Tomorow will be our first ever edition of Saturday Drop a Link. All you do is leave a link for a poem that you would like to have reviewed, then anyone else who wants to can review.

Please stop in and take part. This will not be a weekly event and will only be repeated if it is successful.

The post will go up tomorow.

Contest Details

Bookhabit.com and the New Zealand Poetry Society are holding an international poetry competition that celebrates written and performance poetry.

All entries must be submitted online by November 2nd.

For more details stop in at at Book Habit

You can listen to audio poems at Austin New Blog

Please cruise on over there and let them know that PWB sent you.

We have a new member!

Great news, poets, we have a new member on our blogroll. Henry Kinkle just debuted his poetry blog Bingo in the Raw.

His first poem posted was Winter With You. Please drop by and make him feel welcome to our group by leaving a comment.

I've noticed some of our members have stepped up and started talking up PWB in their own blog posts. Thanks! Keep up the good work.

For new members, how can you be a good PWB member?

Visit someone on our blogroll each week and leave at least one comment. Follow links given here and visit our other members. When PWB recommends a site and you go there, make sure you tell them that PWB sent you.

Take part in our prompts and games. Send in all your personal poetry news or any poetry news that you know to poetswhoblog at yahoo.com (make sure you put PWB in subject line).


Thanks for all you do to keep PWB going.

PWB would like to wish the best of luck to the new zine Christian Poets Pen. If you stop in and check them out, make sure you let them know PWB sent you.


They are looking for submissions. Click here for details.

Share your thoughts with one of our poets

Mark Folse from Poems Before Breakfast would love for you to stop in and share your thoughts on what is and is not working with his poetry. Read this post for more detials and then let him know what you think.

The Boston Globe ran an article last week on the subject of bikers who also love poetry. Into motorcycles and the poetic verse? Click here to read about people who are.

Mr. Neal’s Creative Writing Classroom Blog asks bloggers to take part in a prompt. The idea is to make a post that describes what a poet's job is, in the same way you might describe what the president's job is.

Click here if you think you might like to take part.

Though each country has a different culture, all people use music, painting, and words, spoken and sung, to communicate their feelings. Now that the internet is becoming more and more a part of people's life worldwide they are able to use poetry to relate their personal struggles and joys. David Sasaki discusses this phenomenon in New Bloggers Use Poetry to Describe Their Communities, Feelings, Friends.Click here to check out the article.

Simon, a poetry blogger from Rhubarb is Susan, offers advice to all new poetry bloggers.

If you are new to the world of blogging, then cruise on over and check out his words of wisdom

More on "Misrepresented Poetry"

Poetry Foundation has a post up about what they are calling the "pirated poetry anthology."

Click here to view the post and read the comments

I am quite disturbed to come to the conclusion that so many poets are being taken advantage of by having their name associated with something they did not give permission for and then, for some, they claim the poem linked to their name is not even their poem.

This is a real shame to see something like this go on. From what I've read online, this is basically what happened:

Someone got the bright idea to use a computer program to write 4000 poems and then attributed them to popular poets online and to other notables, including e.e. cummings, Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan.

They posted the project and drew the wrath of many poets who didn't appreciate their name being associated with such a project. If you ask me it was the height of rudeness to do what this person did, and caused unneccasary upset in the poetry community. You can not just hijack someone's name and think that's cool. Its not.

I hope to never see something as distastful as this go on again. In the poetry blogosphere we need to help and uplift each other, not drag each other down.

Hopefully all our poets are doing well today. I'm very thankful that PWB is not the kind of site that would foster the mean spirited vibe that produced that project.

More Lend a Line Options for You

We’ve had two more lines donated to our Lend a Line Project that started September
5th 2008.



Click here to read the original post.



The idea is to use one of the lines as the first line in a new poem. Send the poem to me in an email and make sure you put PWB in the subject line. Then the poem will be posted here on PWB. Make sure you tell me your screen name and also give me a link to your blog. All readers can take part, even if you aren't a PWB blog member.

