Utah Poets

Rock Canyon Poets reading at the Utah Arts Festival, Aug. 27 @ 7:20pm!

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Rock Canyon Poets are proud to announce they will be reading poetry for the fifth time at the Big Mouth Stage on Friday, August 27, 2021 from 7:20 – 8:00 p.m. as literary artists for the Utah Arts Festival. You can read about our 2015 performance in this Daily Herald Article: Newly formed Rock Canyon Poets perform at Utah Arts Fest.

Arts Fest: Big Mouth Stage, Aug. 27 at 7:20pm

Rock Canyon Poets boasts diverse membership, ranging from 19 to 70+ years in age with many backgrounds–including literary journal founders, editors, ex-military, business professionals, a playwright, and a periodontist.  Individually, they have received several awards and been published in magazines, anthologies, journals, chapbooks, and full-length books of poetry. Rock Canyon Poets offer poetry with the tactile clarity of tin-can messages through fuzzy strings to the ears of an audience. These poems are tumbleweeds in semi-truck grills. They get stuck in your teeth, build bridges of spun sugar, and make it possible to mount a camel without a sturdy ladder.

The Utah Arts Festival takes place Friday, August 27 – Sunday, August 29, 2021 12 noon to 11pm, on Library and Washington Squares in downtown Salt Lake City (200 East 400 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84111).

Co-founded by Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen and Trish Hopkinson in 2015, Rock Canyon Poets was established to develop camaraderie among Utah Valley poets, provide consistent workshopping and reading opportunities, and promote the disciplined study of writing poetry as a serious art form. Members meet twice a month at Pioneer Book in historic downtown Provo. The group sponsors poetry readings and an open mic on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Membership is by invitation or portfolio submission only.

For more information, contact the Rock Canyon Poets, rockcanyonpoets@gmail.com.

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Utah Writers Offer New Views of State’s 125th Anniversary in UTAH @ 125

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Twenty-two writers. Twenty-two original views of Utah. Collected as Utah @ 125, these works of flash nonfiction are part of Thrive125, a far-ranging cultural initiative celebrating the state’s 125th anniversary.

What: Utah @ 125, a collection of new 125-word nonfiction pieces by Utah writers

When: Published February 2021

Where: Available at thrive125.utah.gov/utah-at-125

The flash nonfiction pieces in Utah @ 125, each just 125 words long, were commissioned from writers ranging from Utah Poet Laureate Paisley Rekdal, a University of Utah professor, to Lance Larsen, a former state poet laureate and Brigham Young University professor, and Tayler Fang, a recent Logan High School graduate, who served as 2019-2020’s National Student Poet of the West.

Other writers include slam poets, playwrights, nature writers, activists and novelists, based in Vernal, Cedar City, Provo, West Valley City, Eagle Mountain, Logan and Salt Lake City. These short-short essays describe a Bonneville Trail hike on the winter solstice, the anchoring feeling of watching quails march across a front yard, extraordinary views from on top and inside the artworks of “Spiral Jetty” and “Sun Tunnels,” and what it means to grow up in a town like Beaver.

The Utah Department of Heritage & Arts published Utah @ 125, a new digital literary chapbook, as part of Thrive125. The ambitious statehood celebration, which was launched Jan. 4 with a TV broadcast hosted by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson and featuring Utah performing artists, will continue throughout the year.

Along with the literary chapbook, the Thrive125 initiative includes: a database of Utah’s 1896 architecture; “Becoming Utah: A Peoples’ Journey,” a short educational film with curriculum resources about Utah’s history; a One Book, One Utah state library book club highlighting Craig Child’s “Virga & Bone”; a “Voices: Discord and Harmony in 1896” digital exhibit; plus historical and cultural panels, such as “Wintertime Native American Tales”; and “Coming Together: How Utah Became the Union’s 45th Star,” an exhibition at the Utah State Capitol.

Call for Poetry Videos via Utah Poetry Festival, DEADLINE: March 1, 2021

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Each day during the month of April, Utah Poetry Festival is looking to promote a Utah poet to celebrate both the Festival and National Poetry Month.

For details on requirements, subject matter, tips for recording, and where to send your video, read more here: Read for the Fest.

