The Chicago Poetry Center presents BLUE HOUR, a free, public monthly in-person reading series and generative writing workshop.
Each event includes a brief lottery-style open mic and two featured readers from Chicago and beyond, preceded by a limited-space generative writing workshop.
EVENT DETAILS FOR NOVEMBER 19th:
The workshop (registration required) begins promptly at 6 p.m. and ends at 7 p.m.
Doors open and open mic lottery registration starts at 7 p.m. -- the open mic begins promptly at 7:30, followed by our amazing featured readers.
Reading registration is free; the workshop is a sliding scale with a suggested donation of $10.
Register for the workshop here (required, and sells out quickly):
https://BHWorkshopNov2025.eventbrite.com
And RSVP for the reading here (recommended):
https://Nov2025BlueHour.eventbrite.com
View the livestream here:
https://www.youtube.com/@chicagopoetrycenter/streams
NOVEMBER FEATURES:
IAN HALEY POLLOCK is the author of three poetry collections, Spit Back a Boy (2011), Ghost, Like a Place (2018), and All the Possible Bodies (Alice James, September 2025). He has received several honors for his work including the Cave Canem Poetry Prize, the Alice Fay di Castagnola Award from the Poetry Society of America, a NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in Poetry, the Bim Ramke Prize for Poetry, and a nomination for an NAACP Image Award. He serves as Director of the MFA Program in Creative Writing at Manhattanville University in Purchase, NY.
KEETJE KUIPERS' fourth collection of poetry, Lonely Women Make Good Lovers, was the recipient of the Isabella Gardner Award. Her poetry and prose have appeared in American Poetry Review, New York Times Magazine, and Poetry, and have been honored by publication in the Pushcart Prize and Best American Poetry anthologies. Keetje has been a Stegner Fellow, NEA Literature Fellow in Creative Writing, and the Margery Davis Boyden Wilderness Writing Resident. She lives with her wife and children in Montana, where she is Editor of Poetry Northwest.
Accessibility:
Professional ASL interpretation is provided for the open mic and featured reading portion of the event. Haymarket House is fully ADA-compliant and wheelchair accessible. Please let us know if you have any specific accessibility questions; if you use a wheelchair, please contact
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Also check out other Arts events in Chicago, Literary Art events in Chicago.
