The Hour: Poetry Open Mic — Created and hosted by poet María Fernanda

The Hour is a one-hour poetry open mic created and hosted by Washington, DC poet María Fernanda. The series welcomes work at every stage, from brand-new writing and unfinished drafts to finalized or previously published pieces. Participants may share poems, songs, rap, monologues, positive affirmations, spoken word, performance, and other forms of creative expression rooted in lived experience.

Readers sign up on-site, and each participant will have approximately three minutes so that the event can include as many voices as possible. María Fernanda views poetry broadly, encompassing forms such as blues, hip-hop, spoken word, and theater. She is an award-winning poet whose work examines sisterhood, intergenerational connection, and grief. She founded A Poetry Garden, a project exploring the creative and historical relationships between Black poets and gardens, and her writing has appeared in The Healing Verse Poetry Line, Cave Canem’s Dogbytes, and the anthology *born in a bed of good lessons: poems inspired by the works of Lucille Clifton*, among other publications.

When: Thursday, September 3, 2026

Showtime: 7:00 p.m.

Venue: Politics and Prose at Union Market, 1324 4th Street NE, Washington, DC 20002

Tickets: Free admission with first-come, first-served seating.

Participation: Sign-up takes place on-site. Each reader has approximately three minutes.

Host: María Fernanda (she/her), a DC poet and founder of A Poetry Garden.

Event length: One hour.

Eligible work: New writing, early drafts, finished or published work, poems, songs, raps, monologues, positive affirmations, spoken word, blues, performance/theater, hip-hop, and other creative forms.

Accessibility: To request accommodations or ask accessibility questions, email events@politics-prose.com, preferably at least one week before the event. The organizers will try to accommodate requests made up to the event time.