$5 Suggested donation No one will be turned away for lack of funds
Donations can be made in person or through Christopher Luna’s PayPal (search via christopherjluna@gmail.com), Venmo (username @Christopher-Luna-66), or CashApp account (ChristopherLuna9).
Laura Sciortino is the author ofRemote Control and co-creator of Send & Respond, a collection of poem and art pairings. Her poetry, fiction, and lyric essays have appeared in Artstra’s Poetry Moves, Fractured Lit, The Comstock Review, Unleash Literary Journal, Great Weather for Media, and elsewhere.
As a typewriter poet, Laura offers live poetry, crafting on-the-spot custom poems for people at various events and celebrations. She loves sharing her love of improvisation, connection, and writing and 100% believes that people + poetry = magic.
Laura will offer typewriter poems from 6:30-7:00 at this month’s event.
She also works as a writing coach and consultant, helping individuals and organizations find and refine their voice.
Laura lives with her husband, son, and three affable felines in the Multnomah Village neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. Learn more by visiting LauraEstherSciortino.com or Instagram: @thetypewriterpoetpdx
Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com or visit
to register to receive The Work, Christopher Luna’s monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.
The Ghost Town Poetry community respectfully encourages you to support Niche Wine Bar, whose owner, Leah Jackson, provided a home for the reading series from 2015-2020. Stop by their new location at 900 Washington, Suite 130 Vancouver, WA 98660: https://nichewinebar.com.
In the interest of everyone’s safety, Art At The Cave, featured reader Victor Griggs, and I have decided to cancel tonight’s event. Stay tuned for information about when Victor’s reading will be rescheduled. My hope is to invite Victor to participate in a double feature with one of our upcoming featured readers. Double features are fun.
While we’re waiting, why not purchase a copy of Victor’s book Rolling Through Life
Donations can be made in person or through Christopher Luna’s PayPal account (christopherjluna@gmail.com). Include a memo stating that the money is for Ghost Town Poetry.
According to Victor Griggs, “I am from the Pacific Northwest. I always love writing but I really started taking seriously during The pandemic. Never give up on your dreams. For more information about me and my work please visit futurelegs.net.”
Book description from Victor’s website: Rolling Through Life chronicles Victor Griggs’ reflections from 2019-2021, set against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the solitude of quarantine, intensified by his personal challenges with cerebral palsy, Victor immersed himself in the details, stories, and thoughts he lived with each day. This short collection of poetry and prose is a tribute to his resilience and introspection during those times of isolation.
Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com to receive The Work, Christopher Luna’s monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.
The Ghost Town Poetry community respectfully encourages you to support Niche Wine Bar, whose owner, Leah Jackson, provided a home for the reading series from 2015-2020. Stop by their new location at 900 Washington, Suite 130 Vancouver, WA 98660: https://nichewinebar.com. UPDATED Statement on Healthy Spaces from Art at the Cave: We want to provide a healthy space to enjoy art. We have been practicing safety precautions such as regular cleaning, social distancing and mask wearing. As a result of the removal of the mask mandate effective March 12, 2022, we will no longer require the wearing of masks. We encourage you to continue to wear a mask if it makes you feel more comfortable, and we will supply masks and hand sanitizer at the door. As social distancing has become a norm, please be mindful some will still need a bit of personal space while inside the gallery.
Christopher Luna founded Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic in November 2004. The reading began at Ice Cream Renaissance before moving to Cover to Cover Books, Angst Gallery, and Art At The Cave, where it has taken place since 2022.
On Friday, November 8, Art At The Cave will host a book launch party for Ghost Town Poetry Volume Three, featuring poetry from throughout the twenty-year history of the series. Join us at Art At The Cave from 4-7 to purchase a copy of the new book, edited by Christopher Luna, Morgan Paige, and Toni Lumbrazo Luna, who co-hosted the reading from 2007-2020. The book will cost $20. Commemorative T-shirts and stickers will also be available for sale.
Sticker design by Morgan Paige featuring self portrait by Christopher Luna
Christopher, Toni, and Morgan would like to thank everyone who contributed to the Kickstarter campaign as well as all the poets who submitted their work. We would also like to express our deep gratitude to Anne John for her generous donation to the campaign as well as for allowing us to hold the open mic in her space every month. We could not think of a more beautiful venue in which to foster community and hear great poetry. We are also grateful to Mel Sanders of Cover to Cover Books and Leah Jackson of Angst Gallery and Niche Wine Bar for making their spaces available to our community for so many years.
