link here

Dear fellow Poets and Poetry Festival directors,

Poets Circle in Athens is organizing a world event under the title A POEM FOR REFUGEES. I am writing to you to inquire if you would like to organize a public reading on that subject on March 21, 2016, which is International Poetry Day. The purpose is to make the public vitally aware of the refugee crisis and a clear message against racism. PEN International will co-sponsor this Greek event thus it will become a world event. We are very pleased that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Athens is on board. World Poetry Movement is also part of it.

Poets Circle is a non-profit literary organization with 99 Greek and 99 foreign members. In the last four years it has organized two International Poetry Festivals in Athens and more than 120 poetry events throughout Greece. On January 14, 2016, together with the Greek Authors Society, we were happy to join PEN International in a reading defending the Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh.

In Greece the event is scheduled in 28 cities and islands. Twenty countries are participating

I would appreciate an early reply,

Very truly yours,

Dinos Siotis
030.697.111.645

info@poetscircle.gr

Ένα ποίημα για τους πρόσφυγες / A poem for the refugees

What: Poetry reading on the refugee issue, with live music, a refugee – themed photography exhibition, in view of March 21^st, World Poetry Day, and World Day Against Racism with the collaboration of PEN International (http://www.pen-international.org/) and the World Poetry Movement (http://www.wpm2011.org/)

When: Friday March 21^th 2016, 19.00,

Where: Stoa tou Vivliou (downtown Athens), plus various other venues (bookstores or perhaps municipal premises) throughout Greece in 24 other cities and the islands of Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Rhodes, Kos, Thessaloniki, Patras, Chania, Kalamata, Tripoli, Nafplion, Lehaina, Volos, Larissa, Xanthi, Komotini, Trikala, Ioannina, as well as cities abroad in Cyprus, Turkey, Colombia, Norway,  India, France, Spain, Canada, USA, Ireland, Italy, etc.

A joint event of the Poets’ Circle (Greek)

• With the collaboration of UNHCR Greece
• “Refugees Welcome GR”, a relatively new, but rather active and popular Greek volunteer refugee network http://www.facebook.com/RefugeesWelcomeGR
• Greek Refugees Forum (http://www.refugees.gr/en/)

Dinos Siotis and Becky Bloom (Refugees Welcome) shared ideas with UNHCR. Mr Siotis mentioned that the presence of highly respected poets and writers, as Titos Patrikios, Kiki Dimoula, Nanos Valaoritis, Yiannis Dhallas and Katerina – Aggelaki Rouk, could be assured.

A first draft schedule of the event unfolds as follows:

• About 20 to 25 poets will read their poems. Live music will be played. The evening will be curated by well – known writer, journalist and playwright, Minas Vidiadis. During the reading of the poems, photos of the exhibition will be projected on the wall.

The co-organizers of the event will address short greetings, in-between the readings.

As far as the photography exhibition is concerned, the idea is to gather about 15 works –in total- of well – known photographers, framed in 35 by 50 cm ready frames

It was suggested that poets from Syria and perhaps Afghanistan, or Iran join the event, and will be reached perhaps through Greek Refugees Forum.

• Poems will be uploaded to a relevant blog and facebook page which run unofficially for the time being, for easy reference and perhaps, use of them from schools. Uploading them would help spread the event’s message and gain visibility for its stakeholders, since online presence lasts.
• Media sponsor is ERT (Greek National Broadcasting).
• Siotis has arranged for a 30’’ TV Spot which will be prepared for the event and will air for free through Greek National Broadcasting, that can also be shared via the Internet.

Yes! I am a participant but this fledgling festival is worth supporting. Bucket loads of writers will bring stories and poems to all those who live by the mountains. Must be a first?

The festival team

Pledge your support here

Victoria University Press warmly invites you to our Writers Week publisher party and book launch for

Cold Water Cure by Claire Orchard

Dad Art by Damien Wilkins

Fits & Starts by Andrew Johnston

on Thursday 10 March, 7.30pm–9.00pm.
at Black Sparrow Bar, Ground floor, Embassy Theatre,
Kent Tce, Wellington.

Books will be for sale courtesy of Unity Books.

I will be at Prince! If you are in Wellington this will be worth checking out! See my review here.

A reminder that this event takes place next week, please register on the link below if you are interested in attending.

Goethe-Institut, Royal Society of New Zealand and Victoria University Press

warmly invite you to a reading and book launch event for

Transit of Venus / Venustransit

at 6pm on Tuesday 23 February
at the Royal Society (auditorium), Turnbull St, Thorndon, Wellington.

The event will include a short screening of the Transit of Venus Poetry Exchange documentary, a video performance from Berlin-based poets Hinemoana Baker and Ulrike Almut Sandig, and live performances from poets Chris Price and Glenn Colquhoun. This will be followed by a conversation with the poets and with the Uawanui Project chair Victor Walker about how the Transit has not only generated poetry, but also inspired a pervasive ‘science psyche’ in the Uawa/Tolaga Bay Community.

Chair: Lydia Wevers (Transit of Venus Forum steering committee)

Refreshments will be served following the event.

Attendance is free, but registration essential
Please register online at eventbrite here.

After four years selling jam-packed books from shipping containers, long-standing Christchurch business Scorpio Books will open its new city shop on Friday morning.

Owners Dave Cameron and Jo Hewitson are reopening their traditional-style bookshop in one of central Christchurch’s shiny new precincts – the BNZ Centre between Cashel and Hereford streets.

The couple and staff have spent the past few weeks stacking shelves ready for the big day.

Full story here