Celebrate National Poetry Month with the Poetry Foundation

CHICAGO, March 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Poetry Foundation, whose mission is to amplify poetry and celebrate poets year-round, provides new ways to access and engage with the art form in the month of April, which is National Poetry Month. Throughout April, the Foundation encourages everyone to create, experience, and share poetry wherever they are.

The Poetry Foundation provides new ways to access and engage with poetry in the month of April an beyond.

Go Behind the Scenes with Writers in a New Video Series
The Poetry Foundation is launching a new video series that gives viewers a glimpse into the spaces and places that provide inspiration and comfort to poets, musicians, and other artists in “Where I Write.” The first video in the series features Erika L. Sánchez, author of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, who provides a tour of the attic studio in her Chicago home. Subsequent videos in the series will publish on the Foundation’s website, YouTube, and other social media channels.

Poetry Magazine Honors First-Time Contributors and Creative Process
The April 2026 issue of Poetry features work by writers who are being published in the legendary literary magazine for the first time in their careers. Contributors to the issue include PEN/Faulkner Award recipient Garth Greenwell, acclaimed photographer and author Golden, and Walt Whitman Award recipient Emily Skaja.

As has become an annual tradition, the April issue will be available to download for free on the Poetry Magazine App throughout the month. Those who wish to support the work of Poetry can subscribe to the magazine any time in April and receive a limited-edition notebook in which they can write their own poems and reflections. Additionally, the second season of Wake, Butterfly will launch in the Poetry Magazine Podcast feed in April. Marie Howe, Naomi Shihab Nye, Nick Makoha, Maggie Nelson, Dawn Lundy Martin, and Manny Loley will each share a prompt to ground, guide, and reinvigorate listeners, be it for writing, or just living.

Free Poetry Month Events
All are invited to attend the Poetry Foundation’s April public programs, available in-person at the Chicago headquarters and via livestream. On April 2, Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize recipient CAConrad will unveil the new design series, Bold Type, the first installment of which features Conrad’s poem “First Light;” they will read alongside Rickey Laurentiis, Jake Skeets, and S Yarberry. Designed by Pentagram, “First Light” will be on display until August 1, and additional installations of Bold Type will pop up around Chicago later in 2026.

Chicago’s own National Book Award and Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize recipient, Patricia Smith, returns to the Poetry Foundation on April 23 to read from her latest collection, The Intentions of Thunder: New and Selected Poems; Smith will be joined by Ashley M. Jones, Donika Kelly, and Aimee Nezhukumatathil.

This year’s Poetry Month programming reflects the Foundation’s belief that poetry is not confined to the page, but lives in everyday spaces, communities, and conversations. Further information about the Poetry Foundation’s offerings are available in the Poetry Foundation Newsletter, which will be introduced each week by Poetry contributor and founder and director of O, Miami, P. Scott Cunningham in April.

About the Poetry Foundation
The Poetry Foundation transforms lives through the power of words. Our work aims to amplify poetry and celebrate poets by fostering spaces for all to create, experience, and share poetry. Follow the Poetry Foundation and Poetry magazine on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

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