Here are the lines:

"Grass blades resonate under the breeze.."

From "Now that green is just green"
by AC French (AKA poetrydances man)



"Some as fools fall within without care,
the warm blanketed arms of comfort's kiss"

From "The wages of immoderate pleasure" AC French. (AKA Poetrydances man)

What's going on? Reason for concern or not?

After I read this post from Ted Burke where he states that his name was linked to a poetry project he never took part in ( though his name is not that uncommon) I was intrigued enough to follow it through to the actual blog that has the project. That is here.

In the comments several poets so they did not lend their permission to have their names used in this work. They also state the poems linked to their name are not their poems. I noticed that in the long list of names their is at least one PWB member.

Not sure if this project is on the up and up but since it is such a serious subject I felt I better bring it to your attention. Check for your name and make sure you are well aware of where you name is being used online.

Just a reminder that Matinee Muse is offering weekly prompts for anyone looking for some poetic inspiration.

Check out Alltop

Have you visited AllTop yet? Its a great place to see what's going on in the poetry blogosphere.

Click here to check the site out.

Writer's Island is Back

Great news, poets, Writer's Island has been revamped and its back with new prompts for you to try. Considering that I'm in a creative slump write now maybe I'll cruise on over and see what they are up to. Want to join me?

Click here to visit Writer's Island and tell them PWB sent you.

The End of Shine a Light On Poetry Comes Early

Sorry but our first edition of Shine a Light on Poetry has now come to an end. I had to go away for the weekend and didn't get a chance to do posts. I'm still busy so I won't be able to keep going. But I encourage you to visit all the poets we highlighted and get to know them. Just say hi and that PWB sent you. Send the PWB love around the blogosphere.

Thank you to anyone who jumped in and helped with this project. We'll have our second edition early next year.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Seventeen

Today Poet Who Blogs asks you to turn your attention to a wonderfully talented and profilic blogger who goes by Paisley.

Check out this beautiful poem Vernix and the raw and true words in this one Fifteen.

I hope you will spend a little of your day visiting Just Paisley, and letting the poet know that PWB sent you over.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Sixteen

I want to take a moment to sincerly thank every person who has taken a moment from their busy day in order to stop by one of the first fifteen sites suggested.

Today we are shining our light on the very unique Blogsboro Poetry Club. Run by the ever hard working Billy the Blogging Poet, this site allows poetry bloggers to post a snippet of their latest poem and then link to the rest.

Every single day you can find a variety of great, fresh poetry at this site.

Why not stop in and see if anything there peeks your interest, then follow the link to the bloggers site and let them know all about PWB and our project this month.

Be an active part of our site. I work for you but you all work for PWB.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Fifteen

This project is allowing me to visit lots of sites on our blogroll that I haven't been to in awhile. I hope that its doing the same for you.

I've always been a fan of this next site. Check it out and see if you are one to. When you drop by Amputated Moon you will be treated to the work of Pamela Olsen.

This poem is quite lovely: There.

An emotional haiku that you can take as light or dark, depending on your mood. Echo.

This one is a well crafted religious in nature work: Mary

It would be fantastic if you could stop in and read some of her work today.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Fourteen

Another beautiful autumn day here in Chicago. How is life where you are? Are you ready to dive into more words? Take a dip into poetry, perhaps? I hope you decide to stop in and leave a comment today at the site that we are highlighting.

Geraldine H. Hartman posts here work at

My Poetic Path. Her site is warm and inviting. She makes you feel as if you are sitting at her kitchen table with her while you are there.

I particulary enjoyed The Bleeding Hearts and The White Rain.

Won't you pay her a visit and let her know that PWB sent you her way?

Thanks for being a vital part of the engine that keeps this site running.

From our friends at Poetrydances.com:

Poetrydances.com - Newsletter: September 2008-09-30

Well, its been a while coming!- the first newsletter from Poetry Dances.

