Matthew Henry's Promises To Keep Reading and Book Signing
2026-05-12 18:00 - 19:30 (America/New_York) | TidePool Bookshop, 372 Chandler St. Unit 101, Worcester, MA, 01602
Join us for a reading, discussion and book signing of poet Matthew Henry’s “Promises to Keep.”

About the collection:

It’s an old story: a church-going family man receives a violent call to become a prophet. He’s read the source material, knows how this has ended for others. But without a means of running away, he reluctantly accepts a vocation he rightly fears will result in tragedy for his family. While receiving dreams and visions, delivering sermons and prayers, frequenting political protests and police stations, being placed in handcuffs and straitjackets, the prophet attempts to speak truth to power and make it home whole, if there is a home left to return to. Promises to Keep explores the fear and trembling and doubt required to have faith in ourselves, each other, and whatever forces may be guiding our steps. It demands we consider what we devote our lives to, what we say we love, and whether the cost of such devotion is worth it.

About the poet:

Matthew E. Henry (MEH) is an educator, essayist, occasional fiction writer, and the author of seven poetry collections, most recently Promises to Keep (Wayfarer Books, 2026). He’s editor-in-chief of The Weight Journal and nonfiction editor at Porcupine Literary. MEH’s publications include Had, Lily Poetry, Massachusetts Review, Mom Egg Review, Pangyrus, Ploughshares, Stone Circle Review, Terrain, Whale Road Review, and The Worcester Review. MEH earned an MFA yet continued to spend money he didn’t have completing an MA in theology and a PhD in education. He writes about education, race, religion, and burning oppressive systems to the ground at www.MEHPoeting.com.

Parent-Writer Social Hour
2026-05-15 10:00 - 11:30 | Zoom Online Meeting, United States

Booklovers' Gourmet Open Mic 5/16
2026-05-16 14:00 - 16:00 | Booklover’s Gourmet
Join us for a monthly round robin style, open poetry reading hosted by Robert Eugene Perry. Space for the open mic is limited to 14 and usually fills up quickly.

Please call 508 949 6232 or email deb@bookloversgourmet.com to register.

All are welcome to come listen!

Poets at Large Presents Finnegan & Kaci
2026-05-16 19:00 - 21:30 | Vanilla Bean Cafe, 450 Deerfield Road, Pomfret, CT, 06259, United States
Poets at Large will bring some new voices and their work to the area on Saturday night, May 16th , at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café, 450 Deerfield Road, in Pomfret, CT. The featured readers that night will be West Hartford’s James Finnegan and Irena Kaci of Worcester, MA.

Admission is free and donations are welcome.

James Finnegan has published poems in Ploughshares, Poetry Northwest, The Southern Review, The Virginia Quarterly Review, as well as in the anthologies: Good Poems: American Places edited by Garrison Keillor; Laureates of Connecticut; Shadows of Unfinished Things; Imagining Vesalius; Waking Up to the Earth; and Of Hartford in Many Lights. For a decade he served as president of the Friends & Enemies of Wallace Stevens (stevenspoetry.org). He posts aphoristic ars poetica on the blog ursprache https://ursprache.blogspot.com and maintains CT-lit, a state-wide email list that connects Connecticut poets to each other with updates on their achievements and activities.

Irena Kaçi is a poet and writer living in Worcester, MA with her spouse and two children and is a graduate of Clark University. She writes for Pulse Magazine, and is a Poetry Editor in Residence for the Worcester Writers’ Collective. She also serves as Executive Director for the Worcester County Poetry Association. Her work has appeared in the Worcester Review, Atticus Review, Blue Mountain Review and others.

Poets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. Readings for the rest of the season are sponsored in part by donations from bankHometown, Charter Oak FCU, WHZ Financial and The Putnam Area Foundation. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.