The Utah Poetry Festival Will Be Online April 16-18, 2021 and registration is open now.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Utah Poetry Festival will be virtual. Beginning Friday, April 16 and ending Sunday, April 18, 2021, the festival will feature poetry pedagogy roundtables, moderated conversations and public Q&A’s with poets from around the state, and two headline reading events.

The Utah Poetry Festival is hosted by Utah’s poet laureate, Paisley Rekdal, and is funded by fellowships and grants from The Academy of American Poets, Utah Division of Arts and Museums, and Utah Humanities.

Registration

The Utah Poetry Festival is free and open to the public. Events can be watched live or streamed later via the Utah Humanities YouTube channel. Live events will feature public Q&As. All events will be closed captioned by AI Media. Only registered participants will receive a link to the Google Drive file with documents from the Saturday pedagogy panels. Registration is currently open. View the schedule to register. Festival attendees must register for each event they wish to attend.

Inspired, Vol. 6 Poetry Anthology now available!

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Couldn’t be more proud of our incredible talented community poets here in Utah! I am honored to have edited and released this anthology of Self-Portrait poems earlier this week. Special thanks to our designer Austin Beckstrom who always does such an incredible job! He loves book design, so if you’re needing an incredible designer for an affordable rate, definitely check him out. Also, HUGE thanks to

Utah Humanities for their support of Rock Canyon Poets.
You can find all our anthologies here:
Support living poets!

Call for Utah Poets – KRCL 90.0 FM mini-features

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Rock Canyon Poets, in participation with KRCL 90.9 FM, is seeking Utah poets to feature for the ongoing Poetry Still Happens series. The series gives a platform to poets living and working in Utah to share audio of an original poem.

What we are looking for

  • Contemporary poetry
  • Spoken word/slam poetry
  • Poems focusing on current events and social justice issues are preferred

Audio guidelines

Recordings are limited to 4 minutes in length and should include the following:

  • 30 seconds or less: introduce yourself and tell us something about you (short bio, make sure it is in first person) and/or where the poem you will be reading was published (if applicable)
  • Reading of a single poem, up to 3 minutes
  • 30 seconds or less: tell us where to find you online (social media or web site), your most recent book

Example: “Hello, my name is Robert Frost. I’m a poet living in Salt Lake City. The title of this poem is “The Road Not Taken” and it was originally published in The Atlantic Monthly. [READ POEM]. This is Robert Frost and my most recent book is The Boy’s Will. You can find it on my web site RobertFrostPoems.com or follow me on Twitter and Instagram.”

How to record 

Use your smartphone’s voice memo app or another digital recording device. An easy way to record audio using the built-in voice memo app on your smartphone. Be sure to check the audio settings on your phone and app before recording. For the iPhone, set it to lossless. For Android phones, use the highest quality available. Either wav or mp3 files work, as long as it results in 44100 hz, 16-bit, mono or better.

NOTE: Try a few practice recordings to determine the best placement of the phone’s microphone in relation to your mouth — usually a 45-degree angle and two inches away is best.

For more tips, check out: How to Record a Poem Like a Pro

How to submit

Upload your audio into the cloud (Google Drive, for example), then send the download link to rockcanyonpoets@gmail.com. Please include an author photo and any website/social media information for you or your work. If the topic of the poem is in relation to a current event or social justice issue, please let us know in the body of the email.

You should receive a response within a month or two.

Then tune in on KRCL RadioActive for new Poetry STILL Happens mini-features, played throughout the month and featured on their web site and Facebook, as well as the Rock Canyon Poets web site and Facebook. Follow both to make sure not to miss a thing!

30 Poems in 30 Days + Free online NaPoWriMo workshop via the Community Writing Center

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30 POEMS IN 30 DAYS COMPETITION

Announcing the Community Writing Center’s Annual 30 Poems in 30 Days Writing Competition! Write 30 poems based on daily prompts throughout the month of April. Winners will have a chapbook of their original poems produced by the CWC.

Register by April 30th, either online or in person, for just $5 (fee can be waived on request).

