- Solano County has a Poetry Out Loud program where high school students can memorize a famous poem from a previously provided collection, and compete in city, county, state, and ultimately national competitions. http://www.poetryoutloud.org/
https://www.facebook.com/solanocountypoetryoutloud/ - California Poets in the Schools offers the services of poets in the classroom: https://www.californiapoets.org/
- The Solano County Library runs an annual writing contest in the fall and winners are published in the library’s Write On! magazine.
Contests
The following fairs have poetry contests open to Solano County residents:
- Solano County Fair in Vallejo accepts poetry submissions from outside of the county, multiple categories, offers complimentary fair tickets. See website for specific submission details: http://www.scfair.com/
- Marin County Fair in San Rafael accepts poetry submissions from all over the United States, multiple categories. See website for specific submission details: https://www.marinfair.org/
- Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton accepts poetry submissions from outside of the county, offers performance opportunity, complimentary book of all exhibited poetry, complimentary fair tickets for Poetry Day. See website for specific submission details: http://alamedacountyfair.com
Contact
Visit https://groups.google.com/g/vallejopoetrysociety/about while logged in to Google and click on “Request to Join Group.”
For more information about our mailing list visit this page.
Solano poets
We have a small list of poetry books and anthologies published by local poets here. If you’re a local, we recommend you purchase from our local bookstores, Alibi Bookshop and/or Bookshop Benicia. They both have a wide selection of local authors.
Performing
Poetry by the Bay meets at 7:30 PM every 4th Thursday at the Mira Theater in Vallejo. 51 Daniels Avenue.
Benicia First Tuesday Poets meet on the first Tuesday of the Month at 6:15 PM at the Benicia Library at 150 East L Street. Benicia Poet Laureate Kathy Monroe and the Benicia Literary Arts put on several events throughout the year.
Art Beat Poetry Hour airs on the 4th Thursday of the month at 10:30 AM on our local radio station, KZCT 89.5 FM. If you wish to perform your poetry live on air, arrive by 10:15 AM to sign up on the list. Please note the studio is not wheelchair accessible and there are animals on the premises. There is limited seating available. The station is available worldwide to listeners through TuneIn.
Poetry Speakeasy at Chris Club meets on the 2nd Monday of the month at 7 PM. 21+ venue that serves alcohol. 656 Benicia Road, Vallejo. Hosted by Remo Valentino.
Open Mic at the Townhouse meets every Wednesday at 8 PM. Poets are welcome. 21+ venue that serves alcohol. Hosted by Rich Adams. 401A Georgia Street, Vallejo.
We recommend you join our mailing list or follow the individual social media accounts for these open mics and venues to be informed if there are cancellations.
- OZCAT radio 89.5 FM: Art Beat Show on the 4th Thursdays at 10:30 AM. Listen live here.
- KALW has a program called Bay Poets that airs poetry – https://www.kalw.org/show/bay-poets
Poetry facts
There are many accomplished poets who have lived in Solano County. We have compiled a long list of local poets here including local, state, and national poets laureate who have ties to Solano County. Some even have monuments in their honor.
Publishing
Many publishers list submittable.com which lets you submit poetry through their website. Their website lets you track your submissions to publishers not listed on submittable.
Another great resource is duotrope.com which for a $5 monthly fee lets you research publications, keep track of submissions, and they have their own submission service called duosoma. Their submissions calendar is a useful feature in finding new anthology calls.
Here are some websites for self-publishing paperbacks:
Ebooks are a more accessible and environmentally friendly option. These sites will distribute your poetry book as an ebook. Using a combination of distributors can spread your book globally.
Publishing ebooks directly:
- http://kdp.amazon.com
- http://press.barnesandnoble.com
- https://www.kobo.com/us/en/p/writinglife
- https://play.google.com/books/publish/
Ebook distributors:
- http://www.draft2digital.com
- http://www.smashwords.com
- http://www.streetlib.com
- http://www.publishdrive.com
Software for editing epub files: https://calibre-ebook.com
Books that are a good starting point for resources helpful to poets wishing to expand their horizons.
Glazner, Gary Mex, How to Make a Living as a Poet (2005) 978-1932360691
Sedlacek, L.B., The Poet’s Survival Guide (2009) 978-1716870736
La Ronn, Michael, Indie Poet Rock Star: The Poet’s Guide to Ebooks, Marketing and the Self-Publishing Revolution (2015) 978-1507776513
Padgett, Ron, The Teachers & Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms (2007) 978-0915924608
Gailey, Jeanine Hall, PR For Poets: A Guidebook To Publicity And Marketing (2018) 978-1948767002
Lefebvre, Mark Leslie, Wide for the Win: Strategies to Sell Globally via Multiple Platforms and Forge Your Own Path to Success (2021) 978-1989351260
- The Benicia First Tuesday Poets host an annual Love Poetry Contest and bi-annual anthology. For more information go to https://benicialibrary.org/services/adults/poet-laureate
- Benicia Poet Laureate emerita Mary Susan Gast has a column in the Benicia Herald called Going the Distance/Yearning to Breathe Free. http://marysusangast.com/going-the-distance/
- The Suisun Valley Review and Carquinez Review are locally published journals.