A selection of poetry (and occasionally other literary) events going on in the Cascadia region (Washington State and Pacific time except as noted) with links for more information. Some events may involve fees or admission charges. Information is current to the best of our knowledge; please confirm with venues for updates and featured poets.

To make a correction or add your event to the calendar, send an email to thepoetrydepartment at gmail with the following information (required): date, city, brief description, time, venue, link for more information.

Every Week

Mondays in EverettEverett Poetry Night: poetry and acoustic music at the Sister’s Restaurant – 5:00pm

Mondays in SeattleEasy Speak Seattle hosts a featured reader and open mic the 2nd and 4th Monday

Mondays in SeattleThe Magic Hat – 7:00pm – the basement of The Rendezvous [October 2022 still on hiatus]

Mondays in Vancouver, BCVancouver Poetry Slam (VanSlam) feature plus open mic – 7:00pm

Wednesdays in Eugene, ORLane Writers Network Page 5 All Poetry Open Mic – at Alluvium – 7:00pm

Wednesdays in SeattleWrite Time Poetry, a weekly drop-in writing circle for teens at Hugo House (meets during the school year)

Wednesdays in SeattleOpen Mic Night: music, poems, dance, comedy, stories – 7:00pm – at Couth Buzzard Books

Wednesdays in SeattlePoetryBridge LIVE! – email info@poetrybridge.net for weekly Zoom links

Wednesdays in SpokaneBroken Mic featured poet plus open mic at Neato Burrito

Thursdays in Salem, ORThe Salem Poetry Project presents a featured reader followed by open mic – 7:00pm – at IKE Box Coffee Shop

Fridays in Victoria, BCPlanet Earth Poetry featured poets plus open mic – 7:30pm – at Hillside Coffee and Tea

Confirm specific dates and featured poets with organization or venue; schedules may shift on short notice or be adjusted around holidays.

first Monday – AuburnStriped Water Poets: featured poet(s) plus open mic – 7:00pm – at the Rainbow Café

second and fourth MondaysBellingham – VB Writes Prompts – 4:00pm – at Village Books, Fairhaven

third MondayCamasPoetry Open Mic Gathering – doors 6:15pm – at Camas Public Library

third MondayLake Forest Parkopen mic night for Washington writers – 7:00pm – at Third Place Books

third Monday – TacomaCreative Colloquy presents featured readers plus open mic – 7:00pm – at Pint & Pie

last Monday – BellinghamOpen mic night – 7:00pm – in the Readings Gallery at Village Books

second Tuesday – Edmonds – free, public, EPIC Poetry Group meets monthly to express and improve poetry writing skills – 6:00-7:45pm – at the Edmonds Library

first and third WednesdaysBellingham – VB Writes Poetry II – 10:15am – at Village Books, Fairhaven

first Wednesday – DuvallDuvall Poetry, open mic plus featured poet – open mic 7:00pm, feature 7:30pm – at Duvall Library

second Wednesday – BellinghamChuckanut Sandstone Writers Theater Open Mic – signups 6:30pm, readings 7:00pm – at The Happy Place

second Wednesday – Milwaukie, ORThe Milwaukie Poetry Series at the Community Room at the Ledding Library and streaming online – 6:00pm

third Wednesday – BellinghamCreekside Open Mic – signups 6:00pm, readings 6:30pm – at Creekside Cafe, Sudden Valley Community Center

third Wednesday – LaGrange, OR – Art Center East Writing Project featured author plus open mic – 6:45pm

third Wednesday – OlympiaThe Olympia Poetry Network monthly reading with featured poet and open mic – 6:00pm – at Traditions Fair Trade

fourth Wednesday – TietonFUEL: monthly feature plus open mic – 6:30pm

last Wednesday – BellinghamWhatcom Writers and Publishers – 5:30pm – at Brandywine Kitchen

first Thursday – Pendleton Center for the Arts First Draft Writers’ Series – 7:00pm

first and third Thursdays – Bellingham – VB Writes Poetry I – 5:30pm – at Village Books, Fairhaven

second Thursday – Seattle (Ballard)It’s About Time Writers Reading Series, featured readers, open mic, presentation on the writer’s craft – 6:00pm – at Ballard Branch of The Seattle Public Library

second Thursday – SeattleAfrican American Writers Alliance (see website for additional dates and locations) – 7:00pm – at Third Place Books, Seward Park

second Thursday (with occasional exceptions) – Haiku Northwest

second Thursday – VancouverGhost Town Poetry Open Mic with featured reader – signup 6:30pm – at Angst Gallery

third Thursday – Bellingham – Monthly poetry night hosted by Matt Eiford at Honey Moon Mead & Cider with feature plus open mic – signup 6:30pm

