Jeremiah Blue features at the Sedona Poetry Slam on Saturday, Feb. 16

Jeremiah Blue features at the Sedona Poetry Slam on Saturday, Feb. 16

Sedona's Studio Live hosts a poetry slam Saturday, Feb. 16, starting at 7:30 p.m. featuring Phoenix poet Jeremiah Blue and hosted by Sedona poet Christopher Fox Graham.

Tickets are $10 if you buy them now. On the day of the slam, tickets are $12, so buy them now!

The Feb. 16 poetry is slam is also the qualifier for Sedona's representative to
the International Women of the World Poetry Slam

All poets are welcome to compete for the $75 grand prize and $25 second-place prize. The prize is funded in part by a donation from Verde Valley poetry supporter Jeanne Freeland.

The slam is the fourth of the 2012-13 season, which will culminate in selection of Sedona's second National Poetry Slam Team, the foursome and alternate who will represent the city at the National Poetry Slam in Boston and Cambridge, Mass., in August.

The local poets will share the stage with 300 of the top poets in the United States, Canada and Europe, pouring out their words in a weeklong explosion of expression. Sedona sent its five-poet first team to the 2012 National Poetry Slam in Charlotte, N.C.

To compete in the slam, poets need at least three original poems, each three minutes long or shorter. No props, costumes or musical accompaniment are permitted. All types of poetry are welcome.

The slam will be hosted by Graham, who represented Northern Arizona on six FlagSlam National Poetry Slams in 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2010 and 2012.

Contact Graham at foxthepoet@yahoo.com to sign up to slam.

Jeremiah Blue

Jeremiah Blue features at the Sedona Poetry Slam on Saturday, Feb. 16.

Jeremiah Blue is a Phoenix-based poet that has organized, hosted, and performed in the poetry slam scene since 2006. He has performed at a variety of venues throughout the country.

Currently, Blue co-hosts a weekly poetry slam in downtown Phoenix at Lawn Gnome Bookstore.

In 2007, he earned the title of Phoenix Poetry Slam Champion and has represented Phoenix twice at the National Poetry Slam. He also became the Individual Poetry Slam Champion for Phoenix in 2012, earning him the slot to represent the city at the Individual World Poetry Slam.

You can reach him on Facebook or you can email him at jsblue@gmail.com for more information or booking.

Women of the World Poetry Slam Qualifier

This slam is also the qualifier for Sedona's representative to the International Women of the World Poetry Slam, to be held in Minneapolis from March 6-9. The highest ranked female or female-identified poet from earns Sedona's WOWps slot.

Eligibility: Poets who live their lives as women are eligible to participate in the Women of the World Poetry Slam. Competitors are eligible from certified venues or as individuals from areas without certified venues (a.k.a. “Storm” poets). Certified venues have a window of time to enter before individuals not associated with certified slams are able to enter. All certified venues must have a competition to determine their contestants.

All competitors must be PSI members in good standing and must agree to participate in the event following the rules of Slam as well as the Code of Honor, and must allow for PSI to videotape their performances for PSI owned product.

What is Poetry Slam?

Founded in Chicago in 1984, poetry slam is a competitive artistic sport. Poetry slams are judged by five randomly chosen members of the audience who assign numerical value to individual poets' contents and performances.

Poetry slam has become an international artistic sport, with more than 100 major poetry slams in the United States, Canada, Australia and Western Europe.

All types of poetry are welcome on the stage, from street-wise hip-hop and narrative performance poems, to political rants and introspective confessionals. Any poem is a "slam" poem if performed in a competition. All poets get three minutes per round to entertain their audience with their creativity.

2013 Sedona National Poetry Slam Team

Competing poets earn points with each Sedona Poetry Slam performance between September and May. Every poet earns 1 point for performing or hosting. First place earns 3 additional points, second place earns 2 and third place earns 1.

Based on points, the top 12 poets in May are eligible to compete for the four slots on the Sedona Poetry Slam Team, which will represent the community and Studio Live at the 2013 National Poetry Slam in Boston. Poets can compete for multiple teams during a season and still be eligible to compete in the Sedona team.

For poetry slam standings, videos from past slams, and updates, visit foxthepoet.org.

Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 the day of the event, available at Golden Word Books and Music, 3150 W. SR 89A, and online at studiolivesedona.com.

Studio Live is located at 215 Coffee Pot Drive, West Sedona. For more information, call (928) 282-2688.

Bunny ninjas theaten city - only tomorrow's Sedona Poetry Open Mic can save us

Sedona Poetry Open Mic – open mic poets needed

From 5 to 7 p.m., poets take the stage in Northern Arizona's longest running poetry open mic.

Now more than six years old, the Sedona Poetry Open Mic has regularly hosted amateur, professional, performance, page, published and closet poets.

All poets, spoken word artists, lyricists, songwriters, rappers, MCs, comedians and storytellers are welcome. If your art can be spoken, come and speak.

Nearly 1,100 different poets have spoken on stage since the open mic was founded by its host, veteran slam poet Christopher Fox Graham.

As always, the open mic is round robin: one poem per poet, per round, and we cycle through the poets from start to finish.

This means if you show up late, need to leave early or don't have too many poems to read, we can easily work you into the cycle seemlessly.

Java Love Café is located at 2155 W. Hwy. 89A, next to Harkins Theatres, Suite 118, West Sedona. To sign up, be at Java Love around 5ish. For more information, call Graham at (928) 517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.

Sedona Poetry Open Mic kicks off 2011 this Thursday

Sedona Poetry Open Mic – open mic poets needed

From 5 to 7 p.m., poets take the stage in Northern Arizona's longest running poetry open mic.

Now more than six years old, the Sedona Poetry Open Mic has regularly hosted amateur, professional, performance, page, published and closet poets. All poets, spoken word artists, lyricists, songwriters, rappers, MCs, comedians and storytellers are welcome. If your art can be spoken, come and speak.

Nearly 1,100 different poets have spoken on stage since the open mic was founded by its host, veteran slam poet Christopher Fox Graham.

As always, the open mic is round robin: one poem per poet, per round, and we cycle through the poets from start to finish. This means if you show up late, need to leave early or don't have too many poems to read, we can easily work you into the cycle seemlessly.

Java Love Café is located at 2155 W. Hwy. 89A, next to Harkins Theatres, Suite 118, West Sedona. To sign up, be at Java Love around 5ish. For more information, call Graham at (928) 517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.

What time is it? GumptionTime!

It's GumptionTime - the festival starts now! Get in your car, truck, jet, boat, hovercraft, helicopter, Ultralight, TARDIS or hop on your bicycle, skateboard, horse, motorcycle, Hoverboard, rickshaw, mule, scooter, Segway, camel, hang glider or zip line and get over to Coffee Pot Drive in West Sedona.

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

GumptionFest is so awesome, you want to high-5 a cat

GumptionFest V will be so awesome that you want to high-5 a cat.

What is GumptionFest V? Thanks for asking:

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Math is hard. GumptionFest is easy

While classical mechanics, relativistic mechanics and quantum mechanics describe the motion of bodies and particles, this electromagnetic mechanics of particles proposes a description of their fundamental nature and an explanation to the cause of their motion and the reason why they naturally tend to self-propel at constant velocity and to self-guide in straight line when no external force is acting on them.

That being said, GumptionFest V is this weekend. Take some time off and get out of the house to enjoy local art in Sedona.

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Finished making your coat hanger gorilla?

Are you finished making your coat hanger gorilla? GumptionFest is tomorrow!

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Fire dancers? Yeah, GumptionFest V has 'em

Members of PyroKlectic are expected perform their fire-spinning performance art after the sun sets.





The Prescott fire troupe was featured at Prescott’s annual Tsunami on the Square festival and was a member of the Fire Conclave at Burning Man 2010.

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
  
  
  
  
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Don't mess with Emily Dickinson

Don't mess with Emily Dickinson. She will fuck you up.
This has been a public service announcement.

So is this:

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Haiku Death Match is four days away

GumptionFest V's Haiku Death Match on Sunday, Sept. 12

When GumptionFest, Sedona's annual grassroots arts festival returns for its fifth year, one of the poetic elements for the festival will be a Haiku Death Match, returning again from last year.

