March 21 is World Poetry Day, and we have plenty of content available to help you discover, celebrate, and honor the vast contributions of poets, both past and present. Follow this guide to find poetry-related content from the AWM to make the most of today!
Join us next month for Get Lit: Verses & Visions!
While March 21 is World Poetry Day, April is National Poetry Month! In celebration, our Get Lit happy hour will be poetry-themed, and even includes an open mic! Learn more about the event and get tickets here.
Former U.S. Poet Laureates on AWM Author Talks
We’ve had the honor of hosting four former U.S. Poet Laureates—Joy Harjo, Natasha Trethewey, Juan Felipe Herrera, and Billy Collins—for author programs and you can listen to these fascinating conversations on the AWM Author Talks podcast. Harjo provided the keynote address at the American Writers Festival in May 2022.
Joy Harjo
Poet Warrior
Natasha Trethewey
Memorial Drive
Juan Felipe Herrera
Every Day We Get More Illegal
Billy Collins
Whale Day
LISTEN
Check out and subscribe to our podcasts if you are interested in hearing current poets discuss their work and the poets of the past who have inspired them.
- Glory Edim and Nikki Giovanni, herself an accomplished poet, get together to chat about their friend and mentor Maya Angelou.
- Louie Pérez, lead singer of Los Lobos, combines his lyrics, poetry, and art into a multi-faceted book, Good Morning, Aztlán.
- Award-winning poet Saeed Jones shares how he brought a poetic sensibility to his incredible memoir How We Fight For Our Lives.
READ
Read our blog for even more World Poetry Day content and learn about your favorite American Poets!
- Learn all about Walt Whitman’s life, writing, and enduring legacy in our blog post dedicated to the man himself.
- Adapted from our American Voices exhibit, read about the life and legacy of Langston Hughes, a key figure of the Harlem Renaissance.
- Get a crash course on the Beat Poets of the 50s and 60s like Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder, Jack Kerouac and more.
What a wonderful reminder of the power of poetry and its ability to connect us through generations. I especially enjoyed hearing Joy Harjo’s insights—she has such a calming yet powerful presence in her words.
As someone who writes both poetry and essays, I’ve found that studying structure in other forms of writing really helps refine my voice. I recently stumbled upon this collection of argumentative essay samples: https://studyhelper.com/argumentative-essay-samples — it’s surprisingly inspiring, even from a poetic angle.
Thanks to AWM for curating such rich content. Can’t wait for the Get Lit open mic—there’s nothing like hearing fresh voices live.