Planning a Festival

In 2008, I bid for the 2010 Southern Fried Regional Poetry Slam. I won the bid and I planned one heck of a festival. One of the best ever! I loved having all the best poets in the country decend upon my city and share their work. Well, it has happened again and I am planning another festival. In June of 2023, Southern Fried is coming back to Knoxville. It is a lot of hard work, but I believe that the festival will be amazing. It is so wonderful watching the city come together to create a beautiful connection with poets from all over the country. Nevertheless, planning a festival is not easy.

I don't claim to know it all, but planning a festival is harder than I ever thought. I started with the host hotel because everything will revolve around the host hotel. It is the place that people gather to hang out and the location that every poet will experience. After I figured that out, I had to find the location for the bouts. For Knoxville, this will be a central hub at the Knoxville Convention Center. I am so excited about this aspect of the event. I think this is going to make it a great event because everybody will be in the same location and able to share and enjoy the festival together.

I am still working to make sure everything is in place and that the event is supported. If you know anybody that wants to support the arts in our city, please share with them the sponsorship page!