A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

As writers, how do we capture a unique and expansive notion of “home?” It is often a complicated relationship, sometimes tender and nostalgic, and other times wrought with pain and longing. Poems of place offer the reader literal, symbolic, and psychological maps for how we make meaning of the world and our place in it. Join former Tacoma Poet Laureate Kellie Richardson to look at and practice writing place and home. In this workshop, we will read some delicious poetry of place to inspire and provoke us to confront our stories about home. We’ll discuss how these writers use poetry of place to remember, resist, and even reimagine their relationship to home. Next, we will respond to a series of written and visual prompts to help us craft our own draft poems about the places and spaces we call home. We’ll play in the gaps and tensions between facts and feelings, community and isolation, past and future. You will be offered an opportunity to share the work you create (though not required), as well as offer generative feedback to your peers. This workshop is open to all levels of writers and creatives.

Creative Colloquy lures readers and writers out of hiding, to connect and conspire.

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every month for literary reading and open mic at The New Frontier Lounge!

Our featured readers include:
Emily Gangnuss
Benjamin Schmitt
&
Chris Dahl

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

Creative Colloquy lures readers and writers out of hiding, to connect and conspire.

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every month for literary reading and open mic at The New Frontier Lounge!

Our featured readers include:
TBD

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Are you passionate about food and eager to transform your culinary adventures into sweet prose or savory verse? Or are you a nosh novice seeking inspiration to craft delectable words? Join us for a food writing session and potluck on Saturday, November _ from 12:00 to 2:00 PM.

In this workshop, we’ll explore the art of writing about food across multiple genres, including fiction, poetry, and memoir. Through hands-on exercises and engaging discussions, we'll weave sensory details and personal experiences into our writing.

Bring your favorite holiday dish to share as we indulge in a delightful afternoon of food and words, nurturing our creativity and celebrating the joy of culinary storytelling.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Creative Colloquy lures readers and writers out of hiding, to connect and conspire.

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every month for literary reading and open mic at The New Frontier Lounge!

Our featured readers include:
Magill
Jason Thornberry
Leah McCall
Nick Stokes

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

Join us Saturday, November 22 | 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. at 7 Seas Taproom and Brewery (2101 Jefferson Ave., Tacoma) to hear winning submissions!

Coffee, tea, and snacks are available for purchase at Naomi Joe (inside the taproom). And at 11 a.m., the taproom officially opens with beer/cider available.

In addition to hearing folks share the selected submissions the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Dept. will have a hands-on exhibit!

Join the Main Book Club on the 2nd floor for a discussion of one of the selections for Tacoma Reads 2025, We Are Not Strangers by Josh Tuininga.

About the book:

Inspired by a true story, this graphic novel follows a Jewish immigrant’s efforts to help his Japanese neighbors while they are incarcerated during World War II.

Set in the multicultural Central District of Seattle during World War II and inspired by author and artist Josh Tuininga’s family experiences, We Are Not Strangers explores a unique situation of Japanese and Jewish Americans living side by side in a country at war.

Copies ofWe Are Not Strangersare available at Main while they last for sign out, or from various branch collections.

Creative Colloquy lures readers and writers out of hiding, to connect and conspire.

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every month for literary reading and open mic at The New Frontier Lounge!

Our featured readers include:
Iz White,
Jessica Trujillo,
Melanie Cole,
Pierce Marks

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Come see how stories can unfold through a music performance. Watch and listen as music is spontaneously composed out of thin air by live musicians. Our goal is to show the audience how we create music in real time as a group with improvisation.

Presented by Kareem Kandi World Orchestra, funded by the City of Tacoma/Tacoma Creates, and hosted by Tacoma Public Library.

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

TALISMANIA: a word/play in four acts

One Saturday morning, three hours: Leave your real life at the door. Bring a character you’re working on or pick one from the hat. We’ll meditate, show ‘n tell, dance, have tea, and find a creative performative flow. It’s writing. It’s theater. It’s art that inspires more art.

Tacoma’s annual literary pub crawl brings writers, poets, and performers to local venues within a walkable footprint for an evening of stories, music, and community. Wander from spot to spot, discover new voices, and celebrate the vibrant South Sound literary scene. See full line up HERE.

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

Let’s embark on an adventure through creativity with Julia Cameron’s transformative book, The Artist’s Way. Every fourth Saturday from 1 - 3 p.m. we’ll gather to share our personal discoveries and challenges as we build a thriving creative practice.

During the first 90 minutes, we’ll engage in discussions about our experiences navigating the book's exercises. In the final half hour, we’ll put our imaginations to the test with a still-life prompt, inviting you to express yourself through poetry, scene writing, sketches, or any medium that speaks to your creative soul (BYO supplies).

A creative harbor for poets to gather, grow, and contribute. Port of Poets is a welcoming Tacoma-based writing group where poets of all backgrounds come together to create, reflect, and build community. We nurture new work, share thoughtful feedback, and deepen our craft through the power of community.

Whether you’re just beginning or have years of experience, this is a space to explore our voice and connect with others. Our first sessions include a short prompt-based free-writing warm-up, a group discussion of the assigned reading (Finger Exercises for Poets by Dorianne Laux), a second writing prompt inspired by the reading, and end with sharing, feedback and revision using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process. As a group we can direct the flow and form of future sessions that can best meet our interests and goals.

In this workshop, writers will plan ahead for the days when we know we need to grow new work but our creative soil is bone-dry or chock full of rocks. Bring a handful of favorite poems or the titles & memories of beloved prose pieces to use as fertilizer. We’ll use the materials we always have on hand to consider what a new literary creation needs in order to break open and throw roots. Plan to leave with a small collection of your own prompts to plant during any upcoming winters of the mind.

Creative Colloquy lures readers and writers out of hiding, to connect and conspire.

Join us on the 3rd Monday of every month for literary reading and open mic at The New Frontier Lounge!

Our featured readers include:
Joshua Swainston
Ashley Fent
Cynthia Pratt
Samantha Pardo Irigoyen