First, big thanks to everyone who submitted their own poetry or links to other great poems hosted on various sites around the Internet. Without you, poetrydances.com would not be here.

Good news for writers listed on the site. It seems from site stats that rather than clicking through, many people are spending a lot more time reading the great poetry that has been linked to or submitted directly. Which is great- since it is the main reason we are doing what we are doing!

Who are we ?

We are just three. Three people who love to read great poetry and seem to like similar kinds of work (don't know if that's a good or a bad thing!) We share post-its or emails about work we have found out in the ether of the Internet that would be ideal to post on our site. Two of us are based here in South Korea and another over in sunny Florida.

Favorite Writers

Many of the people submitting poems, and other writers that have seen their poems listed on poetrydances.com have become 'Favorite Writers' on the Site. To those whose submissions have not yet been successful we offer apologies again, and look forward hopefully to seeing further submissions in time.

Favorite writers shown so far on the site are currently, in order of appearance:

Mamta Madhaven

Michelle Schaefer

Emily Burns

Ivana Plucinski

Joseph Michael Yeary (J. M Yeary)

Jason Lalli (Lalli)

Rambling Prose

Ray Neighbor

Cleo Harter Amos

Andrew Kelly

Milagros Cruz

Ernesto Pangilinan Santiago

Nicole Nicholson

William Laughlin

David Hixon

Robyn R. Gray [Lady Gray]

Claudia Anne Krizay

Holly White Valliant

Engtovo Bhodsvatan

Moqui Takoda

Nakya Cohen

Rebecca Lucente

Alicia K. Jones

Joanne Cucinello

Rex Cox

Michelle Hetzel

Angela Rizzitano-Bellenis

Brandon Farinha

Leo Durrant

Big thanks to all of these people for allowing us to showcase their fine work!

New developments

Since the Site began we have pretty much stuck to our core activities; linking to great poems on other sites, hosting submitted poetry along with our own, and showcasing Favorite Writers. Recently we started a couple or three new ideas too:



Poetry is..

This is just for fun- a page where you can send in a line/quote or two or more if you want as to what poetry 'is' to you. For your troubles we'll list your name and blog/website etc alongside your quote/s.

Poetry Dances- Quotes




Web Friends

This might turn out to be a silly idea that goes nowhere- but we hope not for the sake of the site. Web Friends is a page - where people can get links posted to their personal page/s on Myspace, Facebook, or other social networking sites. This we do in return for them posting a link to poetrydances.com on their own page/s on these site/s.

Poetic inspiration
A page where you can send in your own inspirations for writing poetry, or read about those of others. You can instead simply send in great line/s, from your own original work/thoughts- which you are happy to share with others. Again, in return we'll throw up a link to your blog/website or poetry page etc.
http://www.poetrydances.com/poeticinspiration.htm

Search engine visibility
We are glad to report that our position on all major search engines is looking promising. A search for poetry on yahoo.com listed us around 60th out of 450M results. Other searches have returned better results; searching for poems by great writers on yahoo.com listed us 2nd out of 31M results. The other top engines have us on page one also for this particular search. Nothing is set in stone of course, and listings change everyday- but at least for the moment- our visibility is very good.
What this all means, who knows! (It can't be a bad thing for writers using the site though eh).


Press releases
So far we have issued five releases through PR.COM. These have a little info about the site- and also highlight Favorite Writers for each of the months in question. Another is due to go out shortly.
http://www.poetrydances.com/press.htm

User feedback -
So far feedback from various users of the site has been very encouraging- in certain cases listing on poetrydances.com has helped to increase traffic/visits to user poetry pages/websites and blogs etc.

Links
We have many successful reciprocal links in place with different blogs and poetry sites- thanks so much to all of you. We hope you are also enjoying some increased traffic to your site/s as a result. No favorites, we are grateful to all but, special thanks to Lindsay at writingroom.com, Martha at listenandbeheard.net, Sara at poetswhoblog.blogspot.com and John and staff over at gotpoetry.com.

