The History of Spilled Ink
or
How on Some Nights I Stopped Talking and Wrote Something Down
YEAR 6
WRITERS: BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE!
January 2020
1-10-20
Spilled Ink EAST
7 readers – A very enjoyable night! We talked about writing as much as we read.
Nancy Kyme – Chapter 3 of her novel, “Binral” and a poem, “Searching”
Alice Mergler – “Us lives here”
Michael Sensale – “Slayride” [A Head Hunt Christmas Tale]
Steven Meehan – “An Act of Heroism”
Thomas “Zorba the Greek” Burson – “Sand in the Shoe,” “Out of the Sea,” “A Rake,” and “I Can See You Dancing with the Gulls”
David Holloway – “Gulp!”
Me – Prologue from “Escape from Z.O.M.B.I.E. School”
*I thought I took at group picture, but it appears that I did not. L
1-24-20
Spilled Ink
19 readers and many listeners! Dr. Koff was there along with the entire Koff entourage!
Jane Jones [First Timer] – “Whispers” and “The Essence of Life – The Joy of Reading to a Child”
Mark Kerlin – “The Crossbar of Society” [The Soccer Ball Invites]
Natalie Potell – “Lark”
Dan Leahy – “The Trolley” (Memoir) and “Impeachment Blues”
Morgan Hazelwood – (Fantasy Poetry) “Far from Home,” “Bait,” “Enchanted,” and “Dragon”
John Cowgill – “Angel Angela,” “The Great Journey of the Great Prince Hopper the Valiant One,” “Meet Me at the Waterpark”
Thomas Burson – “Who Da Thunk It,” “It Always Ends,” “The Devil Is,” and “Safe and Sound”
Brian Donnell James – “Daughter,” “Blind,” and “Dream #7”
Jim Boucher – “Votive Mainsail,” “Astute Study,” and “Novel Heirlooms” (all stanzas in haiku)
Lucy Koons – “Biscuits” (Villanelle poem)
Mike Vanderpool – “The February Ocean,” “Brothers,” and “Until”
Gail Williams – “The Purse” (Memoir)
JoAnn Lord Koff [First Timer] – “On the Lawn Behind the White House”
Alice Mergler – “Remembering Your Dad” (Memoir) and “December 31, 2019”
Mike Crowley – “An Open Mike of the Spoken Word,” “I Must Judge,” and “Space Santa”
Mary Rook – “Enough” and “Metal Man”
Michael Sensale - "Nine Levels of Publishing Hell = 4) Publicize, 5) Serialize, and 6) Revise"
Marcus Damanda [First Timer] – An excerpt from his novel, “The Salvation State”
Me – “Pajamas” and “Blizzard and Lizard”
February 2020
2-14-20 [Valentine’s Day]
Spilled Ink EAST
7 readers – Relaxed night with wonderful people!
“A drop of ink may make a million people think.” ~Lord Byron
John Cowgill – “Love Impossible Force” and “She is the Morning Star”
Steven Meehan – “Bombing Run”
Michael Sensale - "Nine Levels of Publishing Hell = 4) Publicize, 5) Serialize, and 6) Revise" and “Dog Gone Valentine”
June Forte – “Weighing In on Weighing In”
Linda Niewiadomski – “Just Put Your Pen to Paper,” “Valentine’s Day,” “Happy Birthday, Elvis,” and “Sesame Street Thanksgiving”
Thomas Burson – “The First Day,” “Harrowed Light,” “The Gathering,” and “Angels on the Lawn”
Me – “A Way to Gobber’s Heart”
2-28-20
Spilled Ink
21 readers! There were a few listeners and one elderly gentleman that stayed the entire night. Maybe the elderly gentleman will read next time. He just looked like a writer.
