Abode Press is thrilled to be the publisher of the 2025-2026 Austin Youth Poet Laureate, Saaya Accapadi, and her poetry chapbook residue. 

About Saaya Accapadi: Saaya Accapadi is the 2025-2026 Austin Youth Poet Laureate, a program supported by The Library Foundation, Austin Public Library, and Urban Word. Currently a senior at Anderson High School, she leads her school’s book club and is a founding member of the Banned Books Club in her school district. Saaya continues to represent the broader Austin community in various ways, whether it be mentorship through her local music school or student-teaching within her Indian Classical Dance Academy, additionally serving as a long-term volunteer for the Austin Public Library. She was a runner-up for the 2026 South Regional Youth Poet Laureate and will be attending Rice University in the fall.

Copyright @ 2026 Austin Public Library Friends Foundation

Editor: Bianca Alyssa Pérez, Austin Youth Poet Laureate

Book Design: Diamond Braxton

Cover Design: Saaya Accapadi

Cover Image: “Draupadi in Virata’s Palace” by Raja Ravi Varma, Public Domain

Austin Youth Poet Laureate Judges Committee

Katrina Brooks, Mariela Cifuentes, Amanda Johnston, Jenny Miner, Bianca Alyssa Pérez, Cecily Sailer

Mentors 

Bianca Alyssa Pérez and Darrell Limuel 

Learn more about the Austin Youth Poet Laureate Program here: https://austinlibrary.org/austin-youth-poet-laureate/