Latest News of the Palm Beach Poetry Festival

2008 Festival Reports!
See this wonderful photo reportage on last year's festival that offers a different dimension to anything we might use words to convey about the festival.  Thank you Major Jackson and all ... http://poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2008/02/the_2008_palm_beach_poetry_fes.html

Morikami Museum and PBPF to present
A Haiku Workshop, Tuesday January 8, 2008

The Palm Beach Poetry Festival will partner with The Morikami Museum & Japanese Gardens to present a free educational workshop on Haiku at The Morikami Museum, Tuesday, January 8, at 10:15 am.  The workshop will feature a brief overview of how Haiku developed in Japan. Participants will be provided examples of classical and modern interpretations, and have the opportunity to explore haiku in an ideal setting: the beautiful and pastoral Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens.

Dr. Blaise Allen, Director of Community Outreach for the Palm Beach Poetry Festival will host the workshop which will be taught by Florida International University Professor Scott Cunningham, poetry editor of Gulfstream Magazine, a national literary journal based in Miami. Mr. Cunningham is also a contributing editor at Florida Book Review and a frequent contributor to the Arts section of Miami New Times.

Seating is limited.  To pre-register, contact Dr. Blaise Allen at drblaiseallen@aol.com or call 561-868-2063.  Please do not call The Morikami as the museum staff is unable to register participants.

Susan R. Williamson Named Assistant Director

Palm Beach, FL – April 25, 2007 — The Palm Beach Poetry Festival announced today the appointment of Susan R. Williamson as Assistant Director. Williamson will work with founding director, Miles Coon, to continue to bring many of the nation’s most prominent poets to Palm Beach County. “Susan brings us great experience in literary event planning, community outreach, and as a prize winning poet,” said Mr. Coon. Williamson has worked with the Virginia Festival of the Book, the Charlottesville Writing Center, and as editor-in-chief of Streetlight Magazine in Charlottesville. She was previously associate publisher at Tupelo Press. Coon added, “Susan now lives in both Boca Raton and Charlottesville and has a lot to offer every aspect of this festival as we continue to grow.“

All events take place at Old School Square Cultural Arts Center in Delray Beach, Florida. Every available workshop seat has been filled in the last three years. “We work very hard to attract talented workshop participants and the best faculty poets to build the audience for poetry in South Florida, and Palm Beach County,” said Miles Coon. “I’ve had some great discussions with Susan about the role that poetry and poets play in our culture. Too many people dismiss poetry as difficult to understand or hold onto a negative experience of poetry in the classroom. I hope what we do at the festival will transform that.”

Williamson said, “At the 2007 Palm Beach Poetry Festival, I once again became excited about the possibilities of extending the audience for poetry.” Williamson and Coon have an alma mater in common. Both are graduates of the University of Virginia. “When we discovered this, we began to talk. Miles has found a way to host some of the best poets writing in America today and he’s offering those who travel here and the local community a priceless opportunity. I am thrilled to be part of this festival.”

2007 Post-Festival News
The Palm Beach Poetry Festival completed its third annual event in January. Ninety-six workshop participants traveled from 21 different states and the U.K. The audience for public events included poets and lovers of poetry from Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, and other states.  In addition to the workshops offered by festival faculty, a gala cocktail party and dinner kicked off the 4-5 days of poetry related events. Evening readings and craft talks by festival faculty at the Crest Theatre were open to the public. Sponsorship of The Palm Beach County High School Poetry Contest is another part of the festival’s educational outreach and young winners were presented their their prizes and read their work at the festival.  Preparations are underway for the fourth annual festival to be held January 21 - 26, 2008.  We are grateful for all our sponsors, supporters, volunteers, interns, staff, faculty, and participants.

2007 High School Contest Award Winners Congratulations to Sebastian Morales-Bermudez, Dorothy D. Morigen, Mallory Jones, Olivia Ortega, and Tyler Tornaben, the talented winner and four runners-up of the High School Poetry Contest! The public joined with the festival’s world-renowned faculty poets to honor the winning poets at the Palm Beach Poetry Festival for the Awards Presentation Ceremony on Saturday morning, January 27th in the Crest Theatre at Old School Square in Delray Beach, Florida. Winners read their poems and received prizes and certificates of achievement. We are very proud of them. Click on the link above to read their poems! Thanks to all the students who entered the contest, and to their teachers for encouraging them to do so. Special thanks to Dr. Blaise Allen, Community Outreach Facilitator, for all her work with students and teachers in the schools and to Dr. Jeff Morgan, Chairman of the Department of English at Lynn University who served as our contest judge for the third year running.

Kurt Brown Joins Palm Beach Poetry Festival - 2006