Raspy, our mascot

RASP: Redmond Association of Spokenword

Celebrating literary arts and poetry in Redmond since 1997

RASP was founded in 1997 to promote literary arts and activities in Redmond, Washington, and the surrounding area. We meet on the last Friday of each month from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM (Pacific time) for a featured presentation and an open-mic reading at Centro Cultural Mexicano. RASP also holds a monthly writing critique group via Zoom on the second Tuesday of each month from 6:30 PM to 8:45 PM (Pacific time). All events are open to the public and usually free. Please join us!

While literature is one of our best avenues for dealing with difficult subjects, remember that our meetings are open to a diverse audience, including young people. We ask that your reading does not attempt to normalize discrimination or mistreatment of others.

Click to join* our mailing list and receive announcements about the Reading Series, Poetry & Prose Circle, and other RASP events.


Coming This Month
RASP's regular monthly events are free and do not require registration.

Friday, February 28, 2025—Salon style reading
Reading/open mic starts at 6:30 pm (gathering begins at 6:15)

A salon style reading is a relaxed evening of sharing and conversation. Come gather around our circle where we take turns reading whatever we wish—it could be your own work, or from another writer—followed by discussion and more sharing. No featured reader, no critique, just a free flowing conversation with fellow poets and writers celebrating our craft.



Upcoming Readings and Events


Friday, March 28, 2025—Duvall Improv Social Club

Duvall Improv Social Club

The Duvall Improv Social Club, known as DISC, has elevated improv on the Eastside. We are a fun, family-friendly performing troupe. Please join us as we improvise about book genres, poetry, and even Shakespeare—all at the whim of audience suggestions. Even we don't know what will happen. A guaranteed fun time with lots of laughs!

MC—TBD


Friday, April 25, 2025—Ching-In Chen (Redmond poet laureate)

Ching-in Chen

Ching-In Chen is author of The Heart's Traffic: A Novel in Poems; Recombinant (2018 Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Poetry); Shiny City (forthcoming in 2025, and chapbooks To Make Black Paper Sing and Kundiman for Kin :: Information Retrieval for Monsters. Chen is coeditor of The Revolution Starts at Home: Confronting Intimate Violence Within Activist Communities. They are a Kelsey Street Press collective member, Airlie Press editor, and current Redmond poet laureate.

MC—TBD


Friday, May 30, 2025—Jana Harris (poet) Jana Harris (poet)

Jana Harris has taught creative writing at the University of Washington and at the Writer's Workshop in Seattle among other institutions. She is editor and founder of Switched-on Gutenberg. Her publications include You Haven't Asked About My Wedding or What I Wore, Poems of Courtship on the American Frontier (University of Alaska Press), and the memoir, Horses Never Lie About Love (Simon & Schuster). Jana will be reading from a new manuscript: "The Girl Who Drew Horses, the Woman Who Painted Lions," poems on the life and art of French Painter Rosa Bonheur (1822–99).

MC—TBD


Friday, June 27, 2025—Peter Ludwin (poet) Peter Ludwin (poet)

Peter Ludwin is the recipient of a literary fellowship from Artist Trust, the 2016 winner of the Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial Award for his poem "Wolf Concerto," and the 2024 winner of the Trail to Table Editors' Award in Poetry for his new book, An Altar of Tides. The author of three previous books, two of which were nominated for other awards, he spent fourteen years as a participant in the San Miguel Poetry Week in Mexico, where he workshopped under top poets such as Mark Doty, Tony Hoagland, Joseph Stroud, and Robert Wrigley. Peter lives in Kent, and his website is https://peterludwin.com/.

MC—TBD


Friday, July 25, 2025—Frederick Livingston (poet/ecologist)

TBD

Frederick Livingston grew from the southern tip of the Salish Sea in Olympia. Sustainable agriculture and experiential education have since taken him around the world, from Peace Corps Tanzania to the University for Peace in Costa Rica and beyond. Since his sixth-grade debut on local-access television reciting "Ode to a Chair," his work has appeared in numerous literary magazines, scientific journals, and public spaces. He is the author of The Moon and Other Fruits and Trees are Bridges to the Sky, which won the Prism Prize for Climate Literature. Visit https://fredericklivingston.com/.

MC—TBD


Friday, August 29, 2024—Iz White (poet) Iz White (poet)

Iz White is an enrolled member of the Snoqualmie Tribe in King County. He grew up homeless in Seattle, well below the poverty line, in the 1990s. His tribe was federally recognized in 1999 and it has continued to strengthen its efficiency and stability in financial development. That has given Iz both a unique perspective and breathing room to pursue his biggest obsession in life, which has been to improve his craft of writing. He is an up-and-coming poet who speaks on social issues not only for his people, but all people affected by an ever-changing demographic in and around the greater Seattle area.

MC—TBD



We meet at Centro Cultural Mexicano

RASP's featured reading and open mic are held in the main office and meeting space of Centro Cultural Mexicano. The address is 16300 Redmond Way, Suite 100 on the corner of Redmond Way and Leary Way.

For more information about upcoming exhibits and Centro Cultural Mexicano, visit the gallery's website.

Note: Currently Centro keeps their doors locked at all times during our reading and open mic. We will station someone to open the door when you arrive but we ask that you please be patient.


Poetry and Prose Circle

Read your poetry or prose and then we'll discuss your work and offer ideas for improvement. Take away a new perspective on your creative work.

Day: Second Tuesday of each month
Time: 6:30 to approximately 9:00 PM (Pacific Time).
FREE: RASP's Poetry and Prose Circles are free and do not require registration.
Location: Zoom (see below).
Bring: Something written that you're willing to share and get feedback on. You will be able to share your screen so others can read your written words.

Join the monthly RASP Poetry and Prose Circle Zoom meeting beginning at 6:30 PM (Pacific Time)

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Tuesday, June 10, 2025


Look for us on social media

Look for our frequent messages and writing prompts on Facebook. Follow us, share us, enjoy us. Tweet about us, too, and retweet our tweets.


Our Monthly Open Mic

RASP's Open Mic gives you the opportunity to share your work with a receptive audience.

Each month, we open up the microphone to everyone to share their poetry and prose with a receptive audience. You can also participate by relaxing and listening to the words of others.

If you have written something you would like to read, show up early and sign up for a time slot. Time slots are scheduled before and after the featured reader. Details and guidelines are at our Open Mic page.


Other places for poetry and art

Duvall Poetry https://duvallpoetry.weebly.com/

Everett Poetry Nite https://duanekirbyjensen.wixsite.com/everett-poetry-night

Hugo House https://hugohouse.org/

Jack Straw Writers https://www.jackstraw.org/program/jack-straw-writers-program/

Redmond Poet Laureate https://www.redmond.gov/185/Arts-Culture

Redmond Arts & Culture Commission https://www.redmond.gov/489/Redmond-Arts-Culture-Commission-RACC

SoulFood Poetry Night https://sites.google.com/site/soulfoodpoetrynight

The Poetry Department (blog) https://thepoetrydepartment.wordpress.com/nw-lit-events/

VALA (Venue for Artists in the Local Area) https://www.valaeastside.org/

WUUC Poetry Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/wuucpoetry

Western Washington Poets Network https://www.westernwashingtonpoetsnetwork.org/