Advertising on the Site/financing
We advertise using Google Adwords- on various sites on Google's content network- although our expenditure is quite limited due to the cash available. In terms of ads on our site, at this time we are using Google ads to help with running costs of the site. Revenue from these ads seems to be minimal though!.

The future of poetrydances.com?
A question perhaps best left for another day!
At the moment though it looks bright-

Thanks to all who have been in contact with us so far-and those that have contributed so much. Special thanks to those who have been kind enough to let friends know about us too.

Any help you can offer by linking us on your blogs, websites or social network sites would be gratefully accepted!

We look forward to keeping in contact- so please…
keep your poetry coming! And please keep sending links for other great work you find out there !

A very big thank you from us,
Tony, Young Joo and John.

PWB Business Post October

1. Just a remainder, when you email poetswhoblog at yahoo dot com, put something about poetry in the subject line. I only check the emails about once a month so it could be a while before I get back to you.

2. Has anyone asked to be linked here and not recieved a link back?

3. Remember PWB is a program and, if you join, it requires that you be an active part of this site. The minimum requirement is that you visit on site on our list each week and comment.

If all members did this, and mentioned PWB in their comments, our site would be a force on the blogosphere.

I ask this not so that I can say I run a powerful site but so that the power of those comments can lead to more poetry being created and appreciated online.

4.Problem with the blogroll? Comment here.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Thirteen.

Hello poets. Thanks so much for your continued support of Poets Who Blog. I hope some of you had a chance to check out yesterday's poet. If you do visit any of the sites from Shine a Light on Poetry, please let them know that PWB sent you, so it will be clear that this site is a driving force in the online poetic community.

The stronger you make PWB the more it will be able to do for bringing attention to your own poetry in the future.

Today I am asking you to cruise over to Bolts of Silk. Its another group blog that you could submit to if you wanted. This blog is run by the very talented and well known in the poetry blogosphere Crafty Green Poet.

Among the poems shared at Bolts of Silk are the work of your fellow Poets Who Blog members, such as Pam Olson from Amputated Moon, Melanie Bishop from Beloved Dreamer, Brian from Truth is Freedom, and Rethabile Masilo from Poefrika and several more.

Here are some poems I found that I enjoyed at Bolts of Silk:

Acts of Kindness by Amir Elzeni- a sweet and simple treasure.
Illusion, the second by Jennifer Blanc-raw fears clutch her heart in the night.
Moontides by Melanie Bishop- beautiful and delicate.
Sorrowful Extravanganza by Shakir Hasnain- another of our most talented poets.



Well, I've done my part. Now its time to decide if you will do yours. Stop by Bolts of Silk and let them know PWB sent you there way. They are doing a great service to all poets online and poetry lovers worldwide by sharing poems of many poets.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Twelve

Good day, poets! Everyone doing well today? I sure hope so.

Today I am featured one of the founding members of Poets Who Blog. There were just a few tough souls who had a dream on the day this site launched and Chris Sapp was one of them.

Clockwork Chris has published several books of poetry. If you think you might like to purchase one visit here.

Give yourself the gift of getting lost in poetry and read his mesmerizing poem
Red. Feel a woman's struggle when you read Revolution and feel a woman's confusion in Really is...


I hope you will take the time to stop in and see Chris. Along with others, he is the reason there is a PWB for you to take part in.

Former MFA students unite

There is a brand new blog that aims to bring together former MFA students and others disillusioned with "formal" poetry. If you want to remember why you fell in love with poetry in the first place, before you were writing to please others, then cruise on by Recovery Blog: A Refuge for MFA Poets.

Call for Submissions

The Black Market Review, Edge Hill University's new literary e-journal, invites submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, art, photography, translations, and book reviews for its inaugural issue.

