Emily Dickinson wrote in a vacuum, but most poets thrive on open discussion, exchange and critique. Local writers workshops are one avenue, and can be found in nearly any city. Open mic readings, book stores and the like often encourage exchange. The internet is another source of poetry discourse and critique, and poetry groups of all sorts have been part of the online scene almost since its inception. Too ...
If you"re in and around Austin this week, you"ve probably been hearing a lot of poetry. The National Poetry Slam Finals started on Wedensday and they"re really rocking down the house - or houses, as the case may be. With over 300 poets on 81 teams competing, this is the largest Nationals in the history of the National Poetry Slam. For those who don"t know, ...
You may be wondering what a book of Cole Porter lyrics is doing on a bookshelf devoted to poetry. Lyrics, after all, are often seen as the redheaded stepchild of legitimate poets - which is a darned shame. The best of song lyrics often outshine lyric poetry in their timeliness, artistry and piquancy - and Cole Porter was a consummate lyricist with ...
It"s nice to know that someone can take a joke in this story. Jack Marx of the Daily Truth posted this delightful history of the Australian poetry battle that is capturing headlines. In rhyme, no less - rhyming couplets, as is only fitting for a story about three poets embroiled in a battle over memoirs, drinking, porn and restraining orders. For those who haven"t ...
In the United Kingdom, they take these things seriously enough that the National Health Service funds poets in residence at hospitals and clinics. They pay good money to put poetry in doctors" waiting rooms and bring poets in to work with patients undergoing traumatic illness. Poetry, they say, is therapeutic, and they are willing to put their money where their mouths ...
Remember Minnesota, the state that doesn"t have an official poet laureate because the governor vetoed it? The story first made the news in May of last year when Governor Tim Pawlenty decided that establishing an official poet laureate for the state might open the floodgates and next thing you know every distaff art and its cousin would be demanding equal ...
On Thursday, French poet Patrick Huet unrolled nearly a kilometer of specially crafted material on which he had scribed his latest poem - Pieces of Hope to the Echo of the World. It was the first official measurement of Huet"s poem, an incident he describes in his blog. Huet"s intent was to write the world"s longest poem - and make it into the ...
It"s coming down to the wire for the several hundred poets across the nation who are gearing up for next week"s National Poetry Slam Finals in Austin, Texas. In Richmond, poets gathered at ComedySportz Improv Theater for a practice slam Sunday night. On Monday night in Kalamazoo (yes, Kalamazoo!), the Kalamazoo Slam Team hosted a special show to raise money for their ...
As often as I"ve mourned the loss of poetry venues here, noting how sad it makes me to click a link to a poetry journal or review or ezine or other publication, only to find that the editors have stopped publication, this announcement brings me a great deal of pleasure. Not only do I get to announce the birth of a new review ...
Last Friday, I wrote about Rick Lupert"s Poetry Superhighway, where Rick Lupert has been featuring some of the best poets in the world since 1997. At the time, I told you about his Great Poetry Exchange, and the Great E-book Free For All. I didn"t mention the annual Poetry Superhighway Poetry Contest, which has been running since 1998 for one reason ...
