Hey All,
If you missed me on The Mecca Lounge last night, check out the rerun or download the show on http://www.blogtalkradio.com/themeccalounge. 

As anticipated, I have added some dates to the ARC & HUE book tour.  The new & improved Tara Betts site has debuted, and the guestbook is filling up.  The book is available on the Willow Books Poetry site and on Amazon and will be stocked at upcoming events.  Now, it's up to all of you. 

If you think my work says something meaningful or moves you or says something that needs to be said, I'm asking all of you for a favor.  Review my book on Amazon and on your blogs.  Tweet about it. Invite your friends to the book parties and readings. Request my book at your favorite independent book stores and at Barnes & Noble.

As far as what I'm up to, there are lots of readings coming up. Some of the added dates are in Philadelphia, Boston, D.C. There are workshops in the works in other parts of the U.S., so I'll keep you posting on those developments.  If you want to request me for a workshop, a visit with your book club, or a reading, email Rich at info@tarabetts.net.  You can also be added to my email list for occasional updates.

Feel free to write and see you soon,
Tara

Book Parties and Appearances for Tara Betts, author of ARC & HUE

September, 9 2009, 8 PM - Taylor Mali’s "The Last Time as We Are"
Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery
Special Appearances by Tara Betts, Rives, Marie-Elizabeth Mali, Derrick Brown, Rebecca Hart and Connor Dooley. $8 Admission, which includes one free drink and a discount on the book.

September 13, 2009, 10 AM-6 PM - Brooklyn Book Festival
Brooklyn Borough Hall & Plaza at the flipped eye press table

September 20, 2009, PM - Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery, NYC
Tara's ARC & HUE official release party featuring Latasha Natasha Diggs, Aracelis Girmay, Rachel McKibbens, Nemiss, Giselle Buchanan & Cynthia Ceez Keteku of the 2009 Urban Word slam team, host Mahogany Browne and others.

September 23, 2009, 8 PM - Page Meets Stage - Bowery Poetry Club
308 Bowery, New York, New York 10012
Tara Betts is paired with Major Jackson for this series curated and hosted by Taylor Mali. Admission: $12

September 26 & 27, 2009 - Baltimore Book Festival
Mount Vernon Place, 600 Block N. Charles Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
The Cave Canem reading will include: Tara Betts, Derrick Brown, Kyle Dargan, Reginald Harris, (Participant/Host), Jadi Omowale, Venus Thrash, Jaci Jones LaMon, and Kamau Rucker.

There will also be a panel discussion (w/poems) “To Form or Not To Form” at the Baltimore Book Festival featuring: Tara Betts, Derrick Brown, Kyle Dargan, and Jadi Omowale (Participant/Moderator). The exact times for both events will be posted soon.

October 1, 2009, 8:30 PM - Katerina’s
1920 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago, Illinois 60613 
Tara Betts celebrates the release of her debut collection ARC AND HUE as a feature at this series, which will be recorded for Chicago Public Radio. This event also showcases Les Pontes Arts Ensemble including Richard Fammerée, Carrie Ingrisano w/ Meg Lauterbach, Victor Sanders and Meg Thomas.

October 2, 2009, 8 PM - The Silver Room
1442 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL
This is Tara's official Chicago release party.  Arrive early since we are expecting a large turn-out!

October 3, 2009, 6-9 PM - Aquarius Press 10th Anniversary
Fellowship Chapel 7707 Outer Drive, Detroit, MI 48235
Tara Betts, Curtis Crisler, Antoinette Brim, Karen S. Williams and other Aquarius Press authors celebrate a decade of Aquarius Press titles.

October 5, 2009, 7 PM - LouderArts-Bar 13
35 E. 13th Street, New York, NY
Bar 13 features Tara Betts for an NYC book party for ARC AND HUE. Admission: $5

October 11, 2009, 8:30 PM (EST) The Black Sol Cafe Radio http://www.blogtalkradio.com/TheBlackSolCafe

October 17, 2009, 3 PM - Massachusetts Poetry Festival
St. Anne’s Church, 8 Kirk Street Lowell, MA 01852
Cave Canem poets hosted by Afaa Michael Weaver and Jarita Davis.  Readers include: Tara Betts, Metta Sama, DeLana R.A. Dameron,January O’Neil, Jarita Davis, Jericho Brown, Lillian Bertram, Kamilah Aisha Moon, Jacqueline Jones LaMon, Venus Trash, Joy Gonsalves, and Johnny Davis.

