Fresno̢۪s literary community came together to celebrate and enjoy the power of the written word on Oct. 4 during the annual California State University, Fresno Master of Fine Arts, Creative Writing faculty reading at the Fresno Art Museum.

The event, sponsored by the Fresno Poets̢۪ Association, gave MFA faculty members a chance to try out their latest works on a live audience.

C.G. Hanzlicek, a poet and former MFA professor at CSUF, leads the Fresno Poets̢۪ Association.

Durham, whose novel “Gabrielâ€Â was picked best of 2001 by the L.A. Times, read from several novels. One excerpt, from his novel “Pride of Carthage,â€Â a fictional exploration of the second Punic war, Durham tells the perspective of a young female camp follower who comes upon the ravaged remains of those who have fallen after a battle.

Alex Espinoza read an excerpt from his novel “Still Water Saints,â€Â in which a young woman who has had a baby too early muses on how her friend Precious also wants a baby, but not for the right reasons. The young woman recalls how in a moment when she looked away from her own daughter, the girl hit her head and was bleeding:

Jo Scalzo, a fiction student in the MFA program, said she was highly impressed with Espinoza̢۪s talents as a writer and reader after hearing him read.

“I loved how he took on the persona of that character,â€Â Scalzo said. “When he talked for the character, it was believable as a woman’s voice. Listening to him read was like watching a performance.â€Â

Another reader who won high praise for reading technique from many in the audience was Steven Church, an MFA professor of nonfiction, who also runs CSUF’s forthcoming national literary journal, “The Normal School.â€Â

“I loved Steven Church’s reading,â€Â Scalzo said. “It was absolutely hysterical.â€Â

Another faculty member who dealt with post-apocalyptic themes was nonfiction writer John Hales, who read from a work inspired by “King Lear,â€Â called “Everyone Dies.â€Â He was influenced by the pulp fiction novel “On the Beach,â€Â by Nevil Shulte. Set in the early 1960s after World War II, “On the Beachâ€Â tells of attempts at survival by a nuclear submarine captain and his girlfriend, who try to survive in the southern hemisphere of the planet after all life in the northern hemisphere has been destroyed by nuclear fallout.

“This was one of those books from the pre-English-major days, that was probably badly written, and not literature, but still made quite an impact on me,â€Â Hales said. “It dealt with sex, sports car races and complete annihilation.â€Â

Poetry professor Corrine Clegg Hales read two beautiful, moving poems. The first dealt with her mother, who is dying of cancer and is under the care of a sister in Missouri. At the end of the poem, Hales imagines her mother and sister looking out a window.

Poetry student Leela Sannyasin said she was delighted to hear both Hales and fellow poetry professor, Tim Skeen.

“It’s always exciting to get to hear the new poems [Hales and Skeen] are writing,â€Â Sannyasin said.

Skeen also dealt with family in many of the selections he read. In “Colony Collapse Disorder,â€Â he spoke of the moving experience of finding a bee “spinningâ€Â with his young daughter, Iris, who was suffering from the mysterious aliment which has devastated the Central Valley’s honeybees in the last year. He told of how his daughter named the bee “Rainbow,â€Â and the two gently put the ailing insect on a bush in hopes it would survive.

Following the reading, Skeen noticed that readings give poets a vital opportunity to see audience reaction to their works, which can lead to richer poems in the process of revision.

The Fresno Poets’ Association holds monthly readings and events at the Fresno Art Museum. All take place at 7:30 p.m. Next up will be poet Robert Mezey on Nov. 1. His most recent work is his “Collected Poems, 1952-1999â€Â from the University of Arkansas Press.

On Dec. 6, Fresno poet Brian Turner will read from his debut book, “Here, Bullet,â€Â which deals with his perspective as a soldier in the Iraq War and has won seven major prizes for poetry.

Hanzlicek said he is excited about the Feb. 7, 2008 event at the Fresno Art Museum which will honor the 80th birthday of poet and former CSUF faculty member Philip Levine, a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner.

Former MFA professor Hanzlicek credits Levine and Fresno State colleague Peter Everwine for creating the rich literary community in Fresno, which has become known for producing some of the most dynamic poets and writers in America.

“Both Phil and Peter had a tremendous impact on their students,â€Â Hanzilcek said. “And so many of those students were working class kids, who were willing to work very hard at becoming good poets. They were not afraid of the hard work necessary to achieve greatness.â€Â