Who we are

a group of local poets who are passionate about building this community.

  • Person with long hair standing in front of a colorful graffiti wall, looking upwards.

    Kortnee Sterr

    Artistic Co-Director

    Kortnee Sterr is a spoken word-smith, poet, and avid science communicator from Treaty 1 territory. Her lengthy career at university completely corrupted her otherwise creative prose and she strives to repair what has been lost through inadvertently hosting community events once a month. Kortnee has represented Winnipeg on the national stage during the Canadian Independent Poetry Slam in 2015, and again at the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word in 2016 through the short-lived Central Slam. She has self-published a short collection of poetry that cannot be read after a tragic break and entering into her self-built campervan - which she loves to talk about, so definitely ask about that. You can keep up with Kortnee by sending an albino pigeon into the clouds and strumming a G chord on the fortnight following a full moon... Or on social platforms @wishformoretime. 

  • Person in red and black plaid jacket and black beanie posing in front of colorful graffiti wall.

    Steve Locke

    Artistic Co-Director

    Steve Locke is a writer, poet, arts educator, and community facilitator from Winnipeg in Treaty One territory. As a winner of titles including Winnipeg Individual Slam Champion and Winnipeg Grand Slam Champion, his disarming and engaging spoken word performances exploring mental health and existential questions have been featured on community and festival stages across the country, including The Victoria Spoken Word Festival, The Canadian Festival of Spoken Word, and locally at the Winnipeg Writers, Fringe, Improv, and Spoken Word Festivals. On the page, his fiction, poetry, and reviews have appeared in The Winnipeg Review, Oratorealis, CV2, Poetry is Dead, and Prairie Fire magazines. In classrooms and community spaces, his mentorships and youth workshops build confidence in self-expression through the written and spoken word. Visit him at stevelockewpg.com.

  • Woman with red hair reading from a stand on stage

    Jules Stevenson

    Social Media Manager

    Jules Stevenson is a poet, artist, and social media guru from Selkirk, Manitoba. She began writing in her early teens as a means of coping with mental illness. Over the years, her writing has evolved into an incredibly intimate and honest body of work.

    At 16, Jules self-published her first book, ‘atrophy.’ Her work frequently explores themes of trauma, the body, feminism, and mental health.

    In 2023, her poem 'An Apology to My Cat' went viral on TikTok, gaining over 12.5 million views. This global reaction led to the self-publication of her poetry memoir, ‘self portraits of a girl collapsing violently inward,’ which focuses on sexual and digital trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Currently, Jules spends her time working as a barista, writing, and enjoying the company of her beloved cats, Moth and Lamp.

    You can keep up with her journeys at https://www.juliestevenson.ca/

Our History

The history of Winnipeg Poetry Slam (WPS) is difficult to define. We could say that WPS was launched in 2003 to send a well-rounded, slam-keen team to the first ever Canadian ‘Spoken Word Olympics’ in 2004. We could say, with equal confidence, that WPS existed in the subliminal spaces of Winnipeg’s longest running Open Mic show, Speaking Crow; thus, existing well before the year 2000. We could also say that WPS was notarized as a formidable scene as of 2016, when we were proud to host the 12th annual Canadian Festival of Spoken Word and invited over 100 poets from across Canada to compete in teams. In the spirit of spoken word poetry, all statements are true. 

WPS came together on Treaty 1 Territory, traditional territory of the Anishinaabeg, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples; and national homeland of the Red River Métis. Officially, WPS started as a passionate gathering of spoken word poets in 2003, who then went on to compete in the 2004 Canadian Spoken Wordlympics in Ottawa. It was a bold decision that reflected decades of artistic community building as we competed against giant cities like Vancouver, Toronto, and Ottawa in the first ever Canadian spoken word competition. WPS continued to send our best poets to the annual Canadian Festival of Spoken Word (CFSW) every year, representing all of Manitoba as other Canadian cities from Edmonton to Montreal (and even York (ON)) found their footing in the spoken word community. Realizing the vast potential of artists in the city, a subsidiary of WPS named Central Slam was developed in 2015 and sent 5 more poets to compete at CFSW Saskatoon 2015, totalling 10 poets from Winnipeg. Due to funding limitations, Central Slam was disbanded in 2016 as our artistic funds and capacity went into hosting CFSW Winnipeg at the Garrick theatre, where we invited 31 teams from across Canada to compete at the 13th annual competition.

WPS also sponsored and supported individuals keen on competing at another nationally-recognized spoken word festival, the Canadian Individual Poetry Slam (CIPS, hosted in Vancouver by Verses Festival of Words). The format of this competition departs from CFSW by having one poet representing a city instead of the team of 4-5 poets, and catering poetry pieces to 1, 2, and 4 minutes instead of the standard 3-minute format. WPS oversaw the city competition, and further endorsed individuals by having the winner feature at open mics, CFSW competitions, and other speciality events. 

In 2014, WPS produced the first ever Winnipeg Spoken Word Festival as a part of Manitoba Provincial Poetry Week. The festival kicked off with the final competition ahead of the 2014 CFSW season and continued with workshops from infamous spoken word artists such as RC Weslowski and Buddy Wakefield. In 2017, WPS brought slam poetry to Winnipeg Fringe through SLAM! – a curated performance showcasing Winnipeg’s best poets and new, original work every show. SLAM! successfully mobilized spoken word poets from Winnipeg and abroad to challenge the status quo while simultaneously providing remuneration, professional and artistic growth, and new skills such as facilitation, hosting, and mentorship. SLAM! uplifted the presence of spoken word at Winnipeg Fringe in both 2017 and 2018, uncovering a new opportunity for Winnipeg spoken word poets to develop their work, network with other artists, and strive for excellence. Both SLAM! and SLAM! 2 were such immense successes that the Winnipeg Fringe Festival not only invited WPS back for SLAMDEMIC in 2021, but fully funded the virtual competition themselves. 

It should be evident at this point that there is a rich and robust community of poets within Winnipeg that have consistently shown up to the spoken word scene. There is an underlying thread of commitment unlike any seen before, as apparent by the longevity of spoken word within Winnipeg. Many poets from WPS have continued on to publish work in local and national literary magazines, the Winnipeg Free Press, and several poetry houses across Canada. Many of these poets have also featured at other poetry slams and open mic nights across Canada while being passionately supported by the WPS. In short, WPS has provided a stage for Manitoba locals share stories, experiences, and bond over the intricacies of life that can only be captured in spoken word poetry since 2003, and has showcased some of Winnipeg’s best talents through countless artistic spaces.