Nebraska State Poet

Matt Mason

Author: mtmason@gmail.com

Hawai'i Pacific Review

New Poem in Hawai`i Pacific Review

July 1, 2017

I am grateful to Hawai`i Pacific Review for publishing a poem of mine which was a blast to work on. I know, it looks lighthearted, but every weird phrase in it took a lot of work to get just right (and every one refers specifically to something, it’s not just random).

I got the acceptance note for the poem on Father’s Day, which was something special to me as my dad was born in Hilo, so anything Hawai`i reminds me of him, gone 27 years now. I know, it’s an odd poem to carry a message from the afterlife, but I’ll take it. So check it out and enjoy!

https://hawaiipacificreview.org/2017/06/29/mistranslated-valentines/

Recent Publications in 2 Magazines

June 14, 2017

On a 2-week residency at the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts in Nebraska City, I hit the reset button and got a TON of work done editing poems, collecting them into several manuscript piles, and sending the best poems out to magazines. In just the past couple weeks, 2 places each took a pair of poems. So check out my work at:

Two Big Publications

April 27, 2017

I’m honored to have poems in a pair of great anthologies released this spring. One celebrates 20 years of The Backwaters Press and the other celebrates 150 years of Nebraska Poetry so, yeah, it’s kind of cool.

Nebraska Poetry: A Sesquicentennial Anthology, 1867-2017

The first anthology of its scope, Nebraska Poetry encompasses 150 years of the state’s literary history, featuring 80-plus poets and more than 180 poems. This landmark collection includes poems by authors best known for their prose—like Willa Cather, Loren Eiseley, and Tillie Olsen—as well as some remarkable but relatively forgotten writers from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries. Among the contemporary writers, it includes poets of Nebraska’s renowned “second renaissance” along with a rich array of younger writers who are redefining what poetry from and about the state might represent. A broadly inclusive as well as diverse anthology, Nebraska Poetry celebrates the state’s brilliant contribution not only to Great Plains literature but to the broader traditions of American letters.

Watching the Perseids: The Backwaters Press Twentieth Anniversary Anthology

Watching the Perseids

Watching the Perseids: The Backwaters Press Twentieth Anniversary Anthology features poems from BWP’s authors from the past 20 years. This anthology commemorates The Backwaters Press’s 20 years as a nonprofit literary publisher located in Omaha, Nebraska. Virtually every poet published by the press in its first two decades is represented here with two new, previously unpublished poems selected specifically for this volume.

Available at Amazon.com

Shows this week in Boston (Cambridge, really) and Reykjavik

May 30, 2016

Cantab Lounge in Cambridge

We hit the road this week, featuring at the Cantab Lounge in Cambridge, one of the famed homes of poetry slam on June 1st. The show starts at 8pm and I’m up about 10. More details are at: http://bostonpoetryslam.com/?p=6735

Kaffislippur Café in Reykjavik

Then on June 4th, I feature along with my wife Sarah and Icelandic poets Kristian Guttersen and Sigurbjörg Sæmundsdóttir in Reykjavik at Kaffislippur Café (Hotel Marina – Mýrargata 2 Reykjavik) at 4:30pm. The reading’s title is Poetry and Parenthood as the reading has 2 married couples, parents, all with books published. See full details at:
http://bokmenntaborgin.is/en/events/poetry-parenthood-us-iceland/

Romania Recap

March 2, 2016

Matt in Romania for a State Department Poetry Program October 16-29, 2015

Romania

Matt was in Romania for programs in Bucharest, Craiova, and Drobeta Turnu Severin, working with high school and college students on poetry writing and performance, leading to a poetry slam at the end of each city’s visit. This is the 4th State Department program he’s run, though he’s been lucky to have had help the previous 2 trips by some amazing poets, coaches, and organizers.

Read about it in the October 13th Omaha World-Herald: http://www.omaha.com/living/poet-brings-slam-to-countries-budding-young-wordsmiths/article_9bc28d33-db0d-505c-9f4b-9ce3881bcf07.html

And here is an article from the Romania-Insider’s Daily News section:

American Poet Comes to Romania to Teach Students Slam Poetry

http://www.romania-insider.com/american-poet-comes-to-romania-to-teach-students-slam-poetry/157907/

One Last Poem On Indiefeed

January 22, 2016

I’m honored to have a poem up on the final month of the fantastic Indiefeed performance poetry podcast! “I Want To Hear Some Poems” is now up at: http://indiefeedpp.libsyn.com/matt-mason-i-want-to-hear-some-poems

For those who don’t know, Indiefeed has been up for ten years, showcasing great podcasts centered on one poem by the best out there in spoken word poetry, featuring poems from poetry slams, cowboy poetry events, foreign events, and more. Check out my poem, of course, but stick around and find plenty of great reasons to keep clicking links.

The Anthony Frost English Bookshop in Romania

The Anthony Frost English Bookstore in Bucharest

October 26, 2015

Before working with American Studies University students today in Bucharest, I stopped by the local English Language bookstore, Anthony Frost. It’s in a beautiful location, tucked near the Kretzulescu Church on Calea Victoriei. I felt a little sheepish as I don’t know the author Anthony Frost. Turns out, there’s a good reason: Anthony Frost was a truck driver, not an author.

Talking to Vlad, the owner, I found out Anthony Frost is the first Brit he met when Anthony showed up in Romania after the 1989 revolution with twelve trucks full of donated supplies. He was a normal guy who, on seeing news stories, went door to door knocking and collecting donations. That’s whose name this bookstore has. That’s who the owner thinks is important to be remembered.

And he’s right. And it’s a beautiful shop. I bought a bunch of books (some for Lucia and Sophia, a couple for me), some great locally-made notebooks on hand-made paper, and had a fine cup of tea while talking to Vlad.

So if you are ever nearby, stop in and browse. Support a beautiful spot worth your time.

https://www.facebook.com/anthonyfrost.ro/
45 Calea Victoriei, Sector 1, Bucharest 010062, Romania
Monday–Friday: 10.00–20.00
Saturday: 10.00–19.00
Sunday: 10.00–14.00

Poetry Slam in Craiova!

October 21, 2015

I think the jet lag is hitting me hard, but the 2-day workshop with students at Colegiul National “Carol I” (the 2nd-oldest school in Romania where I was working with 9th-11th graders) in Craiova went great. The feedback on today was through the roof, the embassy staffer with me and the teachers were really happy and the kids were coming up with great lines. And it felt good, I feel I did a good job today.

There is something magic about walking into a room of kids, American or other, half of whom say they’ve never written a poem before and then see all of them writing something worth keeping by the end. I really love this, it’s kind of amazing to see happen.

We did writing and performance work for two days and capped it with maybe the first poetry slam ever in Craiova. 19 students participated, 19 students won. I love my job.

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