Jeri Jones Sparks is a Tamil Indian-Australian poet and writer living on Wangal Country.
She is the winner of the third annual Bright Wings Poetry Contest hosted in partnership with Ekstasis Magazine.
She works as the Outreach Pastor at St James Anglican Church in the Inner West of Sydney.
In this bonus episode, Jeri shares her winning poem, January Born.
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Read MoreWe’re excited to open submissions to our third annual Bright Wings poetry contest in partnership with Ekstasis Magazine!
Our panel judges for this year’s contest are:
Deadline for Entry: November, 25th, 2022
Entry Fee: $20 for up to three poems
Winner will receive a $500 honorarium, read the winning poem on an episode of the Makers & Mystics podcast and have the poem featured in an issue of Ekstasis Magazine.
Second and third prize winners will be featured on Makers & Mystics and Ekstasis Instagram stories and newsletter.
Read MoreMalcolm Guite is an English poet, academic and priest in the Church of England. He is a fellow of Girton College in the University of Cambridge and has published widely in the field of theology and literature.
His research interests include the intersection of religion and the arts and the examination of the works of J.R.R. Tolkein, C.S. Lewis and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
In this episode Malcolm and I discuss what I’ve termed as the poetics of restoration and how poetry and literature hold keys to understanding and even bridging the gaps between tradition and originality.
Patrons of the podcast can enjoy three additional interview segments with Malcolm, one on the moral imagination (which members of our creative collective will recall from discussions in our last book club.) also Malcolm’s thoughts on imagination as empathy, and practices to can we establish to achieve longevity for the artist and writer.
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Read MoreIn this episode, Makers & Mystics Collective facilitator Corey Frey guest-hosts this episode to give us a glimpse into the life and work of the eccentric poet, Emily Dickinson.
Read MoreThea Matthews is a San Francisco born poet, orator and activist whose work centers on the complexities of humanity, grief, and resiliency. In this episode, Stephen Roach to talks with Thea about her debut poetry collection published by Red Light Lit titled, Unearth [The Flowers] and about her journey of finding healing and resiliency through poetry.
Thea's empowering poems provide a path to healing and illustrate how survivors can find a safe place within themselves to reclaim their own identity and sexuality.
Her book has been described as an electrifying letter to family, country, and self, Unearth [The Flowers] is relentless in its journey through stages of grief and healing while celebrating life.
Khalisa Rae is an activist, poet, and educator in Durham, North Carolina, and a graduate of the Queens University MFA program. She is the winner of the 2020 Bright Wings Poetry Contest.
In this Bonus episode, Stephen Roach and Ashley Blake talk with Khalisa Rae about poetry and the importance of telling our story. Khalisa performs two of her poems, including her winning poem, The Way Out and the title poem from her upcoming collection, Ghost In A Black Girl's Throat.
You can read Khalisa's and the other winning poets at: http://www.makersandmystics.com/brightwings
Read MoreThis bonus Episode features a live performance and interview with spoken word artist La’Tasha Strother. La’Tasha threads her relationship with God throughout her life and work and creates poignant imagery about her life experiences. The poem performed in this episode is titled Love Is Not Blind and was performed live at our Art As Healing Podcast in Charlottesville Virginia.
Read MoreTinasha LaRayé is a poet, actress, and filmmaker who has an intense passion to see nations transformed through storytelling. As a spoken word artist, she incorporates her theatrical world of acting to elevate poetry from the page to an encounter. From working with inner city kids, to young women, to budding creatives, she loves empowering individuals to move in their God-given voice, purpose, and power. Tinasha also desires to see the wound of racism healed in the United States and uses her creativity and teachings to equip this generation to walk out healing, justice, and unity. She currently serves as a pastor in Creative Arts at Bethel Church in Redding.
In today’s episode Stephen talks with Tinasha about her work as a poet and actress standing at the intersections of spiritual encounter and social justice. The two also talk about her film, Hope Song which explores the historical experience of Black people in America, and paints a poetic and prophetic vision for racial healing.
Read MoreWilliam Blake was an English poet, printmaker and painter born November 28, 1757 in London, England. Today, he is considered one of the most important figures in English poetry and art, although during his lifetime, his work remained largely overlooked. His writings were spiritually and politically lethal and publishers shunned his works for fear of being accused of inciting insurrection.
Contemporary poet and musician, Patti Smith heralded William Blake as the spiritual ancestor of generations of poets. William Blake fueled the creative fires of Bob Dylan, Allen Ginsburg, Jack Kerouac, John Lennon, Bono and Jim Morrison who named the Doors after Blake’s verse, “If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, Infinite.”
Read MoreNadine Ellsworth-Moran is the winner of our first annual Bright Wings poetry contest. Nadine is a Georgia resident where she works in full-time ministry while pursuing her love of writing. Her essays and poems have appeared in Interpretation, The Presbyterian Outlook, Structo, Kakalak, and Saint Katherine Review, among others.
In this episode, Stephen is joined by contest panel judge and poet, Amy Orazio and features a reading of Nadine’s winning poem by the author.
Topics in this episode include resilience, tenacity and constructive ways of handling rejections.
Read Nadine Ellsworth-Moran’s winning poem here.
See all contest winners and runner ups here.
Read MoreGerard Manley Hopkins was a Jesuit priest and English poet born July 28,1844. He is considered to be one of the greatest poets of the Victorian era although during his lifetime, his poetry was never published. His approach to poetry was deeply enmeshed with his intimate and mystical spirituality. For Hopkins, who was an avid lover of nature, poetry was a means of accessing the Divine and of discovering God within nature.
Read MoreIn this episode, Stephen talks with singer/songwriter, Jason Upton about linear versus circular creative processes. This episode features previously unreleased material from the artist.
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