Soda City Poetry Festival

09/05/2026

Soda City Poetry Festival Workshop Series
Saturday, September 12, 2026
Teaching Poet: Zach Mueller
Swamp Moss & Dogwood Blossom: Cultivating Poems

Workshop Description: Swamp Moss & Dogwood Blossom: Cultivating Poems: From finding a pathway into a new poem to layering detail and depth in a piece-in-progress, the life of our backyard can give us a vocabulary for crafting voice and place in our writing. Together we’ll explore poems and writing prompts inspired by poets who ground their own work in the leaf, salt, and fur they know and tend to in fresh, even surprising and unexpected ways. We’ll also discuss the possibilities of place-based imagination with our own South Carolina landscapes—from swamp to field—in mind.

Zach Mueller teaches creative and first-year writing at the University of South Carolina. He has a PhD in Creative Writing from University of Nebraska and MFA in Poetry from USC. He’s a former Hub City Writer-in-Residence and a Bread Loaf Environmental Writing Scholar.

This workshop is FREE and in person only. Space is limited. Click the link for details and to fill out the form to register: https://bit.ly/swampmoss

Sponsors for this workshop series are Richland Library, The City of Columbia, and One Columbia for Arts & Culture.

08/11/2026

Our August Workshop with Loli Molina Muñoz was all good poetry and good vibes!

Her workshop “Turning Personal Experience into Shareable Poetry” featured poems by Simon J. Ortiz, Lucille Clifton, and Agha Shahid Ali. It also featured a generative and revision and resonance phase.

We had productive poetry conversations and some amazing poems were written in this packed workshop.

Languages spoken in the workshop other than English included Spanish, French, and Portuguese!

Special thanks to Richland Library for hosting us and including us on the Learn Freely schedule!

There are only 3 workshops left for the year! Our September 12th workshop features poet-facilitator Zach Mueller.

Email us at [email protected] for details!

The Soda City Poetry Festival workshops are sponsored by The City of Columbia, One Columbia, and Richland Library.

The Soda City Poetry Festival workshops are a project of the Current Poet Laureate of Columbia, Jennifer Bartell Boykin.

07/31/2026

Soda City Poetry Festival Workshop Series
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2026 Richland Library Learn Freely Fest

Teaching Poet: Loli Molina Muñoz
Saturday, August 8, 2026

Workshop description of Turning Personal Experience into Sharable Poetry": This workshop explores how to transform personal experiences into poetry that resonates with others. Instead of simply recounting events, you’ll learn how to shape emotion through vivid imagery, sensory detail, and intentional structure. Through guided exercises and revision techniques, participants will practice turning private moments into powerful, relatable pieces. Whether you’re new to writing or looking to deepen your voice, this session will help you create poetry that feels both honest and sharable without losing its emotional core.

Loli Molina Muñoz is a Spanish writer, poet, and educator whose work often explores themes of migration, identity, and gender. She holds a Doctorate in Modern Languages and a Master’s degree in Education. Her literary publications range from her early literary recognitions in 2000 during college; to her collaboration in anthologies like WhiteStar—dedicated to David Bowie—, and her most recent publications in the journals Label Me Latina/o and Jasper Magazine. Her two collections of poems are titled poemAnuario and Expatriados. She has also produced the podcast “Poesía Incompleta”, where she shares her own writings and those of other selected authors.

This workshop is FREE and in person only. Space is limited. Click the link for details and to fill out the form to register: https://bit.ly/augustworkshop2026.

Sponsors for this workshop series are Richland Library, The City of Columbia, and One Columbia for Arts & Culture.

07/12/2026

Thank you, mosesxfreeman, for a wonderful workshop on writing, revising, and performing poetry!

His July 11 workshop was packed and included a great group of engaged poets.

We had a poet who drove down from NC, and for another poet, this was his very first workshop.

Join us next month for the next workshop on August 8. Email [email protected] to get in our email list for first dibs on sign ups. Space is limited.

Thank you, richlandlibrary, for hosting us! We love you! Thank you to our other sponsors onecolumbia and City of Columbia Government.