October 23, 2009, 7:30 PM - EarshotNYC
Rose Live Music, 345 Grand Street, Brooklyn, New York 11211 - $5

Tara Betts and Sarah Dohrmann are the features at Earshot. Directions: b/w Havemeyer & Marcy, nearby Train Stops: L (Lorimer/Bedford), G (Metropolitan/Grand), J/M/Z (Marcy Ave) $5 includes one free drink. More info at http://earshotnyc.com.

October 29, 2009, 6 PM - Rachel McKibbens' Pink Elephant Release
Bowery Poetry Club 308 Bowery, New York, New York 10009
Willie Perdomo’s CYPHER Press celebrates the release of Rachel McKibbens’debut collection PINK ELEPHANT. This reading will also feature Erica Fabri, Tara Betts, Bekah Dinnerstein, Samantha Thornhill, Jane Cassady and Benjamin Lear, and Daniel McGinn.

November 3, 2009, 10 PM - November 3rd Club at Bowery Poetry Club
308 Bowery, New York, NY 10009
Co-Poetry Editor Tara Betts co-hosts with Victor Infante this reading of November 3rd Club contributors.

November 5, 2009, 6:30 PM - Cave Canem Workshop Instructors
The New School Arnold Hall, 55 W. 13th Street, 2nd Floor, NYC
Tara Betts, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Marilyn Nelson, Patricia Smith and Patricia Spears Jones read.

November 6, 2009, 7 PM - Women Out Loud
Location TBA, Chicago, IL 60613

November 9, 2009, 7 PM - Molly Malone's Pub
7652 Madison Street, Forest Park, Illinois 60130
Tara Betts features at this long-running Chicago-area open mic hosted by Nina Corwin and Al DeGenova.  Admission: $5 or $3

November 11, 2009, 7 PM - Fordham University's Poets Out Loud
Lincoln Center Campus 113 W. 60th Street, 12th Fl. Lounge
New York, New York 10023
Tara Betts, Rachel McKibbens and Willie Perdomo will read on behalf of the Acentos crew at the Poets Out Loud series.

November 15, 2009, 4 PM - Busboys & Poets (on 14th St. & V)
2021 14th St., Washington, DC
Tara Betts features at "Sunday Kind of Love". 4-6 p.m.

December, 4 2009, 7 PM - Big Poetry Series at Pete’s Candy Shop
709 Lorimer Street, Brooklyn, New York 11211
Tara Betts, Crystal Williams, Tyrone Williams, and Jackie Clark feature.

December, 16 2009, 8 PM - Cantab Lounge
738 Massachusetts Ave., Central Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
Tara Betts features at the Boston Poetry Slam.

December 17, 2009, 6 PM - Cornelia Street Cafe
29 Cornelia Street, New York, New York 10014
E.j. Antonio, Tara Betts, Randall Horton and others at Golda Solomon’s PoJazz series.

Hey All,
it's been a while since I've been trekking to CA and DC to visit with family and friends and attending weddings.  I've been reading, writing new work, and enjoying time with people I care about.  I hope that all of you are doing the same.  Below are the dates where I'll be reading for starters. 

I expect to add some more dates, so stay tuned to the new & improved the new & improved Tara Betts site for more updates, to sign the guestbook, read my new blog entries, and subscribe to the RSS feed. 
You can still pre-order your copy of ARC & HUE before the readings below for 20% OFF THE COVER PRICE.  Just visit Willow Books Poetry before 9/1/09.   I hope that you all are enjoying the last throes of summer before back-to-school fully kicks in. 

Feel free to write and see you soon,
Tara

Book Parties and Appearances for Tara Betts, author of ARC & HUE

September 6, 2009, 8:30 PM (CMT) - The Mecca Lounge http://www.blogtalkradio.com/themeccalounge

September 13, 2009, 10 AM-6 PM - Brooklyn Book Festival
Brooklyn Borough Hall & Plaza at the flipped eye press table

September 20, 2009, PM - Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery, NYC
Tara's ARC & HUE official release party featuring Latasha Natasha Diggs, Aracelis Girmay, Rachel McKibbens, Nemiss, Giselle Buchanan & Cynthia Ceez Keteku of the 2009 Urban Word slam team, host Mahogany Browne and others.

September 23, 2009, 8 PM - Page Meets Stage - Bowery Poetry Club
308 Bowery, New York, New York 10012
Tara Betts is paired with Major Jackson for this series curated and hosted by Taylor Mali. Admission: $12

September 26 & 27, 2009 - Baltimore Book Festival
Mount Vernon Place, 600 Block N. Charles Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201
The Cave Canem reading will include: Tara Betts, Derrick Brown, Kyle Dargan, Reginald Harris, (Participant/Host), Jadi Omowale, Venus Thrash, Jaci Jones LaMon, and Kamau Rucker.

