This Is Just To Say: spoken word open mic

Oxford Poetry Library presents a spoken word open mic night! Join us in the library on the first Tuesday of every month to enjoy all manner of word-weaving, story-sharing, and spell-casting.

We welcome poets, storytellers, and writers of all kinds to share their work (or the work of others) in a safe, supportive, and inclusive space. Slots are 2-3 minutes long, and performers sign up on the door – first come, first served and slots fill up quickly so we recommend arriving in good time for 7pm!

At OPL we want everyone to feel comfortable and has space to enjoy the night. That’s why we have a few basic guidelines that we ask everyone to follow:

• Please refrain from using discriminatory language or harmful content in your performance. If you are unsure about your performance, speak to the host when you arrive.
• You should aim to read something that’s around one page or two minutes – this ensures that everyone has enough time to read.

The theme for this month’s session is DIS/APPEARING. What fades, what remains, what refuses to disappear? We’re exploring the seen and unseen, the lost and found, the stories that slip through the cracks. Bring your ghosts, your light, the invisible, and the clear as day.

Every month we feature a performer with a slightly extended set and this month’s featured performer to grace our stage will be Smriti Verma. Smriti grew up in Delhi and has been writing for the past ten years. Her poetry and fiction has appeared in VIBE, The Alipore Post, VAYAVYA, The Adroit Journal, Coldnoon and B O D Y, among others, and she received the First Prize at OPL’s TASTE Poetry Competition. She is an alumnus of the Kolam Writer’s Workshop and has recently been delving into creative nonfiction. Currently, she is a DPhil Student in English at University of Oxford, where she works on women’s life-writing and feminist thought. She works as a Poetry Editor for Inklette and for The Ideate Review. Her work can be found on smritiverma.tumblr.com.

The session starts at 7.30pm (performers are advised to arrive from 7pm), at The Community Works (21 Park End St, OX1 1HU).

£5 entry (£2 concessions), performers free.

The building is accessible, but if you have any specific access needs, please drop us an email at oxfordpoetrylibrary@gmail.com beforehand!