Issue Four |
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Audio Section
Poetry
Fiction
Voice Performers of BLJ Issue 4
Lawrence Chun-wai Ma is a Primary Four student in Hong Kong. He is particularly interested in English speech performances and has won the top prize in Storytelling (P.3-4) in the 9th Hong Kong Students Open Speech Competition. While he is busy with “Pokemon Go”, a lot of his private time is devoted to video-making of himself doing youtuber-ish things, as a preparation of his potential future career.
Nicholas Froumis practices optometry in the Bay Area. His writing has recently appeared in Right Hand Pointing, Dime Show Review, TWJ Magazine, The Society of Classical Poets Journal, Calvary Cross, and Touch: The Journal of Healing. He lives in San Jose, CA with his wife, novelist Stacy Froumis, and their daughter. The story he performs here, “Hot Lava”, is his own work.
Jacqueline Jules is the author of 30 books for young readers including the Zapato Power series, the Sofia Martinez series, Feathers for Peacock, and Never Say a Mean Word Again. Her poetry has appeared in The Poetry Friday Anthologies, Cricket, Cicada, and over a hundred other publications. If she is not out talking about books and poetry at schools, she is home writing and exercising. Visit her online at www.jacquelinejules.com. The poem she performs here, “Waiting”, is her own work.
Sherry Merrow Schwartzman was an elementary school teacher for more than 25 years. For most of those years she taught first grade, a grade where many, many children learn to read. To encourage a love of reading and a desire to learn to read, over the years she spent many hours reading to the children in her classes. She continues to visit classrooms carrying her bag of books, always ready to read. To quote her, “Give me a few books, a few kids to share them with and that is a perfect way to spend my day.”
William Freeman lives in Florence, Alabama, and works in customer service through Southeast Virtual Solutions. He is also a professional puppeteer, working both in both hand & string, and a local community theatre actor starting in 1982 & 1989 respectively. He is a volunteer board member with the Shoals Theatre Inc. in Florence, and also with the Official Alabama Renaissance Faire also held in Florence, where he portrays the Herald & Steward to the King & Queen for the weekend.
Justin Chun-hei Lee is currently a Secondary 3 (Grade 9) student in Hong Kong. He loves reading and performing English materials. He was a winner with Honours (scored 90+) at the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival in verse speaking. He attained Grade 8 with distinction in the Trinity Guildhall examination (Performing Text) in his first attempt to take a speech & drama examination.
Tanya Kempston is a lecturer at the Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong and has been a lover of drama and poetry since her youngest years. She firmly believes in the power of literature as a humanizing agent and loves reading stories to her little girl every night at bedtime. She has adjudicated the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival for years.
Kwok Chun Wang Tom is a Secondary 1 (Grade 7) student. He is a two-time English verse-speaking winner at the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival and three-time English verse-speaking winner in his school’s annual speech event, “Speech Gala”. He passed with distinction in the Grade 8 London College of Music examination in Speech & Drama. Besides performing texts, he writes poetry, swims, plays the clarinet, paints and reads a lot. He lives in Hong Kong with his parents and sister.
Claire Mei-yee Leung was born and raised in Hong Kong. She received her M.F.A. in creative writing in English at the University of Hong Kong. Her poems have been published in CU Writing in English, HKU Creative Writers, and Imprint 2011. She also writes short stories, such as “The Birthmark” which appeared in CU Writing in English, and plays. Her play “The Grande Barbie Doll” was awarded “Outstanding Script” in the 2010 EMI Secondary School English Drama Festival (Hong Kong). She is currently a home director residing in Chicago with her loving husband.
Nicholas Froumis practices optometry in the Bay Area. His writing has recently appeared in Right Hand Pointing, Dime Show Review, TWJ Magazine, The Society of Classical Poets Journal, Calvary Cross, and Touch: The Journal of Healing. He lives in San Jose, CA with his wife, novelist Stacy Froumis, and their daughter. The story he performs here, “Hot Lava”, is his own work.
Jacqueline Jules is the author of 30 books for young readers including the Zapato Power series, the Sofia Martinez series, Feathers for Peacock, and Never Say a Mean Word Again. Her poetry has appeared in The Poetry Friday Anthologies, Cricket, Cicada, and over a hundred other publications. If she is not out talking about books and poetry at schools, she is home writing and exercising. Visit her online at www.jacquelinejules.com. The poem she performs here, “Waiting”, is her own work.
Sherry Merrow Schwartzman was an elementary school teacher for more than 25 years. For most of those years she taught first grade, a grade where many, many children learn to read. To encourage a love of reading and a desire to learn to read, over the years she spent many hours reading to the children in her classes. She continues to visit classrooms carrying her bag of books, always ready to read. To quote her, “Give me a few books, a few kids to share them with and that is a perfect way to spend my day.”
William Freeman lives in Florence, Alabama, and works in customer service through Southeast Virtual Solutions. He is also a professional puppeteer, working both in both hand & string, and a local community theatre actor starting in 1982 & 1989 respectively. He is a volunteer board member with the Shoals Theatre Inc. in Florence, and also with the Official Alabama Renaissance Faire also held in Florence, where he portrays the Herald & Steward to the King & Queen for the weekend.
Justin Chun-hei Lee is currently a Secondary 3 (Grade 9) student in Hong Kong. He loves reading and performing English materials. He was a winner with Honours (scored 90+) at the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival in verse speaking. He attained Grade 8 with distinction in the Trinity Guildhall examination (Performing Text) in his first attempt to take a speech & drama examination.
Tanya Kempston is a lecturer at the Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong and has been a lover of drama and poetry since her youngest years. She firmly believes in the power of literature as a humanizing agent and loves reading stories to her little girl every night at bedtime. She has adjudicated the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival for years.
Kwok Chun Wang Tom is a Secondary 1 (Grade 7) student. He is a two-time English verse-speaking winner at the Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival and three-time English verse-speaking winner in his school’s annual speech event, “Speech Gala”. He passed with distinction in the Grade 8 London College of Music examination in Speech & Drama. Besides performing texts, he writes poetry, swims, plays the clarinet, paints and reads a lot. He lives in Hong Kong with his parents and sister.
Claire Mei-yee Leung was born and raised in Hong Kong. She received her M.F.A. in creative writing in English at the University of Hong Kong. Her poems have been published in CU Writing in English, HKU Creative Writers, and Imprint 2011. She also writes short stories, such as “The Birthmark” which appeared in CU Writing in English, and plays. Her play “The Grande Barbie Doll” was awarded “Outstanding Script” in the 2010 EMI Secondary School English Drama Festival (Hong Kong). She is currently a home director residing in Chicago with her loving husband.
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ISSN 2520-0372 (Online)
ISSN 2520-3169 (Print)
ISSN 2520-0372 (Online)
ISSN 2520-3169 (Print)