reading w/ Mary Thorson
https://www.magersandquinn.com/event/luna-rey-hall-and-Mary-Thorson-in-conversation-/654
The Bizarre Disappearance of Bella Riley follows a young woman who goes missing without explanation, leaving only a few troubling details behind. The book is framed as an episode of a fictional true‑crime Youtube show called “Autopsy of the Unsolved,” where the narrator walks the reader through the “real case” of Bella Riley’s disappearance.
luna rey hall is a queer non-binary writer. they write poetry/horror and are the author of six books including loudest when startled, which was longlisted for the 2020 Julie Suk Award, and the patient routine, which was longlisted for the Bram Stoker Superior Achievement in Poetry Award. their work has appeared in The Florida Review, The Rumpus, & Raleigh Review, among others. their latest novella, the bizarre disappearance of bella riley, was published by Brigids Gate Press in April 2026.
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A collection unlike any other, each story in A Woman's Guide to True Crime features shocking historical events examined through the eyes of victims, killers, or the women left behind. With emotional precision, an uncanny eye for fragility, and an all too grounded sense of unease, the sixteen stories in this collection explore what happens when the blood is washed away, examining everything from the after-effects of matricide in Milwaukee, to two cold, empty graves in Chicago, to a Missouri town where everyone witnesses a murder but keeps their mouths shut, to a Californian Christmas torn apart by a tumbling Cessna, to a small barn outside Hinterkaifeck, Germany, where the dead ask if you, too, heard that sound from behind the walls.
Mary Thorson lives and writes in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her short story, “Book of Ruth,” was included in Best American Mystery & Suspense ‘24, edited by Steph Cha and S.A. Cosby. Her short story, “Casadastraphobia,” was included in Best American Mystery & Suspense, ‘25, edited by Steph Cha and Don Winslow. Her work has been nominated for Best American Short Stories, a Derringer, and a Pushcart Prize. She hangs out with her two feisty daughters, the best husband, and a dog named Pam when she isn’t teaching high school English, reading, or writing ghost stories. She is represented by Lori Galvin at Aevitas Creative Management. Her debut short story collection A Woman’s Guide to True Crime is out with Rock and a Hard Place Press. She is currently working on a novel.
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reading w/ Claire Wahmanholm
please join me for a night of poetry and discussion with the amazing Claire Wahmanholm at Boneshaker Books.
about luna rey: luna rey hall is a queer non-binary writer. they write poetry/horror and are the author of six books including loudest when startled, which was longlisted for the 2020 Julie Suk Award, and the patient routine, which was longlisted for the Bram Stoker Superior Achievement in Poetry Award. their work has appeared in The Florida Review, The Rumpus, & Raleigh Review, among others. their latest novella, the bizarre disappearance of bella riley, was published by Brigids Gate Press in April 2026.
about Claire: Claire Wahmanholm received her BA from UW-Madison, her MFA from the Writing Seminars at the Johns Hopkins University, and her PhD from the University of Utah. Her chapbook, Night Vision, won the 2017 New Michigan Press/DIAGRAM chapbook contest. Her debut full-length collection, Wilder (Milkweed Editions), won the 2018 Lindquist & Vennum Prize for Poetry, the Society of Midland Authors Award for Poetry, and was a finalist for the 2019 Minnesota Book Award. Her second collection, Redmouth, was published with Tinderbox Editions in 2019. Her third collection, Meltwater (Milkweed Editions 2023) was a finalist for the 2024 Minnesota Book Award and the 2024 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, and was a 2025 National Book Foundation Science + Literature selection. She was a 2020-2021 McKnight Writing Fellow, and the winner of the 2022 Montreal International Poetry Prize for her poem “Glacier.” Her work has most recently appeared in EPOCH, The Fairy Tale Review, High Country News, Sierra, The Hopkins Review, The Anarchist Review of Books, and TriQuarterly, and has been featured by the Academy of American Poets. She lives in the Twin Cities
Poets & Pints #106
Poets & Pints #106
We keep rolling along in 2024 with two poets that have never been on the show and two poets that have. We are so excited to welcome new to our stage:
Savannah Dowdle
Poetic Mama'
and returning and both celebrating recently released books
Luna Rey Hall
Haley Lasche'
Hosted by: Tony Plocido
no matter the diagnosis book launch
event link: https://www.facebook.com/events/1062872091509686
Join us on January 16th 7:00 pm (EST) as we celebrate the release of luna ray hall's no matter the diagnosis. The show will include opening readings from Frank Allison, Maya Williams, Julia Gaskill, and Emily Stoddard followed by the featured reading from luna. After the readings, luna will have a brief discussion about about the new book and their work with MJ Malpiedi from Game Over Books!
