\, and Gami
ng: NAG the Competition\, A Guide to Titles and Marketing
<
em>A presentation by Dianne Borsenik
Naming a poem is integra l to the writing process. A good title has the ability to enhance\, expand \, imply\, observe\, represent\, stimulate recall\, or pay tribute to. It can set the stage\, add an insight\, and engage the reader&rsquo\;s attent ion before the reader ever gets to the first line. This presentation is de signed to assist you in mining the titular gems hiding within the stanzas and lines of your own poems\, and to suggest ways to become the one to rem ember at readings and signings. Empower yourself with the words you alread y use in your craft!
\n\n11:15-11:30
Break / Ne
tworking / Browse the publishers
11:30-12:30 / Meeting Ro
om ABC
Don&rsquo\;t Grow Readership. Serve It.
A workshop with Geoff Anderson
This workshop with diVERS ES founder Geoff Anderson discusses strategies for promoting your writing. However\, before scrambling to start a newsletter or creating another soc ial media page or author website\, it is important to consider what exactl y you are giving to the people who turn to you. In this session\, we&rsquo \;ll discuss tactics to reach readers\, as well as the reasoning behind ea ch of them\, in order to create a plan that gets our work out there.
\n \n12:30-12:45
Break / Networking / Browse the publ
ishers
\n
12:45-1:15 / Meeting Roo
m ABC
Meet the Presses &mdash\; hear from select
Ohio publishers
Including: betweenthehighway press (alex ben edict)\, Blood Pudding Press (Juliet Cook)\, Bottom Dog Press (Larry Smith )\, diVERSES (Geoff Anderson)\, Ethel Zine &\; Micro Press (Sara Lefsyk )\, Green Panda Press / Least Bittern Books (Bree)\, NightBallet Press (Di anne Borsenik)\, and Outlandish Press (Kyle Osborne)
\n\n1:15
-2:15
Lunch Break / Networking / Browse the publishers
Bring your lunch and eat it in the Writers Center. Additional light snacks provided by OPA and the Friends of the South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch.
\n\n2:15-3:15 / Meeting Room ABC
Use Yo
ur Pipes
A workshop with Michael Salinger
Take the mic&mdash\;or at least the room&mdash\;with poet and performer Mi chael Salinger\, whose decades of spoken word savvy and global teaching gi gs make him uniquely equipped to help you bring your words to life. This i sn&rsquo\;t about reciting like a robot. It&rsquo\;s about owning the stag e\, connecting with an audience\, and having a damn good time doing it. Wh ether you&rsquo\;re a seasoned writer or terrified of the spotlight\, you& rsquo\;ll leave with sharper delivery skills\, real-world performance tool s\, and maybe even a poem that talks back. Equal parts practical and playf ul. Come ready to speak up&mdash\;and out.
\n\n3:15-3:30
Break / Networking / Browse the publishers
3:30-4:30 / Meeting Room ABC
A Clutch o
f Poems \;
A workshop with Susan Grimm
What holds the poems together when the poet lets go? This is the question we&rsquo\;re confronted with when we have the happy task of putting togeth er a chapbook or book. I like calling our work &ldquo\;a clutch of poems&r dquo\; because it suggests an abundance\, poems that the author feels some intensity for\, maybe even some anxiety. The pages might be a little wrin kled by a tight grip. This should be a happy task but it doesn&rsquo\;t al ways feel that way. What&rsquo\;s in\, what&rsquo\;s out\, what&rsquo\;s m erely supportive? How important are titles or sections? Is there a piece m issing? A prelude poem? Should there be an arc\, a dance\, a floodgate? Or der is important. Let&rsquo\;s talk about that.
\n\;
\nPRESENTERS
\nGeoff A nderson created diVERSES to help poets achieve creative and f inancial independence. He runs Columbus's only space dedicated entirely to poetry\, The Stanza. His poems can be found in journals like Cimarron \, Tar River\, Ninth Letter\, Indiana Review\, and Hobart. He's a Callaloo fellow\, Cave Canem fellow\, poe try retreat organizer\, event curator\, and dad.
\nDianne B orsenik is a poet\, publisher\, and promoter\, and is current ly active as an independent editor. She participates in the northern and m id-Ohio poetry communities. In 2023\, her collection Raga for What Comes N ext was taught as part of the Contemporary and Modern American Poetry cour se at Muskingum University. In 2024 she organized the poetry show In the C ompany of Angels at Speak of the Devil\, a lauded cocktail bar in Lorain\, Ohio. At that time\, Speak of the Devil&rsquo\;s co-owner Kurt Hernon pro claimed her to be the bar&rsquo\;s Poet Laureate.
\n