third Thursday – Pendleton, OR – First Draft Writers’ Series: feature plus open mic – 7:00pm

third Thursday – RedmondSoulFood Poetry Night, with featured reader and open mic – 7:00pm – at SoulFood Coffee House

last Friday – RedmondRASP: Redmond Association of Spokenword, open mic plus feature – signup 6:30pm, reading 7:00pm – online

first Saturday – BellinghamRed Wheelbarrow Writers: Writers’ Happy Hour – 4:00pm – on Zoom

second and fourth Saturdays – Lynden – VB Writes Nooksack River Writing Group – 10:00am – at Village Books, Lynden

last Saturday, September through May – River Road Reading Series – 4:30pm

March

1-31 – Whatcom County – Submissions open for Sue C. Boynton Poetry Contest

19 – Olympia – Poetry Panel with Lauren Davis, Anne Leigh Parrish, and Liz Kellebrew – 4:00pm

19 – Vashon – Poetry event features works by four island poets, plus cake – 7:00pm

20 – Seattle – Donna Spruijt-Metz with Suzanne Edison – 7:00pm

21 – Seattle – Charif Shanahan with Luther Hughes and Jane Wong – 7:00pm

22 – Bellingham – Whatcom Writers and Publishers dinner meeting – 5:30pm

23 – BIRTHDAYLana Hechtman Ayers

25 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Bill Porter/Red Pine and Finn Wilcox – 7:00pm

April

1-30National Poetry Month U.S., National Poetry Month Canada, and NaPoWriMo

3 – Portland, OR – 2023 Oregon Book Awards ceremony – 7:30pm

3 – Seattle and online – Chris Abani: In‑Person & Online – 7:30pm

4 – BIRTHDAYAnita K. Boyle

5 – Seattle – Laurie Blauner, Richard Robbins, and Abigail Prout – 7:00pm

7 – everywhere – Poet in a Cupcake Day (yep, it’s a thing)

8 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Alice Derry and Kate Reavey- 7:00pm

11 – BIRTHDAYMaria McLeod

13 – McMinnville, OR – Poetry Night @ the Library – 6:00pm

14 – BIRTHDAYJericho Brown

14 – Seattle – Anastacia-Reneé reads from her latest collection, Side Notes from the Archivist – 7:00pm

15 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Claudia Castro Luna, Susan Rich, and Kathleen Flenniken – 7:00pm

16 – BIRTHDAYTracy K. Smith

20 – Portland, OR – Portland Arts & Lectures presents Ada Limón – 7:00pm

20-23 – McAllen, TX – Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival

22 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Kevin Murphy and Randy Dills – 7:00pm

23 – BIRTHDAYSColeman Barks, Halldór Laxness

24 – Seattle – Reception/Reading for THIS LIGHT CALLED DARKNESS, A RAVEN CHRONICLES ANTHOLOGY – 7:00pm

25 – BIRTHDAYSTed Kooser, James Fenton

27 – Portland, OR – Verselandia! 2023 – 7:00pm

28 – BIRTHDAYSCarolyn Forché, Roberto Bolaño

28 – Seattle – Hugo Lit Series | Second Chances: Danez Smith, Rachel Khong, Marci Calabretta Cancio-Bello, Zan Fiskum – 7:00pm

29 – BIRTHDAYSC.P. Cavafy, Yusef Komunyakaa

29 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Michael Daley and Gary Copeland Lilley – 7:00pm

30 – EverywherePoem in Your Pocket Day

May

2 – BIRTHDAY – Rob Lewis

4 – Tacoma – Passing of the (Washington State Poet Laureate) Laurel 2023 – 7:00pm

8 – BIRTHDAYS – Nora Marks Keixwnéi Dauenhauer, Phillis Wheatley

8-10 – Poetry Out Loud National Finals

9 – BIRTHDAYSCharles Simic, Dan Chiasson, Joy Harjo

11 – McMinnville, OR – Poetry Night @ the Library – 6:00pm

12 – BIRTHDAYBernadette Mayer

14 – BIRTHDAYSElizabeth Austen, Lea Galanter

24 – BIRTHDAYSTom Phillips; Lorna Crozier

27 – Anacortes – Pelican Bay Books Madrona Project Reading Series featuring Jeremy Voigt and Tom Aslin – 7:00pm

30 – BIRTHDAYCountee Cullen

31 – BIRTHDAYWalt Whitman

June

2 – Seattle – Hugo Lit Series | Conversion: Jos Charles, Sequoia Nagamatsu, Putsata Reang, Lucia Flores-Wiseman – 7:00pm

