Join us for a very special Poetry in the Boro on Friday evening, August 16. Our very own Bryanna Licciardi, a behind-the-scenes PitB team member since its inception, will be this month’s feature, reading from her new collection FISH LOVE. Come out to listen to some poetry—or share some writing of your own.
This month we’ll be at the MTSU Foundation House, which is located at 324 W Thompson Ln in Murfreesboro. Doors open for mingling and refreshments at 5:30 PM. The feature will begin at 6:00 PM, with open mic to follow. We will have an intermission to give you an opportunity to speak to our feature and purchase a book, so if you’re not able to stay the entire time, no worries. Open mic will start after the break and we usually finish the evening around 8:15 PM.
Drinks and snacks will be available at no charge. This event is free and open to the public. Donations are encouraged to help with our expenses.
IMPORTANT DIRECTIONS & PARKING
The Foundation House is accessible only through the same drive as Tennessee Miller Coliseum, diagonally across the street from Siegel Middle School. After you come down the drive and start to enter the large parking lot, head to the left. You’ll see the Foundation House in a grove of trees. Park in the parking lot near the trees and then walk to either the side (carport) or front door of the house to enter. Disability access is available through the carport side of the house.
ABOUT OUR FEATURE
BRYANNA LICCIARDI resists the question, “Where are you from?” because she’s lived all over the country—California, Texas, Michigan, Massachusetts, Louisiana—though currently resides here in Murfreesboro. She is a degree collector of sorts, with an MFA in poetry from Emerson College, a Specialist Degree in higher education from MTSU, and a Doctorate in Education from MTSU. She works as an English and Women/Gender Studies lecturer, at—you guessed it—MTSU. Her spare time is spent taking care of four cats and one husband and volunteering with tech support for Poetry in the Boro. She has two books–a poetry chapbook Skin Splitting from Finishing Line Press (2017) and a new full-length collection Fish Love from Alternating Current Press (July 30, 2024). A multi–Pushcart Prize nominee, her individual works have appeared in publications like BlazeVOX, Cleaver Magazine, Poetry Quarterly, and Peacock Journal. For more about her, go to bryannalicciardi.com.
ABOUT THE OPEN MIC
Open mic readers can share poetry or spoken word: 2 poems or four minutes, whichever comes first. Reading a favorite poem by another writer is fine, too. Sign up for the open mic on site. If we have a large turnout, we may ask you to limit yourself to one poem. We appreciate you helping us hear from many voices!
We ask that readers be prepared to keep their pieces “PG-13” depending on our venue and audience, which sometimes includes younger people.
CHALLENGE WORDS
To add to the fun of this feature and the excitement of Bryanna’s new book, we’ve pulled our challenge words direct from her collection. If you like, write a new piece to share that includes one, some, or ALL of these words:
fish | regret | pennies | blood | body | night | hand | bed | love | jellybeans
YOUR DONATIONS ARE APPRECIATED
Admission is free! A donation of $5 or more is appreciated to help us offset our costs. You can donate using PayPal at paypal.me/poetryintheboro. We also accept donations on site.
Poetry in the Boro thanks MTSU Write and the Rutherford Arts Alliance for their on-going partnerships and support. Find more on our website at poetryintheboro.org