The 21st century belongs to Twitter. If you're not familiar with it, you should get acquainted. It's incredible!

More on that later ...

Right now, let's get ready for one more knockout issue of Hyperbole - publications, poetry resources, and National Poetry Month! Wow! Are you excited?

Table of Contents

1. National Poetry Month: Twitter Poetry
2. Poetry Publications
3. American Life In Poetry
4. New Poetry Book Reviews
5. New World Class Poetry Blog Posts
6. Poetry Book Of The Month
7. Are You Subscribed?
8. World Class Poetry Networking

National Poetry Month:
Twitter Poetry

Twitter is what they call a microblogging platform. If you're not familiar, users "tweet" messages of 140 characters or less. Well, the poets have caught on and are publishing their poems through Twitter - me included.

I decided I'd celebrate National Poetry Month this year with Twitter. So I'm publishing one poem a day - 140 characters or less - three times a day EVERY DAY THIS MONTH!

If interested, follow me on Twitter and look for messages that end with #twitpoem.

New Poetry Publications

New publications this month in the World Class Poetry Publications Index include:

• Knockout Literary Magazine
• Vain Magazine

Learn more about them and other publications at the World Class Poetry Publications Page.

American Life In Poetry: Column 210

BY TED KOOSER, U.S. POET LAUREATE, 2004-2006

My father was the manager of a store in which chairs were strategically placed for those dutiful souls waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting for shoppers. Such patience is the most exhausting work there is, or so it seems at the time. This poem by Joseph O. Legaspi perfectly captures one of those scenes.

At the Bridal Shop

The gowns and dresses hang
like fleece in their glaring
whiteness, sheepskin-softness,
the ruffled matrimonial love in which the brides-
in-waiting dance around, expectantly,
hummingbirds to tulips. I was dragged here:
David's Bridal, off the concrete-gray arterial
highways of a naval town. I sink into the flush
bachelors' couch, along with other men sprinkled
throughout the shop, as my friend and her female compatriots parade
taffeta dresses in monstrous shades of pastels--persimmons,
lilacs, periwinkles--the colors of weddings and religious
holidays. Trains drag on the floor, sleeves drape
like limp, pressed sheets of candied fruits,
ribbons fluttering like pale leaves. I watch
families gathered together: the women, like worshippers,
circling around the smiling brides-to-be, as if they were
the anointed ones. The men, in turn, submerge
deeper into couches, into sleep, while the haloed,
veiled women cannot contain their joy,
they flash their winning smiles, and they are beautiful.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright (c)2007 by Joseph O. Legaspi, whose most recent book of poems is "Imago," Cavankerry Press, 2007. Poem reprinted from "Crab Orchard Review," Vol. 12, no. 2, 2007, by permission of Joseph O. Legaspi. Introduction copyright (c) 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

New Poetry Reviews

This month I reviewed a first-time self-published author, Amal Saleh. The book is Poetry Eyes. Here are the first two paragraphs of the review. You can click the link at the end to complete the review.

I shouldn't like Poetry Eyes by Amal Saleh. But I do. And the reason is as simple as the poetry itself.

In her debut book of poems, self published through Author House, Amal Saleh explores poetry from a variety of poetic styles through four lenses, which she calls "fields." These fields, or lenses as I prefer (and you'll see why in a moment), serve as chapters into which Saleh has divided her poems.

Read the entire review here

New World Class Poetry Blog Posts

I think you'll like this month's blog posts. We got into a pretty heated debate over vanity publishing. Please join in.

• No More Waffling On Bukowski (includes a video)
• Self Publishing Poetry: The Problem With Vanity (I have a follow up planned for this one to clear up the misunderstanding)
• How To Write A Twitter Poem

Interested in guest blogging? Get the details here.

And check out LitVillage on the World Class Poetry Resources page.

Poetry Book Of The Month

Poetry Eyes by Amal Saleh is an excellent first publishing effort by a new poet. Very few self-published authors do it this well on the first try. While Poetry Eyes isn't perfect by a stretch, it's not half bad.

I recommend it.

Get your copy of it now

Are You Subscribed?

World Class Poetry Networking

my 'read' shelf:

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