Resources for Poets in Solano County, California and surrounding areas.
Poetry Open Mics in Solano County
Below are ongoing Solano County open mics for poets and spoken word artists. Be aware that some may not meet on major holidays, so it’s best to google their individual pages.
- Poetry by The Bay: Poetry by the Bay meets at 51 Daniels Street on the 4th Wednesdays from 7 to 9:30 PM For more information visit www.facebook.com/PoetryByTheBay
- Benicia First Tuesday Poets: 6 to 8 PM at the Benicia Library on the first Tuesday of the month. 150 East L Street. Dona Benicia Room. https://benicialibrary.org/services/adults/poet-laureate
- Speakeasy Expressions: Poetry Night at Chris’ Club. 656 Benicia Road 21+ Select Mondays 6:30 PM Hosted by Remo See Chris’ Club on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chrisclubvallejo
- Poetry in Notion: Poetry Circle read around group meets second Saturdays at noon. Hosted by Vallejo’s Poets Laureate Kathleen Herrmann and Jacalyn Eyvonne. Meets in the Program Room. 505 Santa Clara.
Visit a listing of global online poetry open mics here: https://www.drdan.solutions/The_Global_Open_Mic2.htm
Hear Poetry on the Radio
- OZCAT radio 89.5 FM: The Art Beat Show on Thursdays. OZCAT re-airs Nina Serrano’s Literary Dialogues on the 2nd Thursday of the month. We have a open mic style live show ART BEAT Poetry Hour hosted by DJ LALA on the 4th Thursday of the month. Participants must be vaxxed and masked. Arrive at 1026 Georgia Street by 10:15 AM on the 4th Thursday. Schedule may change during winter holiday months. Email skipperwicky@gmail.com AND mullet.laura@gmail.com for more information.
- KPFA radio 94.1: Cover to Cover hosted by Jack Foley and Nina Serrano airs on the first and second Tuesdays at 2 PM.
- KALW has a program called Bay Poets that airs poetry – https://www.kalw.org/show/bay-poets
Local Publications and Contests
- The Benicia First Tuesday Poets host an annual Love Poetry Contest and bi-annual anthology. For more information go to https://benicialibrary.org/services/adults/poet-laureate
- Benicia Poet Laureate emerita Mary Susan Gast has a column in the Benicia Herald called Going the Distance/Yearning to Breathe Free. http://marysusangast.com/going-the-distance/
- The Lake County Bloom that publishes poetry submissions and gives a small royalty payment. https://www.lakecountybloom.com/category/artandlit/literature/poetry/
- The Suisun Valley Review and Carquinez Review are locally published journals.
County Fairs
If you’re thinking of entering, check each website in early spring for deadlines, as some fairs start early. Ribbons and cash premiums are available to win at each fair listed below. Follow directions carefully.
- The California State Fair does not currently have a poetry competition.
- Solano County Fair in Vallejo accepts poetry submissions from outside of the county, multiple categories, offers complimentary fair tickets. See website for specific submission details: http://www.scfair.com/
- Marin County Fair in San Rafael accepts poetry submissions from all over the United States, multiple categories. See website for specific submission details: https://www.marinfair.org/
- Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton accepts poetry submissions from outside of the county, offers performance opportunity, complimentary book of all exhibited poetry, complimentary fair tickets for Poetry Day. See website for specific submission details: http://alamedacountyfair.com
- San Mateo County Fair in San Mateo closed their literary arts program in 2022. It used to have an anthology, performances, workshops, and handsome payouts.
Resources for Youth and Young Poets
- Fairfield Poet Laureate Suzanne Bruce has a column called Poetry Connection in the Daily Republic that publishes student poetry all the way through college level. https://www.dailyrepublic.com/?s=poetry+connection&submit=Search
- Solano County has a Poetry Out Loud program where high school students can memorize a famous poem from a previously provided collection, and compete in city, county, state, and ultimately national competitions. http://www.poetryoutloud.org/
https://www.facebook.com/solanocountypoetryoutloud/ - California Poets in the Schools offers the services of poets in the classroom: https://www.californiapoets.org/
- The Solano County Library runs an annual writing contest in the fall and winners are published in the library’s Write On! magazine.
View even more resources on our publishing links page.