07/02/2026

Soda City Poetry Festival's Workshop Series
Teaching Poet: Moses Freedman
Saturday, July 11, 2026

Workshop Description of the poetry workshop "Performance Poetry and Storytelling: Bringing Your Story to Life": Have you ever wondered what makes storytelling so magnetic? Do you want to share poetry and tell stories in ways that captivate an audience? This is a workshop for poets and storytellers centered on the art of bringing your words to life.

Moses Freedman is an award-winning performance poet from Aiken, SC. A published poet and reigning champion of Columbia’s Tribe Slam poetry team; Moses delivers stories that will both fill your heart with joy and rattle you to the bone.

This workshop is FREE and in person only. Space is limited. Click the link for details and to fill out the form to register: https://bit.ly/julyworkshop26.

Sponsors for this workshop series are Richland Library, The City of Columbia, and One Columbia for Arts & Culture.

Moses Freedman will teach the July workshop for the Soda City Poetry Festival Workshop Series on July 11, 2026 from 2-4 p.m. at Richland Library Main, Meeting Room N. This month’s workshop is for poets and writers aged 16 and up. Here's a description of the poetry workshop "Performance Poetry and ...

07/02/2026

June 20, 2026
Soda City Poetry Festival Workshops
Facilitator: Alyssa Stewart
Title of Workshop: Write Back to You

We moved our bodies and traveled through childhood memories in our June workshop last month.

We emerged with lines and ideas for future poems.

Next workshop is on July 11.

06/08/2026

Soda City Poetry Festival
Monthly Workshop Series
Teaching Poet: Alyssa Stewart
Saturday, June 20, 2026

*HURRY! Only 9 spots left for this workshop!*

Workshop description: "Write Back to You": The body has been philosophized, politicized, criticized, and policed. We've been taught to ignore how we feel and where we feel it. "Write Back To You" is a workshop for people who want to trust their feelings, to be experts on themselves, and use language to share their embodied experiences.

Alyssa Stewart was born in Virginia and grew up in Columbia, SC. She's a poet, singer, songwriter, and musician who believes in the power of storytelling and the universal language of music! When she's not reading or teaching private music lessons, you might find her near a body of water.

This workshop is FREE and in person only. Space is limited. Fill out the form to register: https://bit.ly/Juneworkshop26.

Sponsors for this workshop series are Richland Library, The City of Columbia, and One Columbia for Arts & Culture.

05/03/2026

Rian Jenkins will teach the May workshop for the 2026 Soda City Poetry Festival Workshop Series.

Join us on May 9, 2026 from 2-4 p.m. at Richland Library Main, Meeting Room N. This month’s workshop is for young people ages 8-18. In her workshop “Unlocking the Verses,” students will be able to create poetry through various prompts and exercises.

This workshop is FREE and in person only. Space is limited. Email [email protected] to register and reserve your spot today.

For over 30 years, Rian N. Jenkins inspired, entertained, and educated many through poetry, novellas, journalism, and performances. In 2021, she added author to her resume. As of 2025, she has self published three poetry books, her first two children’s books, A Blessing for The World and Heaven’s Jewel and first middle grades novel, Reverse. She is a mother of a brilliant young king who is in college, teacher and a spoken word artist, podcaster, mentor and program director of CROWN HER. She also calls herself a LIT specialist who does book talks online while sponsoring All Black Author Book Drive and Giveaway in the Columbia area. She is a native of Sumter, SC but graduated from Ridge View in ‘98 and Winthrop University in ‘03. She also has roots in Edisto Island, Hollywood and St Helena Island. Learn more about her and where to find her on social media on her website, WWW.RIANNJENKINS.COM

Richland Library Main is in downtown Columbia at 1431 Assembly Street.

Sponsors for this workshop series are The City of Columbia and One Columbia.

04/14/2026

Soda City Poetry Festival’s first workshop of 2026 was a success! Thank you to all who came who wrote, read, discussed, shared, and breathed poetry with us.

Workshop: Foodways in Poetry

We will be announcing the facilitator of the May workshop soon.

04/11/2026

Step out and come vibe with More Than Words.Flo Open Mic Night on SUNDAY APR 12TH | 8PM | Oasis | Sunday Nights are fun again in … Grown Folks Style |