PIG UPDATE #30
12th of April 2026
Spring is in the air - and so are April showers - but optimism and future hope seem to be in short supply at the moment. Good thing PIG is the one news outlet that's got nothing but good news for you. Read on for everything to stay poetic in the next two weeks, and watch out for your fellow poets. We are a community and - as the PIG Updates show so wonderfully every fortnight - we can be proud of the vibrant, diverse and welcoming community we are building together every single day.
Events (13 to 26 April 2026)
Things kick off on Wednesday (15 April) with a triple bill of poetic goodness. The weekly Poet's Corner open mic is on at Hillhead Bookclub from 7:30pm. As always, slots are 5-10 minutes and you just show up to sign up. Check the organiser's Instagram for the weekly theme. If you fancy something with a bit more of a curated twist, Wordsworth Grasmere is hosting the latest instalment of its online reading series 'Go to the poets, they will speak to thee', this time featuring Daljit Nagra reading from his forthcoming collection Yiewsley (Faber, 2026). The open mic theme for the evening is 'Where I'm From, Where I'm Going'. Slots are limited and need to be booked in advance, so email the organisers quickly if you want to read. Tickets are £7. Over at Sweeney's on the Park, Poetry at Sweeney's is back with a new host! Sarah Heitler is taking over from Meron and continuing this lovely monthly open mic. Slots are 5 minutes, beginners and first-timers are warmly encouraged, and prose pieces are welcome too.
Sunday (19 April) sees Discount Guillotine take over The House Arts Collective from 6:30pm. The evening features readings by L Scully, Parseljoy, Carlegent, M. Elizabeth Scott and Meredith MacLeod. £5 suggested donation.
There is plenty to choose from on Monday (20 April) - and it's all in the West End! Eve McIntosh is celebrating the release of their debut poetry pamphlet Digital Prophet, published by Guillemot Press, with a launch event at the Alchemy Experiment from 6:30pm. The pamphlet explores friendship, contradictions and nostalgia, and the night promises guest performances, a bar and a DJ to close things out. Just up the road at Curler's Rest, Curler's Cosy Corner offers you the warm and welcoming open mic experience you know and love. Slots are 5 minutes, first come first served, and they usually fill up fast. Meanwhile over at Inn Deep just a few streets away, Poetry @ Inn Deep is back in session from 7:30pm as well.
Wednesday (22 April) brings a very special evening. SpeakEasy is launching its brand new independent press with the release of The Man You Script by Drew Gill at Hide and Seek on Buchanan Street. The collection is a journey through queer love, heartbreak and self-acceptance, and the launch will be hosted by RJ Hunter with guest performances from Fiona Jane, Katie Ailes, TJ and Mike Yuill. Grab your ticket quickly - they'll go fast! Meanwhile, Poet's Corner is on at Hillhead Bookclub for its weekly open mic.
On Friday (24 April), there's a lovely community event at The Base in Glenavon Road in Maryhill. The Open Mic at the Base is a new event welcoming performers from across music, poetry, stories and comedy. It starts at 7pm and the organisers promise free snacks and good vibes with no pressure or judgement. Might be a lovely event to check out!
Saturday (25 April) has a double helping of online poetry. In the morning, the National Centre for Writing is running its Poetry Pulse workshop with Cai Draper from 11am. This 90-minute flash workshop is designed to conjure new ideas and get your creative juices flowing, with fresh concepts for analysing and enhancing your own writing. Tickets are £20. In the afternoon, the MK Lit Fest Poetry Spotlight features two amazing poets: Isabelle Baafi, whose debut collection Chaotic Good won the Jerwood Prize for Best First Collection and was shortlisted for the T. S. Eliot Prize, and John McCullough, reading from his fifth collection Crowd Voltage. Hosted by Caroline Davies, it runs from 2pm and tickets are £5.
