Coolbrith Circle: Building the City Beautiful

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Please join the Ina Coolbrith Circle on Saturday, March 21, at 2:00 p.m. for our monthly meeting.  This month's topic is 

INA COOLBRITH AND JOAQUIN MILLER
by Kristen Caven
California Writers Club in Residence 
at Joaquin Miller Park, Oakland, CA
Meeting hosted by Denise Barney

Kristen  is currently working on a new book about Joaquin Miller, who was one of Ina Coolbrith’s most successful mentees. So much has been written about his surface level eccentricities and foibles that his depth of thought, uplifting themes and passion for artists—shared with his lifelong friend and parenting partner Ina Coolbrith—have gotten lost in the reflection. She’ll be reading the first chapter, Building the City Beautiful, about his love for Ina, at our March meeting.

Caven is a multi-genre literary artist whose poems, cartoons, plays, lyrics, essays, short stories, articles and choreography have been published in Oakland Unseen, The Oakland Tribune, The Monthly, Rudolf’s Diner, Doorknobs and Body Paint, Synchronized Chaos, Full of Crow, The Sophisticate, The California Literary Review, The Flab Lab Department of Vitality, and The Good Men Project to name a few.  Her first event as Writer-in-Residence featured Oakland's first poet laureate, Ayodele "Wordslanger" Nzinga, reading Ina Coolbrith! (Read about it here.)

You can learn more about Kristen on her website, www.kristencaven.com, and read her essays on www.generousmuse.org. 

The California Writers Club was formed in the same decade as the ICC, by journalists and authors of Coolbrith’s era, and now boasts over 2,000 members with 20+ local branches who write in many genres at many levels. ICC and CWC traditionally share a handful of members.
A wreath of Bay Laurel kicked off Coolbrith and Miller's world-shaping friendship in 1870 when he delivered one she made to Lord Byron's tomb.

Zoom hostess will be Evie Groch (docgroch@gmail.com)  The Zoom link will be sent out the morning of Saturday, March 21.
An Open Mic will follow Kristen's talk.  If you would like to read, please let the Zoom hostess know.  If you would like a copy of your poem displayed during your reading, please send it to Evie no later than Friday evening.

Looking forward to a wonderful meeting!

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Learn more about the Ina Coolbrith Circle at
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