The poets are out there, and some South Valley residents want to
make the local scene stronger
By Ansel Oliver, Special to South Valley Newspapers
Santa Clara County librarian Don Phillips couldn’t get high schoolers to show up for anything related to poetry. He sponsored readings and poetry workshops only to see a handful of participants. But when he turned poetry into a competition a la “American Idol,” they showed up by the dozens.
“Something about the competition … the ability to become a star brings people out,” said Phillips, a former Milpitas High School teacher and a teen services librarian in Milpitas.
Poetry slams rose in popularity about 10 years ago, helping to create a renewed interest in the spoken word. At a poetry slam, some performers present from memory, while others read from a typed page or handwriting out of a journal. An emcee keeps things lively between the three-minute poems, and a disc jockey pumps the tunes while judges, pulled at random from the audience, hold up their scores.
While poetry events in and around the South Valley aren’t as common as in other parts of the Bay Area, local writers and artists have several outlets to present their work.
Poet and Morgan Hill resident Edward Nauss started the Garlicky Group of Poets at the Gilroy Public Library in 1995. It’s not a slam, but a group of about a dozen writers who meet monthly to take turns sharing their original writings. Nauss has written hundreds of poems about anything that comes to mind.
“Dogs used to creep into my poems, but I don’t have any dogs anymore so I don’t write about them,” he said.
At the Garlickly Group, everyone gets a chance to read anything they want. In an hour and a half, each participant reads two or three times. They go in alphabetical order.
Nauss published a book of his sister’s poems after her death in 1994. At the monthly gathering, he usually reads one of those poems as a tribute. Writing poems, whether they’re about personal experiences and emotions or everyday occurrences, doesn’t have to be difficult, said Mary Ellison, who serves on the city of Gilroy’s Arts and Culture Commission. Ellison hopes to renew interest poetry in Gilroy by bringing some well-known poets to the community, she said, and she also hopes students learn to find their voice through the art by learning it in school.
“The old preconception is that (poetry) is difficult, that it has to rhyme. Neither of those are true,” Ellison said.
Another myth is that the local poetry scene is starving for talent, said poet and Hollister resident Joe Navarro. Even though poetry doesn’t always see the same strong support as do other local activities, local poets are excited about their craft, he said.
“Even in a small town like Hollister, there are a lot of talented people,” said Navarro.
From 1996 to 2003, Navarro headed monthly mic nights presented by the San Benito Poets. The organization of local poets ended its run because area coffee shops that members played in went out of business or changed ownership, he said.
Now, Navarro encourages local poets to attend poetry events to get their work known. Navarro wrote his first poem when he was in his 30s. He was expelled from high school in San Francisco and worked at laundries, factories and other low-paying jobs until he earned his GED.
“I’ve been writing ever since,” said Navarro, who has written and had published several books of original poems, many using Spanish and English within the same poem. He also has taught poetry at statewide and local conferences, and soon will be published in the Education Journal’s “California Reader.”
So if the local talent is there, why aren’t there more local poets’ groups? Xochiquetzal Candelaria, a poet and English lecturer at Gavilan College, said the lack of local interest may be a product of the way poetry is sometimes taught.
“We don’t look at it to find out what the ‘meaning’ is,” Candelaria said about her classes. “Poetry isn’t to be pinned down. Poetry is to be experienced. If you have something very unique to say, poetry might be the best way to say it, because it allows you to experiment with the language and work with the language. Whereas prose, generally, you have to follow the general rules of the language.”
Poetry Champion Coming to Milpitas Slam
Mike McGee is a poetry champion, not just another beatnik with a cap and a long goatee – though he proudly wears both. McGee is unique in that his poetry pays the bills. The South Bay resident has won a national title and is this year’s Independent World Poetry Slam champion.
Santa Clara County librarian Don Phillips is excited to have McGee as the emcee for the upcoming youth poetry slam April 6 in Milpitas. The slam is held three times a year, and as many as 60 poets attend. For teen poets who are hoping to get involved, McGee’s advice is simple: “Write like crazy.”
“Don’t worry what people think, but take criticism as often as possible,” he said. “(But) don’t take criticism from someone you don’t respect.”
Christine Hatch runs a slam at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the event typically draws anywhere from 20 to 120 people.
“The smaller audiences tend to have more energy because they know it’s a small audience,” she said.
Hatch said she got into poetry “accidentally” when she had a crush on a guy who enjoyed the art form. She wrote one for him and presented it at a slam, which she won.
“I wouldn’t have gone anywhere with it if I hadn’t won,” she said.
The slam’s feature poet told Hatch she had talent and stage presence, and the encouragement fueled her. But one of the most important things when writing poetry, Hatch said, is to keep it real.
“It has to be something that’s honestly you,” she said.
Find Your Inner Poet
Garlicky Group of Poets: meets at the Gilroy Library, 7387 Rosanna St. Public participation is welcome. Info: (408) 779-4999
Open Mic Night at Sue’s: meets from 6-8pm every Tuesday at Sue’s Coffee Roasting Company, 7501 Monterey St., Gilroy.
The Gilroy Writing Project: meets from 2-4pm the third Saturday of the month at the Gilroy Library. Guest speakers are print and broadcast writers sharing tales of the writing life. The next meeting is April 15 with sports reporter Julia Montes and Poet Ruben Dozal, Jr.
Gilroy Writing Project Reads: meets from 1-3pm the fourth Saturday of the month at the Gilroy Library. Bring some work in progress, or just come and listen.
Info for above events: (408) 842-8208,
ext. 3413
San Jose Poetry Slam: 8pm Mondays at Britannia Arms, 173 W. Santa Clara St., San Jose. Info: (408) 278-1400
