Creative Writing: Events

Ongoing

Filament Reading Series

The Filament Reading Series hosts monthly readings in venues throughout Portland.

Portland Lit Mic Series

Jordan Marzka (BFA alum) and Grace Alexandra (BFA alum and current poetry MFA candidate) run the very popular Portland Lit Mic Series, which has become a pillar of the Portland literary scene.


January 2025

MFA Alumni Showcase

Thursday, Jan. 23 | 6pm | FMH 302

Daneed Bergland, Susan Moore, David Seung, and Jeff Alessandrelli read their recently published work.

Panel Discussion, From Manuscript to Marketplace: The Last Grand Tour’s Collaborative Journey

Tuesday, Jan. 28 | 3pm | FMH 302

Discussion with PSU Creative Writing alumni from local small press Korza Books and Professor Emeritus Michael N. McGregor about their collaborative work to prepare McGregor’s Kirkus-starred and highly acclaimed debut novel, The Last Grand Tour, for its release that day. Michael and the Korza staff will give attendees an inside look at the journey from manuscript to published book, focusing on the practical steps of manuscript evaluation, revision and editing, cover and page design, promotion and marketing, and more.


February 2025

Professionalization Panel for MFA Students

Tuesday, Feb. 11 | 2pm | FMH 302

Discussion with PSU faculty and recent MFA alumni on searching for teaching jobs, application materials and letters of interest, and interviews.

The Princess Bari Myth: On Death, Ritual, Han, and Language in Korean Culture

Thursday, Feb. 20 | 4pm | Institute for Asian Studies

Lecture by Prof. Janice Lee.


March 2025

Visiting Writer Series with Lidia Yuknavitch

Monday, Mar. 10 | 6pm | SMSU Vanport Room

Reading with author Lidia Yuknavitch, joined by Prof. Janice Lee.

April 2025

Hannah Brooks-Motl and David Seung Reading

Wednesday, Apr. 9 | 6pm | FMH 302

A reading by poets Hannah Brooks-Motl and David Seung.

Hannah Brooks-Motl was born and raised in Wisconsin. She is author of the poetry collections The New Years (2014), M (2015), Earth (2019), and Ultraviolet of the Genuine (2025), as well as chapbooks from the Song Cave, arrow as aarow, and The Year. She lives in western Massachusetts.

David Seung is a Korean-American standup comedian and writer advocating for his hometown of downtown Portland, Oregon through his walking tour company, Side Dish Mafia Food Tours. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University, where he now teaches.

Visiting Writer Series with Erica Berry

Monday, Apr. 14 | 2pm | SMSU Vanport Room

Reading with author Erica Berry, joined by Prof. Justin Hocking.

Erica Berry is a writer and teacher based in her hometown of Portland, Oregon. Her essays, which are often about the intersection of feelings and the environment, appear in The New York Times, The Guardian, Outside, Orion, The Yale Review, and other publications. She is the author of Wolfish: Wolf, Self, and the Stories We Tell About Fear (Flatiron/Macmillan, 2023), which won the Oregon Book Award, and Bodies In Heat: Love in a Changing Climate, forthcoming from Flatiron Books. Winner of a 2025 Oregon Career Fellowship from Literary Arts, she is a contributing editor at Orion magazine and a Fall 2025 Visiting Distinguished Professor at the University of North Carolina in Wilmington. 

How to Submit Discussion for MFA Students

Wednesday, Apr. 16 | 4pm | FMH 302

Discussion with PSU faculty on submitting your writing to literary magazines and small presses. For current MFA students only. Attendees will also receive a free copy of the newly released book How to Submit by Dennis James Sweeney.


May 2025

MFA Graduation Ceremony

Saturday, May 31 | 6:30pm | Oregon Contemporary, 8371 N Interstate Avenue

Featuring readings from graduating MFA students. Friends and families welcome!