Join APIDA Amplified and the Humanities Division for an Open Mic and Poetry Reading by award-winning poet, Brynn Saito, on Thursday, November 7th, 2024 in the 2400 building, Room 107 & courtyard. RSVP here.

3:30 PM Open Mic: anyone can perform poetry, prose, & acoustic music
5 PM Brynn Saito reading & Q+A

Drinks, desserts, hot appetizers, and vegetarian options available! Plus, free copies of Brynn's book Under a Future Sky while supplies last!

“I Am Enough: Letting Go of Expectations,” the 2024 Asian Women Mentoring Workshop hosted by the Central Californian Asian Pacific Women. This workshop is for Asian Pacific Islander (API) women professionals, and college and high school students in the Central Valley. Featuring guest speakers Dr. Gitma Sharma, Dr. Dana Riley, and Prof. Brynn Saito.

Come get inspired and connect with other API women in the community and RSVP today!

Clovis Community College, Building AC3, 10309 N Willow Ave, Fresno, CA 93730
Deadline to RSVP: Wednesday, October 23rd @ 11:59 pm PST

Fresno State's Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing presents an evening with faculty authors Venita Blackburn, Steven Church, Ra Jarrar, Brynn Saito, Mai Der Vang, and Brenna Womer.

The reading, as part of the Fresno Poets' Association series, includes a book signing. Sponsored by the Fresno State MFA program and Fresno Poets' Association donors.

Time: 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Date: Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Place: Alice Peters Auditorium (PB 191) inside the University Business Center
Admission: Free

Archeologist Koji Lau-Ozawa and poet Brynn Saito share their journey rediscovering Cactus Blossoms, an anthology of poetry written by high school students who were incarcerated at the Gila River camp during World War II. From striking desert imagery to prayerful longings for freedom, the poems express the complex inner life of those confined in the Arizona desert. Brynn and Koji—both yonsei descendants of grandparents incarcerated at Gila River—embarked on a quest to find and interview the Cactus Blossom poets. They'll screen a short documentary they produced, and discuss the unique intersection of poetry, memory, and history. Register here for both online and in-person attendance.

Left Margin LIT is a creative writing workspace offering classes, camaraderie, and mentorship to East Bay writers of all backgrounds and experience levels. They see storytelling and poetry as vital elements of a healthy city: enriching dialogue, building community, and supporting a culture of creativity. They also have some of the best writing instructors in the biz, three of whom have new books that we’ll celebrate at this event: poet Brynn Saito’s Under A Future Sky, novelist Tomas Moniz’s All Friends Are Necessary, and poet Maw Shein Win’s Percussing the Thinking Jar. Doors at 6:00PM. RSVP.

Poetry for Inner and Outer Transformation: Writing poetry is an invitation to turn inward, to draw our attention to the rhythms of our deepest longings, to get quiet enough to connect with the felt-sense of the body. This workshop with Brynn Saito will offer generative exercises for tapping into the associative, mysterious, lyrical, and playful aspects of poem-making, with the belief that writing and sharing poems together can be heart-strengthening and transformative, especially during difficult times. Part of Kripalu’s Fall Online Writing Series.

Race, Identity, and Incarceration: A Centennial Tribute to Wakako Yamauchi will honor the legendary playwright and author, Wakako Yamauchi (1924-2018). A trail-blazing pioneer of Asian Pacific American theater and literature, Yamauchi penned numerous short stories and plays, including the widely-acclaimed And The Soul Shall Dance.

This intergenerational event gathers poets and writers who will read excerpts of Wakako Yamauchi’s works as well as their original writings reflecting enduring themes explored in her art: familial relationships and tensions; gender roles, identity, and race; and the trauma of the Japanese American wartime incarceration and its lingering effects through generations. Featured readers are Brian Komei Dempster, Lillian Howan, Brynn Saito, Maw Shein Win, and esteemed special guest, Garrett Hongo. RSVP page.

Join us for an unforgettable evening of poetry live in the California Sierra Nevada, and streamed online from the comfort of your home. Our annual Benefit Poetry Reading will feature poems from our 2024 Poetry Staff: Blas Falconer, Brenda Hillman, Major Jackson, Patricia Spears Jones, Brynn Saito, and Matthew Zapruder. RSVP and register here.