Finally, a big thank you to everyone who has attended Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic over the past two decades. We could not have enjoyed our raucous, three-hour, anti-racist, anti-fascist, pro-science, LGBTQ+ friendly, all ages, and uncensored poetry reading without your consistent embodiment of those principles and your willingness to hold the space for everyone who was brave enough to step to the mic.
Please return to Art At The Cave on November 14 for our 20th Anniversary reading featuring Clark County Poet Laureate Susan Dingle:
Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com to receive The Work, Christopher Luna’s monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.
Donations can be made in person or through Christopher Luna’s PayPal account (christopherjluna@gmail.com). Include a memo stating that the money is for Ghost Town Poetry.
Bruce D. Hall is a poet and short story writer from southeastern Washington. The chapbook Poems From A Big Beard Poet is his first collection of published poetry. His poetry has appeared in Poets in the Shops in Vancouver, Washington, and on C-Tran buses as part of the Poetry Moves program. (Note to readers: if you do not submit, you will not get published).
Unlike most poets and writers, Bruce did not start writing at an early age. His very large family told stories at family gatherings, some of which could be believed. BS is a family tradition. His work has been called highly visual. This comes from a strict high school creative writing instructor, Bob Smith. Bruce rewrote his first paper 13 times before he got a B+, the lowest passing grade a paper could receive. He earned a B.S. degree, not the family kind mentioned previously, from a respected university in Electrical Engineering. His only writing was technical papers. Work brought Bruce to Vancouver in 2012. He signed up for Wildfire Writing, Christi Krug’s evening writing class at Clark College. The infection by muse had begun. As of this writing, no vaccine has been produced. He signed up for a poetry writing workshop taught by Clark County Inaugural Poet Laureate Christopher Luna. This brought Bruce to Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic, where he was a regular reader until the pandemic allowed telework and relocation to be with his life partner Suzie Stacey and close to grandchildren.
November 2024 is the twentieth anniversary of the founding of Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic. This year’s remaining featured readers are Clark County Poet Laureate Susan Dingle and Debra Elisa.
Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com to receive The Work, Christopher Luna’s monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.
The Ghost Town Poetry community respectfully encourages you to support Niche Wine Bar, whose owner, Leah Jackson, provided a home for the reading series from 2015-2020. Stop by their new location at 900 Washington, Suite 130 Vancouver, WA 98660: https://nichewinebar.com.
UPDATED Statement on Healthy Spaces from Art at the Cave: We want to provide a healthy space to enjoy art. We have been practicing safety precautions such as regular cleaning, social distancing and mask wearing. As a result of the removal of the mask mandate effective March 12, 2022, we will no longer require the wearing of masks. We encourage you to continue to wear a mask if it makes you feel more comfortable, and we will supply masks and hand sanitizer at the door. As social distancing has become a norm, please be mindful some will still need a bit of personal space while inside the gallery.
Donations can be made in person or through Christopher Luna’s PayPal account (christopherjluna@gmail.com). Include a memo stating that the money is for Ghost Town Poetry.
william erickson is a living poet. His work appears or is forthcoming in Poetry Daily, Sixth Finch, West Branch, Denver Quarterly and other pubs. william is the author of several chapbooks, as well as the full-length collection You Don’t Have to Believe in the World. He lives in Washington with his partner and their two pups in an old house across the street from a large tree.
November 2024 is the twentieth anniversary of the founding of Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic. This year’s remaining featured readers will include Bruce Hall, Clark County Poet Laureate Susan Dingle and Debra Elisa.
Send an email to printedmattervancouver@gmail.com to receive The Work, Christopher Luna’s monthly newsletter featuring news and events for poets in Vancouver, WA, Portland, OR and surrounding areas.
The Ghost Town Poetry community respectfully encourages you to support Niche Wine Bar, whose owner, Leah Jackson, provided a home for the reading series from 2015-2020. Stop by their new location at 900 Washington, Suite 130 Vancouver, WA 98660: https://nichewinebar.com.
