Emily Dickinson “Tell It Slant” Poetry Festival 2025

The Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, Massachusetts is gearing up for their “Tell It Slant” Poetry Festival 2025 celebrating the famed poet. The event, held both in-person and virtually, lasts for one week starting September 15th with events daily, including readings of all her poems, free workshops, paid events, programs, and headlining poets.

About Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst in 1830. She is considered one of the most important American poets as she laid the groundwork for contemporary poetry, marking a shift from previous traditional poetic uses of grammar and syntax, point of view, and more. Only a few of her poems were published anonymously during her lifetime. It wasn’t until after her death that her work was found and published, achieving widespread fame posthumously.

What Does “Tell It Slant” Mean?

The name of the festival is taken from one of Dickinson’s most famous poems, “Tell all the truth but tell it slant—”. The meaning of the phrase as described by the rest of the poem is to tell the truth, all of it and eventually, but in a roundabout way or bit by bit as to not stun the person with the brilliance of it.

Tell all the truth but tell it slant —

Success in Circuit lies

Too bright for our infirm Delight

The Truth's superb surprise

As Lightning to the Children eased

With explanation kind

The Truth must dazzle gradually

Or every man be blind —

Over time, writers have taken this to mean more. For example, using words with slant can mean choosing those that convey more emotion over those that simply convey facts. For more on this, I highly recommend Brenda Miller’s book, Tell It Slant (3rd edition).

What to Expect In-Person and Online

The Poetry Marathon, a virtual and hybrid reading of all 1,789 of Dickinson’s poems takes place over six parts and a grand finale. These are scheduled throughout the week-long event. You’ll also find free online workshops on writing with objectivity, bringing levity to heavy topics, and even introducing food to your poetry.

Paid in-person workshops include “Paste it Slant” with Leticia Rocha, “Poems in the Garden” with The WildStory Podcast, and “Children’s Book Covers” with Maria Luisa Arroyo. Other programs are both hybrid and virtual allowing guests to attend online or in-person depending on their location and schedules.

Guest Headliners

If you are available Saturday, September 20th at 7pm Eastern, I highly recommend tuning in for the two headlining poets, Terrance Hayes and Krysten Hill.

Terrance Hayes has won several awards for his published poetry collections, including the National Book Award, the National Books Critics Circle Award, the National Poetry Series, and the Kate Tufts Discovery Award. His most recent collection, So to Speak (2023), was published simultaneously with his latest work of literary criticism, Watch Your Language. He earned his MFA from the University of Pittsburg and currently teaches at New York University.

Krysten Hill was awarded the 2017 Jean Pedrick Chapbook Prize for her poetry collection, How Her Spirit Got Out. Her work has also been featured in Tinderbox Poetry Journal, PANK, Up the Staircase Quarterly, The Academy of American Poets, and more. She currently teaches at the University of Massachusetts Boston where she earned her MFA.

Supporting the Festival and Museum

Other than a few paid, in-person workshops, the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival 2025 is free for all to enjoy. However, you can help support the Emily Dickinson Museum by providing a donation or by purchasing a “Pay Your Way” ticket to an event for $20. If you purchase ten or more tickets, you will earn an official Emily Dickinson Museum tote bag (I can’t wait to see what this tote bag looks like!)

Small group workshops and VIP tickets or VIP dinner guest tickets are also available for those attending in-person.

For Us at Home

Personally, I can’t wait to attend the virtual readings of Emily Dickinson’s poems. It’s one thing to read them in a book or to recite them in front of a middle or high school English class. It’s another to experience them read aloud from her birthplace and home by poets who know her well and want to pass on her legacy to others who are interested in learning more.

Are you planning on attending at least part of the festival? Would you be interested in listening to her poems read aloud or watching a workshop with experienced poets? Perhaps you want to learn more from award-winning writers ready to share what they know? Comment below if you’re just as excited as I am!