The festival organizers need Haiku Death Match competitors, or “haikusters” to start writing now and have roughly 20-30 haiku each by the time of GumptionFest, Saturday Sunday, Sept. 11 to 12.

There will be a cash prize for the winning Haikusters.

GumptionFest’s Haiku Death Match rules:

Haikusters can read their haiku’s titles before they read the haiku. This technically gives the haikusters more syllables to put the haiku in context, but the haiku itself must still be only 17 syllables.

Poets must be the sole authors of the haiku they use in competition. Poets can read from the page, book, journal, notepad, etc. Poets can have haiku written beforehand or write them in their head while at the microphone. As long as the haiku are 17 syllables, we don’t care how, when or from where the haiku originates.

Rounds will be determined by the number of haikusters who sign up to compete. Thirty haiku will likely be enough for poets to compete in all the rounds. More haiku is always better.

Be flexible and include a mixture of serious and funny haiku. Adult themes and language are acceptable.

The Haiku Death Match will take place at GumptionFest V in the early evening on Sunday, Sept. 12.

For Haiku Death Match tips and haiku examples, visit foxthepoet.blogspot.com.

To register or for more information, e-mail host Haiku Death Match host Christopher Fox Graham at foxthepoet@yahoo.

For more information about GumptionFest IV, e-mail to GumptionFest@gmail.com.

GumptionFest is like a live action anime

GumptionFest is like a live-action anime.

Figure out how this weekend Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12, at four stages along Coffee Pot Drive in West Sedona.

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Lindsay Lohan is a train wreck. GumptionFest is not.

Lindsay Lohan is a train wreck.
GumptionFest is not.

Get some rehab this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12, with the fifth annual GumptionFest, Sedona's grassroots arts festival, taking place at venues along Coffee Pot Drive, West Sedona.

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

It's not Shark Week - it's GumptionFest

The Great White Shark is nature's most perfect killer. GumptionFest is a grassroots arts festival in Sedona.

What's their relationship? Find out at GumptionFest V, being held from 10 a.m. to well after midnight on both Friday and Saturday, Sept. 11 and 12.

"Live every week like Shark Week. Live every weekend like it's GumptionFest."

- Jacques Cousteau

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

To compete in GumptionFest's Poetry Slam or Haiku Death Match, e-mail: foxthepoet@yahoo.com

To participate, volunteer or for more information about GumptionFest V, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

GumptionFest V packed with artists

GumptionFest V

• Fifth annual event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.
• Activities last all day at several venues along Coffee Pot Drive.
• Admission is free. All art and music is supplied by donation.
• All amateur and professional artists are invited to participate.
• To volunteer, participate or for more information, e-mail GumptionFest@gmail.com.

GumptionFest V packed with artists

GumptionFest V: Raiders of the Lost Art takes place along Coffee Pot Drive in West Sedona on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 11 and 12.

Events begin at 10 a.m. both days and end after midnight. GumptionFest V will feature an art gallery displaying local art, a kids zone with children’s activities and a bouncing castle, vendors, information kiosks, and entertainment at four stages:

• Oak Creek Brewing Co.
• the outdoor stage behind Creative Flooring, hosted by Dave Harvey
• The Best of Show stage hosted by Kathy Perry of Best of Show; and
• Sedona Performers Guild’s Studio Live.

The festival features some of the most well-known names in the Sedona and Verde Valley art scene, from singer-songwriters, performance poets, rock bands, painters, sculptors and fire-spinning performance artists.

However, what makes GumptionFest unique among Arizona arts festivals is that anyone who wants to play music, perform poetry, display art or dance is eagerly invited to participate.

Talent levels are not important: participants should range from full-time professional artists and musicians and published poets to recreational artists, part-time photographers and those who pen poems in private journals.

Youth and teen artists are strongly encouraged to participate whether they aim to become professional artists as adults or just create art, write poetry or play music to pass the time.

Kick-Off Party

• The GumptionFest V kickoff party begins Friday, Sept. 10, the night before the festival, at Oak Creek Brewing Co.
  
  
• Dirty Lingo has been playing music in Sedona, the Verde Valley and the Phoenix area for several years. Influenced by The Beatles, guitarists Mike Chapman and John Hayden form the core duo.
  
