Name: Fall Festival of The Arts Grand Slams!
Start: 2025-11-22T12:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-11-23T16:30:00-05:00
Location: Chess Park

The DeLand Fall Festival will once again feature the Fall Festival Grand Slam!
Over $2000 in cash and prizes on the line! Two incredible Poetry Slams, one each day of the festival!!!!
Poets will compete for $750 Saturday and $750 Sunday. First place $500. Second place $150. Third place $100. First place each day will also win a berth to the Chicharra Festival Poetry Slam. Berths are not transferable, so if the first place poet is unable to go to New Mexico, the next highest scores that can attend will go. If the same poet wins both days, the second berth will go to the highest placing poet from both days of competition that is able to attend in New Mexico.
Each Grand Slam will be 3 rounds. 1st round by random draw, 2nd round from high to low from first round, third round order will be from a redraw. All poets will perform two poems. The three highest cumulative scores advance to the final round. Last round is clean slate. We will limit the Grand Slam field to only 8 poets per day.
Each day's slam will begin at 1pm in Downtown DeLand in Chess Park. And each day will also feature a Poetry Extravaganza during the Fall Festival of the Arts! If you're a poet in Volusia County, feel free to show up and get on the mic during our Open Mic segments!
Poets may compete in the slams only one of the days or both days. The poets who win 1st, 2nd, or 3rd on Saturday may not repeat ANY poem if they compete on Sunday.
Open Mic segments will be each day after the slams have ended. Sunday will also feature a specialized slam called The Form Slam after the Grand Slam. We may also have a feature poet or two during the Open Mics. Bring those poems!
Poets may email [email protected] for more Grand Slams info! Registration is free, but must include a pic and short bio received by October 25th.
You may secure your spot in the Form Slam by submitting 3 to 5 form poems in a word doc at [email protected]. Send pic and short bio there as well (see discussion for Form Slam format). Form Slam field will be limited to first 8 poets whose poems are cleared for competition.
This event sponsored by MainStreet Art and Culture Slam of DeLand, Creative Happiness Institute, and the Fall Festival Of The Arts DeLand.