St Augustine PoetFest

The St. Augustine PoetFest is St. Johns County’s official recognition of National Poetry Month (April).

All events, unless indicated, will be free of charge and open to all, thanks to the support of Flagler College, St. Johns Cultural Council, and the Ancient City Poets.

Multiple venues, please see the event website for locations, times, and more details.

All events are open to all and are held free of charge, thanks to the support of Flagler College, St. Johns Cultural Council, and Ancient City Poets.

Thursday, April 9, 2026
Day One of Three
6 pm to 9:00 pm
The Waterworks
184 San Marco Avenue, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Beat Poet Summit followed by community open mic hour

The festival kicks off with a Beat Poet Summit on Thursday night featuring ten minutes of podium time awarded to any past or present Beat Poet Laureate who gets “On the Road ” like Kerouac, and travels to the Sunshine State. A community open mic will follow. The sign-up sheet for the open mic portion is available at 6 p.m. and open to the first 10 people. Please limit your time at the podium to five minutes.

Free open to the public event at the Waterworks.
Door open 6:00 pm | Showtime 6:30 pm
more info about the National Beat Poetry Foundation
https://nationalbeatpoetryfoundation.org/

Friday, April 10, 2026
Day Two of Three
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Flagler College campus
The festival continues during the day on Friday with author discussions, author talks, and a keynote presentation at the historic downtown campus of Flagler College. In the evening, the English Department will host an off-campus open mic.

First Floor Lobby, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084

Registration, Book Bazaar, and Festival Contact Center
10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Blackout Poetry Workshop
11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
This interactive workshop will introduce participants to the creative art form of blackout poetry, where existing text is used to create new poems by redacting (blacking out) unwanted words. Presented by Flagler College’s Proctor Library.

Virginia Room, Second Floor, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084

11:00 a.m. to 12:50 p.m.
Florida Poet Showcase
11:00 Andy LaBrada
11:15 Bob Patterson
11:30 Nicole Zwolinski
11:45 Andrea LeDew
12:00 Aaron Woodson
12:15 Erin Cowart
12:30 Maxwell
12:45 Su Zi

1:00 p.m. to 1:20 p.m.
Florida Poet Spotlight Dorsey Craft

1:30 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Road Poet PW Covington
New Mexico Beat Poet Laureate (2024-2026)

2:00 p.m. to 2:20 p.m.
Traveling Poet Tom Murphy,
Corpus Christi, Texas Poet Laureate (2021-2022)

2:30 to 3:20 p.m. “Poetry in Their Voices: Menorcans in St. Augustine”

Menorcans who came to St. Augustine in 1777 brought memories of a different landscape, “…our old world/the rocks and winds of Menorca.” Looking back 250 years later, the ghost of another settler reminds Menorcan descendants “Keep your good dreams./Good dreams won’t pull you/away from those you love./Good dreams remember/your heart is Menorcan.” City of St. Augustine Poet Laureate 2025-2026 and Menorcan Cultural Society Poet Laureate Dr. Ann Browning Masters will read from the raw beauty of these Menorcan voices in her new and second book of poetry, “Menorcans: A Long View.”

3:30 p.m. to 3:50 p.m.
Traveling Poet Dennis Formento (New Orleans, LA)

4:00 p.m. to 4:50 p.m.
St. Augustine PoetFest Keynote Presentation by Ray McNiece, Poet Laureate of Cleveland Heights (2020-23)

6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Open Mic Event
Hosted by the English Department of Flagler College at Relampago Coffee Lab,
located at 74 Spanish Street. The signup sheet is out at 6:00 PM.
Join us for an evening under the stars.

Saturday, April 11, 2026
Day Three of Three

The festival continues today and concludes in the afternoon with an awards ceremony for the winners of the St. Johns Cultural Council Haiku Contest, followed by a reception.

9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Flagler College campus
Student showcases, St. John County Library display, a Book Bazaar, monologues, a live staged play reading, author talks and panels, and featured poets.

Registration, Book Bazaar, and Festival Contact Center
10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
First Floor Lobby, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Featuring author recordings and publications, as well as displays by FLARE: The Flagler Review (Flagler College).

Creation Ignition Station
Ringhaver Student Center, 1st Floor
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (on-going)
This interactive mobile workshop will provide the materials needed for participants to create their own “mini-poetry chapbook” utilizing zine techniques. Please feel free to bring your own poems printed on paper, and we can turn them into mini chapbooks using collage and zine- making. Presented by Ma Bones of Dead Last Press.

Virginia Room, Second Floor, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084

10:00 am to 10:50 am
“Monologues at the Mic” selected monologues from the play Motherhood Out Loud. Presented by Amy Lauer Goldin and A Classic Theater.

11:00 am to 11:50 am
Live staged reading of “The Trojan War, The Monster and Me” by Philip Butera.
Featuring Heather Eggleston and Rising Tide Productions.

12:00 pm to 12:50 pm
Flagler College English Department
Featured Students Poets: Sarah Clayton, Haley Collins, Selah Hassel, Jaden Rudd

1:00 pm to 1:20 pm
Book Feature: Lola Haskins

1:30 pm to 1:50 pm
Book Feature: Lenny DellaRocca

2:00 pm to 2:20 pm
Traveling Poet Cynthia Atkins (Virginia)

2:30 pm to 2:50 pm
Traveling Poet Kevin Pilkington (New York)

3:00 pm to 4:30 pm
Closing Event
Words from Norma Sherry
Past City of St. Augustine Poet Laureate
Presentation by Ann Browning Masters,
Present City of St. Augustine Poet Laureate
3:30 pm to 4:30 pm
Presentation by St. Johns Cultural Council
“Winners of 6th Annual Haiku Contest”.

Followed by Celebratory Reception on the Tinlin Landing
2nd Floor Lobby, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084