Join Day Eight, a D.C. based nonprofit arts producer and publisher, in celebrating exceptional poets who will read from their work about births, breakups, deaths, abuse, healing, sex, sexuality, and more.
This offsite event is part of wider The Association of Writers & Writing Programs annual conference.
Day Eight's annual Poet Project reading series and competition is designed to surface exceptional poets who may have been excluded from mainstream opportunities. Come hear 2021 Poet Project winner Jenn Koiter read from her book So Much of Everything, along with poets Jeffrey Banks and Gregory Luce, editors of Day Eight's forthcoming anthology, The Great World of Days.
Day Eight Books is a Washington, D.C. based publishing house that focuses on publishing underrepresented voices.
Advance registration is strongly encouraged. Click here.
Jeffrey Banks is poetically known as "Big Homey." His credits include: ESSENCE Magazine, Sirius/XM Satellite Radio, Radio-One Inc., the CBS Early Show, BLACK ENTERPRISE Magazine, performing nationwide, international broadcasts, multiple grant awards and publications through DC Public Libraries, the National Association for Poetry Therapy, Paris Lit Up and Day Eight.
The winner of the 2021 DC Poet Project, Jenn Koiter’s poems and essays have been published widely in magazines and anthologies, including Smartish Pace, Barrelhouse, Bateau, Rock & Sling, and Copper Nickel. Jenn Koiter’s debut collection, So Much of Everything, follows the author on international travels, through literary friendships, and within the course of personal tragedy. The winner of the 2021 DC Poet Project, Koiter’s poems and essays have been published widely in magazines and anthologies, including Smartish Pace, Barrelhouse, Bateau, Rock & Sling, and Copper Nickel.
R.E.I.L. started her poetry career at open mics in the D.C. area and at 16 competed in the Brave New Voices slam in New York City. A poetic performer, visual artist, and arts educator teaching in D.C. schools, R.E.I.L. seeks inspiration from past and present life experiences to help the lives of other unsung souls.
Gregory Luce is the author of Signs of Small Grace (Pudding House Publications), Drinking Weather (Finishing Line Press), Memory and Desire (Sweatshoppe Publications), Tile (Finishing Line), and Riffs & Improvisations (Kelsay Press). His poems have appeared in numerous print and online journals, and in several anthologies, including Written in Arlington (Paycock Press) and This Is What America Looks Like. (Washington Writers Publishing House). In 2014 he was awarded the Larry Neal Award for adult poetry by the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities. Retired from the National Geographic Society, he lives in Arlington, VA, and works as a volunteer writing tutor/mentor for 826DC. The Great World of Days springs to life in the voices of fifty-six poets arranged into a single chorus by editors Gregory Luce, Anne Becker, and Jeffrey Banks. The book documents births, breakups, deaths, abuse, healing, sex, sexuality, and more.
More info on Day Eight:
Some recommended books by Day Eight include:
So Much of Everything by Jenn Koiter; The Forgotten River edited by Kim B. Miller, Hope Greenleaf, and Thea Joselow;Falling Leaves: an Interfaith Anthology on the Topic of Consolation and Loss edited by Susan Meehan and Robert Bettmann, The Great World of Days edited by Greg Luce, Anne Becker, and Jeffrey Banks; Love for Her by John Johnson; Port of Exit by Kevin Wiggins; Talking to the Night by Susan Meehan
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IN-PERSON EVENT
Please note, out of concern for everyone’s well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, we require proof of vaccination for entry to all in-person events. Attendees are asked to wear masks at all times. Advance registration via eventbrite is required for all events, so we can plan for attendance and gather safely.
Event registrations will be honored until 15 mins after start time of the event; afterwards, availability will be on a first-come basis.
LIVESTREAMING
We will also offer a livestream recording of our events, graciously hosted by Common Notions Press on their YouTube channel. Feel free to subscribe to that channel and spread the word!
The livestream typically starts 15 mins after the listed start-time of the event.
Note: there are ample opportunities to receive a free COVID-19 test, vaccine, or booster in most neighborhoods, at walk-in clinics or by appointment. All of the COVID-19 vaccines are free. They are available to anyone in the United States. You do not need to provide identification to receive a vaccine. Visit phila.gov for latest info and please support the work of the Black Doctors’ COVID Consortium.