Poetry Postcard Fest

An annual 56 day self-guided workshop in spontaneous composition and community-building.

Poetry Postcard Fest 2025 Event Registration Banner

Poetry Postcard Fest

An annual 56 day self-guided workshop in spontaneous composition and community-building.

Poetry Postcard Fest 2025 Event Registration Banner

How it Works

The fest is a self-guided 56 day workshop in spontaneous composition and community. Click to learn more about How it Works.

A five week online (Zoom) workshop for first-time and continuing participants in the online workshops facilitated by Cascadia Poetics Lab and Poetry Postcard Fest Co-Founder Paul E Nelson. Participate in reading and discussion of foundational essays, interviews, listening and other assignments, as well as spontaneous poetry composition exercises, in the first of three, five week courses to happen before next postcard season. Click to learn more.

Thursdays 2-5:00 PM Pacific Time
April 3 – May 1, 2025

Poetics As Cosmology Spring 2025

Poetics As Cosmology Spring 2025 Banner

Poetics As Cosmology Spring 2025

A five week online (Zoom) workshop for first-time and continuing participants in the online workshops facilitated by Cascadia Poetics Lab and Poetry Postcard Fest Co-Founder Paul E Nelson. Participate in reading and discussion of foundational essays, interviews, listening and other assignments, as well as spontaneous poetry composition exercises, in the first of three, five week courses to happen before next postcard season. Click to learn more.

Thursdays 2-5:00 PM Pacific Time
April 3 – May 1, 2025

Poetics As Cosmology Spring 2025 Banner

Life as Rehearsal for the Poem Workshop

Life as Rehearsal for the Poem Spring 2025 Banner

A five week online (Zoom) workshop for first-time and continuing participants in the online workshops facilitated by Cascadia Poetics Lab and Poetry Postcard Fest Co-Founder Paul E Nelson. Participate in reading and discussion of foundational essays, interviews, listening and other assignments, as well as spontaneous poetry composition exercises, in the first of three, five week courses to happen before next postcard season. Click to learn more.

Sundays 2-5:00 PM Pacific Time
April 6 – May 4, 2025.

Life as Rehearsal for the Poem Workshop

A five week online (Zoom) workshop for first-time and continuing participants in the online workshops facilitated by Cascadia Poetics Lab and Poetry Postcard Fest Co-Founder Paul E Nelson. Participate in reading and discussion of foundational essays, interviews, listening and other assignments, as well as spontaneous poetry composition exercises, in the first of three, five week courses to happen before next postcard season. Click to learn more.

Sundays 2-5:00 PM Pacific Time
April 6 – May 4, 2025.

Life as Rehearsal for the Poem Spring 2025 Banner

Thinkingwith: writing strategies for reconnecting to earth

Thinking With Workshop with Matt Trease Web Banner

Our current media landscape seems hooked on a doom loop, an apocalyptic dream of human self-annihilation from collapsing nation states and anarchy to climate change to AI terminators, to genocidal warmongering. In order to avoid going down with that ship, we, as humans, are going to need to flip the script, to learn to think differently.

This lab will focus on writing strategies, applicable for poetry or prose, for breaking the spell that objectifies and cuts us off from the earth and from place and all the living beings that we (often) obliviously live in relationship with. We’ll do that by intentionally widening the socially-imposed conventions of “normal” perception via some minor alterations to our daily writing practices.

Click to learn more.

Sundays 3-5:00 PM Pacific Time
February 23 – March 23, 2025

Thinkingwith: writing strategies for reconnecting to earth

Our current media landscape seems hooked on a doom loop, an apocalyptic dream of human self-annihilation from collapsing nation states and anarchy to climate change to AI terminators, to genocidal warmongering. In order to avoid going down with that ship, we, as humans, are going to need to flip the script, to learn to think differently.

This lab will focus on writing strategies, applicable for poetry or prose, for breaking the spell that objectifies and cuts us off from the earth and from place and all the living beings that we (often) obliviously live in relationship with. We’ll do that by intentionally widening the socially-imposed conventions of “normal” perception via some minor alterations to our daily writing practices.

