Florida Bards Anthology 2025 (Local Gems Press) launches mid-June with an event in Daytona Beach, Florida, on June 18 and another in St Petersburg on June 21. (Sadly, I will be unable to attend either). You will find My poem “Dining Out With Epicurus” in the collection’s pages. Although fictional, the poem mentions at least one real place: a popular breakfast spot near the University of Florida campus that has since closed.
Florida Bards Anthology is available for pre-order to pick up at an event or be shipped to you.
About the Launch Events
Join the Florida Bards for launch events, which include a reading:
Daytona Tuesday, June 18
7:30 PM (Door opens at 7:00)
at Fairfield by Marriott Daytona Beach
1820 Checkered Flag Blvd. Daytona Beach, FL 32114
St. Petersburg, Saturday June 21 7:30 PM (Door opens at 7:00) at Courtyard by Marriott St. Petersburg Clearwater 3131 Executive Dr, Clearwater, FL 33762
There is a $10 cover fee.
About Florida Bards Anthology
Florida Bards Anthology showcases poets who are currently residing in or have lived in Florida. Its events feature readings by poets and an opportunity to connect with the poetry community of the state.
About Local Gems Press
Local Gems Press is dedicated to providing quality verse written by poets from all walks of life as well as other entertaining, inspirational, and educational writings. They believe in the power of the written word and feel that writing can be used to change the world for the better.
They are a small press based on Long Island, New York, and have published poets from over 10 countries and over 30 different states, with an ever-growing audience.
More Poetry
Want to explore more of my work? You can find some here, including a link to SoundCloud, where I’m slowly populating published poems in audio format. You can read a heap of poems about peace and help orphans in Ukraine with a purchase of Sunflowers Rising: Poems for Peace, which includes my poem “This Poem is Not About Mars.”
Want to explore more poets? Check out the ever-growing Poetry Society of Tennessee bookstore here and see why we say #poetryisalive in Tennessee. (Click covers below to discover more recent releases.)
If you’re looking for more poetry (and stories) from Florida-based poets, try Awake in the Sacred Night, a collaboration of my pals Lori Zavada and Claire Masey, a collection that embraces “the mystical and mundane.”
Want another anthology? Try What the House Knows (Terrapin Books), edited by Diane Lockward. It is an anthology of 116 poems by 116 poets, poets such as Ted Kooser, Alice Friman, Billy Collins, Tracy K. Smith, Jan Beatty, and George Bilgere. Each poem features a house. I’m almost halfway through and loving this collection.