Occidental Poetry Scene Makes Strides

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Author: Jacob Goldstein

What do broken musical instruments, Altoids, and “sadistically pink ties” have in common? All three were subjects of poems read at the Oxy Review Poetry Reading, held last Friday, Feb. 15 in Morrison Lounge. A showcase for the poetic talent of Occidental students, graduates and employees, the event also featured an extended reading by Katherine (Kai) Allen (sophomore). Allen’s full-length book of poetry, Cranium Leakage on the Bathroom Floor, was recently published by Fine Tooth Press.

The Oxy Review Poetry Reading occurs annually during the spring semester. Organized by the editors of Oxy’s literary magazine The Occidental Review, the poetry reading serves to promote the English and Comparative Literary Studies department’s annual literary contest. This year’s event was organized by Ali Reed (senior), who is the Editor-in-Chief of The Occidental Review and President of the Occidental Writers Workshop (informally known as the Creative Writing Club).

In addition to Allen, Friday’s reading also featured readings by Conor Anderson (first-year), Molly Quinn (junior), Ryan Barr (junior), Max Read (senior) and Reed herself. Also reading at the event were Career Development Center director and advisor to the Occidental Writers Workshop Valerie Savior and recent graduate Simchi Cohen ’07, who is currently working towards her Ph.D in comparative literature at UCLA.

Allen opened the event, reading several poems from Cranium Leakage, as well as unpublished poems from her personal journals. For Allen, the reading was the capstone to several years of work. The roots of Cranium Leakage trace back to her sophomore year of high school, where she organized a poetry reading because, as she said, “creative writing was non-existent at my school. There was no interest among students or a place to display interest.”

One of Allen’s teachers attended the reading and became her mentor. He encouraged Allen to compile her works into a chapbook (a small book of poetry), which he sent to various publishers. The chapbook caught the interest of Fine Tooth Press, who asked Allen to add more material; Cranium Leakage is the end result.

Interestingly, Cranium Leakage is not just Allen’s first published book, but her first book of any kind. “I usually write poems individually and leave them as they are, because I’m not much of an organizational writer,” Allen said. “But if you want to share your writing with the world, you need to organize it, so I broke down and organized it.”

It was especially meaningful for Allen to perform in front of her friends at Occidental.

“I couldn’t believe how many showed up tonight and that there was so much interest,” Allen said. “I had been having writer’s block, but after hearing everyone tonight, I feel inspired.”

Allen also said Occidental continues to play a special role in the development of her poetry.

“I find that a lot of the things I learn about at Oxy have not so much inspired my writing, but what I do with my writing,” she said. “I want to organize art-based social activist groups to benefit youth that live in less economically advantaged neighborhoods.”

Both Reed and Allen were pleased with the outcome of the event, as well as the school’s bourgeoning creative writing community.

“There is definitely a poetry scene at Occidental and I think last night was indicative of that,” Reed said. “There was so much good energy and talent in that room!”

“If we pour inspiration into things like the Occidental Writers Workshop and events like this, it could be amazing for [the] poetry scene at Oxy,” Allen said.

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