March 3rd, Future Now: Antonia Silva, Cecilia Caballero, & Matt Sedillo

We’re back with our first Future Now reading series of the year! Hosted by Dryland LA literary journal, join us via Zoom to hear featured poets and guest Open Mic artists present their work, every first Thursday of the month.

In this event we call on all Black & Brown poets and writers to join us for our Open Mic & Reading Series, which features three authors published in literary journal Dryland LA. This month features include poets published in Issue 11, Antonia Silva and Cecilia Caballero. Slam champion, best political poet of America, and Re/Arte writer-in-residence, Matt Sedillo will be reading from his new poetry collection City on the Second Floor (Flowersong Press, 2022).

Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444

Fill out this google form to sign up for the Open Mic. 10 Slots available per reading!

Date: Thursday, March 3rd

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm PST.

About The Authors

Antonia Silva is a queer Mexican-American poet from Santa Ana, California who currently lives and works in Portland, Oregon. They were a 2021 Artist-in-Residence at the Independent Publishing Resource Center. Antonia’s work is published in Tinderbox Poetry Journal, Rising Phoenix Review, and Dryland Literary Journal. Follow them on IG @n0palitx 

Based in Los Angeles, Cecilia Caballero is a creative nonfiction writer, poet, teaching artist, and coeditor of the book The Chicana Motherwork Anthology. As a teaching artist, Cecilia facilitates poetry workshops to create more communal spaces for healing and social justice. Her prose and poetry has been published in Dryland, Epiphany, Gathering: A Women Who Submit Anthology, Raising Mothers, The Acentos Review, and elsewhere. She is an alum of workshops and fellowships with Tin House, Macondoa, and the Women’s National Book Association and her work has been nominated for a Pushcart prize and a Rhysling award. Cecilia is currently working on her first book, a memoir titled Other Alive Creatures. Twitter: @la_sangre_llama 

Matt Sedillo has been described as the “best political poet in America” as well as “the poet laureate of the struggle” by academics, poets, and journalists alike. He has appeared on CSPAN and has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, among other publications. He has spoken at Casa de las Americas in Havana, Cuba, at numerous conferences and forums such as the National Conference on Race & Ethnicity in American Higher Education, National Association of Chicana/Chicano Studies, The Left Forum, the US Social Forum and at over a hundred universities and colleges, including the University of Cambridge, among many others. He is the current writer in residence at Re/Arte and author of Mowing Leaves of Grass (FlowerSong Press, 2019), as well as City on the Second Floor (FlowerSong Press, 2022). 


Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer on Instagram, FB, or Twitter and invite a friend to come hang out! This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond.

Writers, Roberto Lovato and Héctor Tobar, in Conversation at Re/Arte Centro Literario

Roberto Lovato, author of Unforgetting: A Memoir of Family, Migration, Gangs, and Revolution in the Americas, will be joined by another voice of the unheard, author and journalist Héctor Tobar, at Re/Arte literary center on Saturday, Nov. 6 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Copies of Lovato’s groundbreaking memoir, named New York Times “Editor’s choice”, will be available for sale and signing.


Although Roberto resides at The Writers Grotto in his hometown, San Francisco, he is known for his story-telling journalism that covers violence and terrorism all over the world. As a Pulitzer grant recipient he has covered crises in Mexico, Venezuela, El Salvador (where his
parents migrated from), Dominican Republic, Haiti, France, and the United States.


The conversation will be led by Héctor who’s New York Times bestseller, Deep Down Dark:
The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, allows him to understand Roberto’s
passion for sharing stories that are ignored for political and economic gain. They will be
discussing the memoir as well as giving insights on writing, literature, and publishing.


Re/Arte is a literary and art space run/owned by Viva Padilla. Re/Arte is the headquarters of Dryland, a literary journal born in South Central Los Angeles, Hombre Lobo, and Ponte LAs Pilas Press. Re/Arte looks to host a number of events such as film screenings, book readings, open mic nights, workshops, author talks, a literacy program for youth y más.

Sept. 7th, Grito de Boyle Heights Featuring Luis J. Rodriguez

Join us this Wednesday, September 7th, at Re/Arte Centro Literario for a reading & open mic featuring former L.A. poet laureate Luis J. Rodriguez!

