I want you to read your writing at Pennington’s!

Yes, you. I, Spencer, dearly want to hear you read your work, out loud, on stage, at your favorite indie bookshop.

(Just interested in attending, not reading? Skip to the bottom!)

Poems, short stories, essays, passages from your work-in-progress, comedy routines, recipes, screenplays, business plans, captain’s logs, original songs, lyrics, diary entries, obituaries, eulogies, elegies, odes, meanderings, wonderings, wanderings, wunderings, whatever! All kinds of writing are considered.

And writing from everyone is welcome. Of course people trying to make a living off of writing are welcome, but I especially want to hear from folks who squeeze art into their spare time. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been published or even want to be, whether you have any training or formal writing education at all, whether you even consider yourself a writer. If you’ve written something, you’re qualified.

This is, technically, a semi-open mic. That means you have to apply in advance and I’ll review your writing before putting you in the lineup.

Why? Two reasons. 1) This will help me market and promote the events, hopefully leading to better turnout. 2) I want to make sure it’s a fun, interesting, well-balanced, lively event.

I’m not judging the quality of your work. What do I know, anyways? Applications are considered in the order they’re received, on a rolling basis. I’ll primarily consider how well the piece fits in with other accepted work and how well it meets the criteria below.

• Readers will only have about 5 minutes, so keep your submitted writing to something you can read (comfortably) in that time! Google tells me we speak about 150 words per minute, so my rule of thumb is 750 words, but that’s not a firm rule.
• I’m looking for art — but not in a scary or pretentious way! Art can be in anything. I just mean it has a little something more to it — it tries to make us feel or understand or see something deeper, instead of just telling a cool story.
  • But really, don’t let this scare you off. Even if you’re not sure it’s what I’m looking for, send it!
• Keep in mind that this is a public space, during our regular hours, and we sell kids’ books, too. Please, no excessive or gratuitous sex, profanity, violence, etc.

Ready? Click the button below, fill out the form, and I’ll be in touch as soon as possible! Thank you so much for your interest!

Every open mic will be at 6:00pm, lasting for roughly an hour with a brief intermission — that means about 10 slots per reading. They’ll happen every second Saturday from August through December 2026:

• August 8
• September 12
• October 10
• November 14
• December 12

If you just want to attend: welcome! The event is completely free, and you’re welcome to come, listen to the readings, and maybe grab a drink or a book! Come late, leave early, whatever you want to do.