Anant Dhavale – “Restitution,” “Insomnia,” and “The Smile”
Alice Mergler – “The DMV”
Michael Sensale – Knight Shade tales: “Voodoo Frame,” “The Dealer,” and “The Entity”
Morgan Hazelwood – “Snow White and Rose Red,” [Four poems with the same theme] “Misfits,” “Ghosts,” “The Morning on Script,” and “Freeze”
Aida Iftikhar [First Timer!] [Student at NoVa] – Journal Entry, “Hope”
Brittany Moore [First Timer!] [Mom inspiring her daughter to read!] – “Let Me Love You”
“Anon” Moore [First Timer!] [Student at Stonewall Jackson HS] – “Your Words are Snowflakes”
Megan McDonald – “Moon is a Statement,” “The Canyon’s Edge,” and “The In-Between Point”
John Cowgill – “She is the Morning Star,” and “Love Impossible Force”
Laya Ashton – “Inheritance” and “Night Flower”
Lesley Tyson – “Nondisclosure,” “When Did I Begin to See,” and “Exploded Bouquet”
Xavier Hall [First Timer!] – “The Grim Reaper” and “Immortality”
Jim Boucher – “Onward Hearts” and “Tender Reaches”
Artik – Read a poem by Langston Hughes, “Freedom’s Plow”
Dan Leahy – “Land of the Free; Home of the Brave” and “Virus”
Kimberly Ray – “For the Poetry,” “In the Sea of Lonely Nights,” and “Danger Ahead”
Brian Donnell James – “Hispanic Girl,” “Addis Abbaba,” and “Glance”
Thomas Burson – “How Strong,” “Pull the Curtain,” “Open Mic,” and “Hand Craft”
Lucy Koons [Read by Gail Williams] – “And I Am Not Afraid” and “Between the Shores”
Gail Williams – A memoir on her father, “Hero” and “Sundays” [It was so special!!]
Me – “Presidents” [Acrostic Poem]
March 2020
3-13-20
Spilled Ink EAST cancelled due to Coronavirus outbreak.
Hello, Inkers!
I have been holding onto hope, but I think it best to call off Spilled Ink East tomorrow night.
I stick with: Better safe than sorry!!
****Please check other area events before attending!
Thanks for understanding and stay safe!
KEEP WRITING DURING YOUR SELF-QUARANTINE! #NANOWRICORONO
Let's check back in a few weeks and still see if we can have Spilled Ink. I have not heard from Jirani's Coffeehouse yet.
ON THE SAME DAY…The Spilled Ink Anthology is here!
Hey everyone!
It's here! Feel free to message him on Facebook or e-mail Nick Hale [e-mail address below] if you have any questions.
https://www.localgemspoetrypress.com/spilled-ink-anthology-preorders.html
NICK HALE: localgemsnick@gmail.com
I'll have pics of the book once I have it in hand!
It is a light in the storm! Finally, some good news.
John
3-27-20
Jirani has closed due to the Coronavirus, so Spilled Ink is cancelled. To combat this problem, we are planning a double shot of Virtual Spilled Ink!
First:
Second: Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
3-27-20
14 people logged on! We had 12 readers and 2 listeners, Olivia Loper and Henry Munroe!
John Donley – “Pray for Me” and “Hippoass” [Horrible audio L]
Morgan Hazelwood – “Lunch with a Co-Worker”
Doc Coleman [First Timer!] – “Before Breakfast”
Anant Dhavale – “Civilizations” and “Seriatim”
David Holloway – “Criminal Masterminds”
Eloise [E-low-is] Wallace – “Mom Was Right!” and “Searching for My Lost Star” [Audio glitches]
June Forte – “Lesson Unlearned”
Lucy Koons – “How Long Until We Heal?”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Recall”
Jim Loper – “Gone Fishing”
Nick Hale – “Honk If Parts Fall Off” and “The 11th”
Me – “A Love Poem”
SPILLED INK VA now has a YouTube channel!
You can see all the videos there.
Don’t forget to subscribe to the channel!
Change Makers: John Dutton
April 2020 edition of Prince William Living
May 31, 2020
Change Makers highlights the people of Prince William who are making a difference in our community. This month we are featuring teacher and author John Dutton.
When it comes to community involvement, John Dutton just may be an expert. From teaching middle
school to coaching youth sports and writing poetry to encouraging others to share their work, Dutton is actively involved in numerous areas of our community. Through his leadership and development, local open mic opportunity Spilled Ink is in its sixth year and continues to provide an inspiring outlet and welcoming gathering place for writers, authors and poets each month. Dutton has also authored two
children’s books and shares those stories and poetry lessons in local schools.
How long have you lived in the Prince William area, and what do you most like about living here?
I have lived in PWC for over 20 years. I love this area because of the vast entertainment /recreation opportunities it offers. Within an hour, you can hike the Shenandoah, tour a national museum, visit Mount Vernon or go see a Nationals game.
What are some of your favorite things to do in the area and why?
I enjoy fishing and kayaking on the Occoquan River. I love eating jambalaya at Okra’s. I spend hours hanging out and reading/writing at the Tackett’s Mill Library. Nothing beats a day of board games at Crossroads with friends. I look forward to the fourth Friday of every month when Spilled Ink is held at Jirani Coffeehouse. There are so many events and great places to visit in PWC. You name it, and you can find it.