Please email submissions and a brief bio to blackmarketreview@googlemail.com or hard copies to The Black Market Review, c/o Daniele Pantano, Department of English, Edge Hill University, St Helens Road, Ormskirk, Lancashire, L39 4QP, United Kingdom. No 
previously published work. Simultaneous submissions are accepted as long as 
we are notified of acceptance elsewhere.


Deadline November 30.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Eleven

Hello everyone. The site I am featuring today is not the work of one poets but of many. Young American Poets accepts submissions of poetry and short stories. The editors are Daniel Bennett, Julian Bailey, David Weinglas and Kevin Bacon.

The voices portrayed on this site are youthful and fresh. Their poetry is not the studied, strict to form type but that seems to be the beauty of it, to me, because in each poem it is as if you are looking into the window of a dorm room on some college campus and seeing the life, heart, soul and pain of a real person.

I suggest you check out and comment on Harsh Words From Letdown Parents then catch your breath and dive into the very emotionally raw poem Silenced.

Stop in and support Young American Poets today. They haven't been online that long and I'm sure they would love to hear their efforts are appreciated. Feel free to submit to them if the mood strikes you.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Ten

Thank you sincerely to the members of PWB who are taking the time to visit the sites suggested. Your contribution to PWB is the gas that keeps this site running.

Today I would like to point your attention to the blog Monkeyboy and the work of Jack. From the first poem listed today Scrapbooking his talent shines through with every word.

I also enjoyed the wonderfully crafted Defibrilation, with its intense imagery, and Five Years Ago, a modern look at life in a time of daily madness.

Will you stop in and visit Jack today?

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Nine

I'm thrilled to see this project seems to be picking up steam. That's wonderful.

The site PWB will feature today is called Writing in Faith: Poems and showcases the work of Sandy Carlson. She is the author of Strange Attractions:Exploring Graffiti.

I found myself intrigued by her June entry for the prompt site One Single Impression. The poem is titled Doorways.

I found her poem beautiful poemGlory to be beautiful and also really was taken by
Wide Open to the World.

I found her style to evoke poignancy and thoughtful contemplation. Please stop in and check out her work for yourself.

Thanks for visiting PWB. Happy writing, poets. I wish all of you a wonderful day of creativity.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Eight

Hello again!

Well we have passed the one week mark of this project. Are you taking part? Should it keep going to the end of the month?

The site I am featuring today is called Reality Bytes which features the work of Daydreamer, who has been blogging since March 2005.

Read the poem Twisted in Silence that, to me, speaks of the distance that grows between two people that share the same roof and maybe even the same bed but no longer share their hearts. Or check out I am, part V: unheard that addresses the struggle to be seen and known by the world, to be understood and accepted.

Please leave some comments on Reality Bytes today and be a helpful member of PWB.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Seven

Hello again, poets! I hope you are stopping in excited to visit a new poetry blog. Today marks the end of our first week of this program. I really hope that it is successful and leads to you discovering new blogs you can enjoy.

Though I have less time these days then in the past to visit blogs, today's choice is one that I stop by at least one a month and one that has been featured in every addition of PWB Monthly Poetry Collection.

Noah the Great is a young man but that only makes his poetic talent that much more remarkable. I suggest you read the stunning and beautifully descriptive poem Photosynthesis and the hauntingly romantic Flight.

Thank you, Noah, for sharing your work with the world and being part of PWB.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Six

A million thanks for stopping in again today to check out another entry in our latest poetry project.

The site I'd love for you to cruise on by and check out today is The Storialist.


This New York City poet's work takes you around the city, making each poem a reflection of a moment in time in the Big Apple. Visit a cafe with Emily by reading the poem entitled Monday, September 8, 2008: On the Street.....Bryant Park, NYC or head off to a Marc Jacobs sale at Christmas time, or meet a Soho resident as she rediscovers herself when you read Thursday, August 7, 2008: On the Street...Masha, Soho.