  
• Captain Squeegee, from Tempe, is a seven-member progressive blend of multi-instrumentation and conceptualized orchestrations. The Phoenix New Times described the band as “‘Fantasia’ music, with lead singer Danny Torgersen making like Mickey in a swirling maelstrom of flying horns, dancing guitars, broken melodies, and mad-prophet vocalizing.”
  The band was awarded “Best Album of 2008” and “Best Hope of 2009” by webzine Progressia.

Musical Acts

• Eccentric world beat music group Amitahba includes Sedona musicians Vusi Shibambo, Andre Fearonce, formerly of The Beatnigs with Michael Franti, bassist Lindsay Buckingham, drummer Alex Ogburn, guitarist Keith Kavisic, vocalist Terry Bryant, Leah Lamat and guitarist Michael Casella.
  
  The band has a full sound made of percussion, marimba, vocals, guitar, didgeridoo, bass, drums and vocals.
  
  
• Da Ominators is led by frontman, guitarist and vocalist Dom Giazzon, a veteran of popular local bands Radio Dogma and Liquid Theory.
  
  
• Singer and songwriter Brandon Decker, musically known only as Decker, writes songs that delve into the human heart and the human condition. Not quite rock, not quite folk, his acoustic-based music draws upon a variety of influences, from Leonard Cohen to Tom Waits, from Cat Power to PJ Harvey.
  
  Decker has toured the West Coast promoting his debut album “Long Days” and is soon to release his second, full-length album.
  
  
• Hip-hop duo Double Vision is comprised of twin brothers Jonathan and Jarred Lindsay. They masterfully fuse hip-hop, rock and ska over cleverly worded, uplifting lyrics. The result is something truly distinctive.
  
  
• Born in Venice, Calif., they moved throughout the Midwest and the South as kids. Products of the hip-hop generation, they started rhyming before they were out of their Underoos. In high school, they hooked with producer Bill Blast and formed Double Vision. In 2008, they recorded their first EP, “No Explanation.” Their debut album, “Bifocal,” is reminiscent of Pharcyde and Outkast mixed with Gym Class Heroes.
  
  
• Born in Stuttgart, Germany, Ralf Illenberger started performing in 1977. His first album “Waves” was released in 1978 and nominated for the German Record Awards.
  
  Illenberger released seven European recordings during the next nine years, exploring styles that ranged from new-classical to avant-garde to progressive jazz. Through Germany’s Goethe Institute, Illenberger and guitar partner Martin Kolbe played more than 1,000 concerts during the 1980s in 40 countries throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
  
  Since 1995, Illenberger has been writing and recording in Sedona releasing several more albums which garnered critical acclaim.
  
  
• Jake Payne is a singer and songwriter who plays solo acoustic folk music, as well as fronting an electric rock band. He presents a diverse repertoire of poetic and dynamic songs ranging from soft moody lullabies to all-out rock.
  
  
• Guitarist Dave Harvey and cellist Courtney Yeates will perform together.
  
  
• Self-taught singer and songwriter Adam Smith was born in Virginia, raised in Kentucky and discovered on the streets of Nashville, Tenn. He discovered the piano on his own as a 7-year-old and picked up guitar, teaching himself to play around the age of 18.
  
  Smith eventually began performing regularly at open mic nights. His visual approach to music carries through to the guitar, but with a twist.
  
  
• An improvisational music collective, Vamp Syllabus combine elements of post-rock, ambient, experimental, funk, and jazz to create a unique experience of musical exploration and discovery.
  
  There is no rehearsed material - everything is created live and on the spot. Each performance is one-of-a-kind and never repeated.
  
  The collective is led by guitarist Matthew Barlow with bassist Dylan Jung, drummer Michael Leibowitz, saxaphonist Gabriel Masterson and vocalist Kelly Cole.
  
  
• Singer and songwriter Jay Fout’s style is a combination of folk, funk, reggae, blues and jazz with a rock twist.
  
  
• Yin Yang & Zen Some, Sedona’s costume party rock band, will perform its distinctive show as a headlining act.
  
  
  
• Other groups include The Mods, from Cottonwood, Näthan Saith Gangadean, duo Nathan Trujillo and Jason Kevin, Alex Ogburn, the Gospel Fire All Stars and Poem from Phoenix.

