Opportunities
Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowships
Woodland Pattern is accepting applications for the second year of its Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowship program. We are excited to offer awards in two categories this year. Each will run from November 2023 through June 2024. The application deadline for both categories will be October 15, 2023.
Eligibility: Open to Milwaukee poets between the ages of 20 and 35, who are not currently enrolled in an MFA or PhD program.
Practice Fellowship: This Fellowship category seeks to support an emerging poet in their writing practice through an 8-month long mentorship with an established poet. Mentor and fellow will meet monthly one-on-one to workshop writing, discuss poetry and poetics, and explore publication opportunities. Meetings will take place in person and virtually. During the fellowship period, the recipient will also receive a $500 book allowance, may attend any Woodland Pattern workshop free of cost, and will be invited to give a culminating reading. Poets with existing manuscript projects are particularly encouraged to apply in this category. This year's mentoring poet will be Ae Hee Lee.
Project Fellowship: This Fellowship category seeks to support an emerging poet in need of financial and administrative support for an ambitious literary project such as a reading series, small press, literary journal, or interdisciplinary exhibition. Both new and existing projects are eligible for consideration. The Project fellow will receive ongoing support from our staff, along with a $1,500 project budget. Poets with a track record in DIY literary publishing and programming are particularly encouraged to apply in this category.
About the Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowship Program
Drawing inspiration from both the Mary L. Nohl Fund Emerging Artist Fellowship and the Poetry Project’s Emerge Surface Be program, Woodland Pattern established the Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowship program in 2022 to bring greater visibility and much-needed early support to Milwaukee poets through mentorships, access to opportunities that encourage a poet’s practice and development, and investment in literary projects for which younger poets frequently lack resources. The Milwaukee Emerging Poet Fellowship program also seeks to make available alternative avenues of support for emerging poets outside traditional academic-track poetry programs and environments.
We're hiring a Book Center Manager!
Woodland Pattern is currently accepting applications for the position of Book Center Manager through September 30, 2023.
The Book Center Manager is a full-time, exempt, on-site position that works to promote and support Woodland Pattern’s mission through the ongoing care and development of its unique collection of poetry and small-press literature.
Position responsibilities:
- Oversees maintenance and development of Woodland Pattern’s unique collection of poetry and small-press literature
- Manages all ordering
- Manages receiving, inventory, and online store
- Manages distribution accounts
- Serves as the book center’s primary public face
- Contributes to Woodland Pattern’s collective environment and collaborative projects
Qualifications and Experience:
- Extensive knowledge of contemporary American poetry
- Knowledge of small-press publications and publishers, past and present
- Experience working in a library or bookstore, or with a small press or literary journal
- Graduate degree in creative writing, literature, book arts, library studies, or related field preferred (or equivalent knowledge)
- Backgrounds of study in Native American literature, and/or African American, AAPI, Latinx, and/or Queer literatures a plus
- Must possess excellent writing and editorial skills
Start Date: Flexible, for the right candidate. A relocation allowance will be available if needed.
Application Instructions: Interested applicants may apply online via Submittable. Please include a cover letter and a resume, and ensure that two letters of reference are submitted to info@woodlandpattern.org. Questions may also be directed to info@woodlandpattern.org. No calls please.
Woodland Pattern is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women, people of color, and those who identify as LGBTQ+ are strongly encouraged to apply. For full description of this position, visit our Opportunities page.
SEPTEMBER EVENTS
Concert: Formations Series for New & Improvised Music
Set 1—Cathedral Becomes Tomb
Set 2—Gina Laurenzi Dance Project & Allen Russell
*HYBRID*
Thurs. Sept. 21 | 7 pm CDT | $10
Community: Doors Open Milwaukee
*IN PERSON*
Sat. & Sun. Sept. 23 & 24 | 12-7 PM | Open to the public
Concert: Alternating Currents Live presents Silvia Bolognesi Young Shouts
Set 1) Silvia Bolognesi (double bass), Il Pavone (trumpet & vocals), and Ginger B. (drums & electronics)
Set 2) Silvia Bolognesi (double bass), Il Pavone (trumpet & vocals), Ginger B. (drums & electronics), and Nick Mazzarella (alto saxophone)
*HYBRID*
Sun. Sept. 24 | 7 PM | $15 ($13 WP members)
Open Mic: resound return
*IN PERSON*
Fri. Oct. 27 | 7 pm CDT | $Give What You Can
Bruce Meets Adam, work by Adam White Ossers
On view through September 24