New Dawn Poetry Workshop
2026-05-19 19:00 - 20:30 | New Dawn Center, 84 Main St., Ashburnham, MA, 01607, United States
New Dawn Poetry Workshop: Come out to the New Dawn Writers’ Group’s Poetry Workshop. Every third Tuesday from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. We will discuss poems and writing, write to prompts, give feedback, encourage one another, and discuss upcoming projects. It’s a friendly, pressure-free atmosphere at the New Dawn Arts Center in Ashburnham. Many of our poets have had books come since joining the workshop. Join in the fun! The address is 84 Main Street, Ashburnham, MA. The workshop is being led by Fred Gerhard.

Fred Gerhard leads the Poetry Workshop. His poems appear innumerous anthologies and magazines. His is the author of two poetry books, Drifting to “Hello” (Khotso Publishing), and Lilacs Still Bloom in Ashburnham: Songs of Spring (Local Gems Poetry Press).He is also an editor at Quabbin Quills Press and Smoky Quartz. For many years he led a poetry therapy group in Worcester at UMASS Memorial’s Community HealthLink. More about him can be found at FredGerhard.com.

Worcester Poetry Archive Discovery Day
2026-05-23 11:00 - 14:00 | Museum of Worcester, 30 Elm Street, Worcester, Massachusetts, 01609, United States

Slightly Off-Beat Poets
2026-05-24 13:00 - 16:00 | Steve Veilleux’s Home, 112 Fabyan-Woodstock North Road, Grosvenordale, CT, 06255, United States
WHAT: Slightly Off-beat Poets Presents: Linda Wlodyka & Bill Tremblay

WHERE: Steve Veilleux’s home 112 Fabyan-Woodstock Road N Grosvenordale, CT

WHEN: Sunday May 24th @ 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

WHAT HAPPENS: Our feature poets of the month will each read for 20 minutes. Then we will take a quick break for book sales, snacks, and the raffle before starting the open mic. Open mic will be round robin, one poem at a time until 4 PM.

COST: There will be a 50/50 raffle, split between the feature and the winner. 5$ to enter.

SIGN-UPS: There is room for 20 POETS. To reserve a spot please email: roberteugeneperry@gmail.com

Linda Bratcher Wlodyka is the Emerita Massachusetts Beat Poet Laureate (2023-2025). Her poem, “Secret Cottage,” was voted Best in the Berkshires (2012). Linda self-published 3 chapbooks, Her Spirited Cameo, Voices from the Blue Room and Tick Tock prior to 2013. Her first full length poetry collection released in 2023, is titled, If Brambles Were Bookends Collected Poems, published by Human Error Publishing. Her current 2026 release is, Mistress of the Wick Poetry and Flash Fiction, published by Metaphysical Fox Press. Linda represented The National Beat Poetry Foundation at the 2024 Lowell Celebrates Kerouac. She featured her original poems written in the vein of Jack Kerouac and participated in an all-women panel discussing the past and current beat poetry movements. Linda was commissioned in 2025 to write an ekphrastic poem which she titled, “A Tale of the Northeast Kingdom VT” interpreting a sculpture by Kathy Ruttenberg on loan to The Mount in Lenox. You can find her poems in numerous journals, anthologies and in online zines. She is a member of The Florence Poet’s Society and is on their editing board for their yearly anthology, Silkworm.

