Sept. 1, 2026: Iz White
Iz White is a proud Snoqualmie tribal member. His tribe is located in King County. He grew up homeless in Seattle, writing poetry on napkins on the back of buses. He disguised his poetry as rap in middle school so the other kids would stop making fun of him. He got his start on stage through Red Eagle Soaring, a Native youth theater group, and he now hones his craft at Hugo House’s monthly open mic. Hugo House’s inclusive environment has helped him represent Indigenous culture while finding his voice. He is honored to share his work.
Emcee: Pamela Denchfield Oct. 6, 2026: Michael Schein
Michael Schein was awarded the FIFA Prize in Psychedelics for his experiments with knocking two or sometimes six rocks together while reciting the Bhagavad Gita. He is the author of the Magna Carta and the parts of the Bible where God tries to drown all of humanity. He ran LiTFUSE and formerly hosted Duvall Poetry until they ran him out of town, so he moved to Portland, took up the drums, and wrote a play. He’s delighted to be coming back but warns old friends that due to special relativity, irrelevance, irreverence, and general Portland weirdness, he may have aged more than the rest of you. Michaelschein.com.
Emcee: Ivey |
Nov. 3, 2026: Benjamin Schmitt
Benjamin Schmitt is the Elgin Award-nominated author of five books, most recently Satan’s School for Girls and Other Works (forthcoming Goldfish Press, 2026). His writing has appeared in Sojourners, Antioch Review, The MacGuffin, Sensitive Skin, Hobart, Columbia Review, The Seattle Times, and elsewhere. A co-founder of Pacifica Writers’ Workshop, he lives in Seattle with his children.
Emcee: Jeremy Robkin Dec. 1, 2026: Tara Campbell
(Photo credit: Hillary Deane) Tara Campbell (www.taracampbell.com) is a writer, teacher, Kimbilio Fellow, and fiction co-editor at Barrelhouse. She teaches flash and speculative fiction, and is the author of two novels, two hybrid collections, two short story collections, and a chapbook of sestinas. Additional publication credits include Masters Review, Wigleaf, Electric Literature, CRAFT Literary, Uncharted Magazine, Daily Science Fiction, Strange Horizons, and Escape Pod/Artemis Rising. Emcee: Ivey 2027 - TBA |
