Poetry Reading & Open Mic

Enjoy listening to poetry – or share some writing of your own – with Poetry in the Boro. Our featured readers will be Matthew Leavitt Brown and J. L. Trent. Learn more about these poets below.

NOTE THE LOCATION THIS MONTH is across the street from our friends at the Green Dragon, where we hope to return in warmer weather. Thanks to Austin Audio Visual Design for hosting us again! They have a large parking lot, but parallel parking on the nearby side streets is also okay.

Following our featured readings, it will be YOUR turn! Readers will have up to 4 minutes to share poetry, spoken word, or even short short prose. PLEASE TIME YOURSELF AT HOME so you know you can finish your piece in the allowed time. Reading a favorite poem by another writer is fine, too.

We’ll especially cheer for poems that use words included in our February word challenge, selected by our January audience: solo | resist | pearl | snare | quagmire | calliope | hot dog | wine | kiss | nostalgia

SIGNUPS for the open mic time will open at 6:30 and remain open through the evening. In the interest of building our community, please plan to stay the full time and cheer your fellow creative voices! We’ll provide some snacks and drinks and encourage you to bring along your own travel mug or water bottle.

Because our venues are often family friendly, excessive profanity is discouraged. Please check with the host prior to reading if you have questions about what’s excessive.

About the poets:

Matthew Leavitt Brown is a writer, editor, and educator. His poems have appeared in such publications as Shenandoah, Copper Nickel, New Madrid, EDGE, and Big Muddy as well as a full-length collection of poetry THOU ART THAT by Cherry Grove Collections forthcoming in 2018. Brown’s poetry often blurs traditional lines between prose and verse to explore humanity’s relationship with landscapes, history, violence, and loss. He has worked as an editor for The Crab Orchard Review and The Bellingham Review and currently teaches writing and literature at Middle Tennessee State University.
J.L. Trent will be opening for Matt Brown. Born and raised in Nashville, J.L. moved to Murfreesboro four years ago. Her love for the written word first came from her love of theater, which has been part of her life since 4th grade. She began writing stories and poems in middle school. Last year, with the encouragement of her step-sister, she decided to be herself on stage for the first time and read her own work at an open mic in Nashville. Since then she’s been writing and sharing her work in the community whenever the opportunity arises.