How have you been involved in the community?
I have been a middle school teacher in PWC for 15 years. I have been at Beville Middle School for the last 12. I also coach the school’s wrestling team. I have been the creator and host of Spilled Ink, an open mic opportunity for writers, authors, poets and scribblers, which celebrates the written word. If you wrote it, we want to hear it! I am a founding member of The Poet Laureate Circle which, along with the PWC Arts Council, sponsors the “In the Company of Laureates,” “The PWC Poet Laureate” and “Arts Alive.” I am a guest author/poet at local schools reading my two children’s books, Armadillo Lost Her Pillow and Argument at the Airport, or presenting lessons on poetry.
I was awarded the Outstanding Poetry Project of the Year from The Poet Laureate Circle for Spilled Ink. Spilled Ink is now in its sixth year and going strong. I was also awarded the Kathleen Seefeldt Community Volunteer Award from the Arts Council last year.
If you had to give advice to someone new to the area, what would you tell them and why?
Get out there! Get involved. Whatever your interests are, you can find it in PWC. Also, don’t forget to explore the surrounding areas. This area is full of history! Also, stop in at Spilled Ink and listen or, if you want to brave the mic, read. I am sure you will hear something you like. Check out SpilledInkVA.com for
more information.
How would you describe yourself in three sentences?
I can do it in one: I am a husband, father, son, friend, teacher, coach, author, host, reader, homeowner, gardener, light bulb changer, poet, Packers fan, fisherman and Nationals fan. I am sure I am forgetting something!
April 2020
4-10-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
Nancy Ayanna Wyatt [First Timer!] *She had technical issues so just listened tonight
Cathy Hailey – “School Abroad”
Lesley Tyson - "From a Dream," "Ode to a Broken Glass," and "The Box that Connects"
Daniel Wanamaker – “Always Back-up Your Work”
Brittany Sabatino – “Answers” and “Lament to My Coffee Mug”
David Holloway – “Sometimes She Knows" and "Primary Canine"
Diane Wilbon Parks - "Fruit Filled" and "Sky"
Lucy Loons – Chapter 4 of “Fried Pie”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Discussion Topic”
Megan McDonald and her cat, Kellas McAllister – Part of a poem from the NoVa Bard's Challenge.
Joh Dutton Sr. [My dad] [First Timer!] – “Introduction letter to Single Mothers” for next book
Me – “A Love Poem,” “The Path,” and “The Chase”
4-24-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
We had 11 people [John Cowgill didn’t get his computer issues worked out until after the show.]
Will Uanserume - “What Makes a Complete Birthday,” “Adapt,” and “Quarantry: Trapped”
Katherine Gotthardt - “Meditation on Gratitude” and “Work from Home”
David Holloway - “Walking Catfish” and “Thick Days in Miami”
Megan McDonald - “Swing,” “Barcelona,” and “Waiting for Godot, 2020”
Lesley Tyson - “The Trouble with Dreaming,” “Comedy Dell’arte,” and “Place Out of Time”
Joseph Leo Hickey - “Autumn”
Kimberly Ray – “Screaming Amongst the Silence,” “Our Misfortune,” and “The Disposables”
Cathy Hailey – “Fair Weather Foe” and “It’s Hurlyburly Time”
Nick Hale – “For Ana” and "I Was Sick of People Ranting about Politics and Not Doing
Something about it, so I Did Something about It”
John Cowgill – “I Miss That Caboose” and “Lady of the Jersey Shore”
Me – “Scrivener’s Paradise”
Lesley Tyson: PoetsAnonFFX@gmail.com [Info on Poets Anonymous]
Nick Hale: NovaBards@gmail.com [info on Nova Bards]
May 2020
5-8-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
Lesley Tyson – “La Grand Poupee,” “Almanac,” and “Sail: In Two Movements”
Cathy Hailey – “Raccoon” [Pictures below!]
Katherine Gotthardt: “Lesson in Service” and “Fire Drill”
Sylvia Beverly [AKA: Lady Di] – “First Lessons of Cooking,” “Number One Fan” and
“Decorate Me”
Kimberly Ray – “Endless Night,” “Oak Tree,” “We Are Gathered Here Together”
Megan McDonald – “Blue Sail Triangles,” “May Memories,” and “Ostriches”
Kathy Smaltz – “Germantown Lake”
Me – “Walking My Human”
5-22-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
We had 13 people!
