PIG UPDATE #40
30th of August 2026
Welcome to the 2026 Festival Guide edition of PIG. The next few months bring some of the most exciting poetry and literary festivals across Greater Glasgow, Scotland and the UK. With some of them rapidly approaching and others announcing ticket sales, PIG is offering you a handy cheat sheet of all you need to know. That's after your usual update on local events and opportunities.
Events (31 August to 13 September 2026)
The fortnight opens on Tuesday, 1 September with the monthly Open Book Creative Writing Session at Glasgow Women's Library. You can join poet Kathrine Sowerby for a gently guided mid-morning writing session aimed at women. As always, the event is free to attend. In the evening, the weekly Poet's Corner open mic is back in session at Hillhead Bookclub. I haven't seen any announcements for this week's theme yet, so keep an eye on the organisers' Instagram before you head down.
It's time for Poetry at Sweeney's again on Wednesday, 2 September. Last month's session was absolutely packed, so if you are looking to read at this warm and welcoming night, consider signing up online ahead of time. There will also be a limited number of reading slots available at the door. The fun starts at 7:30pm.
Cheltenham Poetry Festival's online programme is offering a new type of event with a focus on peer critique. The first in this new series takes place on Thursday (3 September). The Workshopping Your Poems session is led by poet Anna Saunders and sadly already sold out. But I am told further sessions are expected before long. Tickets are £20 and it's still possible to join the waiting list.
Ross McFarlane's Candlelight Poetry Open Mic kicks off a week jam packed with poetic delights on Monday, 7 September . The monthly event at The Old Toll Bar starts at 7:30pm. Make sure to contact Ross if you fancy one of the coveted 5-minute reading slots. Meanwhile, up at Loch Lomond, the Balloch Open Mic is on at Balloch House Hotel from 7pm. Organised by Alexandria Writers, the monthly night features a headline act alongside 5-minute open mic slots. This month's featured performers are Wanderlust Women, Donna Campbell, Linda Jackson and Lesley Benzie. Entry is free.
Things are getting genuinely busy on Tuesday (8 September). The weekly Poet's Corner is back at Hillhead Bookclub, while Waterstones is hosting the New Writing Scotland 44 Launch. Naming the Snakes is the latest issue of Scotland's leading anthology for new poetry and short fiction. The Association for Scottish Literature is presenting an evening of readings in English, Gaelic and Scots from contributors Lynn Davidson, Nicola Fitzhenry, Tom O. Keenan, Iain MacLeod, Robbie MacLeòid and Finola Scott. Tickets are £5. Meanwhile on Zoom, Cheltenham Poetry Festival is staging A Celebration of Our Online Lounges. To mark six years of their online poetry series, the festival is bringing back six poets who have wowed audiences in the past. For £3 you get a unique line-up including Karen Downs-Barton, Rae Howells, John McCullough, Rachel Spence, Christina Thatcher and Julia Webb.
On Wednesday, 9 September, there are two excellent reasons to get out. Glasgow poet Kaci O'Meara is throwing the launch party for A House Named Valentine at 226 Gallowgate from 7pm. The gothic novelette launch features poetry performances from Beth Rose and Willow Heath alongside readings from the book. Tickets are on a sliding scale between £5 and £10. Also on Wednesday evening, Glasgow Zine Library is hosting its monthly Poetry Open Mic from 6:30pm. As always, the inclusive BYOB event welcomes poets of all experience levels.
The week of poetic delights continues with a double-bill on Thursday (10 September). Good Press is hosting the Glasgow launch of new collections by Jay Gao and Tom Branfoot from 6:30pm. Both collections fizz with radically inventive energy: Gao's book-length experimental poem explores trees, dreaming and data, while Branfoot's debut wrestles with nature, habitat loss and political crisis. Entry is free. Meanwhile online, Push the Boat Out is running the workshop Maintaining an Online Presence as a Writer: How, What and Why? with Naomi Head. The session (which starts at 4pm already) explores websites, newsletters and social media, and what the best options might be for you as a writer. Tickets are £6.
Friday (11 September) brings the undisputed highlight of the week: Afro-Scottish Events is taking over Stereo in the city centre for Voices Beyond Borders. After the stunning first edition of the event series last year, Chisom Okoronkwo has pulled out all the stops for this very special celebration of diverse cultures and creative voices. This year's edition will feature a mix of spoken word, live music and storytelling from a stellar line-up including Biff Smith, Keeks MC, - Aditya Narayan, Mohammed Salihu and many more. Tickets are on a sliding scale between £5 and £15.
Saturday, 12 September sees Acid Cabaret 8 take over The Glad Cafe on the Southside from 7pm. Glasgow's utopian variety night is back with mythic poetry from Spencer Mason, Indian-Scots fusion from Alexandra Shrinivas, lyrical indie-pop from Tom Coward, and the ever-popular open-mic wildcard section. Tickets are tiered so that everyone can come along regardless of circumstances.
The fortnight ends with a bang on Sunday (13 September): The Poetry Translation Centre is staging the Sarah Maguire Prize 2026 Prize-Giving Ceremony online from 7pm. The biennial prize is given for the best poetry volume in translation. Hosted by broadcaster, presenter and journalist Bidisha, the evening features bilingual readings from the seven shortlisted collections spanning Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian, Korean, Spanish and Turkish. Tickets are free, though attendees are encouraged to make a donation. The same evening, the 87 Press is hosting another online event: Anthem of the Aftermath - a poetry workshop with Isabelle Baafi. Drawing on Harmony Holiday's epic collection MAAFA alongside work by Nathaniel Mackey, Christina Sharpe and Achille Mbembe, the generative session will explore how poetry can cut through silence in the wake of catastrophe. Tickets for this workshop are £36.45.
