Poetry πand Photography πΈ by JJZ. Explorations worldwide and within. Trying to be heard, stirred, and perhaps cured by life's many hidden images, and the written-spoken word.
βNo one is immune from substances or mental health issues. And we need to talk about it. We need to talk about losing our children and our family members to it so that others know it’s okay and that it happens and to end the stigma because, the only way we end it is by talking about it and talking about prevention and really supporting others who are in our spot. So, if you need to reach out to me, do that, I’m here.β
Jessica Care Moore is the founder and CEO of Moore Black Press, executive producer of Black WOMEN Rock!, and founder of the literacy-driven, Jess Care Moore Foundation. An internationally renowned poet, playwright, performance artist, and producer, she is the 2019 and 2017 Knight Arts Award Winner, 2016 Kresge Arts Fellow, NAACP Great Expectations Awardee, and an Alain Locke Award recipient from the Detroit Institute of Arts. Moore is the author of The Words Donβt Fit in My Mouth, The Alphabet Verses the Ghetto, Sunlight Through Bullet Holes, and the critically acclaimed Techno Choreopoem, Salt City. Her work has been published in numerous literary collections and she has performed on stages all over the world, including The Apollo Theater, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the London Institute for Contemporary Arts. jessica lives and writes in an historic Detroit neighborhood with her son King Thomas.
Moore was born in Detroit on October 28, 1971. Detroit is more known for automobiles and for popular music than for its writing scene, but she was exposed to poetry as a student at the cityβs Cody High School. She attended Michigan State University in Lansing and Wayne State University in Detroit, writing for campus newspapers at both schools, but her first experience placing her poetry before a group came later. βI didnβt start reading out loud to strangers until β94,β she told the Cincinnati City Beat. β My dad passed and I read a poem and people were very impressed by that.β
I am so thankful to have the friends I do I am so thankful to have the opportunities I have I am so thankful to have God in my life This is a poem of remembrance This is a poem of love This is my heart displayed in the way I most often choose to pray . . . . . #poetry #poems #poem #poets #poet #poetryishealing #poetrycommunity #poetrytherapy #spokenword #Godisgood #spokenwordartist #spokenwordpoetry #performancepoetry #performancepoet #pagepoetry #weeklyopenmic #poetryisnotdead #goldenageofpoetry #communion #poetryinmotion #Jesus #lastsupper #breakingbread #faith #renopoetry #renoartscene #biggestlittlepoets #jessejameszpoet #sidewayseightpoetry #sidewayseightprojects
Anis Mojgani is the current Poet Laureate of Oregon. A two-time individual champion of the National Poetry Slam and winner of the International World Cup Poetry Slam, he has been awarded residencies from the Vermont Studio Center, Caldera, AIR Serenbe, The Bloedel Nature Reserve, The Souβwester, and the Oregon Literary Arts Writers-In-The-Schools program. A recipient of an Academy of American Poets Poet Laureate Fellowship, Anis has done commissions for the Getty Museum and the Peabody Essex Museum; and his work has appeared on HBO, National Public Radio, and as part of the Academy of American Poets Poem-A-Day series. His work has appeared in the pages of the NYTimes, Rattle, Platypus, Winter Tangerine, Forklift Ohio, and Bat City Review.
Known for his performances and well regarded for them the world over, Anis has performed at hundreds of universities across the U.S.; festivals around the globe such as the Sydney Writers Festival, Jamaicaβs Calabash festival, and Seoulβs Young Writers Festival; and for audiences as varied as the United Nations and the House of Blues. The author of six books of poetry and the libretto for Sanctuaries, his first childrenβs book is forthcoming from Holiday House/Neal Porter Books; his latest poetry collection, The Tigers They Let Me, comes out in July 2023. Originally from New Orleans, Anis currently lives in Portland Oregon.
~ Dragonfly ~ . I am so incomplete without you I only breathe because you allow it to be so As for confession, you already know everything that needs to be said I give that over to you now unknowing as to how you will work wonder in me but I believe you will allow me to see in time in love in remembrance of all you have already done. . . . #poetry #poems #poem #poets #poet #poetryishealing #poetrycommunity #poetrytherapy #spokenword #poesia #spokenwordartist #spokenwordpoetry #performancepoetry #performancepoet #pagepoetry #weeklyopenmic #poetryisnotdead #goldenageofpoetry #poetryopenmic #poetryinmotion #mondaynightpoetry #spokenviewscollective #renoarts #renopoetry #renoartscene #biggestlittlepoets #biggestlittlecity #jessejameszpoet #sidewayseightpoetry #sidewayseightprojects
My name is Jamie Louise Madigan. I was born in Dublin, Ireland but currently live in Calgary, Alberta. I have had a passion for creative writing from a young age. To me, writing is mental clarity β a beautiful platform oozing with vulnerability, infusing zest and brushstrokes into everyday life.
My debut poetry collection, Lipstick Stains and Coffee Cups, was released on Valentineβs Day, February 14th, 2023.
This book contains 130+ of my poems, and I am currently working on my second book.
The title, Lipstick Stains and Coffee Cups, is a metaphorical reflection of the book broken down into two parts. The first half of the book covers the severity and immense psychological distress I experienced after being involved with an abusive and manipulative partner. A lipstick stain is symbolic of this β how a tumultuous relationship leaves a lasting impression. The second half of the book displays a ground-breaking shift in perspective. A euphoric sense of comfort and warmth towards the eccentricities of life. The triumph of the human spirit. The adrenaline rush of new beginnings β like a piping hot cup of coffee.
A decade ago, my heart cracked open. These are the remnants.
Sabrina Benaim is a writer, performance & teaching artist, whose home base is Toronto. She was a member of the Canadian championship-winning 2014 Toronto Poetry Slam team, & in 2015, she represented Toronto at the Women Of The World Poetry Slam.
SIDEWAYS EIGHT PROJECTS 