Grito de Boyle Heights happens in-person at Re/Arte (2014 1/2 E. Cesar Chavez Ave. LA, CA 90033) every second and fourth Wednesdays of the month. Sign ups for Open Mic start at 6:45 PM, so we recommend arriving early! When you’re there, enjoy a cup of coffee catered by Mobar Coffee & Market.

Luis J. Rodriguez was born in El Paso, Texas, and grew up in the San Gabriel Valley of East Los Angeles. He is a Poet, novelist, journalist, activist, critic, and founding editor of Tia Chucha Press, and co-founder of Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore in the San Fernando Valley.

He is the author of 16 books in all genres, including the best-selling memoir, “Always Running, La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A.” His latest memoir is the sequel, “It Calls You Back: An Odyssey Through Love, Addiction, Revolutions, and Healing.” that recount his experiences as a former incarcerated individual and dealing with addiction and gang violence. His last poetry book is “Borrowed Bones” from Curbstone Books/Northwestern University Press. In 2020, Seven Stories Press released his first book of essays, “From Our Land to Our Land: Essays, Journeys & Imaginings from a Native Xicanx Writer.” From 2014-2016, Luis served as the official Poet Laureate of Los Angeles.

We will have copies of Luis’s books in-stock at Re/Arte if you would like to grab a copy!

We also offer writing workshops every 2nd & 4th Wednesdays of the month at 4 PM, on a donation basis, with Chicano political poet Matt Sedillo at Re/Arte (no appointment necessary, drop-in). Other times for workshops check more details here.

See you soon!

Sept. 2nd, Future Now Reading: Olga García Echeverría, Jo Foderingham Brown, & Edward Vidaurre

Join us this coming Thursday, September 2nd, for the sixth installment of our monthly Reading & Open Mic Series, Future Now. Hosted by Assistant Editor Nikolai Garcia & the Dryland team. This month we are featuring contributors from Issue 10 and Issue 9: Olga García Echeverría, Jo Foderingham Brown, & Edward Vidaurre.

This will be a hybrid reading & open-mic event as it’s happening in-person at Re/Arte Centro Literario, located in Boyle Heights, and virtually via Zoom if you are only able to join us online!

When: Thur. September 5th, 7-9 pm PST.

In-person locationRE/ARTE  2014 1/2 E CESAR E CHAVEZ AVE. LOS ANGELES, CA 90033

Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444

Fill out this google form to sign up for the Open Mic. Whether you’re attending on-site or via zoom you’ll get a chance to share your poems. Only 10 spots are available, sign up as soon as possible!

Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer on Instagram, FB, or Twitter and invite a friend to come hang out! This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond.


Olga García Echeverría (Issue 10)

Olga García Echeverría (she/her/ella), born and raised in East Los Angeles, California, is the author of Falling Angels: Cuentos y Poemas (Calaca Press and Chicha Press). Her poetry and essays appear in numerous anthologies, print magazines, and online literary venues. She has been an educator in the literary arts for over 25 years and currently teaches literature in the Chicanx Latinx Studies department at California State University of Los Angeles. For the past decade, under the leadership of Poets & Writers and California Center for the Book, she has worked as a bilingual workshop leader for the Rural Libraries Tour, which facilitates creative writing workshops in rural and underserved areas of California. She and Maylei Blackwell are the literary executors for the beloved Colombian American lesbian poet and publisher tatiana de la tierra.                                                  

Jo Foderingham Brown (Issue 10)

Jo (Foderingham) Brown (she/her/he/him) is a Black, queer, gender non-conforming woman from Georgia, currently living in DC. She has been writing since childhood and started performing her work in 2016. Common subjects of her work are misogynoir, Blackness, interpersonal relationships, and her Jamaican heritage. You can keep up with Jo at tallawahthoughts.co

Edward Vidaurre (Issue 9)

Edward Vidaurre is an award winning poet and author of seven collections of poetry with his eighth collection Cry,Howl forthcoming in 2021. He is the former 2018-2019 City of McAllen,TX Poet Laureate, a five time Pushcart Prize nominated poet and publisher & editor-in-chief of FlowerSong Press and its sister imprint Juventud Press. Vidaurre is from Boyle Heights, CA and now resides in McAllen, TX with his wife and daughter.

Aug. 5th, Future Now Reading: Devynity Wray, Luivette Resto, & Monique Quintana

Join us this coming Thursday, August 5th, for the fifth installment of our monthly Reading & Open Mic Series, Future Now. Hosted by the Dryland team. This month we are featuring contributors from Issue 10: Monique Quintana, Luivette Resto, & Devynity Wray.

