Riverfront Readings

Friday, November 8th
8:00 PM
The Nonprofit Village
31 W. 31st Street, Kansas City MO 64108

Music by Gib Shell

Phyllis Becker is the coordinator of the Riverfront Reading series. She has a book, How I Came to Love Jazz and other Poems (2008, Helicon Nine, Editions). Her poems have also been set to jazz on the compact disc Poetry of Love, produced, recorded and arranged by jazz vocalist Angela Hagenbach. Phyllis works in human services and lives with her husband, Mark, and two cats in Kansas City, Missouri.

Pat Lawson is a retired community college English teacher, who taught at Kansas City Kansas Community College. She has volunteered in a community garden in KCK for twenty years and is vice-president of her neighborhood association. She has published fiction, poetry, and non-fiction. A collection of her stories, Odd Ducks, has been accepted for publication by BkMk Press. She serves on the Riverfront Readings Committee and the Program Committee at The Writers Place.

(Pat Lawson photo by Chris Mullins)

Haunted Words
Phil Miller Scholarship Reading & Open Mic

Sunday, October 13th
3:00 - 5:00 PM
Nonprofit Village
31 W. 31st Street, KCMO 64108

Music by Linda Minson & Friends

This special Riverfront Reading is the Haunted Words Poetry Open Mic and will benefit the Philip Miller Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Themes: Ghosts or the poetry of Phil Miller. Two poems per reader.

To sign up ahead of time, email randy@riverfrontreadings.com. (You may sign up at the event if slots are still available.)

In honor of Philip Miller's dedication to students, young and new writers are encouraged to participate.

This event includes a silent auction of original artwork by local/regional artists, book baskets by local/regional writers and more. Proceeds go to the scholarship fund.

The scholarship benefits students at Kansas City Kansas Community College. If you can't make the reading but still want to contribute to the scholarship fund, find directions for donating by mail or online at:

https://riverfrontreadings.com/index.php?p=24&more=1

Friday, September 13th
8:00 PM
Nonprofit Village
31 W 31st. Street, KCMO 64108

Music by Erik Voeks

Linzi Garcia can be found frolicking through sunflower fields, cemeteries, and bars across the states. Her poetry has been featured in five anthologies and can be found in nooks in trees near you. Her full length poetry collection Thank You was published by Spartan Press in 2018. She is currently working on a chapbook of her experiences while in England. Linzi is pursuing her master's in English at Emporia State University, where she works in the literary publishing center and as the assistant to Kevin Rabas. Linzi also works as a reporter for The Emporia Gazette. She is always looking to invest time in new places where she can absorb new perspectives.

Macey Webb writes a potent and poignant poetic memoir of the loss of Webb's partner to cancer from diagnosis to death and then the aftermath of those left behind. This genuine and intimate experience of grief is raw without dramatics, devastating while resilient, and manages to keep the sense of humor that shows our deepest humanity.

Riverfront Readings featuring James Benger and Carl Bettis

Friday, August 9th
8:00 PM
Nonprofit Village
31 W 31st. Street, KCMO 64108

Music by Gib Shell

James Benger is a father, husband and writer. His work has been featured in several publications. He is the author of two fiction ebooks: Flight 776 (2012) and Jack of Diamonds (2013), two chapbooks of poetry: As I Watch You Fade (EMP 2016) and You’ve Heard It All Before (GigaPoem 2017), two split books of poetry, Little Fires Hiding (with Jason Baldinger) (Kung Fu Treachery Press 2018), and Against The Dark (with Tyler Robert Sheldon) (Stubborn Mule Press 2019), and one full-length solo book of poems, The Park (Aldrich Press 2019.) He is a member of the Riverfront Readings Committee, and is on the Board of Directors of The Writers Place in Kansas City. He is the founder of the 365 Poems In 365 Days online poetry workshop and is Editor In Chief of the subsequent anthology series. He lives in Kansas City with his wife and children.

Carl Bettis is a web developer and writer in Kansas City, Missouri. His works have appeared in a number of publications, including the periodicals Thorny Locust, Daily Science Fiction, Paper + Ink and I-70 Review, and the anthologies Chance of a Ghost, The Whirlybird Anthology of Kansas City Writers and the 365 Poems anthologies 1 and 2. Carl is an associate editor for The Same literary magazine and is a member of the Riverfront Readings Committee. He sometimes works as typist for the family dog, Lucy Barker, who writes dogku and other doggerel.