Essay

How Frank Ocean Became One Portland Poet's Muse

Shayla Lawson reflects on the mixtape, the message, the man.

02/27/2018 By Shayla Lawson

The Essentials

13 Portland Shows, Events, and Pure-Genius Things to Know This November

From Joe Biden to Ibeyi to Ta-Nehisi Coates, here’s what you can’t miss this month.

10/16/2017 By Rebecca Jacobson and Fiona McCann

Poetry

Samiya Bashir Will Smash Your Definition of Poetry at TBA

In advance of 15 m = ?, the Portland poet talks race, gender, and survival as an artist of color.

08/31/2017 By Bryanna Briley

Spoken Word

Poets at Pickathon? We're In.

Shayla Lawson may be best known as a poet, but that doesn’t mean she can’t play a music festival.

08/02/2017 By Bryanna Briley

Summer Reads

Summer Reading 2017: Fresh Short Stories and Poems from Top Portland Writers

We've got brand-new stories from Omar El Akkad, M. J. Zellnik, and Karen Munro, plus poems from Trevino L. Brings Plenty, Hajara Quinn, and Cindy Williams Gutiérrez.

07/10/2017 Edited by Fiona McCann

Summer Reads 2017

Summer Reading 2017: 3 New Poems by Top Portland Poets

Fresh verse from Trevino L. Brings Plenty, Hajara Quinn, and Cindy Williams Gutiérrez

07/10/2017 By Trevino L. Brings Plenty, Hajara Quinn, and Cindy Williams Gutiérrez

Theater

Take Unpublished Poems by August Wilson. Add Musical Theater. What Happens?

The result is UniSon, getting its world premiere at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

03/20/2017 By Rebecca Jacobson

Poetry

Morgan Parker Turns Beyoncé and Gin-Soaked Olives into Electric Poetry

The New Yorker hits Portland with her new book, There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé.

03/07/2017 By Rebecca Jacobson

The Essentials

From a New Shins Album to a Blitzen Trapper Musical, March's Pop Culture Hot List

The album, book, musical event, and poetry collection to know this month

02/20/2017 By Fiona McCann

Culture Cheat Sheet: Books

The Essential Portland Bookshelf: 32 Books That Define Our City and State

Sometimes a Great Notion to Geek Love, these are the texts that express, entertain, and enlighten us.

11/14/2016 By Fiona McCann

Theater

How Do You Make Art from an Envelope of Suicides?

Writer Ben Moorad's new performance series explores life and death through the real-life suicides his grandfather studied.

10/11/2016 By Jason Buehrer

The Long Play

PODCAST: Five Local Writers on Place, Poetry, and Old Portland

Fiction writers Margaret Malone and David Shafer are joined by poets Samiya Bashir, Anis Mojgani, and Elyse Fenton to read their work and talk about Portland as inspiration.

09/01/2016 By Fiona McCann

SUMMER READS

Summer Reading 2016: Brand-New Short Stories and Poems from Top Portland Writers

We’ve got fresh fiction from Margaret Malone, David Shafer, and Diana Abu-Jaber, plus poems by Anis Mojgani, Elyse Fenton, and Samiya Bashir. Dive in.

07/12/2016 Edited by Fiona McCann By Margaret Malone, David Shafer, Diana Abu-Jaber, Anis Mojgani, Elyse Fenton, and Samiya Bashir

SUMMER READING 2016

3 New Poems by Top Portland Poets

Fresh verse from Anis Mojgani, Elyse Fenton, and Samiya Bashir.

07/12/2016 By Anis Mojgani, Elyse Fenton, and Samiya Bashir

POETRY

Why Are These Portland Poets Proud to Call Themselves Whores?

Brothel-style readings open up poetry to a new audience —complete with booze, burlesque, and "private shows."

10/14/2015 By Katie Vaughan

LITERARY MAGAZINE

The Little Portland Lit Mag That Could—and Did!

Out of the ashes of Backspace comes Portland-based, mostly-online DIY lit mag Drunk in a Midnight Choir—and they’ve just gone to print.

09/22/2015 By Rachel Sandstrom

CULTURE CALL SHEET

The Latest in Portland Arts News—TEDx, Poetry, and Pigs

Plus a new home for NW Dance project and a training program for wannabe theater folk

04/02/2015 By Fiona McCann

NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

Portland's Poet David Biespiel Talks Politics and Going Viral

With National Poetry Month just around the corner, poet David Biespiel talks about Portland's poetry scene, Michael Brown as poetic subject, and the legacy of America's longest-running newspaper column on poetry

03/25/2015 By Larisa Owechko

IRISH ARTS

Irish Artists Talk Poetry, PDX, and American Audiences

For St. Patrick's day, two Irish artists now based here—one a poet, the other a theater producer—tell us about the cultural connections between Oregon and Ireland.

03/17/2015 By Fiona McCann

WATCH

VIDEO: Poetry in Motion

See exclusive video of a trio of our top poets waxing dramatic.

07/22/2011