'I listened to the sound of southern women's voices expressing disbelief'
There are so many delightful poems by Faith Shearin that it can be difficult to select just one to show you. This one is from her sixth book, Darwin's Daughter, published in 2017 by Stephen F. Austin State University Press. Faith Shearin lives in West Virginia.
BLUE ELVIS
by Faith Shearin
It was August 1977 when Elvis Presley fell
face down on his Graceland bathroom floor;
by the ti...
19th August 2019
Mona Arshi, Helen Mort and Maurice Riordan to judge £5,000 National Poetry Competition
Mona Arshi, Helen Mort, and Maurice Riordan will be judging this year’s £5,000 National Poetry Competition. It’s run by the Poetry Society, which spotlights up to 150 longlisted poets each year. The deadline is 31 October. More details
ARTWORK: CAT O’NEIL
16th August 2019
End of August deadline for Ireland's €1,000 Westport poetry competition
There’s a first prize of €1,000 for the winner of this year’s Westport poetry competition, part of Westival music and arts festival in Ireland. The entry fee is €15 for up to three poems, and the dead...
16th August 2019
Poems and songs about Lancashire's Cotton Famine at Quarry Bank
An afternoon of poetry and song titled Cotton Lords, about the Lancashire Cotton Famine, will be held on Monday 19 August at Quarry Bank Mill in Styal, Cheshire, one of the best preserved textile mill...
13th August 2019
'Dear Dylan' ... call for letters to and poems that celebrate Dylan Thomas
Fancy writing a letter to Dylan Thomas, as if he were alive today? A letter that might have been delivered to his home at The Boathouse in Laugharne? Poetry editor Anna Saunders and publisher Indigo D...
13th August 2019
Confessions of a tripe addict
Lately I’ve been bingeing on Netflix and catch-up and box sets. The Killing, The Bridge, Borgen, Spiral, True Detective, The Wire, House of Cards (the American one); I’ve been reading comfort blanket ...
11th August 2019
Lights, camera, action: poets celebrate city's film heritage in anthology
A poetry anthology celebrating the 10th birthday of Bradford Unesco City of Film will be launched on Friday 16 August at Bradford City Library. Reel Bradford includes poems by Mike Farren, Joanna Sedg...
9th August 2019
Write Out Loud at Stockport art gallery on Monday
Members of Stockport Write Out Loud will be meeting to share poems at Stockport art gallery on Monday 12 August. Each month members contribute to a collage poem, and you can read July’s here. Entry is...
9th August 2019
In Her Shambles: Elizabeth Parker, Seren
Elizabeth Parker grew up in the Forest of Dean, and currently lives on the harbour in Bristol. She has a BA in English literature and creative writing, and an MA in mythology. She has published a poet...
8th August 2019
Write Out Loud Wigan at the Old Courts tonight
It’s open-mic poetry at the Old Courts, Wigan on Thursday August 8. Doors open at the free Write Out Loud night at 7.30pm for an 8pm start. More details and Map
8th August 2019
New laureate Simon Armitage at Edinburgh book festival
Poet laureates new and former - Simon Armitage and Carol Ann Duffy - line up with Jackie Kay, Roger McGough, Lemn Sissay and Benjamin Zephaniah as some of the big poetry names appearing at this year’s...
7th August 2019
Let's hear it as spoken word reclaims the stage: poet launches book on its rebirth
Spoken word is no longer “underground” or “emerging” … if you look at the sweep of history and poetry’s oral tradition , it’s page/written poetry that is the aberration … Kate Tempest draws a bigger a...
5th August 2019
Remembering Peterloo: reading by Manchester poets and Shelley recitals to mark 200th anniversary
Manchester poets will be reading poems on the theme of Peterloo at Manchester Central Library on Tuesday 6 August at 6-7.30pm – one of a number of poetry events to mark the historic moment’s 200th ann...
5th August 2019
Poetry that really matters: Ann Gray (part two)
Tell me a story, Pew.
What story, child?
One that begins again.
That’s the story of life.
But is it the story of my life?
Only if you tell it.
I was a bit late starting to write...
5th August 2019
Time to take a break for Write Out Loud's Poem of the Week
Write Out Loud’s Poem of the Week is taking a break for the summer. After more than three successful years that have revealed the breadth and depth of poetic talent on this poetry website on numerous ...
5th August 2019
Anonymous backer rescues 'final' Torbay poetry festival after it loses Arts Council funding
An anonymous backer has come to the rescue of Torbay poetry festival – and allowed it to stage one more festival this year after losing its Arts Council funding. Its festival organisers say on its we...
4th August 2019
Lichfield cathedral launches poetry competition to mark moon anniversary
Lichfield cathedral has launched its first poetry competition and is inviting people to submit new poems inspired by the 50th anniversary of the moon landing as part of a new festival of creativity th...
4th August 2019
'We all lose something, though that day I hadn't lost a thing'
Lately I've been worried about the welfare of a young groundhog who lives under our front deck. His back legs won't support him and he drags them behind. This poem has been a good lesson for me. That ...
4th August 2019
Lunar: Keisha Thompson, Cultureword
Keisha Thompson is known as a poet with a charismatic performance profile and an intellectual passion for maths. Her show Man on the Moon has won the Manchester Theatre award for best studio productio...
4th August 2019
Tributes paid to performance poet, musician, and historian Dave Reeves
Poets, publishers and arts organisations have paid tribute to West Midlands performance poet and musician, historian and poetry activist Dave Reeves, who has died at the age of 65.
Dave Reeves was ...
4th August 2019