UPDATED Statement on Healthy Spaces from Art at the Cave: We want to provide a healthy space to enjoy art. We have been practicing safety precautions such as regular cleaning, social distancing and mask wearing. As a result of the removal of the mask mandate effective March 12, 2022, we will no longer require the wearing of masks. We encourage you to continue to wear a mask if it makes you feel more comfortable, and we will supply masks and hand sanitizer at the door. As social distancing has become a norm, please be mindful some will still need a bit of personal space while inside the gallery.
Olinka Broadfoot’s sculpture portrait of Christopher Luna
I was saddened to learn that my friend Olinka Broadfoot has passed away. Olinka was a brilliant, witty, talented person with many stories to tell about her life as an artist and her home in the Czech Republic. I feel fortunate to have known her.
I first met Olinka through my friend Jason Mashak, one of the first Portland poets I met when I moved to the Pacific Northwest from Queens, NY in 2001. Olinka is a world-class artist who had returned from Prague, where she traveled once a year or so to teach sculpture. While much of the work she did was abstract, Olinka posted on Facebook that she was ready to do some portraits. I had never sat for a sculptor before and thought that it might be fun.
It was fun, and it was also an incredible experience that deepened my respect for Olinka and for all sculptors. I could not always watch her work, but when I could, I was blown away watching the clay transform into a bust of my head ans shoulders. I am a talker, a verbal processor who talks almost constantly. Olinka did chat with me a bit, but there were also times where she made it clear that she needed silence in order to concentrate.
I clearly remember the moment when she took a darker rectangle slab of clay and dropped it on top of the head of the bust to begin forming the hat I found in Berkeley, CA and had worn every day for years, almost until it fell apart. She requested that I leave the hat with her so that she could get it just right. She also asked for an old pair of my glasses which she attached to the face of the portrait.
I was not prepared for what an honor it was to be represented in this way. I remain in awe of how she was abler to capture not only my likeness but my spirit in this work. Later I was honored further when an anonymous donor purchased the work in order to gift it to me.
In April 2013 Toni and I curated a show at Angst Gallery called the Marriage of Poetic Words and Images. It featured art and poetry by many different members of the community including Greg Bee, Da Bat, Eileen Elliott, Jenney Pauer, Jim Martin, Erin Dengerink, Kelly Keigwin, and Michael Smith.
The show also featured two pieces by Olinka: her bust of me and “sometimes the latticework of the veil,” inspired in part by my poem of the same name:
sometimes the latticework of the veil is so perfectly constructed that it has the appearance of reality flesh and blood, rather than a sorry excuse for truth pastiche of fortune cookie wisdom ad copy & lines from old movies stand in for the darkness which is not evil after all but the residue of a broken heart throbbing, sweating flooding blood-soaked tears in a melodramatic gush not to be contained by the gauzy barrier of our skin
eventually all is revealed we are hopelessly (beautifully) human after all
In May 2013 the bust was moved next door to Niche Wine Bar, owned by Angst Gallery director Leah Jackson. Here are a couple of photos from the unveiling of the bust that took place at Niche.
LGBTQ+ FRIENDLY, ALL AGES, AND UNCENSORED SINCE 2004
Rod Nelson is a spoken word poet in Central Washington. Rod Nelson’s work focuses on modern day social issues and addresses the divide between rural and urban America. He was born in Kansas but grew up in Selah, a small town in Central Washington. After completing his education in Seattle, he returned to the Yakima Valley and has lived and worked here since 1979. He was the first- place finisher in the YVCC Black Box Poetry Slam in 2017, and finished second in that contest in 2016 and 2018. He was the first- place finisher in the Litfuse Poetry Slam in 2018 and 2019, and finished second in that contest in 2017. He was a presenting poet at the Ellensburg Poetry Prowl in 2018. His poem “ A Note From Mallory’s Progeny” was one of the winners in the Yakima Coffee House Poet’s Poetry Contest in 2017 and was published in its chapbook that year.
A Failing Grade in Right and Wrong 101
Fifty-eight dead in Vegas
the Dow gains a hundred -fifty
bump-stock sales soar
Senators send thoughts and prayers.
Fifty-eight glass-eyed corpses,
on blood-soaked pavement.
the Hobbesian contract broken again
interview the girlfriend
talk with the brother
autopsy the brain
dissect for answers
but no lobe of morality
no Center for Right and Wrong
just indifferent gray matter
upon indifferent gray matter.
500 years after the birth of the church of reason
evil fairies gone from the town well
demons removed from the plague
but where is our heart?
