Mississauga Poetry Month 2023

Celebrate from April 1 to April 30.

Enjoy a variety of in-person and online programs this April for Poetry Month! Attend a poetry slam, participate in a poetry contest, sign up for an author talk, or join our Poet Laureates in a poetry-themed workshop. Details for all the activities are below.

Hosted in partnership between the Mississauga Library and City Culture team.

Call for Poetry — March 27 to April 23

The New Youth Council is launching a poetry anthology, Serene Seas, and we want to celebrate with you! Share a poem or submit a work of art that features poetry in some way for a chance to be featured in an exhibition during National Youth Week.

Submit a poem

Poetry Contest 2023 Winners

Calling all poets to send us your best original poem! The Mississauga Poet Laureates and Library staff will look for uniqueness, creativity, attention to detail, and overall impact when selecting our winners. May the best poem win!

Details:

There will be two age brackets for this contest: Ages 13-19 & Ages 20+
Format: 250 word maximum, .docx format, no images, include your name, phone number, email and age
Limit 1 poem per person

Submissions:

Send your submission to library.programs@mississauga.ca
Submissions that don’t meet the requirements will not be accepted
Winning poems will be posted on the Mississauga.ca webpage

Prizes:

1st Prize: $100 Indigo Gift Card
2nd & 3rd Prize: $50 Indigo Gift Card
See full contest rules at www.mississauga.ca/library/contest-rules

Winners for 13-19 Age Bracket:

1st Place: HANDS by Danelle Eubion
2nd Place: Where I am From by Feyintola Johnson
3rd Place: The Sound of Calypso by Alyssa Johnson

Winners for the 20+ Age Bracket:

1st Place: Holding Hands by Andrew M. Shaughnessy
2nd Place: How to Live With Being Your Mother’s Gay Daughter by Esse Prasad
3rd Place: I Am No Princess by Salimah Husain

Share Your Poem — April 1 to April 30

Copy your favourite poem or create a new one for others to read, and add it to one of the display boards at all Library locations throughout April.

New Mississauga Youth Poet Laureate

Mississauga’s 4th Youth Poet Laureate was announced at General Committee of Council on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. Congratulations to Lisa Shen who will serve a two-year term from 2023 to 2025. Lisa is a writer and spoken word artist. Her work centres on feminism and gender-based violence with secondary focuses on Chinese-Canadianism, disability, and queer identity.

Learn more about Lisa Shen.