Poets Catherine Carter and Mary Ricketson to read at CWPW, August 15, 2018, at the Moss Memorial Library, Hayesville, NC

On Wednesday, August 15, 2018, at 10:30 AM, Western North Carolina poets Catherine Carter and Mary Ricketson will read at Coffee with the Poets and Writers at the Moss Memorial Library, 26 Anderson Street, Hayesville, NC. The reading is free and open to the public, and an open mic will follow the reading.

Born on the eastern shore of Maryland and raised there by wolves and vultures, Catherine Carter lives with her husband in Cullowhee, near Western Carolina University, where she teaches in the English Education and Professional Writing programs. Her full-length collections of poetry include The Swamp Monster at Home (LSU Press, 2012) The Memory of Gills (LSU, 2006), and Larvae of the Nearest Stars (forthcoming from LSU, fall 2019.  The Memory of Gills received the 2007 Roanoke-Chowan Award from the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association; her chapbook Marks of the Witch won Jacar Press’ 2014 chapbook contest; other awards include the 2018 James Applewhite Poetry Award from the North Carolina Literary Review, the 2014 Poet Laureate’s award from the North Carolina Poetry Society, the 2013 poetry award from Still: The Journal, and numerous Pushcart nominations.  Her work has also appeared in Best American Poetry 2009, Orion, Poetry, Asheville Poetry Review, Tar River Review, and Ploughshares, among others; she is assistant poetry editor at Cider Press Review and the Jackson County regional representative for NCWN-West.Her website is:

 https://catherinecarterpoetry.com/

Mary Ricketson, Murphy NC, has been writing poetry 20 years. She is inspired by nature and her work as a mental health counselor.  Her poetry has been published in Wild Goose Poetry Review, Future Cycle Press, Journal of Kentucky Studies, Lights in the Mountains, Echoes Across the Blue Ridge, Red Fox Run, It’s All Relative, Old Mountain Press, and Whispers. Poetry books include, her chapbook, I Hear the River Call my Name, and two full length poetry collections, Hanging Dog Creek, and Shade and Shelter. Mary won first place in the 2011 Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest 75th anniversary national poetry contest.

Currently Ricketson is using her own poetry to present empowerment workshops, combining roles as writer and her helping role as a therapist. Her poems and activities relate with nature, facilitate talk about a personal path and focus on growth in ordinary and unusual times.

Mary writes a monthly column, Women to Women, for The Cherokee Scout.  She is a Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor and an organic blueberry farmer.

Ricketson is Cherokee County representative to North Carolina Writers Network West, and president of Ridgeline Literary Alliance. 

CWPW is sponsored by the North Carolina Writers’ Network-West, which is a program of the North Carolina Writers’ Network. For more information, please contact Glenda Beall at: 828-389-4447.

Poetry and Short Fiction festival in 2019 - plan now to attend

The Press 53 Gathering of Poets is now . . . The High Road Festival of Poetry and Short Fiction Saturday, March 23, 2019 Embassy Suites, downtown Winston-Salem, NC   Since October 2005, Press 53 has been finding and sharing remarkable voices in poetry and short fiction, and now after eight years of hosting the Press 53 Gathering of Poets, we are extending an invitation to short fiction writers to join us for a weekend of learning, writing, and sharing.  Why poetry and short fiction? These two disciplines sometimes overlap and are often overlooked by bookstores and other publishers, but writers of poetry and short fiction know these communities are vast and supportive, and The High Road Festival celebrates this as the first festival in the United States devoted exclusively to poetry and short fiction. Workshop offerings: We will have several one-hour and fifteen-minute workshops for poetry and short fiction and a small number of three-hour master classes. Workshops are $25 each to attend and limited to twenty participants; master classes are $100 each and limited to nine participants. We will also offer twenty-five-minute One-on-One Critique Sessions by experienced writers and editors of poetry and short fiction for personal feedback and instruction at a cost of $30 each. Free to the Public: Besides our workshop rooms, we have a large vendor room for journal, magazine, and book publishers of poetry and short fiction, and a large reading room featuring two open mic sessions and faculty readings throughout the day. The vendor room and reading room are open at no cost to the general public. Register for all workshops, master classes, and critique sessions à la carte and design your own day! Our website will be up for early registration in September! Location: We have secured the lower level of the Embassy Suites (across the street from the downtown Marriott) with plenty of space and privacy. Hotel Rooms: We have rooms at a special rate at the Marriott for $129 per night and at the Embassy Suites for $149 per night. There is more to come, including a Friday night event for those arriving early, and our Sunday Morning Seminar with Tom Lombardo from 10 a.m. till noon. Please contact Kevin Watson (kevin@press53.com or 336-770-5353) for vendor information or with suggestions, comments, or questions.  We are looking forward to seeing you at The High Road Festival of Poetry and Short Fiction!