Ann Marie Maloney – She just listened but promised to continue her “Library” story soon.
Nick Hale – “Keep the Pen Moving,” “Pizza Pi,” and “What if Andy Warhol Wrote Poetry”
Wills D. Uan – “Solo,” “Location,” and “Waiting for Something to Happen”
John Cowgill – “The Storm” and “The Beauty of the Waterfall”
Mike Crowley - “Could We Feed the Hungry” [He also sang it]
Lesley Tyson – “Chasing Shadows,” “Outside the Room,” and “Colors of a Landscape”
Megan McDonald – “Shame on Kid Wonder,” “Acid Jazz,” and “Mesa Verde”
Kimberly Ray – “The Box”
Steven Ray [First Timer!] – “Hallelujah” [Published in Catamaran Literary Reader]
Paulette Gardner – “Time in the Time of Corona” and “The Marvelous Line”
Alice Mergler – “Ode to the Power of the Pen,” “Every Mother Needs a 7th Son,” “Entries from Mother’s Journal [The Rations Board],” and “18 Cans of Soup”
Anant Dhavale – “Solace” and “A Million Years”
Me – “House Rules”
BLANK Writing Prompts
[We had more, but they did not get saved]
____________ the ____________ _____________ ____________
Searching for Ms. ____________
Never ____________
____________ is the boss
Holy____________
Let's start ____________
Colors of a ____________
Illusions of ____________
Day 83 of ____________
The meaning of life is ____________
The ____________ is mightier than the ____________
Everyone needs a 7th ____________
In a million years ____________
The great ____________
The purpose of ____________ is ____________
June 2020
6-12-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
We had six people tonight.
Hiram Larew [First Timer! From Maryland] - “Bread in Hand” and “Achill Sound” (on Ireland)
John Cowgill – “This Very Poem” and “A Walk through Reykjavik”
Andrew Smiley [First Timer! From Florida] – “Follow the Dancer” and “How We Panda”
Brian Donnell James – “The Quiet Men” and “Sweet Tones, Somber Tones”
David Holloway – “Pink Slipped” and “Collector”
Me – “Baseball is a Surrogate Father”
6-26-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
We had 19 people tonight to either listen or read! It felt like we were at Jirani’s!
Voices of Woodlawn, a homage in poetry, music and art to the enslaved community at a local historic plantation estate. Here's the link to the 60-minute program on You Tube -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhoyfGuVXwA
Hiram Larew – “One More Thing” and “August”
Diane Wilbon Parks – “91 Candles” and “Fruit Fill”
John Cowgill – “The Great Adventure of the Great Rocket Man” and “The Beauty of the Waterfall”
Lady Di [Sylvia Beverly] – “Righteous Love Does Not Come Easy”
Kimberly Ray – “Timepieces have Reversed” [One poem in three parts]
Brian Donnell James – “Twins,” “Sister Patterson,” and “Love Purgatory”
Alice Mergler – “57 Stitches”
Paulette Gardner – “Gone Fishing”
Adrian David [First Timer!] (Audio issues ruined this moment)
Doc Coleman (Just listened)
Robert Fleming [First Timer!] – “Next To” and “Bun”
Lesley Tyson – “Weight Off the Wall,” “Broadcast Interrupted,” and “Would Have Been”
Megan McDonald – “Not Shiny,” “How to Tell Off a Customer,” and “Word Nada”
Brittany Sabatino (Had to leave early)
Morgan Hazelwood – “Black Lives Matter”
JoAnn Lord Koff – “It’s Capri Diem, Baby” and “The 120 Species of Wuhan Market”
Anant Dhavale – “Time has a Rhythm,” “The Mountains,” and “On Abandonment”
Wills D. Uan – “Schedule,” “One’s Peace” and “Finally, We’re Free”
Me – “The Lost Summer”
July 2020
7-10-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
We had nine people tonight, but two were from California and one was from Florida.
Brian Donnell James - "Infinite,” "Guardian,” and "The Pool Player"
Katherine Marquardt – Three poems from, “Get Happy, Dammit: Staying Inspired and Motivated in an Often-Unhappy World” entitled, “Song of Self,” “What is that against my back?” and “Words are breath”
Kimberly Ray - “Heatwaves,” “We’ve never had water anyway,” and “Let Me Bother You”
Hiram Larew - “Boy Howdy” and “Boat.”