The fortnight closes out with a bang on Sunday (26 April). Discount Guillotine is hosting the Glasgow release show for I Cut My Nails For You by KD Sims at Adrian's Bar on the Southside from 6:30pm. With readings by KD Sims, Ciara Maguire, Len Lukowski, Shona Floate and Dearbhla O'Brien, it promises to be a brilliant night. Suggested donation at the door is £5.
I also wanted to include a special highlight for Ross Wilcock's Big Gay Cabaret which is back at the SWG3's Poetry Club on Monday, 27 April. This year's line-up includes Spencer Mason, Georgia Francis and Bliss Wilde as well as music from Sean By Mercy and a comedy set by Tia Rey. Get your tickets soon!
Opportunities
Today's pick from among the long list of opportunities currently on the PIG website:
Ampersand Poetry Journal is open for submissions for its latest issue on the theme 'Pain & Pleasure'. This online journal is dedicated to the space in between - exploring and filling the gap between two concepts that are seemingly very far apart. The call includes some special writing prompts, but you can also submit any poem relating to the theme. Submissions close on 20 April.
St John's College, Cambridge, invites applications for the Harper-Wood Creative Writing & Travel Award for English Poetry & Literature. The award is designed to inspire a project of creative writing by making it possible for the recipient to travel. Applications close on 22 April.
StoryTree is still looking for submissions for Issue 3 until 22 April. If you haven't checked out the previous issues yet, make sure to do so or browse its online poetry archive. This magazine is an absolute delight!
If experimental writing is your thing, The Winged Moon is currently open for submissions. This contemporary magazine publishes daring and experimental writing intersecting the human experience, ecology, metaphysics and folklore. Submissions close on 24 April.
Verve Poetry Press is open for pamphlet submissions until 30 April. The Birmingham-based, prize-winning publisher is dedicated to promoting and showcasing unnoticed and overlooked poetic talent. They are also currently running dedicated multi-week workshops to help poets interested in getting their first pamphlet out into the world.
PIG Spotlight
This section is designed to shine a spotlight on a particular website, organisation or feature. For each Update, I'll pick something new - either because it is plain awesome or because it's new or really topical.
Today's spotlight is the new issue of Sextet, Glasgow's online literary magazine run in collaboration with Six Foot Gallery. Each issue is available for free online and presents a mix of poetry and short/flash fiction. Issue III 'Offerings' coincides with the spring exhibition of the same name at Six Foot Gallery in Anderston which is still running until 21 April. Both the exhibition and magazine issue are inspired by the life and work of Derek Jarman, an artist, filmmaker and gay rights activist. As Fee Cuimeanach explains in the introduction to the issue:
In 1986, following his HIV diagnosis, Jarman moved to Prospect Cottage, a derelict fisherman’s hut perched on a vast shingle beach in the shadow and unending hum of Dungeness nuclear power station. In this barren, almost post-apocalyptic landscape, harried by harsh winds and the burning tang of salt spray, Jarman nurtured a garden in the endless stone field, making offerings to the future until he passed away in 1994 from AIDS-related complications.
The magazine's issue and the exhibition both took inspiration from Jarman to explore themes of hope, ritual, sanctuary, and remembrance. I highly recommend checking them out, and - if you aren't aware of his work already, have a look at Derek Jarman and his unique creations.
PIG's Poetry Pick
Sticking with the theme of renewal and hope, I thought I'd pick one of my favourite spring-related poems for today's Update. It's a classic.
O sweet spontaneous
By E. E. Cummings
O sweet spontaneous
earth how often have
the
doting
fingers of
prurient philosophers pinched
and
poked
thee
,has the naughty thumb
of science prodded
thy
beauty how
often have religions taken
thee upon their scraggy knees
squeezing and
buffeting thee that thou mightest conceive
gods
(but
true
to the incomparable
couch of death thy
rhythmic
lover
thou answerest
them only with
spring)
Available via the Poetry Foundation.
That's it from me today. See you in two weeks!
Love,
Annie