2-3 – Orcas Island – Orcas Island Lit Fest

3 – BIRTHDAYAllen Ginsberg (June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997); Kat Smith (b. June 3, 1977)

5 – BIRTHDAYSFederico García Lorca (June 5, 1898 – August 18, 1936), David Wagoner (June 5, 1926 – December 18, 2021)

7 – BIRTHDAYSGwendolyn Brooks, Nikki Giovanni

16 – Ireland & elsewhereBloomsday

21 – BIRTHDAYSheila Sondik

28 – July 2 – Cincinnati, OH – Haiku North America

July

2 – BIRTHDAYSWisława Szymborska, Carolyne Wright, Lee Maracle

9 – BIRTHDAYSusan Rich

16 – BIRTHDAYRobert Lashley

16-22 – Port Townsend – Port Townsend Writers Conference

19 – BIRTHDAY – Alice Dunbar Nelson

31 – BIRTHDAYKim Addonizio

August

1-31Poetry Postcard Fest

1-31 – The Sealey Challenge

2 – BIRTHDAYJames Baldwin

3 – BIRTHDAYDiane Wakoski

5 – BIRTHDAYSWendell Berry, Ron Silliman; José Garcia Villa

20 – BIRTHDAYHeather McHugh

28 – BIRTHDAYRita Dove

September

5 – BIRTHDAYNicanor Parra

10 – BIRTHDAYMary Oliver

11 – BIRTHDAY – Ryler Dustin, Michael Schmeltzer

3 – BIRTHDAYBill Porter (Red Pine)

4 – BIRTHDAYJames Bertolino, Susan J. Erickson

14 – BIRTHDAYOcean Vuong

15 – BIRTHDAYKim Stafford

18-22 – Frankfurt, Germany – 75th Annual Frankfurt Book Fair (Frankfurter Buchmesse)

1-30 – everywhere – National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)

December

2 – BIRTHDAYSamuel Green

11 – BIRTHDAYKatharine Whitcomb

29 – BIRTHDAY – Luci N. Shaw

January

2 – BIRTHDAYJimmy Santiago Baca

3 – BIRTHDAYRenee Sarojini Saklikar

9 – BIRTHDAYKelli Russell Agodon

13 – BIRTHDAYMegan Snyder-Camp

17 – BIRTHDAYWilliam Stafford

20 – BIRTHDAYErnesto Cardenal, Edward Hirsch, Bruce Beasley

21 – BIRTHDAY – Forrest Gander

22 – BIRTHDAYLuther Allen

25 – BIRTHDAY – Robert Burns (January 25, 1759 – July 21, 1796)

31 – BIRTHDAYAlbert Goldbarth

February

1-28 – everywhereNational Haiku Writing Month (NaHaiWriMo)

1 – BIRTHDAYSGalway Kinnell, Joannie Stangeland, Reginald Dwayne Betts

2 – BIRTHDAY – James Joyce

3 – BIRTHDAYS – Gertrude Stein, Gregory Orr

4 – BIRTHDAYSJanice Mirikitani, Agha Shahid Ali, Elizabeth Vignali

6 – BIRTHDAYSVictor Hernández Cruz,Craig Santos Perez, Rena Priest

7 – BIRTHDAY – Rickey Laurentiis

19 – BIRTHDAYRick Barot

25 – BIRTHDAYElizabeth J. Colen

27 – BIRTHDAYOliver de la Paz

March

1-31 – Whatcom County – Submissions open for Sue C. Boynton Poetry Contest

1 – BIRTHDAYBrenda Miller

5 – BIRTHDAYLeslie Marmon Silko

12 – BIRTHDAYNaomi Shihab Nye

18 – BIRTHDAYWilfred Owen

6 Responses to “CALENDAR”

  1. ML Says:

    Hi: I’m with the Skagit River Poetry Foundation. How do we submit events to your calendar? Thanks!

  2. Christina Butcher Says:

    Hi, I would love to submit a few events on behalf of Creative Colloquy, a literary journal based out of Tacoma, WA. Is it possible to get our Creative Colloquy call for submissions and upcoming events added?

    • jik Says:

      Be delighted to include Creative Colloquy — and have in the past when I’ve happened across your events. Please check your email. I’ve sent you a note with details. Thanks!


  3. 2nd Fridays every month in Tacoma…
    Puget Sound Poetry Connection – Distinguished Writer Series.
    New location, quieter, roomier, plenty of parking, easy to find.
    We’re at http://www.pugetsoundpoetryconnection.org with links on the pages to Instagram, Twitter, FaceBook & driving directions. Plus we have monthly themed open mic contests with prizes!


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