Dane Ince [First Timer!] [From San Francisco, CA] “Shape Shifter” and “Toes Know Home”
Dee Allen [First Timer!] [From Oakland, C] Historical poem, "Washa-quon-asin"
Andrew Smiley [From Florida] “Best Interests” [Audio issues]
Anant Dhavale – “Selfie in a Dimly Lit Bar” and “Not a Story by a Few Dots”
Me- “Feeding Our Future” and “Young Entomologists”
7-24-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
We had eleven people tonight. Many glitches tonight, sorry!
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – Continuing Epic Poem on the AT, “Out of the Smokies”
Brian Donnell James – “Woman,” “Drive Down Country,” and “Creole Girl”
Alice Mergler – “Metaphorically Explaining our Plague” and excerpt from
“The Book Thieves” by Anders Rydell
Robert Fleming – “Wile E. Coyote blasted by TNT,” “Cartoonist Outdraws Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner,” and “Varmint Motor Oil”
Wills D. Uan – “Straight Up” and “Let’s Fight Together”
Kimberly Ray – “We Don’t Talk about That,” “Abandoned Sea of Flames” and “Out of the Dark Corners”
Lesley Tyson – “Internal Grammar,” “Landscaper’s Warning” and “Who Needs Keys in a Dream”
Megan McDonald – “Cat Dreaming,” “Hades Beyond,” and “River Writing”
John Cowgill – “Holly’s Piggies” and “Four Limericks” [Lori, Mike, Dan, and Zelda]
Andrew Smiley – “Coronavirus” [Haiku] and “Best Interest”
Me – “Driving the SNP” and “Writers’ Workshop”
7-11-20
Dear John,
Thank you for participating in this year's marathon and sharing your lovely poems with us. I immensely enjoyed reading both your poems and am pleased to accept "Writers' Workshop" for publication in the 2020 Poetry Marathon Anthology. It is a delightfully clever piece of writing that is witty and memorable at the same time.
Writers’ Workshop
William Wordsworth wandered lonely as a cloud,
as Dylan Thomas beseeched him, “Do not go gentle into that good night.”
Langston Hughes pondered to no one in particular,
“What happens to a dream deferred?”
In a heated debate all their own, J. Alfred Prufrock asked T.S. Eliot,
“Do I dare disturb the universe?”
Maya Angelou interrupted and proclaimed, “I know why the caged bird sings.”
Herman Melville, for some unknown reason, wanted us to call him Ishmael,
while George Orwell swore the clocks were striking thirteen.
Charles Dickens was beside himself for he couldn’t make up his mind
and kept muttering, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.”
Sensing that the fate of the world rested on his shoulders,
Ray Bradbury struck a match and lit the collection of old parchment
he had gathered. As he watched the flames rise, he announced,
“It was a pleasure to burn the books.”
This didn’t sit well with Jack London for he believed
that only he knew how to build a fire.
I stood with Rebecca, and the ashes blew towards us
with the salt wind from the sea.
Robert Frost, having had enough of all of us,
called it an early night and took the road not taken home.
Have a wonderful day! :)
Shloka
August 2020
8-14-2020
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
We had 18 people tonight!
Lesley Tyson - “I Found the Darkness,” “What Melted Ice Reveals,” and “Purple Monkey Dream”
Sylvia Beverly [Lady Di] - “Blood is Thicker Than Mud” and “Westward Blown”
Hiram Larew - "Cigar" and “Spilling Wings"
Dee Allen - "The Shut Door"
Brian Donnell James – “The Porch Seat,” “Shy One,” and “A Lesson on Faithfulness”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Viable” and “Hotel”
Lucy Koons – “Fox populi?” and “The Sparkler—A Life”
Robert Fleming – “Leaving the Shower” and “Pazuzu’s Pajamas, Scene 4”
Imogen Arate - “Mass Resignation Letter from the Caricatures of Extinction Trigger DJT” and “A Love Letter from a Grateful Migrant”
Diane Wilbon Parks – “Paper Lion” and “Awakenings”
John Cowgill – “The Storm” and “The Good Spilled Ink Man”
Brittany Sabatino – “Watched History Burn” and “Shun”
Megan McDonald – “Echoes of a Solo Day”
Kimberly Ray – “The Process of Becoming,” “No Return Address,” and “Where Does It Hurt?”