You are all welcome to our on-campus reading event on Monday, April 22, which will take place from 4 pm - 6 pm (PDT) in the Ahmanson Main Space. We are hosting two poets, Susan Rich and Brynn Saito. Susan Rich has been published in the New England Review, Harvard Review, Poetry Ireland Review, and many more. Including her chapbook to be published in April this year, she is the author of six poetry books. Brynn Saito is now the author of three poetry books with her most recent published last year. She has been a finalist for the Paterson Poetry Prize and the Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award. Both authors have an extensive list of publications and awards, all well-deserved, and we are excited to be host such renowned poets. There will be an open mic, as well as refreshments served during the reading.

Join us for the 2nd Willow Poetry Reading Series event at Clovis Community College! This event will feature a reading and discussion with award-winning poets and acclaimed writers Brynn Saito, Juan Felipe Herrera, and Janice Lobo Sapigao. The event is FREE, open to the public, and will take place in the AC1-150 Lecture Hall on the Main Campus. A reception with light refreshments will follow the poetry reading.

On Friday March 22 at 3:30pm CT (1:30pm PT), our Spring Visiting Writers Series gets underway with a reading by poet Brynn Saito. Join us on campus in Union Wildcat Chamber or online at https://tinyurl.com/saitokstate.

A Zoom Reading with David Baker, Ellen Bass, Sophie Cabot Black, Haleh Liza Gafori, Ashley M. Jones, Danusha Laméris, Brynn Saito, & Tess Taylor for the Anthology Leaning toward Light: Poems for Gardens & the Hands That Tend Them (via Zoom). Tickets and RSVP here.

Traveling Mollys Reading Series, featuring Rebecca Morgan Frank and Brynn Saito. Details available here and live stream the event here.

Leaning Toward Light

Poetry, Art, Food & Wine Pairing

SVMA’s annual poetry pairing features the light-filled landscapes of Richard Mayhew and poetry from the stunning and newly released book, Leaning Toward Light—Poems for Gardens and the Hands that Tend Them. Join us at golden hour as we hear from four of the poets in the book: Tess Taylor (editor) Forrest Gander, Katie Peterson, Genine Lentine, and Brynn Saito.

Food pairings by Chef Kyle Kuklewski of Sonoma and wines from Coplan Vineyards, Dysfunctional Family Winery, and Sonocaia Estate Vineyards.

$15 SVMA members | $25 General Public
Pre-registration is required for this event.
Museum admission is included.

Join the Downtown Artists Gallery at Fresno’s ArtHop for an evening of bookselling and conversation with artists Patricia Wakida, Carol Tikijian, Kristen Murakoshi, Caleb Henderson, Vicken Massoyan, and Julia Tinker plus writers Brenna Womer, David Mas Masumoto, Lee Herrick, Brynn Saito, and Felipe Mercado

Hosted by Norman Fischer, the San Francisco Zen Center invites you to an evocative evening, interweaving poetry and nature's embrace. Leaning Toward Light is not just a poetry anthology; it's a testament to the deep, unspoken bond we share with the natural world. This collection melds together the talents of luminous poets, each with a unique voice and perspective, offering solace and illumination, much like the nurturing act of gardening. With readings by Jane Hirshfield, Naomi Shahib Nye, Tess Taylor, Brynn Saito, Mark Doty, Genine Lentine.

Join Densho online as we launch new books by Yonsei authors Brynn Saito, Brandon Shimoda, and Jami Nakamura Lin. Their work spans multiple genres but all orbits around intersecting themes of hauntings, inheritance, dreamworlds, collective pasts, and imagined futures. Each author will read from their new works, then come together for a conversation moderated by poet Troy Osaki. This program is supported, in part, by the City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and presented in partnership with Tadaima and The Elliott Bay Book Company. Register here to receive the Zoom link.

A Lit Hop Reading: Writing Our Way Towards Home: on Place/Displacement with Steven Church, Brynn Saito, Alison Mandaville, and Brenna Womer. What does "home" mean? How does place and displacement shape the world? Four writers from a variety of places consider these questions and others.

Second Tuesday Reading Series with Brynn Saito and Cristina Sandoval, on Zoom.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAkdOupqTkvH9bNir_T5d69J9taVP3SkR4P#/registration

The Kripalu Fall Online Writing Program presents: Ancestral Poetics: Exploring Poetry’s Portal to Wisdom. Poetry can be a portal to the past and the future. Explore how poems—with their mystery, metaphors, images, and rhythms—invite us to access our inner and outer worlds. Book online.