Slam Poetry

• A series of head-to-head poetry slam competitions will be hosted by five-time National Poetry Slam competitor Christopher Fox Graham.
  
  Judges will be randomly selected from the crowd.
  
  Tucson slam poets David Rogers Luben, Mickey Randleman and Laura Lacanette, and Phoenix poets Lauren Perry and Bernard “The Klute” Schober will challenge local poets for the cash prize. To register or for more information, e-mail foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
  
  
• A Haiku Death Match takes place on Sunday, Sept. 12. A Haiku Death Match is a competitive head-to-head poetry duel. Death matches have been a prominent feature at the annual National Poetry Slam since the mid 1990s.
  
  Haiku is a traditional form of Japanese poetry consisting of 17 syllables in three metrical lines of five syllables, seven syllables, five syllables. Slam haiku need only 17 syllables; lines are unimportant.
  
  Death match competitors, or “haikusters,” need 20 to 30 haiku to compete. Poets must be the sole authors and can read from the page. Poets can have haiku written beforehand or write them in their head while at the microphone.
  
  There will be a cash prize for the winning haikusters.

Performance Art

• Abandoned Minds improve comedy troupe has been performing shows in the Verde Valley with a revolving membership for the past few years. The group brings their on-the-fly performance to entertain the crowds.
  
  
• Members of Pyroclectic will perform their fire-spinning performance art after the sun sets. The Prescott fire troupe was featured at Prescott’s annual Tsunami on the Square festival and was a member of the Fire Conclave at Burning Man 2010.

To Participate

Volunteers are also needed this year, so even those who don’t play an instrument, paint, sculpt or write poems can help and be a part of one of the largest free arts festival in Sedona.

Organizers for GumptionFest V: Raiders of the Lost Art are still looking for more visual artists, photographers, dancers and dance troupes, musicians, bands, theater groups and poets who want to be a part of the festival for either one or two days.

To participate, volunteer or contribute as a sponsor, contact GumptionFest@gmail.com or visit GumptionFest on Facebook.

Gary Every video, Sedona Poetry Slam round 3

Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.

It is perhaps as an author that Mr. Every has gained the most fame. Published nearly a thousand times, he has four books to his credit and more on the way.

Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #6, July 17, 2009.

Photo by Jon Pelletier/Kudos

Gary Every video, Sedona Poetry Slam round 2

Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.

It is perhaps as an author that Mr. Every has gained the most fame. Published nearly a thousand times, he has four books to his credit and more on the way.

Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #8, July 17, 2009.

Photo by Jon Pelletier/Kudos

Sedona Poetry will be busy this month ...