BILL TREMBLAY is a widely-published, award-winning poet, novelist, teacher, editor, and reviewer whose work has appeared in ten full-length volumes of poetry, including Crying in the Cheap Seats [University of Massachusetts Press: 1971], Duhamel: Ideas of Order in Little Canada [BOA Editions, Ltd.1986] which was a finalist for the National Poetry series; Pushcart Prize, finalist National Poetry Series], Shooting Script: Door of Fire, is from Eastern Washington University Press [2003] and was awarded the Colorado Book Award [2004]. Mr. Tremblay is the recipient of the John F. Stern Distinguished Professor Award for his thirty-three years of service at Colorado State University. He served as Director of the MFA Program in Creative Writing as well as the AWP Program Directors’ Council. He founded the Colorado Review and for fifteen years he was Editor-in-Chief and now serves on its Board of Advisers. He has taught American Literature at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa [Portugal] on a Fulbright-Hays Lectureship. He has received a fellowship from a National Endowment for the Humanities (1980), and has written poetry with support from a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship [1985] as well as grants from the Corporation at Yaddo and the Mountain Writers Center. His most recent books are Walks Along the Ditch and The Luminous Racetrack: A Memoir in Poems (both from Lynx House Press) about his French-Canadian family. He has been appointed the first Poet Laureate of Southbridge, Massachusetts, his hometown.

A Virtual Thirsty Lab with Kathleen Granchielli
2026-05-26 19:00 - 20:00 | Zoom Online Meeting, United States
The Thirsty Lab poetry reading, normally based out of Princeton, MA, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday May 26th virtually on Zoom with none other than Kathleen Granchielli, our featured reader!

Kathleen Granchelli began her career teaching English at the high-school and freshman college levels. Following a move to Greece, she returned to the U.S. where she transitioned to a career in communications and community relations for a not-for-profit R&D organization. She led its communications and community relations functions while serving on boards for several civic, business, and educational collaborations. Upon retirement, she reignited her passion for poetry. “For the World, She Said,” her chapbook to be published later this year, is largely drawn from experiences living and traveling overseas. A member of the Academy of American Poets, New England Poetry Association and Worcester County Poetry Association, she lives in Massachusetts with her husband David Granchelli.

New Dawn Author Series with Mark Walsh
2026-05-26 19:00 - 20:30 | New Dawn Center, 84 Main St., Ashburnham, MA, 01607, United States
Mark Walsh at New Dawn: New Dawn’s Author series is proud to have Mark Walsh in house on May 26 at 7:00 p.m. Come hear Mark read and stay for the open mic at 8:00 p.m. This is a free event at New Dawn, 84 Main Street, Ashburnham, MA. About Mark: Mark Walsh is an English professor at Massasoit Community College in Brockton, MA. He is also an assistant editor at Lily Poetry Review. His Chapbook, In The Garden of Fortune, was published by Lily Poetry Review Books in May of 2024. Recent poetry publications include Abandoned Mine, Rituals, Choeofpleirn Press and Nixes Mate Review.

New Dawn Writers' Group Open Mic
2026-05-26 20:00 - 21:00 | New Dawn Center, 84 Main St., Ashburnham, MA, 01607, United States
New Dawn Open Mic: Come out to the New Dawn Writers’ Group’s Open Mic. Every fourth Tuesday from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. immediately following our featured author event at 7:00 p.m. We host an open mic for writers of all genres and ages. Bring an excerpt from that story you started, memoir or novel. Bring a few poems, or that experimental thing you wrote that doesn’t fit any known category. It’s a friendly, pressure-free atmosphere at the New Dawn Arts Center in Ashburnham. The address is 84 Main Street, Ashburnham, MA.

May 27th Poetorium Too Poetry Reading & Open Mic Featuring Mark Luebbers & Benjamin Goluboff
2026-05-27 17:00 - 19:00 | TidePool Bookshop, 372 Chandler St. Unit 101, Worcester, MA, 01602
Please join us for a special Wednesday double feature edition of our monthly open mic and featured poetry reading series Poetorium Too at TidePool Bookshop (located at 372 Chandler Street in Worcester, MA) on May 27th from 5 pm to 7 pm hosted by Paul Szlosek and (hopefully) Ron Whittle. It will be a full two hours of poetry and spoken word featuring a 40 minute co-reading by poets Mark Luebbers (Author of Flat Light) in person and Benjamin Goluboff (Author of Moe Asch: A Speculative Life in Verse, and Other Poems) via Zoom from Chicago, followed by the passing of a hat to pay our features, a short 10-minute intermission, and then an open mic with 5-minute slots for each reader if time allows (in order to fit everything planned into our allotted time, if the event runs too long, readers may be restricted to one poem).

