POETRY CHALLENGE: A poem a day and more
Dogwood, April 2007 — Photo by Vic Burkhammer
Robert Lee Brewer at Poetic Asides is challenging himself to write a poem a day during April, National Poetry Month. Read all about it here.
Brewer is editor of WritersMarket.com, and his latest blog post at Asides asks the question: “Is poetry a collectible commodity?” as he focuses on the Eureka Books plan for broadsides of famous poets’ poems.
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The poets over at the West Virginia Poetry Society are honing their skills with a variety of poetry prompts. One of the most fascinating recently was the prompt for a form called haibun, a combination of prose and haiku poetry. Some have said the haibun is “a narrative of an epiphany,” or if not an epiphany, a special moment. Good examples of haibun can also be found at Contemporary Haibun Online.
Check out Bob Minzesheimer’s riff on National Poetry Month at USA TODAY: “Let us count the ways we love poetry” ….
He mentions:
– A new collection of poems titled “The Poem I Turn To”
– Poem in Your Pocket Day coming up on April 17 (you can read about it here too)
– PBS’s airing of a biography of Walt Whitman and its launching of a Web site April 1, pbs.org/poetry
– The Poetry Foundation’s showing with HBO of “Classical Baby (I’m Grown Up Now): The Poetry Show”
– A new paperback called “100 Poems to Lift Your Spirits” … inspiring, hilarious, and all memorable, all intended to beat the blues
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Hafez, the 14th century Persian poet, has a new book out translated by Robert Bly and Leonard Lewisohn: “The Angels Knocking on the Tavern Door: Thirty Poems of Hafez” … order the book and read a text excerpt here.
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“When power leads man towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.”
– John F. Kennedy: Remarks in honor of Robert Frost, at Amherst College, Oct. 26, 1963
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Highlight: On April 2, 2008, poet and Iraq War veteran Brian Turner will appear at the International Poetry Forum in Pittsburgh. His first collection, “Here, Bullet,” recounts his time of combat in Iraq. For information about the reading, click here.