April 1, 2020 at 10:00 a.m., the first of the 30 writing prompts will be posted on the CWC’s Facebook (@CommunityWritingCenter) and Instagram (@slcc_cwc) accounts. Each morning, a new prompt will be posted. Participants must meaningfully incorporate each prompt into the corresponding poem. Contestants must submit their poems via Submittable or in person at the CWC by May 9, 2020 @ 3 p.m. Please see our full rules and regulations.

REGISTER FOR 30 POEMS IN 30 DAYS

NaPoWriMo

4-Part Workshop
Saturdays April 4, 11, 18, & 25, 1 – 3 pm

April is National Poetry Month! Join the CWC for an online workshop that celebrates poetry in all its glory! We’ll explore various genres of poetry, learn to compose poems, and practice revising and sharing our work. We also encourage you to submit to our 30 Poems in 30 Days contest – winners will have a chapbook of their original work published by the CWC.

Cost: Free. Registration is required.
Location: Location: Online–Details TBA

Register For NaPoWriMo

Call for poems, prose, & art – Southern Quill, DEADLINE: March 9, 2020

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The Southern Quill is an undergraduate literary journal edited by students at Dixie State University. Published annually since 1951, the journal has been in circulation for more than half a century. They welcome exceptional and polished submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual arts from writers and artists residing in Utah and Clark County, Nevada.

Submission Guidelines

  • We do not accept previously published work, regardless of format or circulation.
  • We accept simultaneous submissions so long as you withdraw your submission if your work is accepted elsewhere.
  • Submitters between the ages of 12-17 must submit all categories of work to the Young Adult section.
  • Please include a short biography of 50 to 100 words with your submission. We will include it in our publication should we accept your work.
  • Upon publication, all rights will revert back to the author.
  • ​SQ contributors will receive two copies of the issue in which their work appears as compensation.

Click here to submit

SUBMISSION FEE: None

PAYMENT: SQ contributors will receive two copies of the issue in which their work appears as compensation.

FORMS: poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and visual arts

Poetry Open Mic + Book Launch Party, Tuesday, Jan. 14 @ 6:30 – Pioneer Book, Provo

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The Rock Canyon Poets and Pioneer Book announce the release party of Orogeny, the fifth anniversary collection of poems by local Utah County poets along with an open mic on Tuesday, January 14, 2019 at 6:30 pm.

Orogeny is the fifth annual printed anthology by Rock Canyon Poets members. Contributing poets receive a free copy and additional copies will be available to the public for $10 at the event. The event begins with an open mic, after which, Rock Canyon Poets will read their work from the anthology. Light refreshments will be served. Open to the public. No ticket necessary.

“For an excellent overview of today’s literary Utah, Orogeny is the best source I’ve seen. The Red Rock Canyon Poets have assembled a splendid, first rate collection and even a single read through will convince the reader that all is indeed hale and hearty in Utah’s literary scene. This is a quite delightful and delightfully readable anthology, one of the very best literary magazines I’ve seen this year: it does Utah proud. Bravo y ole’.”

—David Lee, Utah’s first poet laureate and author of So Quietly the Earth

“Orogeny, the fifth anthology of the Rock Canyon poets, breaks through the trite tropes and stereotypes about Utah to explore the undiscovered nooks and crags in our mountain ranges. Friends of form will delight in the prowess and precision of Tacey Atsitty’s opening round of sonnets, whereas slam poetry enthusiasts will find a brother in Chris Atkin’s soul-wrenching poems about self-love and resilience. What I appreciate most about this anthology is the way it creates space for even the most tattered parts of us. In ‘Permu-gay-tions,’ Aaron Gates flips a canonical biblical verse to ask “Shall not man lie with man?” In ‘Birthmark,’ Laura West reclaims a piece of herself shamed by a bully, and in ‘I Remain Affectionately Yours,’ Marianne Hale Harding ugly cries in a Wal-Mart after a divorce. In Oregeny, may we all find a home, another healing and birth.”

—Willy Palomo, Chief Editor of La Piscucha Magazine

For more information, contact the Rock Canyon Poets, rockcanyonpoets@gmail.com.

