Tucson – AZpoetry.com

Tucson Festival of Books

March 14 & 15 | University of Arizona Mall

The Tucson Festival of Books is a premier, free-to-attend, family-friendly celebration of literature that engages our community. We present notable recently published authors from all genres to discuss big ideas and express creativity freely.

Vision: Through an annual festival and associated programs, we support, elevate, and amplify literacy so that words and imagination come to life for readers of all ages. We inspire our community to fund and utilize Southern Arizona literacy services to improve literacy rates.

The next Tucson Festival of Books will be held March 14-15, 2026 at the University of Arizona. Questions about the festival? Access our TFOB FAQ here.

Festival History

The Tucson Festival of Books (TFOB) is a registered non-profit organization that made its debut March 14-15, 2009 on the campus of The University of Arizona. The inaugural festival featured 450 authors and presenters and welcomed 50,000 regional visitors, all made possible with generous support from our sponsors and the energetic goodwill of 800 volunteers. The Tucson Festival of Books is fortunate to have the support of two of the city’s leading institutions among its co-founders, The University of Arizona and The Arizona Daily Star: community-focused organizations who help to further the mission of TFOB.

The festival is now a community-wide celebration of literature and one of the largest book festivals in the United States.

Tucson Poetry Slam

February 22, 2026 | The Coalition

The Tucson Poetry Slam returns to The Coalition for a poetry slam featuring Joshua Wiss on February 22, 2026.

Joshua Wiss shows up and shows OUT ! They’ve represented AZ at 5 nationals, 2 individual world poetry slams, AND numerous regional slams.

Slam is a form of poetry competition that was founded by Marc Smith in Chicago in 1984. Whether performing or cheering from the audience, your soul will be touched by some amazing artists.

The rules to compete are simple:

*All poems must be original and written by the poet competing

*Poems will be judged by 3-5 randomly selected judges in the audience

*Poets will compete in 1 to 3 rounds (be prepared with 3 poems) with scoring to determine round 2 and 3 competitors

*No props or other materials not available to all posts are allowed

*No hate speech, disruptive behavior or nudity (respect each other)

*3 minute maximum with a 10 second grace period (.5 deducted for every 10 seconds over)

Signups to compete should be sent to tucsonslampoetry@gmail.com

Doors open at 6:30 PM

Competition is 7:00-9:00 PM

Cost to attend is “pay what you can” between $1 and $10

(Please note that topics often include sensitive, adult content or language, so suggested audience is 13 or older)

Feel free to bring your own non-alcoholic beverage.

Tucson Poetry Slam

January 25, 2026 | The Coalition

The Tucson Poetry Slam returns to The Coalition for a poetry slam featuring Ashanti Files on January 25th!

Ashanti Files is the 2025 Spotlight Poetry Phenomenal Woman Slam Champion, the 2021 Urbana Poet Laureate Emeritus, and a 2022 Academy of American Poets Poet Laureate Fellow.

Slam is a form of poetry competition that was founded by Marc Smith in Chicago in 1984. Whether performing or cheering from the audience, your soul will be touched by some amazing artists.

The rules to compete are simple:

*All poems must be original and written by the poet competing

*Poems will be judged by 3-5 randomly selected judges in the audience

*Poets will compete in 1 to 3 rounds (be prepared with 3 poems) with scoring to determine round 2 and 3 competitors

*No props or other materials not available to all posts are allowed

*No hate speech, disruptive behavior or nudity (respect each other)

*3 minute maximum with a 10 second grace period (.5 deducted for every 10 seconds over)

Signups to compete should be sent to tucsonslampoetry@gmail.com

Doors open at 6:30 PM

Competition is 7:00-9:00 PM

Cost to attend is “pay what you can” between $1 and $10

(Please note that topics often include sensitive, adult content or language, so suggested audience is 13 or older)

Feel free to bring your own non-alcoholic beverage.

Arizona Authors Association Open Mic

Every third Sunday of the month | 738 N 5th Ave Tucson, AZ

Hosted by Ken Weene, author and poet. All arts and artists are welcome for poetry, prose, music, dance, comedy, and performance. 5 minute slots, unless arranged beforehand. If artists wish to vend their artwork or literature, please contact Ken at kweene1941@gmail.com for arrangements.