Sedona Area Poetry Events Upcoming poetry events provided by Sedona 510 Poetry
Thursday AUG 20 6-7:30 p.m.	Poetry Salon – poets & writers needed Held on the first and third Thursday of each month, Poetry Salon is for all those writing or wanting to write creatively – prose, poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays, songwriting, and all other written forms. Moderated by award-winning author and poet Gary Every, each meeting will emphasize different aspects of the craft of creative writing, including writing exercises and group discussion. The Well Red Coyote Creative Writing Salon is meant to provide a safe place for writers to share their work with other writers. What united them all is a passion for written and spoken word. All writers, at all level, are welcome. Listeners are also welcome. Well Red Coyote, 3190 W. Hwy. 89A (at Dry Creek Road), Suite 400, West Sedona. For more information, e-mail Every at ccoledamion@aol.com.
Tuesday AUG 25 5-7 p.m.	Sedona Poetry Open Mic – open mic poets needed Now more than five years old, the Sedona Poetry Open Mic has regularly hosted amateur, professional, performance, page, published and closet poets. All poets, spoken word artists, lyricists, songwriters, rappers, MCs, comedians and storytellers are welcome. If your art can be spoken, come and speak. Nearly 1,000 different poets have spoken on stage since the open mic was founded by its host, veteran slam poet Christopher Fox Graham. Java Love Café, 2155 W. Hwy. 89A (next to Harkins Theatres), Suite 118, West Sedona. To sign up, call Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Friday AUG 28 6-10 p.m.	Art Has Power – slam poets needed Yavapai College’s Verde Valley Campus hosts a Poetry Slam and Battle of Bands. The poetry slam will be broken up between live bands. All poets are welcome to attend and compete. Hosted by Christopher Fox Graham. Yavapai College, Verde Valley Campus, 601 Black Hills Drive, Clarkdale. For more information, call call Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Thursday SEPT 3 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.	Poetry Salon – poets & writers needed Held on the first and third Thursday of each month, Poetry Salon is for all those writing or wanting to write creatively – prose, poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays, songwriting, and all other written forms. Moderated by award-winning author and poet Gary Every, each meeting will emphasize different aspects of the craft of creative writing, including writing exercises and group discussion. The Well Red Coyote Creative Writing Salon is meant to provide a safe place for writers to share their work with other writers. What united them all is a passion for written and spoken word. All writers, at all level, are welcome. Listeners are also welcome. Well Red Coyote, 3190 W. Hwy. 89A (at Dry Creek Road), Suite 400, West Sedona. For more information, e-mail Every at ccoledamion@aol.com.
Friday SEPT 4 6 p.m. to midnight	GumptionFest IV pre-party – performance poets needed The three-day GumptionFest kicks off at Ken’s Creekside, 251 Hwy. 179. The night begins with Sedona’s favorite singer/songwriter Jake Payne at 6 p.m., followed by prolific jazz trio Busker Eaton, guitarist Brandon Cameron Parks-Decker, Flagstaff’s eclectic band Deepa, and the Tempe experimental band, the Dry River Yacht Club. Between all the acts, GumptionFest organizers want a few poets to perform a poem or two in the slots as the bands change the stage. Poets should be performance-oriented, relatively high-energy and able to captivate a drinking crowd. To sign up, call poetry coordinator Christopher Fox Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Saturday SEPT 5 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.	GumptionFest IV – all poets needed GumptionFest IV revs into gear with Sedona’s annual grassroots arts festival. Now in its fourth year, GumptionFest is one of the city’s More than 100 musical and performance acts will fill the six stages at five venues for the better part of 15 hours. We will need performance poets, slam poets, page poets, spoken word artists, stand-up comedians, improve comics, rappers, MCs, hip-hop artists, verbal ninjas lyrical pirates to fill slots between bands. Poets will need to fill 3-minute to 20-minute slots between acts with a mixture of poetry. Poets can have experience entertaining large crowds or not — the key point is showcasing the diverse poetry community in Sedona and Northern Arizona. Published page poets, slammers, hip-hop MCs and lyrical entertainers are welcome to sign up and take a slot. To sign up in advance, call poetry coordinator Christopher Fox Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com..
Saturday SEPT 5 ~5 p.m.~	GumptionFest Haiku Death Match – haikusters needed Every year, GumptionFest adds a new poetry event. For GumptionFest IV, the poetry highlight will be a Haiku Death Match in the style of the National Poetry Slam. The Haiku Death Match is a staple of the National Poetry Slam and brings in the best and brightest “brief” poets to prove their mettle in 17 syllables or less. Poets will need around 30 haiku to be able to compete the full bout (They’re super easy to write). For tips on competing in (and winning) a Haiku Death Match, a historical summary of both the ancient Japanese and modern American art form, as well as guidelines for GumptionFest’s first Haiku Death Match, visit Gumptionfest IV Will Have a Haiku Death Match. For further updates on GumptionFest poetry and the Haiku Death Match, visit http://foxthepoet.blogspot.com. To sign up, call poetry coordinator Christopher Fox Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Sunday SEPT 6	GumptionFest – poets needed GumptionFest will wrap up with a final day of performances. Poets are needed all day long to fill in slots between acts. As poets will likely be performing at different venues from previous days likely in front of completely different audiences, poets can repeat poems with little fear. To sign up in advance, call poetry coordinator Christopher Fox Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Tuesday SEPT 8 5-7 p.m.	