Mark Luebbers is a teacher and writer living in Princeton, Massachusetts. Flat Light, his first collection, was published in 2020 by Urban Farmhouse Press. Mark has published poems in a number of journals and magazines, including The American Journal of Poetry, The Journal of Americana, Wayfarer Magazine, Apple Valley Review, Blue Line, Full Bleed, Friends Journal, and The Hopper. Mark’s poems have been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes.

Benjamin Goluboff is the author, most recently, of Moe Asch: A Speculative Life in Verse, and Other Poems (Kelsay Books). Goluboff teaches at Lake Forest College and lives in Chicago. Some of his work can be read at https://www.lakeforest.edu/academics/faculty/goluboff/

Mark and Ben have found and shared inspiration in the lives and works of artists and culturally significant figures of the 19th and 20th centuries. They have been writing collaboratively since the middle of the last decade, and together have published poems of “Speculative Biography” in Borderlands, Eastern Iowa Review, Misfit Magazine, The Nasonia, Unbroken Journal, Paper Brigade, The Penn Review, and The Westchester Review. In 2018 three of their poems on jazz pianist Bill Evans were collected in They Said: A Multi Genre Anthology of Contemporary Collaborative Writing published by Black Lawrence Press, and they received a Pushcart Prize Nomination from Eastern Iowa Review for their poem “Iris Tree Chooses a Role, 1913”. Their collection Citizens of Ordinary Time was published by Urban Farmhouse Press in 2023, and a chapbook, Group Portrait Poems on a Photograph by Hermann Landshoff, was published by Parisian Phoenix Press last year.

The Fox Series featuring Eve Rifkah reading her poetry and the poetry of Gertrude Halstead
2026-06-02 17:00 - 19:00 | The Broadway Diner, 100 Water Street, Worcester, Massachusetts, 01604, United States
Join us on June 2nd at 5pm the Broadway Restaurant .Free admission.$2 off metered parking with a food purchase.Sign up for the open mic at joesyellowpad@gmail.comPlease support this locally-owned venue.

Eve Rifkah was co-founder of Poetry Oasis, Inc., Founder, and editor DINER, a literary magazine. She is the 2021 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz medal. She lives in Worcester, MA. The play, Outcasts the Lepers of Penikese Island, was based on her first book. She has 6 books, Webpage: eve-rifkah.com

Gertrude Halstead was born in Germany in 1916. She escaped to France where during the war she was interned in Camp Gurs in the south of France. She volunteered to work as an interpreter and subsequently escaped by having the French guards sign release papers. She eventually made it to Portugal where she was able to get passage on the last ship leaving for the United States the Excalibur. Her work has appeared in Sahara, Diner VOX, Amoskeag , Surroundings East and Columbia Poetry Review. Her first book “memories like burrs” was published by Adastra Press. She has twice been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, received the Awarded Outstanding Achievement in Poetry 2006 UMass/Dartmouth, and was the first Poet Laureate of Worcester, MA, and recipient of a 2008 Worcester, MA, Cultural Council Fellowship Award. A song-cycle composed by Mauro DePasquale for piano, cello, alto was filmed and is part of a documentary on Halstead filmed by award winning film maker Peter Swanson of Global Visions.

