2026 Louisiana Book Festival takes place on Saturday, October 31, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in downtown Baton Rouge, at the State Library of Louisiana and the surrounding Capitol Park area.
Louisiana’s poet laureate, former state laureates, and poets from across the state will be on the day's schedule, offering readings for the children. Poetry takes center stage all day under the West Tent outside the Capitol Park Museum.
“Louisiana has produced poets whose work is read well beyond our borders, and the Book Festival is one of the few places where readers across the state can hear them in person,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “Bringing our poet laureate together with so many accomplished writers, in programs free and open to everyone, reflects the value Louisiana places on its literary culture.”
Louisiana Poet Laureate Gina Ferrara anchors a two-part showcase of poets working across the state. The morning segment, “The Louisiana Poet Laureate Presents Louisiana Poets, Vol. I,” begins at 10:45 a.m. and features Taylor Clement, Rodney Jones, Justin Lacour, Jonathan Penton, and Jennifer Polson Peterson, each reading from a recent collection. The series resumes just after midday at 12:45 p.m. with Vol. II, highlighting Emily Cosper, Bill Lavender, Biljana D. Obradović, Ann Plicque, and Ed Ruzicka.
At noon, Catharine Savage Brosman discusses her new and selected work in Fire in the Mind: Poems New and Selected, with Julie Kane moderating. At 2 p.m., “Second Sight: Poets Laureate Write Through Vision Loss” pairs former Louisiana poets laureate Darrell Bourque and Peter Cooley for a discussion of how writing changes in the face of macular degeneration, ranging across the senses, reading and writing habits, and sources of inspiration. Benjamin Morris, whose 64 Parishes magazine article inspired the session, moderates the session.
“Poetry is one of the most alive things you can experience at the festival — ideally it’s meant to be heard out loud, in the poet’s own voice,” said Robert Wilson, executive director of the Louisiana Book Festival. “This year’s poetry offerings will give readers several ways to experience that magic, from a stage full of poets presenting a variety of verses, to a quiet panel on writing through vision loss, to a poem written just for them while they wait.”
For more information on the 2026 Louisiana Book Festival, schedule, and featured authors and titles, visit LouisianaBookFestival.org and follow the event on the Louisiana Book Festival Facebook page.
