Dublin: The Circle Sessions

Posted on May 20, 2025 by magdalenaball

Spending Bloomsday in Dublin has long been on my bucket list, and this year I’m not only going to be in Dublin on June the 16th, I’ll also be a feature poet at The Circle Sessions.  These acoustic sessions take place every Monday from 7-11, featuring Spoken Word Poetry, Storytelling, Music and Performance in the International Bar, 23 Wicklow St, Dublin. If, by some coincidence, you are also going to be in Dublin on Bloomsday, please do come join me.   There’s an open mic which you can sign up for from 745.  The beautiful pub, mentioned in Ulysses, is over two hundred years old.

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Judith Feature

Posted on April 17, 2025 by magdalenaball

The Wonderful poet, essayist, translator and scholar Rachel Neve-Midbar has created a beautiful feature of me and my work (and a few of my tiny delights) at Judith Magazine. Judith is a Substack-based showcase of Jewish arts of all kinds and is an absolute treasure trove of complex and meaningful work.  “There are no easy solutions in these poems, but oh, how they help us to think and rethink.” You can find my feature here: https://judithmagazine.substack.com/p/a-broken-world-introducing-the-poetry

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Lake Macquarie Write Here events

Posted on March 15, 2025 by magdalenaball

I’ve got two fantastic events coming up with Lake Macquarie’s wonderful Write Here festival. The first is a literary cruise.  I’ll be leading attendees in a series of writing exercises focusing on the beautiful Lake Macquarie while we enjoy a delicious Devonshire tea. The cruise leaves from Booragul Public Wharf on Friday the 16th of May at 10am and has already begun booking so get in quick if you’d like to join us:  https://library.lakemac.com.au/Events/Relax-and-Write-Cruise-with-Magdalena-Ball

The second is a free session with the stunning performance poets Rob Walker and Sara Crane on Saturday, 17 May, from 2-3pm at the Windale Hub, bilyabayi. Rob and Sara are both seasoned and powerful poetry performers (bring tissues!), and I can’t wait to tease out their secrets for you!  Details here: https://library.lakemac.com.au/Events/Poetry-and-Performance

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2 poems in Science Write Now 11 – Synergy

Posted on March 13, 2025 by magdalenaball

Science Write Now is a beautiful publication – presented free online, with a wide range of works – poetry, nonfiction, fiction and art, and I’m very pleased to have two poems in the latest edition: “Interdependence Intricacies” and “Metanoia”.  Each of the poems has an audio recording with it as well. You can check out the whole issue at the website here: https://sciencewritenow.com/

 

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Newcastle Writers Festival 2025

Posted on February 23, 2025 by magdalenaball

The Newcastle Writers Festival is a highlight of my year.  Held the first weekend of April, I’ve been involved in every festival since it started in 2013. It’s now one of the largest regional literary festivals in Australia, and I know I’m biased but I feel like the vibe is just perfect – down-to-earth and very accessible while still being grand enough to attract some of the biggest names locally and internationally.  I also love how the NWF gives plenty of airtime to local writers, and has worked very hard to make the festival accessible, with all main venues are accessible by wheelchair. This year I have 3 events including:

April 5th, 1pm: Ailsa Piper talking about her gorgeous new book For Life. 

April 5th, 3pm: I’ll be hosting a launch of five new books from Flying Islands: The Heart’s Lush Gardens by David Adés; Tadpoems by Tug Dumbly; Bitumen Psalms by Lizz Murphy; Filmworks by Brian Purcell; Separation Blues: Poems 1994–2024 by Nathanael O’Reilly; and Stranded by Bronwyn Rodden. Plus I’ll be launching the new 100 Poets Anthology.

April 6th, 2:30pm, Writing Identity and Inequality with Jumaana Abdu, Eda Gunaydin, and Paris Rosemont.

All my sessions are free – first in best dressed and I suspect the rooms will fill up fast so best to arrive a little early!

For all the details including the full program, visit: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/

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Live encounters Feb 2025

Posted on January 26, 2025 by magdalenaball

I’ve got 3 poems in the invitation-only Live Encounters Feb edition.  Live Encounters is always a delight to read and this issue is particularly stunning with a rich variety of poetry from some of Australia’s most illustrious poets.  I’m proud to be included.  You can check out the whole issue here and once there, you can either flip through like a magazine, or click on a name to go straight to the poet’s work.

Live Encounters Poetry & Writing February 2025

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Guest Speaker: Society of Women Writers NSW

Posted on January 22, 2025 by magdalenaball

On Wednesday the 12th of March I will have the great pleasure of being the guest speaker. The date is the SWW Centenary – that’s 100 years – no small achievement, and I’ll be following on from a poetry workshop by Judith Beveridge and Sophie Masson member spotlight.  For more details visit: https://womenwritersnsw.org/literary-luncheons/workshop-literary-event-wednesday-12-march-2025

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Flying Island 2025 new book series launch

Posted on January 9, 2025 by magdalenaball

 On Sunday the 26th of January, The Shop Gallery in Glebe will be hosting a combined book launch of the new 2025 Flying Island books. I’m the current Vice President of Flying Islands and am proud of this beautiful set of books that is being brought into the world which includes Lizz Murphy’s Bitumen Psalms, Brian Purcell’s Filmworks, Huang Fan’s Flower Ash (a multilingual book in both Chinese and translated into English by Josh Stenberg), David Adès’ The Heart’s Lush Gardens, Tug Dumbly’s Tadpoems: 400 Shorts, Bronwyn Rodden’s Stranded, and Nathanial O’Reilly’s Separation Blues: Poems 1994-2024. There is also the fabulous 100 Poets anthology created to celebrate the milestone of publishing more than one hundred books in the Pocket Poets’ series. I have the great honour of launching the anthology. The gallery will also be featuring an exhibition of Brian Purcell’s paintings – ‘Floodlands’. This is going to be a big and exciting event – it’s completely free and everyone is welcome. If you can’t make it, you can still check out the new books here: https://flyingislandspocketpoets.com.au/

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Telephone: An International Arts Game & Experiment

Posted on January 4, 2025 by magdalenaball

I’ve been invited to participate in a collaborative project based on the Telephone game,  and if you’re an artist/writer of any kind you can also join.  This is the third round and the way it works is a secret message is ‘whispered’ from art form to art form. You sign up, and if you’re accepted, you receive a prompt which might be an artwork, a video, a piece of writing or even dance. You have to create your work in response  within a limited timeframe. The results will be published as a digital exhibition in September 2025, open to the public. Curious? Sign up at this link:  artists.telephonegame.art

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Creative Flight

Posted on November 30, 2024 by magdalenaball

Three of my poems “Ten Thousand Joys”, “Money Box”, and“Bhakti” have been published in West Bengal, India’s Creative Flight Journal.  This is a peer reviewed journal in English published twice a year and available online for free here: https://www.creativeflight.in/current-issue

 

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