The Openest Mic: Words from the Burg
2026-06-04 17:30 - 18:30 | Fitchburg Art Museum, 185 Elm St., Fitchburg, Massachusetts, 01420, United States

Getting Curious: Responding to Curiouser and Curiouser with Ekphrastic Poetry
2026-06-06 13:00 - 15:00 | Hopkinton Arts Center, 98 Hayden Rowe St., Hopkinton, Massachusetts, 01748, United States

Elizabeth Bishop
2026-06-11 18:00 - 19:00 | Bishop’s grave in Hope Cemetery, 119 Webster Street, 119 Webster Street, Worcester, MA, 01603, United States
of Worcester and Elsewhere

We’ll begin with a talk at the Hope Cemetery Administration Office about Elizabeth Bishop’s life and work; turn right after entering the main gate. At 6:30 pm, a dozen poets will read poems by or about Bishop at her grave; from inside the main gate, proceed to Curtis Ave and take your fourth left to Beech Street.

LoveFest
2026-06-14 11:00 - 14:00 | Fitchburg Town Commons, 326 Main Street, Fitchburg, mass, 01420, Macau

BLOOMSDAY
2026-06-16 08:30 - 20:00
Come Celebrate BloomsdayIn Worcester Massachusetts, Tuesday June 16th 2026

The book Ulysses follows Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus as they wander through Dublin on June 16, 1904, the date James Joyce had his first encounter with his wife to-be Nora Barnacle. You can join us to listen or read a part of his story. Sponsored by the Worcester County Poetry Association.

SiteTimeChapterBancroft TowerBancroft Tower Rd.Worcester MA830-10:00 AMTelemachus: STATELY, PLUMP BUCK MULLIGAN ….Classical High21 Irving StreetWorcester MA10:00 -12:00 AMNestor: YOU, COCHRANE, WHAT CITY SENT FOR HIM? Birch Tree Bread Company 138 Green St. Worcester, MA12:00 – 1:00 PMoptional reading – your choiceLibrary3 Salem SquareWorcester MA 1:00 – 3:00 PM Aeolus: IN THE HEART OF THE HIBERNIAN METROPOLISTidepool Bookstore372 Chandler St.Worcester MA3:00 -5:00 PMProteus: INELUCTABLE MODALITY OF THE VISIBLERalph’s Diner148 Grove StreetWorcester MA5:00 -6:00 PMIthaca: WHAT PARALLEL COURSESOak Barrel Restaurant?229 Grove Street 6:00 – 800 PMPenelope: YES BECAUSE HE NEVER DID A THING LIKE THAT BEFORE….

Graphic courtesy of K-Fai Steele

The Poetry Extravaganza
2026-06-17 18:30 - 20:30 | The Mill, 185 W. Boylston Street, West Boylston, Massachusetts, 01583, United States
Join us at The Mill in West Boylston on June 17th! We need your support through the Summer months! The Mill is right off Rt 190, has a spacious parking lot, serves delectable apps, entrees, and desserts with a full bar.

We have a separate room with AC for our monthly shenanigans. Admission is still free. All of the Tip Jar proceeds go to the Feature.

The Poetry Extravaganza (PE) is the 3rd Wednesday of the month from 6:30-8;45 pm. Sign up for the open mic at jfjr6969@gmail.com. Five minute maximum, Please! There are no language restrictions. We are not kid-friendly! Our Feature Poet on June 17th is the multi-talented Emily Dart.

Mark Lewandowski of Lewandowski Painters sponsors our event. That’s how we pay the poets! I’m back from my adventures at Universal Studios and happy to host the event. Join the Fun on June 17th!

Emily Dart is scientist and writer. An ecologist, her writing explores the relationships between humans and their environments – both the natural world and the world we’ve built.

Booklover's Gourmet
2026-06-20 14:00 - 16:00 | Booklovers’ Gourmet, 72 E. Main St., Webster, MA, 01570
Open Mic Poetry- with Guest Emcee Deb Mitsakos!

Saturday, June 20th

2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Join us for our monthly round robin style, open poetry reading!

Space for the open mic is limited to 14 and usually fills up quickly. Please email: deb@bookloversgourmet.com to register or call (508) 949-6232

All are welcome to come listen!