This will be a hybrid reading & open-mic event as it’s happening in-person at Re/Arte Centro Literario, located in Boyle Heights, and virtually via Zoom if you are only able to join us online!

When: Thur. Aug. 5th, 7-9 pm PST.

In-person location: RE/ARTE  2014 1/2 E CESAR E CHAVEZ AVE. LOS ANGELES, CA 90033

Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444

Fill out this google form to sign up for the Open Mic. Whether you’re attending on-site or via zoom you’ll get a chance to share your poems. Only 10 spots are available, sign up as soon as possible!

Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer on Instagram, FB, or Twitter and invite a friend to come hang out! This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond.


Devynity Wray is a writer and visual artist from Queens, NY whose work makes the trajectory of the African diasporic heritage, experience and legacy prominent. As a writer, Wray earned her chops on New York’s slam poetry scene making the Nuyorican Poet’s Café her stomping ground. She was a Nuyorican Poet’s Café Grand Slam Finalist and team member in 2002. Wray graduated from City University of New York’s Hunter College with a B.A. in Africana, Puerto-Rican and Latino Studies and recently earned her M.F.A. in Visual Arts from Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. Wray is currently compiling words for her debut collection of poetry.

Luivette Resto, a mother, teacher, poet, and Wonder Woman fanatic, was born in Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico but proudly raised in the Bronx. Her two books of poetry Unfinished Portrait and Ascension have been published by Tía Chucha Press. Some of her latest work can be found on the University of Arizona’s Poetry Center website, Bozalta, and North American Review. Her third collection is forthcoming from FlowerSong Press. She lives in the San Gabriel Valley with her three children aka her revolutionaries.  

Monique Quintana is from Fresno, CA, and the author of Cenote City (Clash Books, 2019) and the chapbook My Favorite Sancho and Other Fairy Tales (Sword and Kettle Press, 2021). Her work has appeared in Pank, Wildness, Winter Tangerine, Cheap Pop, Okay Donkey, and other publications. You can find her book reviews and artist interviews at Luna Luna Magazine, where she is a contributing editor. She was the inaugural winner of Amplify’s Writer of Color Fellowship, and she has been nominated for Best of the Net, Best Microfiction, and the Pushcart.  Her writing has been supported by Yaddo, The Mineral School, the Sundress Academy of the Arts, the Community of Writers, and the Open Mouth Poetry Retreat.  She teaches English at Fresno City College. You can find her on Instagram at @quintanadarkling and moniquequintana.com.

July 1st, Future Now Reading: Jessica Ceballos, Tricia Lopez, & Lituo Huang

Join us this coming Thursday, July 1st, for the fourth installment of our monthly Reading & Open Mic Series, Future Now. Hosted by the Dryland team. This month we are featuring contributors from Issue 10: Jessica Ceballos, Tricia Lopez, & Lituo Huang.

This will be our first hybrid open-mic event as it’s happening in-person at Re/Arte Centro Literario located in Boyle Heights, and virtually via Zoom.

When: Thur. July 3rd, 7-9 pm PST.

In-person location: 2014 1/2 E CESAR E CHAVEZ AVE. LOS ANGELES, CA 90033

Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444

Fill out this google form to sign up for the Open Mic. Only 10 spots available!


Jessica Ceballos (y Campbell) is daughter of Mexican immigrants of North African, Wixárika, Iberian, and US Indigenous descent. She has lived many lives and prefers the one she now occupies—writer of brand content, poetry, essays, and screenplays; publisher of poetry anthologies; significant other; and co-parent of a three year old and two cats. Her work has been published in numerous anthologies and journals, and she has published three chapbooks. In 2019, she opened Alternative Field, a multilingual poetry library, reading room, resource center, and press that employs poetry to exercise thought around important issues. She’s currently working on a poetry-memoirish book inspired by the 80s, Disneyland, the foster care system, childhood divorce, displacement, secrets, and lies, entitled Happiest Place on Earth. Jessica was born, raised, and currently lives on Tovaangar—unceded Tongva lands.  www.jessicaceballos.com

Tricia Lopez is a Nicaraguan and Salvadoran writer from Los Angeles. She is the former Editor-in-Chief of MORIA Literary Magazine. She has had poems, stories, and author interviews published in Dryland, The Acentos Review, Rabid Oak, The Hellebore, Marias At Sampaguitas, and other places. She graduated from Woodbury University with a BA in Professional Writing and is now getting her MFA in Creative Writing at Mount Saint Mary’s University.