Robbie “Rambling Rise” Krieger: Two “road” poems: “A Trip to Boston, An Impractical Adventure” and “The Kentuck Coyotes”
Mike Crowley: “Distance,” “They Could Be Right,” excerpt from “Interdimensional Taxi Driver”
Alice Mergler: “Happiness Fading”
Me – “A Harmless Obsession” and “Rebirth”
Megan McDonald: possible prompt - death threats, restraining orders, and a pack of chihuahuas
From Dee Allen: https://www.everywritersresource.com/freeclassifiedsforwriters/call-for-submissions/
In case anyone here give three damns: Dyst is a new literary magazine from Australia. They're looking for writing submissions for issue #3. For more details, click on to: https://roseyravelston.com/dyst
I found Dyst/Rosey Ravelston through an advert on a website called "Every Writer's Resource", on their "Calls for Submissions" page.
8-28-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
12 readers!
John Cowgill was at an event, but he stopped in to listen for a while.
Brittany Sabatino - Three short poems, “My Life’s as a Screenplay,” “Perform the Mundane,” and “Covid Shadows.”
Robert Fleming – “Words That Matter,” “Acorn,” and “Bad Country Lyrics”
Andrew Smiley – “Level Up and Win!” on Virtual Teaching [BRILLIANT!]
Lesley Tyson – “Story in Pieces,” Hidden Meaning,” and “Buttercream Frosting”
Paulette Garner - Two poems: "Never" and "Beyond Measure"
Nick Hale – “Creative Constipation”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Hot Springs, NC”
Megan McDonald – “Music for the Harp” and “Cool, Hot Jazz”
Alice Mergler – “Still Alive and Trolling the Internet” [Two excerpts]
Kimberly Ray – “Rising Waters,” “The Loudest Sound,” “I Wish It Didn’t Sting”
Brian Donnell James – “A Desolate Shore,” “Preacher,” and “Cradle Princess”
Me – “Flocabulary Rap” [Bad Poetry 101]
September 2020
9-11-2020
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST on Zoom
John Dutton reading for Michael Sensale – “The Seven Levels of Publishing Hell: Level 7 – Format”
JoAnn Lord Koff – “Iris Dancing”
David Holloway – “Pizza”
Thomas Burson – “The Grey-Black Dress,” “She Will Not Wait,” and “Iconic”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – “Staring Out the Sunroof” and “A Moment in Miami”
Brittany Sabatino – “Media,” “Another Way,” and “Wagon-Wheel Mind”
Lesley Tyson – “Just When You Get the Ends to Meet”
John Cowgill – “The Vanishing Experience”
Megan McDonald – “The Run for the Roses,” “Fabric Talisman,” and “Unlucky”
Joseph L. Hickey – “Birds, Poets, and Stars” [Excerpt from his book]
Alice Mergler – “The Note: Keep Teaching as Usual”
Kimberly Ray – “Pink Moon Rising” and “It’s All Okay”
Robert Fleming – No stories or poems. He just talks about some of his ideas.
Me – “Remember This Day”
9-25-20
Virtual Spilled Ink on Zoom
Alice Mergler – “Zooming at 80”
Robert Fleming – “Americanisms,” “Human Make Believe,” and “Voyageur Haika”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Cherokee National Forest, Cherry Gap Shelter”
Megan McDonald – “Paper Dragons” and “Dreams”
Thomas “Dr. Love” Burson – “Pulling the Cork,” “Turtles,” and “Magic Finds a Path”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Voting Day” and “Post-Election”
Wills D. Uan – “King,” “Cardigans,” and “Whiskey and Thinking”
Brittany Sabatino – “Catch My Muse” and “My Own Garden”
Brian Donnell James – “In the Loving,” and “Blind,” and a poem by Stephanie, “That We Head
Towards” from a book published in 1968, Moving Deep.
