Post-weekend Poetry

I’ve been acutely aware that there’s a distinct lack of poetry on my blog. This is partly because I don’t write much (I’m a fiction fan but also I’ve never really been taught the craft of poetry) and, let’s face it, there are more prose writers out there than poets… or certainly in the proportions who contact me.

A while back Poet Philip Ellis asked me via Twitter if I’d take poems and I said, “sure, why not” (or something like that) but sadly there wasn’t an eighth day in the week starting with ‘P’ but this morning (11th December) Neel left a comment on my Flash Fiction Friday page saying he was looking forward to reading fortnightly poetry. So, it’s now time to even up the scales a little, and go one better than fortnightly. This page, therefore, will be dedicated to weekly poetry and contain the links from the slots that will make up ‘Post-weekend Poetry’.

What do I mean by ‘Post-weekend’? Currently Monday nights are the only times where I don’t post anything specific (sometimes extra guest blogs – which will now stick to the Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday slots) or something from me. Whilst I don’t like adding extra content to the current 7am (interview) and 7pm (spotlights, guest blogs and flash fiction) to give each author a clear 12-hour space at the top of my blog’s home page, I don’t mind if I get a few minutes before being superseded by a guest piece, especially a guest piece of poetry. So if I have something to say I will post it at, say, 6.30pm Monday evenings (UK time) then post the latest PwP at 7pm (UK time).

So, I am now throwing down the gauntlet to you poets out there who would like a platform for your poetry. As with everything else creative on this blog, you retain the copyright and I will not use it anywhere else without your permission. You, on the other hand, can have posted it anywhere and everywhere before or after it goes live here, I’m not precious about exclusivity… in fact I like the thought of more than just my visitors (ave.150 daily) seeing your writing.

What I’m after (in a similar format to the Flash Fiction Fridays)… email me your poem (up to 40 lines) and I’ll take a look. If it’s suitable (as I said I’m no poet but this blog is a family-content one so I do have boundaries!) I’ll email you with the Monday I plan to run it and it’ll be added to the schedule on this page. I’ll also need please c.200 words on the inspiration behind it, a 200-word max third-person biography, links to your website, blog etc., and a photo of yourself and / or book would be great too.

Posted
001: Dactylic Pentameter by poet Phillip Ellis (12th Dec). Phillip guest blogged for me late November and we chatted back in July (interview no.55). And he’s mentioned this page on his blog.
002: The Chill Turned Warm by poet Bonnie Gail Carter (19th Dec). Bonnie’s book of poetry, from which this poem is brought, is listed on this blog’s ‘Books – other people’s‘ page.
003: For She is Younger by novelist and poet John J Hohn (2nd Jan). You can also read John’s guest blog 1, guest blog 2 and interview.
004: The Lady on the Train by poet and short story author Ruth Holroyd (9th Jan).
005: Empty by supernatural mystery/horror author and scriptwriter and interviewee Julia Kavan (16th Jan).
006: The Androyd by science-fiction novelist and poet Vincent Miskell (30th Jan).
007: Twit Twoo by poet and short story author Ruth Holroyd (6th Feb).
008: unlucky poem Funny World by Linda Eve Diamond (13th Feb).
009: Poet Phillip Ellis returned with When Time is an Ocean: an Experiment (20th Feb).
010: Another Mermaid Story by literary author and poet Rose Mary Boehm (27th Feb).
011: Soldier’s Cry by children’s author and poet Dicy McCullough (5th Mar).
012: Tragic Needs by poet and article writer Grace Eagle Reed (12th Mar).
013: Like a Shard of Glass by poet and short story author Ruth Holroyd (19th Mar).
014: Phillip Ellis returned, reviewing Chris Hamilton-Emery’s ’101 Ways to Make Poems Sell’ (26th Mar).
015: Linda Eve Diamond returned with her humorous poem The Cobbod Cold (2nd April).
016: True love by poet Sandy Hartman (9th April).
017: When the Great Strength Fails by poet Louis J Casson (16th April).
018: Waiting Game by poet and scriptwriter Jackie Atkins (23rd April).
019: Two sonnets by historical author and poet Elizabeth Vallone (30th April).
020: The Flame by artist, poet and children’s author Lesley Fletcher (7th May).
021: On Being a Writer by YA, science-fiction, horror author and poet Kenna McKinnon (14th May).
022: Linda Eve Diamond returned with her poem Geometry 101 (21st May).
023: Phillip Ellis returned to review Sage Cohen’s book Writing the Life Poetic (28th May).
024: Poem from Other World by poet, essayist, short story author and novelist Garden Urthark (4th June).

Scheduled
025: ’From Work Tables They Raise Pine Voices’ by poet and short story author Salvatore Buttaci (11th June).
026: ‘Earth Bound’ by poet Sandy Hartman (18th June).
027: author booked, details t.b.a. (25th June).
028: ‘Droplet’ by poet, prose and article writer Kimberly Gray (2nd July)
029: ‘About the Dove’ by multi-genre author Micki Peluso (9th July).
030: Linda Eve Diamond returns with her poem ‘Snowed In’ (16th July) – what better topic as the UK school summer holidays approach.
031: you could have your sports-related poem listed here (23rd July).
032: With the Olympics in full flow, I’m planning a page of 4-line Olympics-related poems for this slot – the idea started by Keith Blowes contribution. Let’s see how many authors I can get to take part. (30th July).
033: you could have your sports-related listed here (6th August).
034: you could have your unlucky poem listed here (13th August).
035: It’ll be the day after my birthday so I’m going to have a poem here (20th August).
036: you could have your poem listed here (27th August).
037: Linda Eve Diamond returns with her poem ‘The Problem with Interrupting’ (3rd September).
038: you could have your poem listed here (10th September).
039: ’First Contact’ by poet Louis J Casson (17th September).
040: you could have your poem listed here (24th September).
041: you could have your poem listed here (1st October).
042: you could have your poem listed here (8th October).
043: you could have your poem listed here (15th October).
044: you could have your poem listed here (22nd October).
045: As NaNoWriMo starts on Thursday 1st November, Linda Eve Diamond returns with her poem ‘The Novel’ (29th October).
046: you could have your poem listed here (5th November).
047: you could have your poem listed here (12th November).
048: you could have your poem listed here (19th November).
049: you could have your poem listed here (26th November).
050: you could have your festive (or very unfestive!) poem listed here (3rd December).
051: you could have your festive (or very unfestive!) poem listed here (10th December).
052: you could have your festive (or very unfestive!) poem listed here (17th December).
053: you could have your Christmas Eve poem listed here (24th December).
054: you could have your New Year’s Eve poem listed here (31st December).
055: you could have your new beginnings poem listed here (7th January 2013).
056: ’Cats passing on the trail’ by poet Louis J Casson (14th January).
057: you could have your poem listed here (21st January).
…and so on

If you write poetry, the Northampton Literature Group Poetry Comp 2012 is now open, deadline 12th May. More competition details in the Competitions Calendar.

The following are interesting articles on poetry:

• 10 Compelling Reasons To Memorize Poetry
• 10 essential poets every student should encounter in school
• Slam Poets Geared Up To Do Battle
• NaPoWriMo.net re. National Poetry Month
• ABC Reads re. National Poetry Month
• Stronger Without The Pressure
• http://soundcloud.com/the-footing is an anthology of specially-commission poems that you can listen to online.
• Other poetry-related websites include Eyewear, Ink Sweat & Tears and Peony Moon.

There are also poetry-related items on this blog’s Links, and Submission info. pages.