The New Orleans Poetry Festival began in 2016 as a small local gathering of poets. It has since advanced into an annual international hub for experimental poetics geared by and for the working class.

On an extended weekend in April each year, NOPF helps organize 90+ poetry events and a book fair of 60+ small presses. Everything is completely free and open to the public.

The New Orleans Healing Center and Café Istanbul serve as the festival’s locus, with events spilling out into nearby dive bars such as St. Roch Tavern, Siberia, AllWays Lounge, Saturn Bar, and Kajun’s. Attendees frequently compliment the walkable, easy-going nature of the festival, juxtaposed with those intense, passionate conversations on all manners of poetics. In addition, there is also an explosive ecosystem of offsite readings that spread these poetic tendrils even further.

Any and all questions can be directed to info@neworleanspoetryfestival.org.

^Carrion Bloom book arts workshop, NOPF 2025