Opportunities
Today's pick from among the long list of opportunities currently on the PIG website:
If you don't mind a tight deadline, you might want to check out the Acid Cabaret Wildcard Open Mic call-out. The team is looking for performers to be part of the upcoming event on 12 September. You have until Wednesday, 2 September to submit a short video and description to be considered.
Salt Hill Journal is currently in its July–August reading period and is accepting poetry submissions until 7 September. The US-based journal is interested in a wide range of poetry from traditional to experimental - you can send up to five previously unpublished poems.
Puck Zine is seeking submissions for Issue 4 on the theme of 'Crumple'. The nature, folklore and magic-focused publication welcomes poetry of up to 40 lines, as well as short stories, visual art and photography. Submissions are free and close on 13 September.
Closing on 14 September is the current call by ROOM 10.26. This interdisciplinary magazine sits at the intersection of psychoanalysis, politics and culture and welcomes poetry in written, audio, video and mixed-media formats.
Glasgow's Agora Studios is currently looking for poetry, short fiction, essays, illustrations and photography from local emerging creatives for the second issue of Agora Press which will be themed around the topic of nostalgia. Submissions for this close on 14 September.
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.
The Edinburgh Festivals and the Fringe may be coming to an end this week, but that doesn't mean the cultural season is over. Far from it! There is a whole host of exciting poetry (and poetry-adjacent) festivals just waiting in the wings. And PIG is here to make sure you are ready!
In just a few days, the Wee Gaitherin Poetry Festival is kicking off in Stonehaven. From 3 to 5 September, you get to enjoy a poetic programme of 19 events across three different venues - and it's completely free to attend! There will be performances by poets including Glasgow's own Keeks Mc and Biff Smith as well as a programme of creative workshops. You might discover a completely new side of the seaside town.
Byres Road Book Festival is returning to Glasgow's West End from 24 to 27 September. The programme will include a wide range of literary events including a poetry workshop and open mic.
At exactly the same time, the BBC's Contains Strong Language festival is on in Salford. While you might not be able to make it in person (and some events have already sold out), you can expect to catch much of the festival via BBC4. This year's edition marks the 10th anniversary of the poetry and spoken word festival and the organisers are bringing out the big guns. The star-studded line-up will include John Cooper Clarke, Jackie Kay, Joelle Taylor, Len Pennie, Jason Allen-Paisant, Liz Berry, Owen Sheers, Alice Oswald, Testament, Andrew McMillan and Toria Garbutt.
WayWord Festival is taking over Aberdeen from 3 to 11 October with a diverse programme of readings, performances, workshops and panel discussions across five different venues. Poetic highlights will include readings and performances with Lesley Benzie and Craig Aitchison, Tishe and Deborah Leslie, Hannah Lavery, Colin Bramwell and Aditya Narayan as well as a workshop with Loraine Masiya Mponela.
Closer to home, the inaugural Rutherglen Book Festival will take place from 29 October to 21 November. The festival is part of the larger Rutherglen900 programme which marks 900 years since Rutherglen was granted Royal Burgh status. The book festival will include several poetry readings and workshops with tickets going on sale this Monday (31 August).
Also on the horizon is Push the Boat Out, Edinburgh's international poetry festival. While the festival won't start until 12 November it is worth noting that the first wave of tickets goes on sale on Thursday, 3 September. So you might want to set a reminder to make sure you're not missing out.
Finally, worth a mention is also Radiophrenia art radio and festival which will be broadcasting from 5 to 20 September. The programme will include a weird and wonderful mix of music, sound and spoken word performances that you can tune into 24h a day on 87.9FM. There are also two 'Live to Air' performances you can join in person.
PIG's Poetry Pick
The Sarah Maguire Prize for Poetry in Translation is being awarded on 13 September. The biennial award recognises the best poetry books by a living poet outside Europe that was translated into English. The shortlist includes some stunning poetic work from Indonesia, Türkiye, Syria, China, South Korea, Mexico, and Chile. I thought it would be nice to pick a poem from one of the shortlisted books. It was a tough choice and I highly recommend checking out the whole list on the Poetry Translation Centre website. Ultimately, I decided to go with this poem by Afrizal Malna, Translated by Daniel Owen.
Eraser's Guest
by Afrizal Malna
It’s a shame this poem’s already been erased when
I go to read it. Like humid air that tugs
at my arm to catch what will fall, is
falling, and falls. What’s up with erasing? Glue,
scissors, and yarn make a shadow of barbed
wire. I erase the word erase from the documentation,
out from the barbed wire. Return each word
to glue, scissors, and yarn so as to
hide, lose, and erase once again
the word erase. And a knock
that’s never been erased inside a shadow’s
death: a guest from a door’s shadow that’s never
knocked on the door.
The guest suspects I don’t have a chair to
die in if I don’t have a floor to live on. Waiting.
Waited on. Plans at 7 p.m. They serve the word
eraser from a bookstore to their guests,
like a shadow that’ll slip away from its light.
You’re my guest who I wait for from the mistake
of typing the word erase in a story about
a brilliant morning and birds in flight
drifting away erasing their own chirps.
You don’t have another chance to tidy what no
longer can be erased, after this poem. An eraser
makes five o’clock in the evening. Comes through till its
vacancy can no longer be seen.
via World Poetry Books.
That's it from me today. See you in two weeks!
Love,
Annie