October 17th 2026, was a night of pure celebration at The Traverse Theatre Bar. Alice Keeling launched her debut poetry book, The Warm Universe, and welcomed guests to the world of wonder. At first glance, the room was full of curious, lively poetry enthusiasts who I could tell shared similar qualities to Alice herself. I was lucky enough to sit in the front row and had a close-up view of a drawing Alice created that was the backdrop for stage presentation purposes.
Alice kicked off the event by reading two of her poems “Hope” and “My Past Life As A Feeling.” She was later joined by her co-founder of The New Ramsay Head Press, Mark Howitt, who was hosting the event. He cracked some jokes, interacted with the crowd, and later joined Alice on the stage for an interview.
She spoke honestly about how listening to music repetitively gives her writing inspiration and to do so she must feel empty headed. Alice believes that writing requires her to be close to things, in which they then become magical to her. A few questions and answers later, Alice began to read a couple more of her poems like “Toothbrush” and “Superset.”
Alice admitted during the interview that she underestimated how difficult it would be to publish a book. She mentioned that teaming up with Mark has completely given her the full creative freedom she needs in order to publish what she wants, how she wants, and when she wants. The two of them even touched on their commitments to the future of The New Ramsay Head Press.
Though, the event was not just full of Alice and her poems, but it also included other surprises in the mix with a few different performances.
Poet and friend of Alice Keeling, Nataile Elizabeth, got on stage and read a few of her poems, even joking with the crowd that she did not have enough ‘happy’ poems. Musician IRiD Crow came up next and sang three of his recently released songs. And lastly, multidisciplinary artist Doctor Zee closed out the night to some music and poetry where Alice’s brother and grandma even came on the stage to dance. The event lasted roughly two and a half hours.
Alice Keeling is an artist. She is constantly writing, drawing, and among other things, finding the love in everyday, ordinary objects. The Warm Universe has 20 poems and personal drawings that have been in the works for over five years now. The collection of poems explores themes of love, escape, and comfortability, while also keeping in mind that nothing must be consistent if it makes sense to you.
I think the event captured a beautiful beginning to Alice’s poetry career. I am especially looking forward to future events that include her as well as any of her future work.
