Poet Laureate

Richard Hague is the 2025-2027 Cincinnati and Mercantile Library Poet Laureate. The Poet Laureate program began in 2016, with Pauletta Hansel as the inaugural poet. Manuel Iris succeeded Hansel in 2018. Yalie Saweda Kamara, Ph.D served as the 2022 - 2025 Poet Laureate.

The Poet Laureate promotes poetry throughout the city, reads poems at events, and leads programming for all ages and backgrounds. Hague holds regular office hours at the Mercantile for anyone to join on the second Saturday of each month. Check the calendar for dates & times.

About Office Hours:

Second Saturday of each month, 12 noon-2pm. We will begin each session with One Poem At A Time, a close reading of a classic, noting matters of form, figures of speech, diction, and other features relevant to both readers and writers of poetry. Then a poetry-writing prompt and discussion, followed by thirty to forty minutes of drafting. Each session will end with a voluntary read-around of drafts, with general pointers for revision. Richard will also entertain questions about any aspect of the poetry game: submitting, publishing, networking, reading, performing. Occasionally, participants can take the opportunity to recite from memory a poem of their choice for the general delight of the group, if they so desire.

Upcoming Poet Laureate Events:

Poetry In Season

A One Hour Poetry Workshop
Celebrating the Season of Fall 2026

Featuring Ohio Poet
Richard Hague

Sunday, September 27, at 11:00 AM

At Zion United Church of Christ

139 North 5 th St.

Steubenville, Ohio, 43952
church.zionucc@gmail.com 740-282-1793

The Poet Laureate program is partially underwritten by The George & Margaret McLane Foundation, The Mercantile Library, the City of Cincinnati, & Anonymous.