Click to learn more.

Sundays 3-5:00 PM Pacific Time
February 23 – March 23, 2025

Thinking With Workshop with Matt Trease Web Banner

Denny Stern: Taiwan Etudes

From Postcard Poet Denny Stern: Taiwan Etudes Series Visiting Taipei in March we stumbled upon a post card intensive solo exhibit by Taiwanese artist Apex Lin, Pang-Soong. I estimated there to be between 1700 & 1800 hand drawn and written postcards by the artist...

Give BIG PPF & Your Postcard Testimonials!

Support Cascadia Poetics Lab and Poetry Postcard Fest May 6-7 Thank you for being a postcard poet! We are gearing up for another summer of postcards and postcard events, more information on the way! A lot of tireless work goes into these events, and it's always so...

Postcard Reflections by Zach Charles

From PPF committee member Zach Charles: I recently had the privilege and honor to interview Paul E Nelson, Founder of the Cascadia Poetics Lab and co-founder of the Poetry Postcard Fest with Lana Ayers, about the Postcard Fest. Our conversation ranged from cards he...

Postcards in Rainier Beach

Happy spring! We're gearing up for another exciting summer of postcard poetry, and have some great opportunities for connecting with postcard poets and spreading the love for postcard poetry soon! Postcards at Walk the Block On May 24, 2025 from 11 AM - 6 PM PST,...

Poetry Postcard Fest News

Judy Kleinberg on Captain Who?

Judy Kleinberg on Captain Who?

Captain who??? As you may have noticed, there’s a new term in the Poetry Postcard Fest glossary for 2024: List Captain. Like many grassroots organizations that grow organically, the annual Fest...

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Postcards From Here

Postcards From Here

Postcards From Here Cascadia Poetics Lab will be celebrating the Poetry Postcard Fest with its first in-person postcard event on July 14, 2024 at 11 A.M. PDT at the Olympic Sculpture Park in...

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Wish You Were Here (Drew Myron)

Wish You Were Here (Drew Myron)

It’s postcard season, and I’m ready! Once, a young friend went to Europe. “Send me a postcard,” I said as she departed. She arrived in the foreign country, purchased a postcard, and had no idea what...

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PPF Open House Video and Q&A!

PPF Open House Video and Q&A!

PPF Open House Video and FAQ! On June 16, 2024, CPL hosted a Zoom open house for the Poetry Postcard Fest, where the PPF committee answered any questions regarding the fest and postcard poems were...

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DaySong 2024

DaySong 2024

DaySong 2024 on September 1 The DaySong is a poem written in a 24 hour period (or the 16 or so hours you’re awake during a 24 hour period). The DaySong was originally envisioned as an attempt to...

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The Poetry Postcard Fest, initiated by poets Paul Nelson and Lana Ayers in 2007, invites participants to create and send 31 original poems on postcards throughout August. The fest emphasizes spontaneity, with poems written in one take directly onto postcards for recipients worldwide. Registration opens annually on September 1, and participants receive a list of fellow poets to exchange cards with. A $15 contribution supports the Cascadia Poetics LAB, and scholarships are available. For more details and resources on postcard poetry, visit How it Works or check out related essays and wrap-ups from past participants.

How the Poetry Postcard Fest Works

Abhaya Thomas Postcard

How the Poetry Postcard Fest Works

The Poetry Postcard Fest, initiated by poets Paul Nelson and Lana Ayers in 2007, invites participants to create and send 31 original poems on postcards throughout August. The fest emphasizes spontaneity, with poems written in one take directly onto postcards for recipients worldwide. Registration opens annually on September 1, and participants receive a list of fellow poets to exchange cards with. A $15 contribution supports the Cascadia Poetics LAB, and scholarships are available. For more details and resources on postcard poetry, visit How it Works or check out related essays and wrap-ups from past participants.

Abhaya Thomas Postcard