Mad Swirl

07/23/2026

"Cogitatio II" by Featured Artist Karina Horgas

To see ALL of Karina’s curiously intricate and richly imagined works, as well as the rest of our Resident Artist’s works, visit our Mad Gallery!

madswirl.com/gallery/

(link also in bio)

07/23/2026

Here's what's swirlin' today in Mad Swirl's Poetry Forum...

“Somehow” by Contributing Poet Stephen Jarrell Williams

Here's what Poetry Editor MH Clay has to say about today's featured poem: "What’s done today can make it so."

To read THIS poem & even MORE mad poetry & prose & peruse some swirlin' art too, please visit MadSwirl.com!

Being too young a blessing the sky never ending beliefs flowing through hearts yesterday will never be again but somehow much much more….

07/22/2026

Mad Swirl Open Mic : 08.05.26 : Featuring Tyler Malone

Join Mad Swirl this 1st Wednesday of August (aka 08.05.26) when we’ll be doin’ the open mic voodoo that we do at Barbara's Pavillion!

We will get things started with some grooves brought to you by special musical guest, Tocayo starring Carlos Salas! Then, starting at 8pm(ish), hosts Johnny O & MH Clay will set the stage for some open mic madness!

This month we will be featuring Tyler Malone & launching his book “Son of a Chicken Killer“ (brought to you by Mad Swirl Press). Here’s a bit about Tyler & his book:

Tyler Malone is from Texas and lives in the United States (for now.) He’s a photographer and poet who’s working on his first novel. "Son of a Chicken Killer" is his only first book worth mentioning.

Taking care of the art of others has been a long-lasting source of volcanic bliss, and he knows so because he’s been the Short Story Editor for Mad Swirl since 2012. He’s seen the world through stories up to 1,000 words, and they have filled the space between his ears and Earth’s upper atmosphere.

Come one. Come all.

Come to participate…

(preRSVP HERE on this Facebook event page ~OR~ send a message to [email protected])

Come to swirlabrate…

(join us LIVE at Barbara’s Pavillion- located at 323 Centre St, Dallas OR watch us on Facebook LIVE)

Come to be a part of this collective creative love child we affectionately call… Mad Swirl Open Mic!

Here’s the remaining 2026 features:

September: Tejana Cósmica
October: Trier Ward
November: 22 Years of Mad Swirl Open Mic Swirlabration
December: Holidaze Hijinx

And here’s a sneak-peek at 2027’s features:

Jan – Christopher Soden
Feb – Tony Robinon
Mar – Best of 2026 Anthology Launch
Apr – James Gregory Cisneros
May – Brian Duran-Fuentes
Jun – Victory
Jul – David Shannon & Cynthia Miro
Aug – Johnny O & Cheyenne Gallion
Sep – Ely Sellers
Oct – Michael Lagocki
Nov – 23rd Anniversary Show
Dec – Holiday Hijinx Show

07/22/2026

Here's what's swirlin' today in Mad Swirl's Poetry Forum...

“The wind that whispered” by Contributing Poet Soumya Doralli

Here's what Poetry Editor MH Clay has to say about today's featured poem:

"What it’s like to be the wind’s trinket. (Congratulations to Soumya on the release of her new novel, Those Ripples Call Me Home. For this, she won The Legacy of Literature Award, 2026 by The Literature Times in the best coming-of-age fiction category. Link in comments)"

To read THIS poem & even MORE mad poetry & prose & peruse some swirlin' art too, please visit MadSwirl.com!

These thoughts of the wind whispering a secret and then minding its own business befuddle me. I hold open the rivulet meandering through my skin, inch by inch, seeking a parched patch of land. It d…

07/21/2026

If gettin' in a read is on your schedule today, then "What Dreams Are Made Of"
by Contributing Writer David Sydney will find you checkin' that box!

Here's how this scheduled story starts:

THE NIGHT BEFORE

Mel couldn’t sleep well. He had an appointment with his dentist, Dr. Fromberg, in the morning. None of Sam Fromberg’s patients could sleep well the night before an appointment. Mel had a lumpy mattress, which didn’t help either.

TEETH

Whenever he faced a dental appointment, Mel thought seriously about his teeth, which otherwise he didn’t think about. He also brushed his teeth vigorously the night before seeing Dr. Fromberg in the hope of improving his, well, standing in the eyes of his dentist, if sitting in a dental chair with his mouth open, packed with cotton and dental devices could be called standing.

AIDS

Toothpaste is a dental aid, so Mel used plenty of toothpaste the night before. But he needed sleeping aids. That’s where Xanax came in. That’s where trazodone came in. Otherwise, Mel never could’ve slept.

THE MORNING OF

He awoke for his appointment. But what the hell … An extra Xanax and trazodone in the morning after he brushed his teeth one last time – maybe a few extra – right, he needed them, his aids that doubled as anti-anxiety medication. So, yes, staggering back to a lumpy mattress, Mel could then kiss Sam Fromberg’s appointment goodbye...

Get the WHOLE DAY of events at MadSwirl.com!

(photo "Choices (One Choice)" by Tyler Malone)

THE NIGHT BEFORE Mel couldn’t sleep well. He had an appointment with his dentist, Dr. Fromberg, in the morning. None of Sam Fromberg’s patients could sleep well the night before an appo…

07/21/2026

Happy Two-fer Tuesday! Here's the 2ND poem swirlin' today in Mad Swirl's Poetry Forum...

“Standing Room Only” by Contributing Poet Ian Mullins

Here's what Poetry Editor MH Clay has to say this one: "And with AI, we won’t have to go at all but still wait in line."

To read THIS poem & even MORE mad poetry & prose & peruse some swirlin' art too, please visit MadSwirl.com!

Is there a booking fee? I suspect there is. You give them your details and you invent a password; the only part requiring creativity. But you don’t trust the password forest you hack every day, so …

07/21/2026

Happy Two-fer Tuesday! Here's the 1ST poem swirlin' today in Mad Swirl's Poetry Forum...

“Steel Ball Run” by Contributing Poet Brian Duran-Fuentes

Here's what Poetry Editor MH Clay has to say this one: "It takes big ones to work on your star tan."

To read THIS poem & even MORE mad poetry & prose & peruse some swirlin' art too, please visit MadSwirl.com!

To chase the cross inverted at the bottom of the undulated shot glass, in dreams of grasshoppers summoned to a circle of earth and fire. To possess as ghostly ripple a stomach that floats in the ra…

07/20/2026

Here's what's swirlin' today in Mad Swirl's Poetry Forum...

“Characters in search of a playwright” by Guest Poet Janette Schafer

Here's what Poetry Editor MH Clay has to say about today's featured poem: "No open heart perjury here."

To read THIS poem & even MORE mad poetry & prose & peruse some swirlin' art too, please visit MadSwirl.com!

John whispers his first words in my ear, and I make space in my brain for him. He is not like Virginia, who walked in triumphantly, sure of her place among the props and scenery. He is sly, calcula…