Kimberly Ray – “The Elephant Moms,” “The Raging Heart,” “Sudden Attack,” and “Dystoria”
Lesley Tyson - “Erasure” and “Agate”
Nick Hale – “Is This Some Kind of Joke,” “2020 is a Gift,” and “Three Perspectives”
John Cowgill – “At This Very Time” and “Captain Goodman”
Me – “Hiking,” “School,” and “Benton”
October 2020
10-3-20
Alice Mergler’s 80th Birthday Parade and Walk-Up Poetry
Alice Mergler – “Zooming at 80”
JoAnn Lord Koff – “Tango”
Brittany Sabatino – “A Relic of the Past”
Tom Burson - “Well Kept Secrets”
Brian Donnell James – “Straight Talk about the Dog”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – “Orange October” and “Calm Cottage”
Sunshine [First Timer!] – “Just Some Thoughts”
Paulette Gardner – “Thoughts and Ruminations” and “The Call of Nature”
John Cowgill – “This is Alice”
Me – “Everyone Needs an Alice”
10-9-20
Virtual Spilled Ink East
Me – “Nightmare” and “Halloween”
Nick Hale – “Confessions on a Couch” and “I Want to be THE GUY”
Robert Fleming – “Final Impulse,” “Pumpkin Pie,” and “Abbot and Costello Monster Rumors”
Alice Mergler – “All the World’s a Stage and We are Merely Players”
Paulette Gardner – “Timeout” and “Pumpkins Connect the Holidays”
Kimberly Ray – “Tears of a Poet” and “Season of Changes”
Lesley Tyson – “Liturgy of a Day,” “The Great Fracture of Morning,” and “Poetic Shelter”
Mike Crowley – “Columbus Day/Ugh’s Shoe” [Excerpt from the novel, “The Inter-dimensional Taxi Driver”]
Brian Donnell James – “Asian Girl in Carolina,” “The Cat,” and “Cinema”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Almost to Virginia”
Me – “Nightmare” and “Halloween”
10-23-20
Virtual Spilled Ink – Zooming live from Alice Mergler’s patio with Paulette Gardner
Morgan Hazelwood and Brittany Sabatino had to leave early.
Lucy Koons (Zooming from Qatar) – “Beneath the Red Bud Tree”
Hiram Larew (Zooming from Maryland) – “Custard”
Brian Donnell James – “Love Purgatory,” “Chasing the Muse,” and “Toys”
Gail Williams – “Not Me Too”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Stepping Out,” “On Call,” and “Peace Wanting”
Anant Dhavale – Chapter, “Amanda,” from his novel, “Evenings by the Elves”
Tabatha Robinson [First Timer!] – First chapter from her novel, “Something to Hope For”
Paulette Gardner – “An Invitation” and “Upended by Chaos”
Ruth Matthews (Zooming from Texas) – Excerpt from her novel; chapter, “Waiting for Lilly”
John Cowgill – “The Great Vampire from Olde” and “Amanda”
Alice Mergler – “Grass, a Confession”
David Holloway – A science fiction pandemic piece, “The 311s”
Kimberly Ray – “You Never Knew” and “Shelter in Place”
Mike Crowley – A story, “A Shadow of Her Former Self,” a poem, “My Dragonfly,” and a song, “I Keep Losing My Car, Piece by Piece”
Robert Fleming (Zooming from Delaware) – “Soups: The Lost Books of the Bible,” “Ernestine Operates,” and “Ernestine Calls Her Lover”
Thomas “Dr. Love” Burson – “Accidents” and “Devil Double Dare You”
Me – “Monster Within”
November 2020
11-13-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST
Robert Fleming had to leave early.
Me – “Two Lion Cubs”
Alice Mergler – “Even in Silence, there is Music”
Dee Allen – “Night Eagle” and “Spirit Horse”
Kathy Smaltz – “Lines of Girls on a Grassy Field”
Michael Crowley – “My Mistakes” and “Noodles” [Excerpt from the novel, “The Inter-dimensional Taxi Driver”] and “Nature’s Bounty”
John Cowgill – “Thanksgiving by Albert Owls” and “Tammy’s Thanksgiving”
John Nicolay [First Timer] – “Start with a Lie and End with the Truth”
David Holloway – “July”
Lesley Tyson – “Almanac,” “Social Withdrawal,” and “Follow Breadcrumbs”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger – [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Jefferson National Forest in Virginia”
Brian Donnell James – “Recollections of the South” and “Ode to Arlene” [My Teacher]
Megan McDonald – [Battling Catinterruptous] “Breathe,” “Coping,” and “Infinite”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Shenandoah”
Thomas Burson – “Spells of Ink” and “For Every Occasion”
11-27-20
Virtual Spilled Ink
Brian Donnell James – “Black Ballerina”
Robert Fleming – “Recipe for Murder,” “Murder Headlines,” and “Red and Scarlet at the Fence”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger - [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Stone Mountain / Breaking my hand in Virginia”
Paulette Gardner – “Always Blameless”
Lesley Tyson – “Memories No One Knows,” “Labels Are Not Names,” and “Aim”
Wills D Uan – “Thanksgivingless,” “Thankful,” and “Live Your Life”
