Join the MN League of Poets, Cracked Walnut Chapter and the Anoka County Library for Blank Verse, a reading series that supports diverse writers of all ages, levels, genres, and performance styles including poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and spoken word. Following the readings will be time for open mic and conversation.

Featured Readers: 

Brittany N. Jaekel writes from the Twin Cities, following stints in Chicago, Madison, and Washington, D.C. Her work has previously appeared in RHINO, Agates, and other places. She currently serves as the Non-Fiction Editor at the Great Lakes Review. Connect with her at brittanynjaekel.com.

Sherrie Fernandez-Williams earned her MFA in Writing from Hamline University. She is a 

2021-2023 Jerome Hill Artist Fellow and a 2021 Black Voices in Children’s Literature winner. She received additional grants and awards through the Minnesota State Arts Board, The Givens Foundation for African American Literature, Intermedia Arts, SASE: The Write Place, and The Playwrights’ Center. Author of the book of poems, Goddess of the Whole Self  and the memoir, Soft, Fernandez-Williams, has published poems in journals including New Limestone Review, Aquifer: The Florida Review, and Duke University Press, among others. Her essays can be found in anthologies including We are Meant to Rise: Voices for Justice from Minneapolis to the World, How Dare We Write: A Multicultural Creative Writing Discourse, and The Poverty and Education Reader.  Her book of poems, Goddess of the Whole Self,  is forthcoming. She co-curates the Queer Voices Reading Series with LM Brimmer in collaboration with Quatrefoil Library and Hennepin County Libraries in Minnesota.   

Tom Odendahl started taking poetry seriously when he retired in 2016. Teachers from the Loft and St. Paul’s East Side Arts Council  became his mentors. His ideas are often started by prompts or overheard conversations that were really none of his business.Many poems try to describe long  journeys started through small windows. He has participated in several public readings in various settings over the past six years.

Haley Lasché is the co-founder, co-owner and co-editor of the poetry press Beauty School Editions and the founder editor and designer of the literary magazine Concision Poetry Journal. She teaches writing and literature courses at colleges and universities in and around St. Paul, Minnesota. She also has two poetry chapbooks: Where It Leads (Red Bird Chapbooks, 2016) and Blood and Survivor (Locofo Chaps, 2017). Her debut poetry collection, One was released by Beauty School Editions in fall 2023.

Blank Verse was created in 2016 as Writers Read by Janaya Martin to promote the literary arts in her Northeast Minneapolis neighborhood featuring prose and poetry. It is now sponsored by Cracked Walnut, a chapter of the League of Minnesota Poets, which aims to generate love for live literature, community, and creativity.

Anoka County Library strives to ensure that all visitors are able to access library resources, services, and programs.  Assistive technology and program accommodations are available at many library locations as outlined here. Please call the library branch hosting the program at least two weeks prior to an event if there are additional accommodations we can provide for you to fully participate.