Manic Frustration “If I do not write to empty my mind, I go mad.” ~Lord Byron

Laura E.J. Moran @ Prose in Pubs Photo from Amye Archer

It was another exciting night at Prose in Pubs this past weekend. Not only was I able to be part of it, but, as always, the people I met, writers I listened to and good vibes I received were incredible. Friends from the Endless Mountain Writer's group, who meet every Thursday at the Dietrich theater in Tunkhannock, came out for moral support. New friends, who I'd met at the last reading in Hawley, PA, made a trip out as well.

My reading went well. Like the last, I shared new works with the crowd. They were received well and, at the end of the night, I was approached by someone telling me that some of my words had hit a connection him. For that alone, I am grateful for that night. For that moment where someone within the crowd caught my words and felt them as I did.

Dawn Leas, who I had heard read a few times before, was incredible. The way she frames her world within a poem, the imagery she paints for the reader or, in this case, the listener is vivid. Close your eyes, and you can see.

Gale Martin, one of the only novelists to read at Prose in Pubs as far as I can remember, read from her new book Don Juan in Hankey, PA. Hysterical. Her humor brings a whole new side to opera. Don Juan is the story of a small-town opera company who decide to stage a performance of Mozart's famous work to save their opera house from foreclosure. Just the idea of Don Juan performed in some rural, dirt road community is hilarious in itself but, the way Gale writes, brings a whole new level to the hilarity of the idea. Look for a review here as soon as I finish the book. If you cannot wait, check it out on Amazon. Link below.

The feature, Laura E.J. Moran, brought an excellent performance to Jack's Draft House with a mixture of laughs, heartache and, simply put, life.  Laura comes from the same poetic camp as past reader Jason Carney, who's work you can see in an earlier post. Her words are raw. Dusty in that real, worked way of hard work. Words chiseled using a sledgehammer and a bit of whiskey. Or, as Laura mentioned, lots of Pabst.

If you missed this Prose in Pubs or if you haven't attended one yet, you best get a move on. You're missing out on one of the most incredible nights in north east Pennsylvania. This isn't simply poems and prose. It's a night of connections. Of finding a corner of life that may be missing in your own. At the very least, come and have a drink. You've got nothing to lose.

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Please check out these links to learn more about the readers:
-Gale Martin's Don Juan in Hankey, PA
-Dawn Leas's site & her chapbook I Know When to Keep Quiet
-Laura E.J. Moran's site

A Dream Within a Dream    

 Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow-
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand-
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep- while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?

..

Through the years of interaction with people in my life, I've had some rather incredible, awkward, weird, interesting, humbling and fascinating conversations. Over the weekend, however, I was confronted with one so unexpected, I was momentarily rendered speechless. 

When midnight chimes, my blog will be going dark in support of the fight against SOPA and internet censorship. I'll be joining hundreds (thousands) of sites including Wikipedia, reddit, Wordpress, and Google.

To join in or to lend support, visit sopastrike.com/strike/ now. Voice your support on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or any other social platform you are part of. Call your representatives. Spread the word. Don't let internet censorship become a reality. It's time the government remember who they work for.

hawleysilkmill.com

A quick post about what's going on in the next few weeks. As mentioned in prior posts, I'll be taking part in January's Prose in Pubs event with fellow writers and poets Gale Martin, Dawn Leas and featured reader Laura Moran. Prose in Pubs takes place on the 22nd at Jack's Draft House in Scranton, PA. It officially begins at 7 p.m., but come early and enjoy Jack's menu and good drinks. Stay late to mingle with the local writer's scene.

Also, this upcoming Saturday, I'll be reading with good friend and writer Alexis Czencz Belluzzi at the Hawley Silk Mill. This reading will begin at 7 p.m. as well. Visit the Mill's website at www.hawleysilkmill.com for directions, history and photos of the venue.

Also happening on Saturday the 14th is the second Writers Showcase at New Visions studio in Scranton, PA. Hosted by Jason Lucarelli and Brian Fanelli, this reading will feature work by Dawn Leas, Rich Howells, Bridget McIntyre, Frank Sabina, Beth Burke, Tricia Kinney and Jen Bokal. The reading begins at 7 p.m. and New Visions is located at 201 Vine Street.

My photography gallery, currently up at the Dietrich Theater in Tunkhannock, will be coming down early this upcoming Saturday as well. Some of my work will be moving across the street to Seasons restaurant where it will remain on display for a time.

Come on out to one of the readings and enjoy some great prose and good company. If you're in the Tunkhannock area, stop by Seasons for a bite to eat and to check out my photography work beginning the 14th.