On April 11, 2008, Boricua College held the fourth and last reading of its 20th Winter Poetry Series, entitled "City Writing in Spanish" featuring writers Myrna Nieves, Francisco Alvarez Koki, Angel Matos, Linda Morales Caballero, Corazón Tierra, Yarisa Colón Torres, Eslin Morris Wright, Héctor Ruiz Díaz and Juan Valenzuela (who read excerpts from an unpublished work by Pedro Pietri). The event took place at Boricua College in Brooklyn and was the last reading coordinated by Myrna Nieves, who will continue other literary endeavors after twenty years of directing the Boricua College Winter Poetry Series. Since 1988, the Poetry Series featured twenty annual series and presented 243 writers/performers in 86 events, with a diverse audience of over 8,500 persons.

Myrna Nieves is a writer, cultural activist, founding member of Boricua College and co-founder and director of the Boricua College Winter Poetry Series. Her publications include: Libreta de sueños (narraciones) (EDUPR 1997, Awarded the PEN Club of Puerto Rico, 1998); Viaje a la lluvia, poemas (Mairena, 2003). Nieves also co-authored and co-edited Tripartita: Earth, Dreams, Powers, Moradalsur and Mujeres como islas. She was the producer of and performed in Directory of Dreams, a dramatization of her narrative for the Nuyorican Poets Café. Nieves was a monthly contributor to the newspaper Nosotros los latinos. She holds a B.A. from the UPR (Magna Cum Laude), an M.A. from Columbia University and a Ph.D. from NYU. Awards include: PEN Club Award, NaCOPRW’s guest writer in “A Gathering of Poets” from the Library of Congress, Outstanding Latina of the USA in 1998 by El Diario La Prensa, and an Award for Extraordinary Contribution to Literature from the National Federation of Puerto Rican Pioneers. Nieves was included in the Museo de Historia y Cultura de Camuy (PR, 2006) and was also chosen as a guest writer for the “Latina Poets Festival 2007 ” of The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater.

Francisco Álvarez Koki is a bilingual writer (Galician-Spanish) and cultural activist. Born in Galicia, Spain, he has lived in New York since 1984. His published books are: Mais alo de Fisterre; Alen da fronteira; Para abril e amantes; Ratas en Manhattan (fiction); Entre dos aguas; Entre tu cuerpo y mi cuerpo.

Authorized works include Al fin del siglo (20 poetas. Antología de poetas hispanos en Nueva York); Piel – Palabra, muestra de la poesía española en Nueva York and Seis narradores españoles en Nueva York.

He is also co-author of the staged play “Quemar las Naves” (First Prize of 2003, from “Nuevas voces,” The Spanish Repertoire Theatre).

Angel Matos is a poet and cultural activist from Puerto Rico. His published book titled Del silencio, la ciudad y otras pasiones in(é)ditas (pub., 2004), was awarded the PEN Club Award of 1975. Matos organizes monthly literary readings in Old San Juan and has organized readings in the Dominican Republic and Florida (USA).

He is the editor of a literary web page of young poets, “En la Orilla” (www.enlaorilla.net) and of his own blog, “El Mundo de las Palabras” (http://palabrangel.blogspot.com). He has received many literary awards in PR. His work has been published in literary magazines and newspapers of Puerto Rico, Spain (Proscritos), Brazil (Palavreiros), and the US (Red y Acción). Matos has a Bachelor of Arts from the UPR, Cayey, PR.

Linda Morales Caballero is a poet, fiction writer, journalist and educator from Perú. Her first book of poetry was Desde el umbral. She has also published a second book of poetry, Poemas vivos: El hombre adivinado, Poemas tuyos and is currently working on an English edition of this work. She has co- presented and co-produced two radio program and her work has been featured in radio and television in New York, Buenos Aires and Lima. Her poetry has been published in the anthologies/magazines: Circunferencia de la palabra, The Edge of Twilight and Miradas de Nueva York. Some of her bilingual work can be accessed at www.Tribeca.net. Literary reviews and articles can be read at www.tribes.org and www.tribunahispanausa.com. Morales holds a B.A. in Media Communications and Spanish Literature (Cum Laude) and an M.A. in Spanish Literature from Hunter College.