Sedona Poetry Open Mic – open mic poets needed Now more than five years old, the Sedona Poetry Open Mic has regularly hosted amateur, professional, performance, page, published and closet poets. All poets, spoken word artists, lyricists, songwriters, rappers, MCs, comedians and storytellers are welcome. If your art can be spoken, come and speak. Nearly 1,000 different poets have spoken on stage since the open mic was founded by its host, veteran slam poet Christopher Fox Graham. Java Love Café, 2155 W. Hwy. 89A (next to Harkins Theatres), Suite 118, West Sedona. To sign up, call Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Friday SEPT 11 7:30 p.m.	Sedona Poetry Slam – slam poets needed, $100 prize Sedona’s Studio Live hosts a high-energy poetry slam Friday, Sept. 11, starting at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10. All poets are welcome to compete. After three rounds, random judges in the audience will judge the best poet, who will win $100 and three minutes of glory. The slam will be hosted by Sedona poet Christopher Fox Graham, who represented Northern Arizona on the Flagstaff team at four National Poetry Slams between 2001 and 2006. Slammers will need three original poems, each lasting no longer than three minutes. No props, costumes nor musical accompaniment are permitted. The poets will be judged Olympics-style by five members of the audience selected at random at the beginning of the slam. The top poet at the end of the night wins $50. Poets who want to compete should purchase a ticket in case the roster is filled before they arrive. For more information or to register, call Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com. Video from previous poetry slams are available at www.YouTube.com/FoxThePoet. Studio Live is located at 215 Coffee Pot Drive, Sedona. For more information, visit www.studiolivesedona.com. Tickets are $10, available at Studio Live or Golden Word Books, 3150 W. Hwy. 89A.
Thursday SEPT 17 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.	Poetry Salon – poets & writers needed Held on the first and third Thursday of each month, Poetry Salon is for all those writing or wanting to write creatively – prose, poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays, songwriting, and all other written forms. Moderated by award-winning author and poet Gary Every, each meeting will emphasize different aspects of the craft of creative writing, including writing exercises and group discussion. The Well Red Coyote Creative Writing Salon is meant to provide a safe place for writers to share their work with other writers. What united them all is a passion for written and spoken word. All writers, at all level, are welcome. Listeners are also welcome. Well Red Coyote, 3190 W. Hwy. 89A (at Dry Creek Road), Suite 400, West Sedona. For more information, e-mail Every at ccoledamion@aol.com.
Saturday SEPT 19 5-10 p.m.	Sedona Showcase – performance poets needed The Sedona Showcase is an invitation-only performance night featuring some of Sedona’s best and brightest acts. Featuring poetry, music, dance and theater, the Sedona Showcase has been an artistic staple in Sedona’s summer arts scene for more than five years. Founded and hosted by Daniel Holland, the Sedona Showcase takes place at the outdoor stage at Szechuan Martini Bar, 1350 W. Hwy. 89A, Suite 21. The Sedona Showcase is looking to incorporate more performance poets. To sign up, contact Holland’s co-host Christopher Fox Graham at foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
Tuesday SEPT 22 5-7 p.m.	Sedona Poetry Open Mic – open mic poets needed Now more than five years old, the Sedona Poetry Open Mic has regularly hosted amateur, professional, performance, page, published and closet poets. All poets, spoken word artists, lyricists, songwriters, rappers, MCs, comedians and storytellers are welcome. If your art can be spoken, come and speak. Nearly 1,000 different poets have spoken on stage since the open mic was founded by its host, veteran slam poet Christopher Fox Graham. Java Love Café, 2155 W. Hwy. 89A (next to Harkins Theatres), Suite 118, West Sedona. To sign up, call Graham at 928-517-1400 or e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com.
For more information on any event, call Christopher Fox Graham at 928-517-1400, e-mail to foxthepoet@yahoo.com, or visit http://foxthepoet.blogspot.com/ or http://www.facebook.com/FoxthePoet

Java Love's Sedona Poetry Open Mic Haiku

Poets bring new work
to open mic night tonight
stay sober 'til then

Don't speak ... rebel

I found a photoshop version of this photo about a year ago and built a flyer around it. Since I changed venues, I went back to find the photo for a new flyer and found the original image. Now I can credit it, too. The photo is by Austrian Berit Leena Raven and the model is Jasmin S. The image reminds me of a René Magritte painting.

Rock on, grandma, rock on

This woman isn't my grandmother, and my Grandma Redfield isn't a rebel per se, but my grandmother is awesome and this is kind of how I picture my grandmother in my mind's eye.