Our ministers recite Psalms:
Lean not on your own understanding,
but trust in the Lord with all your heart.
Ancient rules,
conceived in mysticism,
chipped in stone,
gave the world faggots for the bonfires of medieval Christendom.
An eye for an eye,
a lie for a lie,
and soon the whole world was ignorant.
Seventeen dead in Parkland
Ten dead in Santa Fe
the sabbath brings eleven dead in Pittsburg.
Our leaders serve lukewarm soup to the survivors,
mirroring our lack of empathy.
And when you stare into the abyss,
the abyss stares back.
But, hey, the bulls are running hard down on Wall Street.
Adam Smith rolls in his grave,
Kant’s categorical imperative rolls its eyes at charitable deductions,
and Jesus asks, where is the love brother?
In an affluent society,
goodness only comes baked in a Sarah Lee Pound cake.
Perhaps Vonnegut was right,
it’s all about moiling for more money,
lusting for better copulation.
Reason,
harnessed by the Id,
to gang-rape the Ego,
outfox the Superego.
Mill’s Utilitarianism blushes.
Gin and tonic golfing
and Wimbledon watching
on the working man’s dime.
College admission bribing
Watergate
deflate-gate
blood-doping
pussy grabbing
gas lighting cover-ups,
cram the victims face in the vomit of her own sorrow,
drag the spouse on Oprah’s stage,
blinking in the glare of the apologetic melodrama.
Born-again sinners!
Just like the johnnies-come-late -to -Jesus
in the God squad pod at the County jail.
Lost in the wilderness,
where is our compass?
Another head -chopping video on the ‘net,
our politicians promise revenge.
An eye for an eye,
and soon the whole world is blind.
In heaven, Jesus and his faithful scribe Mathew shake their heads,
the Dalai Lama grimaces,
and Gandhi’s ghost cries in the night.
500 years after the birth of the church of reason,
the boy who paints rainbows,
the girl who tends her own garden,
still live with the stink of burning flesh.
Our nation,
blessed
with Mr. Smith’s prophesized wealth
but this pearl
as cold and hard as a bullet.
Where has our heart gone?
Food and libation provided by Niche Wine Bar, 1013 Main Street Sound provided by Briz Loan & Guitar LGBTQ+ FRIENDLY, ALL AGES, AND UNCENSORED SINCE 2004
Jonathan Oak is the author of two poetry books, Sutly fucked ↑ and Things I Forgot To Say, as well as the upcoming novel Jerry. He has lived and performed in Portland for the last six years. He was part of the VAMP reading series in San Diego and a fixture in the Phoenix poetry and music scene. He was on three Slam Nationals teams, hosted a poetry radio show, worked underground theater in San Francisco, and ran writing workshops for 15 years.
Christopher Luna will lead a series of classes and workshops this Fall. Most of these occur year-round. The best way to stay up-to-date on his activities is to sign up to receive The Work, a monthly newsletter for poets in Portland and Southwest Washington: printedmattervancouver@gmail.com
Christopher Luna in his office/studio, photographed by Alisha Jucevic for the Columbian
Christopher Luna served as the first Poet Laureate of Clark County, WA from 2013-2017. His first full-length collection of poetry, Message from the Vessel in a Dream, was published by Flowstone Press in 2018. Luna has an MFA from the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics, and is the co-founder, with Toni Lumbrazo Luna, of Printed Matter Vancouver, a small press for Northwest writers which also provides writing coaching, editing, and manuscript review. He has hosted the popular Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic in Vancouver, WA since 2004. Luna’s books include Brutal Glints of Moonlight, GHOST TOWN, USA and The Flame Is Ours: The Letters of Stan Brakhage and Michael McClure 1961-1978.
According to Rae Latham, a writer in Christopher’s Monday morning poetry writing class at Multnomah Arts Center, “Christopher is the poetry alchemist who helps us discover gold.”
POETRY WRITING
Poetry Writing at Multnomah Arts Center
Poetry as a means of expression, exploration, and experience is available to everyone. Write poetry in response to prompts and read a variety of published poems that you can use as inspiration. Read and respond to one another’s work in this supportive setting, paying close attention to revision.
Clark College 1933 Fort Vancouver Way Vancouver, WA 98663 Anna Pechanec Hall Room 114
Memoir Writing at Clark College, Tuesdays from 1:00 – 3:20 pm September 24 – November 26: Everyone has a story to tell. Each person’s life is filled with adventure, mystery, trouble, and triumph. Memoir is a powerful way to demonstrate the interconnectedness of all human beings. See yourself as a part of history, documenting the story of your life.
