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Trans Poetics Archive is a project curated by USM’s Stonecoast MFA GRO Scholar, t love smith (they, them). The project involves two components; a Maine Transgender Poetry Anthology publication and a monthly series of Trans Poetics Events. The November at Novel event will feature the 7th Portland Poet Laureate, Maya Williams as well as a handful of local trans poets including theater artist, Sampson Spadafore and USM English Major, Vincent Herrington. The night begins with a generative writing workshop with Maya at 5:30pm, includes a meet-n-greet intermission before a trans poetry showcase and feature. Lauren Saxon (she/them) is a queer, Black poet and engineer living in Portland, ME. She loves her cats, her Subaru, and being chronically online. Lauren's work is featured in Barrelhouse, Empty Mirror, Across the Margin, Homology Lit, and more. Her debut chapbook, "You're My Favorite" won the 2023 Maine Literary Award for Book of Poetry, and is out now with Thirty West Publishing.
Lonny Saleeby (they/them) - has spent their adult life on a trajectory of community care. They started in death work with an expertise in memory care before moving towards the care of children, adolescents, animals and plants. They spend their time stewarding their garden, loving their dog and friends and seeing to the needs of a herd of twenty two goats and a school of 50 preschoolers. They are a visual artist, a poet and healer.
Sampson Spadafore (they/them) is a white, neurodivergent, queer and trans person currently living on settled Wabanaki land. They are a theatre artist with a BFA in Musical Theatre from Nazareth University. Sampson thematically focuses their work, whether that’s performance or writing, on trans and queer identity, liberation, the body, god, grief, and healing. They’re a proud co-founder of Brazen Bandits Conspiring Creatives.
Vincent Herrington (they/them) is an English major in their senior year at USM and a lifetime lover of the written word. They were the winner of the 2023 Plunkett Poetry Festival Student Contest for their poem “Southern Ohio, Specifically”, an ode to their state of origin and the difficulty of re-embracing the hometown you couldn’t wait to leave as a teenager. They have participated in a few slams and open mics and hope to continue participating in the local writing community. When they’re not working or writing, they love knitting, crocheting, cooking, and having long, convoluted conversations with their favorite people.
Maya Williams (ey/they/she) is a religious Black multiracial nonbinary suicide survivor who was selected as Portland, ME's seventh poet laureate for a July 2021 to July 2024 term. Maya received a MFA in Creative Writing with a Focus in Poetry from Randolph College in June 2022. Eir debut poetry collection Judas & Suicide (Game Over Books, 2023) was selected as a finalist for a New England Book Award. Their second poetry collection, Refused a Second Date (Harbor Editions, 2023), was selected as a finalist for a Maine Literary Award. Their third poetry collection, What's So Wrong with a Pity Party Anyway?, was selected as one of four winners of Garden Party Collective's chapbook prize in 2024. Maya was one of three artists of color selected to represent Maine in The Kennedy Center's Arts Across America series in 2020, one of The Advocate's Champions of Pride in 2022, and one of Maine Humanities Council's recipients of the Constance Carlson Public Humanities Prize in 2024. You can follow more of eir work at mayawilliamspoet.com
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Novel Book Bar & Cafe, 644 Congress St, Portland, ME 04101-3305, United States,Portland, Maine