There will also be a panel discussion (w/poems) “To Form or Not To Form” at the Baltimore Book Festival featuring: Tara Betts, Derrick Brown, Kyle Dargan, and Jadi Omowale (Participant/Moderator). The exact times for both events will be posted soon.

October 1, 2009, 8:30 PM - Katerina’s
1920 W. Irving Park Road, Chicago, Illinois 60613 
Tara Betts celebrates the release of her debut collection ARC AND HUE as a feature at this series, which will be recorded for Chicago Public Radio. This event also showcases Les Pontes Arts Ensemble including Richard Fammerée, Carrie Ingrisano w/ Meg Lauterbach, Victor Sanders and Meg Thomas.

October 2, 2009, 8 PM - The Silver Room
1442 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL
This is Tara's official Chicago release party.  Arrive early since we are expecting a large turn-out!

October 3, 2009, 6-9 PM - Aquarius Press 10th Anniversary
Fellowship Chapel 7707 Outer Drive, Detroit, MI 48235
Tara Betts, Curtis Crisler, Antoinette Brim, Karen S. Williams and other Aquarius Press authors celebrate a decade of Aquarius Press titles.

October 5, 2009, 7 PM - LouderArts-Bar 13
35 E. 13th Street, New York, NY
Bar 13 features Tara Betts for an NYC book party for ARC AND HUE. Admission: $5

October 11, 2009, 8:30 PM (EST) The Black Sol Cafe Radio http://www.blogtalkradio.com/TheBlackSolCafe

October 17, 2009, 3 PM - Massachusetts Poetry Festival
St. Anne’s Church, 8 Kirk Street Lowell, MA 01852
Cave Canem poets hosted by Afaa Michael Weaver and Jarita Davis.  Readers include: Tara Betts, Metta Sama, DeLana R.A. Dameron,January O’Neil, Jarita Davis, Jericho Brown, Lillian Bertram, Kamilah Aisha Moon, Jacqueline Jones LaMon, Venus Trash, Joy Gonsalves, and Johnny Davis.

October 29, 2009, 6 PM - Rachel McKibbens' Pink Elephant Release
Bowery Poetry Club 308 Bowery, New York, New York 10009
Willie Perdomo’s CYPHER Press celebrates the release of Rachel McKibbens’debut collection PINK ELEPHANT. This reading will also feature Erica Fabri, Tara Betts, Bekah Dinnerstein, Samantha Thornhill, Jane Cassady and Benjamin Lear, and Daniel McGinn.

November 5, 2009, 6:30 PM - Cave Canem Workshop Instructors
The New School Arnold Hall, 55 W. 13th Street, 2nd Floor, NYC
Tara Betts, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Marilyn Nelson, Patricia Smith and Patricia Spears Jones read.

November 8, 2009, 7 PM - Molly Malone's Pub
7652 Madison Street, Forest Park, Illinois 60130
Tara Betts features at this long-running Chicago-area open mic hosted by Nina Corwin and Al DeGenova.  Admission: $5 or $3

November 11, 2009, 7 PM - Fordham University's Poets Out Loud
Lincoln Center Campus 113 W. 60th Street, 12th Fl. Lounge
New York, New York 10023
Tara Betts, Aracelis Girmay, Rachel McKibbens and Willie Perdomo

If you want to pre-order your copy of "Arc and Hue" at a 20% discount, please visit this link. The books will be available by Sept. 1, 2009. If you order after, Sept. 1, the price will be $15. Get your discount now!

http://stores.aquariuspressbookseller.ne..t/Detail.bok?no=34

In the meantime, here's a part of a song from the album "Sketches of Spain" by Miles Davis, which inspired one of the poems in my book.

Enjoy,
Tara

Just some bullet points since people don't read myspace as much as they used to:

-I am engaged.  Rich (AKA Mr. Villar) put a ring on it.  We have not set a date, and I like Rich's version of the engagement story, which is complete with him getting on one knee in the post-work Friday Newark Penn Station crowd with the ring in hand.  I did not think this would happen, but I am happy it did. 

-Plans are underway for my book Arc and Hue to debut in Fall 2009.  Some great poets have offered to blurb my book, and Afaa Michael Weaver will be writing the Foreword.  An amazing Chicago artist and educator Makeba Kedem-Dubose will be contributing the cover art.  I'd like to thank everyone who has been encouraging me throughout this process, and helped me believe that there is more to come.