Marty Crowley [First timer] – “Terror”
Michael Crowley – “Visceral Appropriation,” “Release the Centaur,” and “Insomnia”
Jim Boucher [First Time Zooming] – “The Orangery,” “Traverse,” “Astute Study” and (near the end of the show) “Meticulous Process” (The Writing Process)
Gail Williams [First Time Zooming] – “The Blue Couch”
Kimberly Ray – “It Always Tickles the Right Spot,” “Who Has Your Tongue?” and “You’re So Sentimental”
Anant Dhavale – Chapter, “The Morning,” from his novel, “Evenings by the Elms”
Megan McDonald – “Puzzles,” “Vanity of Mirrors,” and “Magnolia Magic”
Sandra Broadrun – “Free at Last”
Me – “The Lost Summer” [I read this because you could substitute Winter]
December 2020
Prince William Living
NOVA Authors Market Offers Online Engagement and Options for Readers and Gift Givers
December 1, 2020
With COVID-19 making shopping a bit less personal this year, more than a dozen local authors have banded together to offer conversation, readings, signed novels, poetry collections, nonfiction works, books for young adults and children’s books for the holiday season. The NOVA Authors Market Facebook group features authors who have made themselves available to answer questions about their work, sign their books and ship them, all with a personal touch. Participating authors, many of them award-winning and internationally known, are also offering specials and incentives to encourage readers to buy local while supporting the literary arts, and some are donating proceeds to local nonprofits as a way to give back to the community.
“COVID has been hard on everyone, including authors,” said Scott Howard, a Prince William County English teacher, fiction author and father who spearheaded the project. “Folks usually see us out at book shops or on sidewalks around this time of year doing signings and sales. We haven’t been able to do that often, and even where we could, foot traffic is down. But people are reading now more than ever. This is a win-win for local customers and authors.”
Howard has created a schedule of activities for the first week of December. Starting December 3 and running through December 6, at various intervals, a special lineup of authors will take turns conducting readings, facilitating activities and engaging readers. All participating authors will continue to offer signed books and answer readers’ questions through December 20.
Members of the public are encouraged to request entry into the Facebook group and/or peruse the authors’ websites and books. For more information, email Howard at s.d.howard2@gmail.com.
BECAUSE OF THIS EVENT, I DISCOVERED HOW TO USE HOOTSUITE! I finally feel like I, along with Spilled Ink, am a business.
12-11-20
Virtual Spilled Ink EAST
Alice Mergler – “The Fire”
David Holloway – “Circus”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger - [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Chatfield Shelter”
More at: thepagesofJackPatch.blogspot.com
Robert Fleming – “Road Trip,” “O’Neil,” and “O’Carol”
Lesley Tyson – “Red Heaven Scattered with Stars,” “Red Bitter Sweet,” “Coming Back to the Same”
Katherine Gotthardt – “Morning Offering”
Michael Crowley – “Correcting My Cat’s Misconceptions,” “Holiday Epigraphs Without a Poem,” and “A North Pole Party”
Megan McDonald – “Cat Interruptus,” “Unexpected,” and “In the Middle”
John Cowgill – “Happy Holidaze” and “The Angel Train”
Thomas “Dr. Love” Burson – “English Grammar,” “Hope’s Accident,” and “Standing in the Face of Contradiction”
Paulette Gardner – “Low Heat”
Sharon Krasny – Chapter 1 of “Iceman Awakens”
Alice Mergler - “Even in Silence, There is Music”
Me – “Community Pool”
12-25-20
Spilled Ink’s Christmas Special
One guest: Gwendolyn Gaines
Gail Williams – “Creatures in Our Everyday Life” [Idioms]
Paulette Gardner and Alice Mergler – “Robby, It’s Share Time”
Robbie “Rise” Krieger - [Epic poem on hiking the Appalachian Trail] “Lynn Camp Creek / 13 miles without water”
Megan McDonald – “Winter Songs” and “My Terribly Bad Cat”
Beverly Ann Bendekgey – “The Lone Tree” and “Winter’s Pace”
Anant Dhavale – “Ode to Humanity and William Carlos Williams,” “Commotion,” and “Armistice of Thought”
Sandy Broadrun - “An Ode to Hilo”
Robert Fleming – “Miss Apparition Contest” and “Elf and Santa Clause Supai”
Kimberly Ray – “Small Promises,” “Meeting in Solitude,” “Breathe Again,” and “Christmas 2020”
Lesley Tyson – “Lorne Electris Star Heart” and “Solstice”
Me – Part 1 of a Christmas Mystery, “Happy Accidents”