Corazón Tierra is a Puerto Rican performer, dancer, writer, magazine editor and an expert in personal growth. She has presented interdisciplinary, healing performances (a modality of theatre co-created with María Mar, called “Theatre of Transformation”) in the USA, the Karoo Desert in South Africa and Spain. She has written articles about eating disorders in magazines Latina and Siempre Mujer and her poetic prose was published in the anthology Ana y su anorexia . Tierra has presented excerpts of her manuscripts, “Casi desaparecida: Retorno al territorio de mi cuerpo” and “Reina de tu cuerpo,” in the US and Spain. Her performance piece, “Goddess/dam Body (CuerpOdiosa),” was featured on television in Seville. A co-founder of ShamansDance, a company dedicated to helping women and families transform their pain into power through the arts, she is also the Health and Food Editor of Siempre Mujer Magazine. She holds a B.A. from Hofstra University and studied Flamenco in Spain at the Cristina Hereen Flamenco Foundation and at the Academia de Flamenco de Manolo Marín.

Yarisa Colón Torres is a Puerto Rican poet and cultural activist who published her first book of poetry, Desvestida (Ediciones Mixta), as part of a literary/book-making project with artist Tanya Torres. She has also published other literary/artistic works, such as Pipas/Bellies (with Torres), Caja de Voces and ¿Entrelínea o Secuestro?. Colón also wrote for the newspaper Siempre (New York). She now resides in Puerto Rico and is a member of the literary group Las del Agua. Her artistic work has been featured in the US, Puerto Rico and France. She was recently invited to participate in the Center for Puerto Rican Studies’ project “Puerto Rican Writers: History and Context,” which aims at preserving literary work and sharing it with the public.

Eslin Morris Wright is a poet from Costa Rica who resides in New York. Her book of poetry is titled  Policromías a piel. Morris studied dance, music and fine arts at the Conservatorio de Castella (San José, Costa Rica).

She is a member of several literary workshops and groups in Queens and Manhattan (ConTextos, Fusión Atómica and Planetario) with whom she organizes events  to promote artistic expressions.

Morris also started her own literary/artistic space at www.artistadual.com.

Héctor Ruiz Díaz was born in Santa Fe, Argentina and resides in New York since 1989. Ruiz  has participated in creative writing workshops at Hostos Community College and the St. Mark's Poetry Project workshops.

His work was published in El Diario La Prensa and his short stories were anthologized in Los Pétalos del Martillo by the Dominican Workshop of New York. His anthologized poetry appeared in the 1996 Bronx Council of the Arts anthology Not Black and White. In 2007 he published three chap books: Tributario, Las Cuatro Estaciones del Amor and Poemas del mirador.

Juan Valenzuela is a playwright and theater director. Born in Monterrey, N.L. México in 1943, he studied at the U.A.N.L and the Theater Academy at Dallas Theater Center. In 1974 he moved to NYC, where he met and collaborated on literary projects with Miguel Algarín, Miguel Piñero and Pedro Pietri.

He directed over ten plays and events and authored plays; Trío for Cadaver Friends (1968), The Pink Error (1972), Another Error (1973), Saint Michelle (1979), Untitled Play (1986) and Love, Ambition and Destiny (2007).

Some of his plays have been staged at the Satori House (Texas), IATI (NY) and La Mama (NY). Valenzuela was a member of INTAR's and The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater's playwrights units with María Irene Fornes and Miriam Colón, respectively. Valenzuela will be reading excerpts from an unpublished work by Pedro Pietri, written in Spanish in México.

This event is generously funded by Boricua College.

This event is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.