Angst Gallery 1015 Main Street Vancouver, WA 98660
Christopher is also offering an eight-week workshop/writers group called Writing Your Life Story at Angst Gallery on Thursdays from 10:30am – 1:00pm, October 3 through November 21.
Document your memories for your family or for possible future publication. Complete short timed writings as well as weekly take-home assignments. Give and receive feedback in a safe, informal environment. Christopher will introduce the participants to the techniques of creative nonfiction storytelling which uses the content of one’s life as the foundation for narrative. He will introduce current examples in popular nonfiction and memoir to assist the process. Participants will be encouraged to share their writing in a safe environment (no one will be required to share their stories) with the option of receiving feedback from the facilitator and other students. We will work to achieve the following goals:
1) learn the key elements of successful storytelling in written form,
2) create a living document for yourself, your family, or others,
3) delve into or build upon your written skills.
Bring your ideas, notes, paper, and pen/pencil (no books required).
Open to all skill levels. The class will be limited to ten (10) participants.
Cost: $225 (cash, check, card)
REGISTER AT ANGST on Wednesdays from noon til four OR email printedmattervancouver@gmail.com to set up a time to register.
THE WORK
Christopher also facilitates a poetry writing workshop known as The Work, from 11:30-2:00 on the second Saturday of the month (unless otherwise noted) at Niche Wine Bar (1013 Main Street, next door to Angst Gallery and the Kiggins Theatre). Doors open at 11:15 so that you can purchase coffee, tea, and other non-alcoholic beverages from Niche and grab a snack. The workshop begins at 11:30.
“Well, while I’m here I’ll do the work — and what’s the work?
To ease the pain of living. Everything else, drunken dumbshow.”
― Allen Ginsberg, “Memory Gardens” (Fall of America, City Lights)
The Work is a drop-in poetry writing workshop for beginners as well as more experienced writers. Poetry encourages empathy and compassion, and sparks the shifts in consciousness which lead to healing, personal growth, and an interest in fighting for progressive social change.
We will read and discuss poetry, and write several new poems together. Each workshop will feature at least three timed writing exercises.
$20 suggested donation; no one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Bring a poem to share as a way of saying hello.
Shareable snacks are also welcome and very much appreciated.
Upcoming 2019 Saturday afternoon workshops will take place on October 12, November 16, and December 14.
There is also a Monday evening version of the workshop that takes place on the second and fourth Monday of the month (unless otherwise noted) at Angst Gallery (1015 Main Street).
Upcoming 2019 Monday evening workshops will take place on October 28, November 25, and December 9.
If you are looking for writing coaching, editing/manuscript review, or information about poetry and memoir classes, send Christopher an email via printedmattervancouver@gmail.com.
Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic Hosted by Christopher Luna and Toni Lumbrazo Luna of Printed Matter Vancouver Featuring Joannie Stangeland
7 pm Thursday, August 8 Open mic sign up begins at 6:30 and closes at 7 $5 Suggested donation
Angst Gallery 1015 Main Street Vancouver, WA 98660 angstgallery.com
Food and libation provided by Niche Wine Bar, 1013 Main Street Sound provided by Briz Loan & Guitar: http://briz.us/ LGBTQ+ FRIENDLY, ALL AGES, AND UNCENSORED SINCE 2004
Photo of Joannie Stangeland by Roseanne Olson
Joannie Stangeland is the author of The Scene You See, In Both Hands, and Into the Rumored Spring. She received the 2019 Crosswinds Poetry Journal grand prize, and her poems have also appeared in Boulevard, Prairie Schooner, The Southern Review, and other journals.
Self-Portrait with an Aubade
By Joannie Stangeland
The light must be sheer—Vermeer’s camera obscura
draws early sun, gauze filtered
through green. Leaving shadows’ blue pools,
night’s voices vanish.
Water jug, leaded glass, and ultramarine,
morning streams a sacrament—thin blessing
melts before you swallow. Tension subtle,
serene across the canvas.
Look to the window when day brushes your face,
clean strokes—the care, translucent.
Step into this skin like an artist, a flautist,
a muse. A yellow cup.
PRINTED MATTER VANCOUVER 