A reading hosted by the Fresno Poets’ Association featuring Venita Blackburn, Steven Church, Ra Jarrar, Brynn Saito, Tim Skeen, Mai Der Vang, and Brenna Womer. Details here.

The Poetry Center is deeply honored to present a poets' reading and tribute to acclaimed poet, essayist, educator, feminist, and human rights activist, Mitsuye Yamada, to help mark her 100th birthday and the extending influence of her remarkable life and work. This online event is hosted by poets Brynn Saito and Brandon Shimoda and organized with the kind assistance of Hedi Yamada Mouchard. Registration link coming.

This online event is free and open to the public.

Participants to be announced.

Join us for a special evening celebrating poetry at the United Japanese Christian Church in Clovis, CA. Poets Brynn Saito, Lee Herrick, Amber Flame, and Jason Bayani will engage in a conversation on poetry, community, spirituality, and art-making, then share their work. The event will culminate in a special reading from Under a Future Sky, Brynn's newest collection of poems.

Please RSVP here!

Doors will open at 6pm; event will start at 6:30pm. Poets will sell and sign books after the event. All are welcome!

For accommodations or questions, please email brynnsaito@gmail.com

Join us for a night of poetry cultivating our collective urge to grow, tend, and help  launch the new poetry anthology Leaning toward Light: Poems for Gardens & the Hands That Tend Them. Alongside notable contemporary poets Robert Hass, Brenda Hillman, Forrest Gander, Jane Hirshfield, Genine Lentine, Brynn Saito, Maw Shein Win, Alan Chazaro, Katie Peterson, and others, editor Tess Taylor invites  gardeners, plant lovers, and readers alike to a magical night of poetry and music in the Redwood Grove.  Poems will be paired with live music by Steven Emerson & Son to celebrate this beautiful collaboration of some of most imaginative contemporary poets of our time. Tickets available here.

Join us for a special reading with poets Francesca Bell, Brynn Saito, and Douglas Manuel of Red Hen Press. This event will be hosted in-person at Book Passage's Corte Madera Store. Please contact webmaster@bookpassage.com with questions regarding events.

The Spiritual Life Foundation hosts an afternoon of reconnection through friendship, food, meditation, tarot, reiki, and astrology demonstrations. I’ll be co-leading a morning writing and meditation workshop. Please RSVP via the SLF website.

University of Nevada, Reno Lake Tahoe’s Writers in the Woods literary reading and workshop series featuring Brian Turner and Brynn Saito reading new work.

A webinar geared toward K-12 educators sponsored by the WRITE Center and the National Writing Project. Based on the National Writing Project motto "Write-Learn-Lead," we invite you to write together, learn together, and prepare to lead together as you explore self-care, revitalize yourself and your teaching, and advocate for others with three leading scholars and experts in the field: Brynn Saito, Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Cathy Fleischer. Register here.

Five award-winning authors share poetry, stories, memories, and letters in this special event hosted by Densho, a grassroots organization devoted to preserving Japanese American stories of the past for the generations of tomorrow. Featuring David Mura, traci kato-kiriyama, Karen Tei Yamashita, Mia Ayumi Malhotra, Kiku Hughes, and hosted by Brynn Saito, the event will include a light reception and will take place in Densho's community room located at 1416 S. Jackson St. in Seattle. RSVP here.

Yonsei Memory Project’s 2023 Day of Remembrance Artist Showcase (Register Here!)

An evening of radical remembrance, visionary storytelling, and community healing featuring presentations by:

TRACI KATO-KIRIYAMA, award-winning multidisciplinary artist, organizer, cultural producer, and author of Navigating With(out) Instruments whose work is grounded in collaborative process, collective self-determination, and art+community.

TT TAKEMOTO, artist, scholar and experimental filmmaker whose work honors queer Asian Americans who lived, loved, and labored together during the prewar era and beyond.

KELLEE MATSUSHITA-TSENG, co-founder of Bitter Cotyledons, a group dedicated to bringing the queer AAPI community together through land stewardship, growing Asian vegetables, and sharing ancestral culinary and cultural traditions. 

Curated and hosted by Patricia Wakida, Nikiko Masumoto, Brynn Saito, and Miya Sommers. Generously funded by the California Wellness Foundation, the Milton Chen W.K. Kellogg Foundation Trustee Fund, and community members – thank you!