-One of my poems-"Jena, Louisiana"- is in the debut issue of Aunt Chloe, a literary journal put out by Spelman College and edited by Kyla Marshell.  The other publication that I'm extremely excited about is three poems in the latest issue of Black Renaissance Noire edited by Quincy Troupe.  Two of those poems, as well as "Jena, Louisiana", will be in Arc and Hue.

-Other good news, I am getting ready to enjoy my summer so I have to grade papers.   I'm also finishing the second of two short writer's residencies in the Bronx.  I love teaching these kinds of workshops. So much thanks to Ebony Golden for inviting me and sharing the amazing space she's created for the young people in her class.  Shout out to Lakim, Njejeh, Gina, Jennifer, Khadijah, Ariel (who is always smiling), Nita, Camil, Jarvis, Pedro and Day.  Please forgive me if I misspelled someone's name. 

The best news-the weather is getting nice out again.  YAY!

While everyone is inundating me with poems, I plan on watching "Quilombo"-a classic on Zumbi and the maroon community of formerly enslaved Africans that remained intact for about 100 years against the Portuguese. 

I'm also enjoying the bubble gum tune from Jazmine Sullivan.  Some of my friends are tipping toward more bohemian experimental music by Black musicians, which I love that too, but can I just like a sister discovering herself and writing about what she feels?  That's definitely a factor for Mary J. Blige's musical success, but here's the song that is speaking to me and my experiences:

If you haven't already heard the news, my first book was accepted a little more than a week ago by Aquarius Press, as part of their poetry imprint Willow Books.  Some of the poets who will be joining me on the press in Fall 2009 and Spring 2010 are Antoinette Brim, Curtis Crisler and Lita Hooper.  I almost couldn't believe it, but I have secured a stellar Chicago-based sister for the cover art and blurbs from writers I really love.  I'm also plotting on ways to promote this book that recalls my b-girl/freelance journalist days. 

Other than that, I'm finishing up my semester with my students at Rutgers.  I have readings in New York in March and April.  Click here for the info and other updates.

I'm also excited that some poems will be appearing in the upcoming issue of Black Renaissance Noire edited by Quincy Troupe, the debut issue of Mythium, Hanging Loose and Reverie.

So, I'm being a busy Betts and trying to think of topical things to share with you all soon. Lately, I've been listening to Charlie Wilson, formerly the lead singer of The Gap Band. If you don't know, find out. I was just thinking how I don't hear enough songs where the men are talking about taking care of women, not in a golddigger sort of way. Just making a sister feel all loved up. Charlie Wilson was around at the verge of my boy-crazyness tipping into grade school because The Gap Band was a staple on the jukebox at my grandparents' tavern. Now, I hear him and I know why a grown woman would love to hear him sing. He still sounds like a strong singer, unlike K-Ci and Jo-Jo of Jodeci (so sad).

So, feel free to drop a note, I'm hoping to start an official blog at some point when my semester ends, but I will update with shows, photos and musings here too.

Because today is be my own secretary day, I'm trying to rangle the random matters of my mail and household into some semblance of order.  I've been writing so things need to get typed, people ask you to email them countless things and you fall behind, then there's that 90 minutes you spent on facebook without even trying.  Time adds up more quickly than I ever imagined. 

In any case, I was thinking about what it means to "go green" in the current economy, which is sounding like a good thing for black construction contractors to get hip to.  Also, I'm thinking Pedro and Acela, the sweet couple that let me stay in their home in Cuba.  How they created classic posters, stone and wood sculptures and improvised from the land and environment around them.  There are so many ways to recycle, re-use and use less. 

I'm also thinking about the polluted environments that are often populated by people who may not be able to afford to move away.  Although I don't hear the term used as much anymore, but I do believe there is environmental racism. 

So, how do we start to address this problem and clean things up?  Recycling is one answer, but we know that part of President Obama's stimulus package is compelling people to "go green" with concern for energy/fuel and retro-fitting buildings.  My advice to people is to start looking into organizations and trainings to get in on the groundfloor of this movement before it's too late. 

I'm really intrigued with the ideas in Van Jones' book after seeing him on BETJ, so I hope more people hear what this brother is talking about.  If you haven't heard of it, it's called "The Green Collar Economy". Here's some places you might want to tell your cousin, uncle, sister, associate to check out:
Boots on the Roof

Sustainablog

SCOPE in Los Angeles

BIG: Blacks In Green in Chicago

In addition to all this, I find myself thinking about how young people get in touch with a sense of compassion and how sensitive living things can be if they plant something and watch it grow. If Howard Gardner can include working with plants as one of our multiple intelligences, why can't I count planting my mother's tomatos and mulching the backyard leaves to fertilize the plot as part of my skills set? It's a soothing practice. We've got so much to do to get back in touch with the planet. I want to hear some poems about that!

