AWP 2026: Baltimore

We attended the 2026 AWP Conference & Bookfair in Baltimore, MD from March 4-7. To kickoff the conference, Perugia Press was part of the collaborative offsite event “Off Site. On Purpose.” once again. This year’s reading took place at Westminster Hall, Edgar Allen Poe’s final resting place, with SWWIM, MER, NELLE, Whale Road Review, and Cultivating Voices LIVE Poetry on Wednesday 3/4 from 6:30-9:30pm. The event was held in loving memory of our friend, poet Jennifer Martelli, and her work was read throughout the night by the co-hosts. Perugia’s featured poets were Catherine Anderson, Holli Carrell, Carolina Hotchandani, Abby E. Murray, and Nancy K. Pearson.

Offsite collaborating co-hosts: Jen Karetnick and Mary Block from SWWIM, Perugia’s Rebecca Olander, Catherine Esposito Prescott from SWWIM, Sandy Yannone from Cultivating Voices LIVE Poetry, Marjorie Tesser from MER & Lauren Slaughter from NELLE.

Another co-host, Katie Manning of Whale Road Review, paying tribute to Edgar Allen Poe’s grave.

Perugia’s readers: poets Holli Carrell, Carolina Hotchandani, Catherine Anderson, Abby E. Murray & Nancy K. Pearson.

The offsite invite and memorial card made to honor poet Jennifer Martelli.

Perugia was at Table #833 at the bookfair with author book signings on Thursday 3/5 (Linda Tomol Pennisi, Seamless; Abby E. Murray, Hail and Farewell; and Holli Carrell, Apostasies), Friday 3/6 (Lynne Thompson, Beg No Pardon, Nancy K. Pearson, Two Minutes of Light, and Carolina Hotchandani, The Book Eaters), and Saturday 3/7 (Joan Kwon Glass, Daughter of Three Gone Kingdoms and Catherine Anderson, The Work of Hands). We also got to celebrate with our new Perugia Press Prize winner Jen Siraganian (Everything Has Been Moved, Even the Dead) throughout the conference.

Linda Tomol Pennisi with her Perugia collection Seamless and Rebecca Olander at the Perugia Press table.

Perugia poets Abby E. Murray and Joan Kwon Glass.

Holli Carrell with her Perugia collection Apostasies and Rebecca Olander.

Nancy K. Pearson with her Perugia collection Two Minutes of Light, Rebecca Olander & Lynne Thompson with her Perugia collection Beg No Pardon.

Carolina Hotchandani and Rebecca Olander with Hotchandani’s Perugia collection The Book Eaters.

Catherine Anderson with her latest book Afloat (Meadowlark, 2025) and Rebecca Olander with Anderson’s Perugia collection The Work of Hands.

Jen Siraganian celebrating with a paper flower/pom pom and her 2026 Perugia Press prize announcement.

Our poet Joan Kwon Glass and our Editor/Director Rebecca Olander each participated in panels on Saturday. Olander’s was in support of the power of small presses and was sponsored by CLMP (graphic below). Our poets were involved in a host of additional offsite readings through the week as well.

Thanks to everyone who visited us at the bookfair, attended our panels, and came to our readings. We appreciate your support! Special thanks to poets Catherine Anderson and Joan Kwon Glass and to board members Jen Jabaily-Blackburn and Arya Samuelson for table help when Rebecca Olander was having her own book signing (Singing from the Deep End, CavanKerry Press) and participating in the small press panel. Thanks, too, to friends of the press and Perugia poets for set-up and break-down help at the bookfair: Carolina Hotchandani, K. T. Landon, Mary Lannon, Carla Panciera, Liz Paul, and Jen Siraganian. It was a great celebration in Baltimore, and we look forward to next year in Chicago!