Schuler Books in downtown Grand Rapids is a cozy bookstore with a warm and inviting atmosphere with tasty coffee to match. It’s a great place to read, study, catch up with friends, and now a place to share your creative side. Phil Jung, a fiction writer and professor at Grand Rapids Community College, is working with people to advertise a poetry reading series at the downtown bookstore. An assistant manager of the downtown Schuler Books, Tyler Rowe, came up with this wonderful idea. He loves poetry and is hopeful about the series. Actually, everyone at Schuler Books is excited for the series according to Phil Jung. While contacting him, Phil said, “They’re starting it in May and hope it’s a successful enough event to become weekly.” He also related that “they hope that the readings will go on indefinitely.”
Every other Thursday, beginning in early May, the bookstore will feature two poets. Tyler Rowe, Phil Jung, and the staff at Schuler’s are hoping for a variety of poets. They wish to hear from poets of various ages, poets who are unpublished or published and who are local or established. They also welcome poets at any level. The reading will begin at 6:00 p.m. and will last until at least 7:15. Each poet will get 20-30 minutes to read his or her work. Although these readings are primarily for poetry, there will be special opportunities to read prose and other creative pieces. Any poet who has enough poetry to fill a 20-30 minute time slot is encouraged to sign up on Schuler’s list to read. Every person who signs up will be acknowledged.
If you would like to share you poetry, please email Tyler Rowe at trdowntown@hotmail.com or Phil Jung at Philley2003@yahoo.com. Please include your name, phone number and email address when contacting either Tyler or Phil. This is a very exciting opportunity for all the poets out there. Take this chance and show your creativity!