All that being said, I'll leave you with a taste of Arrested Development, a group that has broken up and been re-constituted since this song, but they still make music.

take care,
Tara

I've been wanting to say more, write more, push myself to explore the boundaries of language.  I promised myself that i would start 2009 in a new notebook. Instead, I am staring at the cover of the same purple composition book that I started in late 2008. 

I used to be able to fill one of those composition books every month.  Although, I'm sure that I rambled more, and I think if anyone finds the ones that I cannot, will have to decipher the illegible at best entries.  Now, it seems like whatever I have to bring to the page should be more careful, weightier. 

I have been missing the ability to drift, to let the page be a home for the funk, the beginnings of poems and stories and a repository of thoughts.  I manage to escape the journal being a steady to-do list of things to do and those already accomplished, but I find myself wanting to look out the window at the random litter trapped in the rocks along the train tracks on my way to work.  I am in awe of the tires bobbing in the same small ponds that spike with tall grass along the NJ transit line.  Sometimes, I wonder if the poems are hiding there.

Out of all the students that I've had, I hear their stories and I wonder if they see how valuable each moment is when I've already forgotten a few of my own.  Will they burnish the stones of each memory that I only occasional spot in my own mind with a flash of surprising buoyancy. 

Is it trapped in a lovers' kiss or the blue light before dawn?  Will the poems appear in the quotes mined from the genius of another writing stunning me into silent morning contemplation while the trains keep moving forward to destinations like my own.

Just a few things to talk about today:

My excitement for vegan cookbooks, even though I highly doubt that I will ever give up dairy entirely.  Have any of you seen "The Post Punk Kitchen"?  If not check out her site or go to Brooklyn to watch her on public access tv.  She does have a cookbook.  I also ordered a sale copy of "Veganomicon" which means it's basically a doorstop cookbook of recipes.  Joy...

Speaking of eating well, I'm excited that I'm going home to Chicago for few days in February to lead a workshop at one of the places I call home, Young Chicago Authors.  If you are a student or a teacher, you should be able to get a discount, click here I am still convinced that I never ate better than when I lived in the Chi.

I also received the good news that I will be leading a youth workshop in Philadelphia for the Germantown Poetry Festival Youngblood workshop series in March. Past workshop leaders have included Doug Kearney, Ursula Rucker, and of course, the inimitable Yolanda Wisher. I think I'll be in great company. If you have any suggestions for things I have to see in Philly, let me know.

As far as the manuscript, I want to say thank you for the many kind notes and letters and encouragements that I've received. I'm realizing that I have four months left before I stop sending it out. I think I have about 10-15 places left on my list that I plan to send it to, but I'm up for suggestions. Most of the poems in the manuscript have been published. The manuscript has been re-sequenced, re-titled, reviewed by several people and even was a semi-finalist for the Phillip Levine Prize, which I did not win, but that's OK. At least that means that it's a coherent manuscript.

I also wanted a moment to thank Erica Fabri for taking the time to give me some solid advice on getting the manuscript out there, especially since I'm glad to hear that she's releasing her book "Dialect of a Skirt" on Hanging Loose Press, and I know that the cover and the poems will be fabulous and quirky.

In other news, my interview with fellow Kankakee hometown girl and novelist Kalisha Buckhanon is the cover story for Mosaic magazine. If you haven't heard of this magazine or seen some of their other interviews or cover stories, go to Mosaicmagazine.org and get a subscription. This is one accessible magazine that consistently features reviews and interviews by Black and Latina/o writers. I think it would be great to get classroom sets for high school students and up.

I will try to be more topical, but there's always little bits to share when we're on the run...

Tara

Because it's payday/because you just got off work/because you just got outta school/because you 'bout to see yo'baby-honey-love-sugga-sweet-thang/because you got the fly boots and the dress huggin' the good parts well/because you gettin' the car washed before you kick it/because you still gotta job but the economic security doesn't make a cocktail sound less appealing/For all the reasons above, and many mo', I pledge to uphold the honor of posting a funky throwback video every Friday.  I will be taking requests via message and please feel free to leave comments.  In the meantime, enjoy your first selection introduced by none other than Soul Train's Don Cornelius, followed by the best scene in Prince's classic "Under the Cherry Moon":