Poets at Large in June
2026-06-20 19:00 - 21:30 | The Vanilla Bean, 450 Deerfield Road, Pomfret, CT, 06259, United States
Poets at Large Presents DiCaronimo & Wheeler

Poets at Large will host poets from Fitchburg, MA on Saturday night, May 20th, at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café, 450 Deerfield Road, in Pomfret, CT. The featured readers that night will be Laura DiCaronimo and Sarah Beth Wheeler. Admission is free and donations are welcome. DiCaronimo is an optician, poet and wife who holds certification in nonprofit management. She hosts and organizes The Openest Mic series and is a board member of Worcester County Poetry Association. She was the inaugural Dan Lewis recipient and was one of the nominees for the 2025 Spoken Word Artist of the Year through the Boston Music Awards. DiCaronimo has performed internationally, and her first chapbook, Winner for Trying (Metaphysical Fox Press), was published in 2025. Her email is listenstotheradio@gmail.com.

Wheeler is a lifelong poet, and has performed from Boston to San Fransico placing second in the Dancing Poetry Festival. She recently served as a judge for the Second Annual Massachusetts Poetry Olympics. Wheeler has been published in multiple chapbooks and she is co-creator of the album, The Unforgivable Ghetto where her poetry is powerfully accompanied with a musical underscore. This event begins at 7 p.m. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to be in the open mic. Age 16 and up.

Poets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 andup. Readings for the rest of the season are sponsored in part by donations from bankHometown, Charter Oak FCU, WHZ Financial and The Putnam Area Foundation. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.

Poets at Large with DiCaronimo & Wheeler
2026-06-20 19:00 - 21:30 | The Vanilla Bean, 450 Deerfield Road, Pomfret, CT, 06259, United States
Poets at Large Presents DiCaronimo & WheelerPoets at Large will host poets from Fitchburg, MA on Saturday night, May 20th, at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café, 450 Deerfield Road, in Pomfret, CT. The featured readers that night will be Laura DiCaronimo and Sarah Beth Wheeler. Admission is free and donations are welcome.

DiCaronimo is an optician, poet and wife who holds certification in nonprofit management. She hosts and organizes The Openest Mic series and is a board member of Worcester County Poetry Association. She was the inaugural Dan Lewis recipient and was one of the nominees for the 2025 Spoken Word Artist of the Year through the Boston Music Awards. DiCaronimo has performed internationally, and her first chapbook, Winner for Trying (Metaphysical Fox Press), was published in 2025. Her email is listenstotheradio@gmail.com.

Wheeler is a lifelong poet, and has performed from Boston to San Fransico placing second in the Dancing Poetry Festival. She recently served as a judge for the Second Annual Massachusetts Poetry Olympics. Wheeler has been published in multiple chapbooks and she is co-creator of the album, The Unforgivable Ghetto where her poetry is powerfully accompanied with a musical underscore.

This event begins at 7 p.m. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to be in the open mic. Age 16 and up.

Poets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. Readings for the rest of the season are sponsored in part by donations from BankHometown, Charter Oak FCU, WHZ Financial and The Putnam Area Foundation. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.

A Virtual Thirsty Lab with Susan Roney-O'Brien
2026-06-30 19:00 - 20:00 | Virtual Event
The Thirsty Lab poetry reading, normally based out of Princeton, MA, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday June 30th virtually on Zoom with none other than Susan Roney O’Brien, our featured reader!

Susan Roney-O’Brien earned an MFA from Warren Wilson College, has published two chapbooks: Earth and Farmwife, and three collections: Legacy of the Last World, Bone Circle and Thira. She received the 2020 Stanley Kunitz Poetry Medal, and has been nominated for many Pushcart Prizes. Her work has been translated into Braille and Mandarin and has been published widely. She curates the monthly Thirsty Lab Series, coordinates grant-funded literary readings, works with student-poets and organizes, runs, and participates in poetry workshops. She and her husband live on a small farm with Oliver, their chocolate Lab, in Central Massachusetts.