Lituo Huang lives in Los Angeles with her dogs. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in TriQuarter, The McNeese Review, Dryland, and elsewhere. She is working on a novel. www.lituohuang.com


Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer on Instagram, FB, or Twitter and invite a friend to come hang out! This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond.

June 3rd, Future Now Reading: Karo Ska, Haolun Xu, & Timothy Gomez

Join us on Thursday, June 3rd, for our monthly Reading & Open Mic Series, Future Now. Hosted by the Dryland team. This month we are featuring contributors from Issue 9 and Issue 10: Karo Ska, Timothy Gomez, & Haolun Xu.

Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444

Fill out this google form to sign up for the Open Mic!


Karo Ska (Issue 9, 2019)

Karo Ska (she/they) is a South Asian & Eastern European gender-fluid poet, living on occupied Tongva Land. They migrated here in 1996 from Warsaw, Poland. Anti-capitalist & anti-authoritarian, they find joy where they can. Their first chapbook, Gathering Grandmothers’ Bones was released on February 29th, 2020. For updates, follow them on instagram @karoo_skaa or check out their website karoska.com.

Haolun Xu (Issue 10, 2020)

Haolun Xu was born in Nanning, China. He immigrated to the United States in 1999 as a child. He was raised in central New Jersey. His writing has appeared in or soon in Witness, Gulf Coast, The Florida Review, and more. His chapbook, Ultimate Sun Cell, is forthcoming with New Delta Review. Follow him on Twitter @haolun1.

Timothy Gomez (Issue 10, 2020)

Timothy Gomez teaches high school English and Ethnic Studies in Huntington Park, CA. His writing has most recently appeared in Dryland, No Tokens, and Black Rabbit Review. His current project is a YouTube show called If You’re in a Place. He is hopelessly devoted to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Follow him on IG & Twitter @timfinitely.


Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer on Instagram, FB, or Twitter and invite a friend to come hang out! This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond.

Future Now, A Black & Brown Open Mic & Reading Series

Calling all Black & Brown poets and writers to join us for the launch of FUTURE NOW, a Virtual Open Mic & Reading Series happening every first Thursday month, hosted by Viva Padilla & the Dryland team. The first open mic will take place on April 1st, 2021, featuring readings by Dryland contributors Eva Recinos, Aruni Wijesinghe, and Alexandra Martinez.

We welcome everyone from all over the world to sign up for the open-mic; there are limited spots available so if you’re interested in performing, sign up as soon as possible! Click here for the sign-up sheet and fill out some info about yourself and what you would like to showcase.

Open Mic Guidelines:

  • Be ready to unmute yourself when your name is called and please mute yourself again once you are done sharing. 
  • Open-mic readers will have three minutes to share. Please be respectful of our other readers’ time. We will use the mute button at our discretion. 
  • We will not tolerate any hate speech. (No racism, sexism, homophobia, etc). 

Help us get the word out by sharing the flyer and inviting a friend or two to come hang out!

When: Every first Thursday of the Month

Where: Virtual (Zoom ID: 878 8950 0444)

Time: 7-9 PM PST

This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their poetry and connect with artists of the Los Angeles community and beyond. For every reading we will also be featuring three poets and writers published in previous issues of the Dryland literary journal.


More info on our readers:

Eva Recinos (Issue 10, 2020)

Eva Recinos is an LA-based arts and culture journalist and creative non-fiction writer focusing on stories that often get left out of mainstream media. Her profiles, features and reviews have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, GOOD, The Guardian, KCET Artbound, Art21, VICE, Bitch, Jezebel and more. She was a 2019 finalist in the LA Press Club awards for Arts & Entertainment Feature (Online). 

Read Eva’s essay featured in issue 10

Aruni Wijesinghe (Issue 10, 2020)

Aruni Wijesinghe (pronounced Wih-jay-SING-hah, Think of the sentence “We’re chasing her” ) is a project manager, ESL teacher, erstwhile belly dance instructor and occasional sous chef. She has been published in anthologies and journals both nationally and internationally and has collections forthcoming with Moon Tide Press and Silver Star Laboratory. She lives a quiet life in Orange County with Jeff, Jack and Josie.

Alexandra Martinez (Issue 10, 2020)

Alexandra Martinez is a baker and poet living in the tumble-weeds of Southern California.