World of Wonders: A Multigenre Workshop
In her NYT-bestselling book of essays and award-winning poems, Aimee Nezhukumatathil often explores the natural world, including whale sharks, fireflies, eels, dragonfruit, catalpas, monsoons, humans, and so much more. Using a variety of prompts and centering activities, including read-aloud selections from Nezhukumatathil's work, participants will explore their own astonishments and curiosities related to the world around us and how we move through it. Writers of any and all backgrounds and levels of experience are welcome!
Plunkett Poetry Festival: Exploring Reflections
The Plunkett Maine Poetry Festival, held in April each year, was established in 2002 to honor the memory and accomplishments of Terry Plunkett, an English professor at the University of Maine at Augusta for nearly thirty years. In connection with the festival, we will have three workshops from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on April 25, 2026.
Birds & Words: A 1-Day Poetry and Birding Workshop
Bird as subject; bird as metaphor; bird as inspirational curiosity; birds as lore. In this workshop, we will be welcoming all ways of engaging with birds through poetry. We will read work by poets who honor these feathered beings in a variety of ways. Work by poets like Cyrus Cassells, Don Domanski, June Jordan, Ross Gay, John Lindgren, and Myronn Hardy will serve as a backdrop for our own writing as we explore the many ways that birds motivate us towards creativity. This will be a generative workshop. We will focus our time on prompt-based writing, with opportunities for sharing, if you are so inclined.
Camden Festival of Poetry 2026
The Camden Festival of Poetry brings distinguished voices in poetry to Camden for an annual Festival, celebrates Maine poets and singer-songwriters, and encourages young voices in poetry throughout the year. Listening to and talking about poetry, we find connections discovering the “inseparability of our own lives and the lives of others.” {quote from Jane Hirshfield}
Now More Than Ever: A Book Launch Celebration
In celebration of Grace Hartigan: The Gift of Attention, experience the words of three Maine poets Julia Bouwsma, author of Death Fluorescence (Sundress Publications, July 2025), Samaa Abdurraqib, author of Towards a Retreat (Diode Editions, August 2025), and Maya Williams, author of Feminine Morbidity (The Headlight Review, October 2025).
Poetry Reading with Jefferson Navicky at Stone Broke Bread and Books
Poetry Reading with Samaa Abdurraqib (to celebrate the new book Towards a Retreat) along with Maine Literary Book Award Winner Jefferson Navicky. Reading, book signing, Q&A, and refreshments.
Conversations with Dead Poets • A Panel Discussion
Open to writers in all genres, this unique field trip and workshop combination, led by Maine Poet Laureate Julia Bouwsma and certified Maine Master Naturalist and poet Samaa Abdurraqib, will provide participants with a chance to practice careful observation of the natural world and then to develop those observations on the page.
Author talk with Samaa Abdurraqib and Jennifer Lunden
Author talk at Webster Library with Samaa Abdurraqib and Jennifer Lunden, author of the 2025 READMe nonfiction selection, American Breakdown: Our Ailing Nation, My Body’s Revolt, and the Nineteenth-Century Woman Who Brought Me Back to Life.
Receiving the Gifts: A Fieldwork Workshop Practice with Julia Bouwsma and Samaa Abdurraqib
Open to writers in all genres, this unique field trip and workshop combination, led by Maine Poet Laureate Julia Bouwsma and certified Maine Master Naturalist and poet Samaa Abdurraqib, will provide participants with a chance to practice careful observation of the natural world and then to develop those observations on the page.
Book Launch and Reading
Come celebrate the launch of Truro-based poet Elizabeth Bradfield’s newest collection of poems: SOFAR, from Persea Books, and Maine-based poet Samaa Abdurraqib’s debut chapbook, Towards a Retreat, from Diode Editions. The two poets are friends and collaborators; they will read from their work, chat briefly, and happily sign books.
Naturalist Workshop Series-Fields, Forests, and Ferns
Join Maine Master Naturalists Samaa Abdurraqib and Shana Stewart Deeds for an informative nature walk led by knowledgeable naturalists but guided by the curiosity and questions of participants.
Wednesday Wander
Join Maine Master Naturalists Samaa Abdurraqib and Elizabeth Walker at Geele Preserve to explore the ecology of the saltmarsh. Look for the characteristic zonation found in marshes, identify common plants and animals, and discuss their unique adaptations for living in this dynamic habitat.
Root To Seed Poetry Reading and Book Launch
Indigo Arts Alliance will host Samaa Abdurraqib for a live reading of works from her newest collection From Root to Seed at our pop up. She will be accompanied by other poets and authors from her project.