Make sure to pre-order your copy of no matter the diagnosis: https://www.gameoverbooks.com/pro.../no-matter-the-diagnosis
About the Readers:
luna rey hall is a queer non-binary writer. they are the author of loudest when startled (YesYes Books, 2020) & the patient routine (Brigids Gate Press, 2023). their poems have appeared in The Florida Review, The Rumpus & Raleigh Review, among others. they live in St. Paul, MN.
Frank Allison is a queer Jewish writer residing in Cincinnati, Ohio. She studied Creative Writing with an emphasis in poetry for five years, at an art school she will not name. Frank is the author of Don’t Thank God, Thank The Crash Test Dummies That Came Before You. She loves fast cars, throwing knives, and hot coffee. You can find them on social media at @frankwithaknife
Maya Williams (ey/they/she) is a religious Black multiracial nonbinary suicide survivor who is currently the seventh poet laureate of Portland, ME from July 2021 to July 2024. Ey has published poems in venues such as The Portland Press Herald, The Cortland Review, FreezeRay, Indianapolis Review, Occulum, glitterMOB, Littoral Books, Black Table Arts, and more. Their debut poetry collection Judas & Suicide will be published May 2023, and their second collection Refused a Second Date will be published October 2023. She has received residencies from Sundress Academy for the Arts (SAFTA), Voices of Our Nation Arts (VONA) Foundation, The For Us by Us Fund’s Words of Fire Retreat, Hewnoaks Artist Colony, and The Watering Hole. Maya was one of three artists of color selected to represent Maine in The Kennedy Center’s Arts Across America series in 2020, and was listed as one of The Advocate’s Champions of Pride in 2022. Maya also serves as MaineTransNet's Community Care Program Coordinator, where they develop peer support groups for trans survivors, develop educational material on trauma informed trans competency for advocates, provide outreach to incarcerated trans folks, and develop arts programming. Follow more of eir work, and invite em to read or facilitate a workshop, at mayawilliamspoet.com.
Julia Gaskill (she/her) is a professional daydreamer hailing from Portland, Oregon. She's competed multiple times on national stages and has toured with her poetry across North America. Her work has been published through Nailed Magazine, FreezeRay Poetry, Knight’s Library Magazine, and more, and she’s had her poetry featured on YouTube channels such as SlamFind and Write About Now. She was included in the 2020 anthology ‘In Absentia’, and she collaborated with the band Impulse Control on the track “Television” off their latest album. Her poem ‘I Will Not Beg For Scraps’ was nominated for Best of the Net in 2015. Julia is the author of four chapbooks, runs the mic Slamlandia out of Portland, co-founded the Bigfoot Regional Poetry Slam in 2019, and is the creator of the spoken word album, Stouthearted Bitch. She is ecstatic to have her debut poetry collection put out through Game Over Books. It goes without saying, she loves dogs and Muppets more than you. Find Julia at @geekgirlgrownup or facebook.com/jgaskpoetry
Emily Stoddard (she/her) is a poet and writer living in Michigan. Her writing has appeared in Tupelo Quarterly, Baltimore Review, Ruminate, Radar, Tinderbox Poetry Journal, Cold Mountain Review, Whitefish Review, and elsewhere. In 2021, she was selected as the nonfiction fellow in the Developmental Editing Fellowship at Kenyon Review.
Emily's debut poetry book is forthcoming from Game Over Books and was a finalist for the Orison Poetry Prize, Wren Poetry Prize, and Barry Spacks Poetry Prize. She is also a leader of the Amherst Writers & Artists Method and supports fellow writers through her studio, Voice & Vessel. Connect with her on Instagram (@emily.stoddard) or at emilystoddard.com.
Port Veritas Open Mic — featured poet
FEATURED POET
“We are a diverse collaboration of creative minds, bound by a common love of creating a space for artists of all kinds to come and express themselves.”
Lora Robinson Book Release (Poets & Pints)
Poets & Pints is having it 90th Show!!! How do we celebrate that? By having a book release, of course!
Lora Robinson is releasing her book, "An Essential Melancholy". But she's not doing it alone. Opening for her will be:
Luna Rey Hall
&
Lisasia Wild
Hosted by: Tony Plocido
So don't miss this wonderful celebration and get ready to add to your extensive collection of poetry
