California State Parks & Quiet Lightning, in partnership with Friends of China Camp, present Poetry in Parks 2024, a daylong literary arts festival to be held at China Camp Village in San Rafael's China Camp State Park.

More will be announced soon, but programming will include a Better Ancestors set and a submission-based literary mixtape featuring all forms of writing, for which **we are accepting submissions through August 1!**

The Better Ancestors set will feature readings by Karla Myn Khine, Alex Feliciano Mejia, Kato Bisase, Zouhair Mussa and Sarah O'Neal.

The Literary Mixtape will be curated by Connie Zheng and Evan Karp.

This will be an all-ages event with mature themes. Programming will run from 12-5pm but you are encouraged to arrive early and enjoy the park's beaches, tour the village and museum, or simply take in the scenic views from one of the park's many picnic tables.

Drinks (alcoholic and non-) will be available for purchase through the onsite shop, with all proceeds benefiting Friends of China Camp, stewards of the park on behalf of California State Parks. You are very welcome to bring your own food and drinks, but we kindly request everyone clean up after yourselves – we will have trash, recycling and compost bins available.

Tickets are not required for attendance, which is free and open to all. We ask for your registration for the following reasons:

• To help give us a rough sense of how many people to expect, as we plan to bring seating and some complimentary snacks.
• It’s the best way for us to communicate to you any changes in the event, as well as additional day-of information that we will send to all ticket-holders a few days before the event.
• It's also an easy way for you to help support this program, Poetry in Parks, as well as our quarterly showcase of writers of color, Better Ancestors. Everyone who participates in a Quiet Lightning event is paid, and both our board and staff consist entirely of volunteers. We rely on donations and foundational support to make sure we can continue to provide performance and publication opportunities that are open to everyone and do not have any barriers to entry. 100% of donations to Quiet Lightning go directly to paying local artists.
• If you register for a ticket, we will sign you up for our occasional (almost monthly) newsletter, which contains calls for submissions and announcements of new events and publications.

Transportation: the park is accessible by car or bike, and there is ample parking available. If you are interested in attending but would need a ride, please write to [email protected].