some happy snaps from the 7th Annual Poets' Picnic - at ARBARO - featuring the GYROGLYPHS

 

7^th ANNUAL FLYING ISLANDS POETS’ PICNIC

2024 FLYING ISLANDS POETS’ PICNIC RUNDOWN AND GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

Sunday 8^th December, 2024 – from 1 pm

at 878 Markwell Rd, MARKWELL via BULAHDELAH, 2423

 

This year’s picnic presents the soft launch of Flying Islands’

eight new pocket poetry collections:

David Adès’ The Heart’s Lush Gardens  

Bronwyn Rodden’s Stranded

Nathaniel O’Reilly’s Separation Blues

Huang Fan’s Flower Ash (translated by Josh Stenberg)

Brian Purcell’s Filmworks

Tug Dumbly’s Tadpoems

Lizz Murphy’s Bitumen Psalms

The 100 – 100 poets from the Flying Islands Poetry Community

 

RUNDOWN FOR THE PICNIC

where we will be launching seven of the eight new books

and presenting the FI Poetry Manuscript Prize for 2024

 

AM – setting up activities for the willing (marquees, etc)

Tour of the place from 12 noon

Picnic and music from 1pm

 

2PM – First set – M/C – Dael Allison

Richard James Allen launching David Adès’ The Heart’s Lush Gardens  

Matt Shores launching Huang Fan’s Flower Ash  (translated by Josh Stenberg)

 

Prize Ceremony

for the 2024 Flying Islands’ Manuscript Competition for a first volume of poetry –

Awarded to Damien Becker for his book Thin Reed Throat

 

followed by a musical interlude

 

3.15 – Second set – M/C – Rob Edmonds

Anne Casey launching Nathaniel O’Reilly’s  Separation Blues

D.G. Lloyd launching Brian Purcell’s Filmworks

 

followed by a musical interlude

 

4.30 – Third Set – M/C – Maggie Ball

Clark Gormley launching Tug Dumbly’s Tadpoems

Magdalena Ball launching The 100 – 100 poets from the Flying Islands Poetry Community

with readings from some of the poets included

 

5.30 – Closing jam

Dinner at the Bowlo in town – 7 pm

 

Stage notes:

Launch speeches limited to five minutes

authors’ launch reading limited to ten minutes

 

Musical personnel include such fabulous folk as Ed Wright on the bluesharp, Paul Searles at the ivories, Al Munro and Clark Gormley on geetahs, and Paul McCormick on the bass.

 

Getting here

Go through Bulahdelah on the main street, Stroud St, which becomes Markwell Rd…

stay on the tar for 8.78 kms. Our place is the first driveway on the right after the Markwell sign. Just before the little brown dairy which is the closest building to the road perhaps for its entire length. There’s a plank leaning up against the wire of the fence that actually says ‘878’. Bright red Hungarian mailbox is distinctive too.  Do not take the back road… it’s the wrong road.

 

What to bring?

Picnicibbles (rug, ginger pop, water cress sandwiches etc), hat, brolly?, sunscreen, varmint repellent/s, togs and a towel for a swim if warm and so inclined, poems and/or instruments of torture (as applicable), a picnic rug or a camping chair or similar to sit upon.

 

Help with setup, including marquee erection, always appreciated and requires earlier attendance. Often hilarious.  We could use some help with such things from around 11 am. We cannot do some of these things by ourselves. More incompetence makes lighter relief!

 

Accomodation

on our property has been allocated, with priority to those taking the stage. There are though plenty of spots to pitch a tent or park a van. Apart from this there are several places in the town of Bulahdelah, including four motels, the pub (Plough Inn) and two camping parks, plus (possibly) a free one on the other side of the river. Let us know if you need more advice. We are out of the school holiday period, so things should not be too difficult to book.

 

Note: This is not a public event but by invitation only. Attendance always at own risk, nor is management responsible for every poem read, song played or critical commentary along the way.

No posting of pics of picnic or the place without permission.