Festival Schedule

November 1, 2025

5:00 PM / Festival Launch Party / Kollective Coffee + Tea

featuring Kai Coggin, Bryan Borland, Samyak Shertok, Lin Elizabeth, Kalina Smith, Greg Brownderville, Jessica Maxwell, Antonio Garcia-Butler, Elmer Beard

Happy Bud Kenny Day! Kick off the festival with an exciting launch party featuring readings and community celebration.

8:00 PM / Poets’ Night Out / Underground Lounge

A blend of social mixer, meet and greet, and after party.

November 2, 2025

2:00 – 5:00 PM / The Poetry Playground & Little Free Poetry Fair / Garland County Library

The Poetry Playground is a celebration of creativity where every booth invites you to play with words.

2:00 – 3:30 PM / Writing Arkansas with Sandy Longhorn Garland County Library

November 3, 2025

Downtown Poetry Crawl

Visit various businesses to discover poems!

November 4, 2025

6:00 – 7:00 PM / Food Poems: Online Writing Workshop with Kristin Entler

November 5, 2025

6:00 PM / Wednesday Night Poetry: A Full Moon Celebration

Wednesday Night Poetry is the longest running consecutive weekly open mic series in the country, never missing a single week since February 1, 1989.

November 6, 2025

7:00 PM / Online Writing Workshop with CD Eskilson

November 7, 2025

5:00 – 6:00 PM / Cody-Rose Clevidence / Emergent Arts

6:00 – 7:00 PM / Reflection: A Performance by Bai Mros / Emergent Arts

29th Annual Southern Haiku Conference / Garland County Library

November 8, 2025

12:30 – 2:30 PM / Online Workshop with Worker Writers School (NYC)

This special workshop invites local writers to engage with the rich literary traditions of low-wage workers.

1:00 – 3:00 PM / Blackout and Collage Art with Wren Jasper at Emergent Arts

5:00 – 8:00 PM / Spa City Poetry Slam ft. Lemon Pepper Poetry Slam / Arlington Hotel, Fountain Room

A poetry slam featuring talented poets competing for the title of Hot Springs Poetry Festival’s Slam Champion.

29th Annual Southern Haiku Conference