OCTOBER EVENTS
Workshop: A Line, a Poem, and a Joke Walked into a Bar: Comedy Writing and Performance with Mauricio Kilwein Guevara
*IN PERSON*
Tuesdays Oct. 3, 10, & 17 | 6-7:30 PM CDT | $100 ($90 WP Members) Scholarships available
Reading: Ross Gay
*IN PERSON at Boswell Book Company*
Wed. Oct. 4 | 7:30 PM CDT | Free with registration
Community Group: Ping Pong Book Club
*IN PERSON*
Wed. Oct. 4 & 18 | 6 pm CDT | Open to AAPI
Community Group: Readshop
*ONLINE on Zoom*
Wed. Oct. 4 & 18 | 6-7:15 pm CDT | Open to the public
Concert: Alternating Currents Live presents Katie Ernst
*HYBRID*
Sun. Oct. 8 | 7 pm CDT | $15 ($13 WP Member)
PU 20: Poetry Unplugged 20th Anniversary Reunion Showcase
*IN PERSON at The Cooperage*
Wed. Oct. 11 | Doors at 7 pm; event starts at 8 pm | $25
Screening: Midwest Video Poetry Fest
*IN PERSON*
Sat. & Sun. Oct. 14 & 15 | 7 pm CDT each day | Give What You Can
Concert: Formations Series for New & Improvised Music
*HYBRID*
Thur. Oct. 19 | 7 pm CDT | $10
Poetry Reading: David Abel, Stacy Blint, and Grace Mitchell
*HYBRID*
Fri. Oct. 20 | 7 pm CDT | Give What You Can
Community Group: Everything Wants to be Loved: The Color Purple Book Group and Writing Workshop
*IN PERSON*
Tues. Oct. 24 | 6-7 pm CDT | Open to the public
Poetry Reading: Quan Barry
*HYBRID*
Cosponsored by Boswell Book Company
Thurs. Oct. 26 | 7 pm CDT | Give What You Can
Open Mic: resound return
*IN PERSON*
Fri. Sept. 29 | 7 pm CDT | $Give What You Can
Exhibition Reception: Here I Am, Standing, new work by Haerim Lee
*IN PERSON*
Sun. Oct. 29 | Reception 1–5 PM; Artist Talk at 2 PM
Exhibition on view: Oct. 3-Dec. 17, 2013
Meet Emily Igwike, Milwaukee’s First-Ever Youth Poet Laureate
Emily Igwike is currently serving as the 2023–24 Milwaukee Youth Poet Laureate. In Fall 2022, she was named one of five National Student Poets through the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, representing the Midwest region. A rising senior at the University School of Milwaukee, Igwike has lived in Brown Deer, Wisconsin, all her life. She is the daughter of two loving Igbo-Nigerian immigrants and enjoys the hustle and bustle of her big family, with three siblings and distant relatives rotating in and out of her house at any moment. Igwike developed her passion for writing at an early age by reading novels and grew fond of telling stories from countless late nights with her mother. Through poetry, she has curated her voice and let others hear her. She hopes to be a role model for young, Black girls like herself and a testament to the power of the spoken word.
Visit our unique collection of small-press poetry
Did you know Woodland Pattern is home to a nationally recognized collection of over 25,000 small-press poetry titles? To the largest selection of haiku in North America? To the biggest selection of books by Native American authors in Wisconsin? To broadsides, zines, chapbooks, pamphlets, and other hand-made items?
The dissemination of independent literature—particularly poetry, unconventional texts, works that honor bookmaking as a visual art, books by small- and micro-press publishers, and literature by writers from historically marginalized backgrounds—has been central to our purpose since our founding. Our inventory decisions are mission-driven, allowing us to support writers and publishers in ways that are inconceivable for a commercial bookseller.
Come in and discover. We encourage visitors to read and study at their leisure, and to use our space to learn more about poetry, book arts, and small-press publishing. You can also visit our online book center to browse selections from our inventory, or give us a call at (414) 263-5001 to see if we have a title in stock. As always, we will gladly place special orders, ship books to your home, and offer contactless pick-up at your request.
We acknowledge that in Milwaukee we live and work on traditional Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, and Menominee homelands along the southwest shores of Michigami, part of North America’s largest system of freshwater lakes, where the Milwaukee, Menominee, and Kinnickinnic rivers meet and the people of Wisconsin’s sovereign Anishinaabe, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Oneida, and Mohican nations remain present.
We further acknowledge the grave evil colonialism introduced to these lands through genocide as well as slavery, and also via racist and xenophobic beliefs, laws, and practices that continue to inflict harm upon Black, brown, and Indigenous lives. We honor those who have lived—and do live, now—at these intersections of identity and experience, and are committed to the active dismantling of white supremacy.
720 E. Locust Street
Milwaukee, WI 53212
Phone: 414 263 5001
Hours: Tues–Sun | 12-7 pm
Closed Mon
Building Accessibility: Despite the age of our physical location, and attendant limitations to access, Woodland Pattern is committed to making its programs and facilities available for as many as possible. Please call for more information.
Events Accessibility: Woodland Pattern is able to offer captioning services for its online events and with advanced notice can provide ASL interpretation for live events. Please contact us with accommodation requests and questions.
© Woodland Pattern 2022