Where: Pioneer Book – 450 West Center Street, Provo

When: Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Time: 6:30 – 8:00 pm

Rock Canyon Poets boasts diverse membership, ranging from 18 to 70+ years in age with many backgrounds–including literary journal founders, editors, ex-military, business professionals, a playwright, and a periodontist.  Individually, they have received several awards and been published in magazines, anthologies, journals, chapbooks, and full-length books of poetry. Rock Canyon Poets offer poetry with the tactile clarity of tin-can messages through fuzzy strings to the ears of an audience. These poems are tumbleweeds in semi-truck grills. They get stuck in your teeth, build bridges of spun sugar, and make it possible to mount a camel without a sturdy ladder.

Co-founded by Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen and Trish Hopkinson in January, 2015, Rock Canyon Poets was established to develop camaraderie among Utah Valley poets, provide consistent workshopping and reading opportunities, and promote the disciplined study of writing poetry as a serious art form. Members meet twice a month at Pioneer Book in historic downtown Provo. The group sponsors poetry readings and an open mic on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Membership is by invitation or portfolio submission only.

For more information, contact the Rock Canyon Poets, rockcanyonpoets@gmail.com.

Rock Canyon Poets reading at the Utah Arts Festival next Thursday!

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Rock Canyon Poets are proud to announce they will be reading poetry for the fourth time at the Big Mouth Stage on Thursday, June 20, 2019 from 5:45 to 6:30 p.m. as literary artists for the Utah Arts Festival. You can read about our 2015 performance in this Daily Herald Article: Newly formed Rock Canyon Poets perform at Utah Arts Fest.

Arts Fest: Big Mouth Stage, Thursday at 5:45pm

Rock Canyon Poets boasts diverse membership, ranging from 19 to 70+ years in age with many backgrounds–including literary journal founders, editors, ex-military, business professionals, a playwright, and a periodontist.  Individually, they have received several awards and been published in magazines, anthologies, journals, chapbooks, and full-length books of poetry. Rock Canyon Poets offer poetry with the tactile clarity of tin-can messages through fuzzy strings to the ears of an audience. These poems are tumbleweeds in semi-truck grills. They get stuck in your teeth, build bridges of spun sugar, and make it possible to mount a camel without a sturdy ladder.

The Utah Arts Festival takes place Thursday, June 20 – Sunday, June 23, 2019, 12 noon to 11pm, on Library and Washington Squares in downtown Salt Lake City (200 East 400 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84111).

Co-founded by Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen and Trish Hopkinson in 2015, Rock Canyon Poets was established to develop camaraderie among Utah Valley poets, provide consistent workshopping and reading opportunities, and promote the disciplined study of writing poetry as a serious art form. Members meet twice a month at Pioneer Book in historic downtown Provo. The group sponsors poetry readings and an open mic on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Membership is by invitation or portfolio submission only.

For more information, contact the Rock Canyon Poets, rockcanyonpoets@gmail.com.

Trish Hopkinson & Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen, RCP co-founders, reading at City Art in SLC – Wed. May 1 @ 7pm

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The City Art reading series hosts co-founders of the Rock Canyon Poets Trish Hopkinson and Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen on Wednesday, May 1 at 7:00 PM in the 4th Floor Conference Room of The City Library. Click here for the official event page.

Trish Hopkinson is author of three chapbooks and has been published in several anthologies and journals, including Tinderbox, Pretty Owl Poetry, and The Penn Review. You can follow Hopkinson on her blog where she shares information on how to write, publish, and participate in the greater poetry community at http://trishhopkinson.com/.

Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen is a poly-artist and humanitarian residing in Utah. Her poetic work has been featured in anthologies and journals including CrabFat, Peculiar, Quarterly West, Rust+Moth, andSWIMM. She blogs sporadically at secondsetofwings.com and provides regular taxi service for her four children.

Co-founded by Bonnie Shiffler-Olsen and Trish Hopkinson in 2015, Rock Canyon Poets was established to develop camaraderie among Utah Valley poets, provide consistent workshopping and reading opportunities, and promote the disciplined study of writing poetry as a serious art form. Members meet twice a month at Pioneer Book in historic downtown Provo. The group sponsors poetry readings and an open mic on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Membership is by invitation or portfolio submission only.

For more information, City Art Director Joel Long: joeltlong@yahoo.com.

Event Info

  • Date: May 1, 2019
  • Location: Salt Lake City Public Library (Main Branch)
  • Address: 210 East 400 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84111
  • Time: 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM