A single day of celebration is not
enough for poetry enthusiasts in Invercargill, as the library prepares to
observe National Poetry Day over an entire week.
Invercargill City Libraries will mark National Poetry Day from 18 to 24 August, with a series of poetry-themed events and activities for all ages.
Manager Invercargill Libraries Kathy Aloniu said there were too many events to fit into a single day.
“There is a lot of interest in poetry in Invercargill. Instead of limiting our events to a single day, we wanted to give people a whole week to be inspired and explore their poetic creativity.”
The schedule would include a workshop and open mic night hosted by award-winning New Zealand poet Emma Neale.
“We’re lucky to have a poet of Neale’s calibre taking the time to visit Invercargill, generously supported by the Dan Davin Literary Foundation and Phantom Billstickers,” Ms Aloniu said.
Known for emotive and descriptive imagery in her writing, Neale has been a University of Otago Burns Fellow, was an editor of the long-running journal Landfall and has received several literary accolades, including the Mary & Peter Biggs Poetry Award at the Ockham Book Awards 2025.
At the Invercargill workshop on Sunday 24 August, Neale will help participants enhance their writing skills and develop their own style of poetry.
Other events will include a family-friendly rhyming story session and a slam poetry workshop with poet Ingrid Svedlund-Campbell, offering a safe and inclusive space for adults to explore spoken word performance.
Ms Aloniu said visitors to the library during the week could try creative ways of writing poetry, such as using magnetic words or ‘black out’ techniques, where pre-existing text is transformed into a poem by obscuring unwanted words.
“There will be activity stations set up in the library all week, as well as a scavenger hunt with rhyming riddles and prizes for our younger visitors.
“We hope our talented guest poets and fun schedule of activities will encourage everyone to have a go at poetry and serve as inspiration for the aspiring writers of Invercargill.”
Poetry Day events at Invercargill City Libraries and Archives:
- Slam Poetry Workshop with Ingrid Svedlund-Campbell – Wednesday 20 August, 6pm - 8pm
- Rhyme Storytime with Library Lyn – Friday 22 August, 10:30am - 11:30am
- Open Mic Night with Emma Neale – Saturday 23 August, 6pm - 8pm
- Poetry Workshop with Emma Neale – Sunday 24 August, 10am - 12:30pm
- Magnetic and black out poetry stations – All week
- Rhyme and Riddle Scavenger Hunt – All week
Further information about Poetry Day events is available on the Invercargill City Libraries and Archives website.