This blog is unlike any other. Don't miss this chance to check it out.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Five

Thank you for coming back for another day of project to promote poetry blogs on our list. I hope this is a way to allow readers to find blogs that they otherwise might have overlooked. I am trying to showcase all different types and styles of work. No two hearts or souls or minds are identical, and no two poetry blogs are indentical. They all have their own feel and identity, born from the imagination of the poet who posts there.

Today PWB is shining our spotlight on a blog that is a personal favorite of mine- Brief Poems from poetry blogger Brian. Always succinct, these poems vary in tone from the heartwrenching but calmy told commentary on life- like you'll find in the poem Okay- to the funny, sad and lonesome. Brian covers the full range of human emotion with his work, leaving me constantly amazed he can make me feel so much by saying so little.

Drop by Brief Poems and see for yourself what I mean. Because this poems are always so short they are great to check out on your lunch hour or while you are waiting to see if you won that auction on ebay or for a song to download off Itunes. His work really does fit into the rapid paced lifestyle most people lead these days.

Thanks for being a member of PWB, Brian, and for sharing your brief but always thoughtprovoking work with us all.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Four

Its another beautiful fall day here in the midwest. Hope you all are enjoying the weather wherever you are. Today is the fourth day of our October project that is aimed at spotlighting some of the poetry bloggers-new and old- on our list.

Have you gotten a chance to visit the first three sites listed yet?

I'm pleased to dedicate today's post to featuring the tireless efforts of Janet Leigh Dowd who runs the poetry information blog: Poetmeister 4 Poets. This site is jam packed with news of what is going on in the poetic blogosphere. Its a labor of love that benefits all other poetry bloggers and well worth your time to check out.

Remember to mention that PWB sent you when you stop by Poetmeister 4 Poets. And if you want to read some of Janet Leigh Dowd's poetry cruise on by her blog Poetmeister....on the road to Parnassus, a site I've visited often.

Thanks for working hard on all of our behalf at Poetmeister 4 Poets, Janet Leigh. You deserve applause for making the poetry blogosphere a better place.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Three

Today, poets, I have a real treat for you! I am spotlighting the work of a talented and well known poet in the blogosphere, Tiel Aisha Ansari from Knocking From Inside.

If you haven't ever visited her blog, don't miss your chance today. You'll find poetic gems like Ruby Cross Rubaiy- a deeply romantic short poem- and Found Baggage Lost Here- an introspective tale of searching for self and companionship.

Tiel Aisha Ansari is a poet to be read, studied, and enjoyed by all who love poetry. Click here to visit her at Knocking From Inside.

Shine a Light on Poetry- Day Two

Welcome back! Hope you enjoyed checking out Fragments of Reality yesterday.

The site that I have picked to highlight today is Poems Before Breakfast. This blog showcases the work of Mark Folse. His poems have an unmistakable southern charm which fits well with the tag line of this blog- Poetry from and sometimes about New Orleans.


I found his work to be thoughtfully composed. His poems transport the reader to time and place of his work- dropping you right into the deep South and making you glad to be there to sit for a spell. My favorite that has the ability to do this is titled
Blinded by the Sunrise: For Everett Maddox, which is a darkly romantic piece. To read an amazingly stunning poem about the devastation wrought from Hurricane Katrina, click here and read The Tsunami of St. Claude Avenue(Version 2).

Take a moment to visit Mark Folse at Poems Before Breakfast and you won't be disappointed.

Shine a Light on Poetry Month- Day One

Hello poets and poetry lovers! This month PWB will showcase a new poetry site from our blogroll each day in an effort to bring attention to some of our newer sites. So cruise on my as many as you can and leave the poet at least one comment, so they know that PWB works.

Our first featured site is Fragments of Reality from poetry blogger Punatik. Hailing from Hawaii, he lives on the side of volcano, and is brand new to the blogosphere. His poems speak to the everyman with refreshingly honest simplicity- check out this one called Smiling to see what I mean. But I also found one that is quite lush and sensual- click here to read Salt Spray. I also stumbled along a post that is filled with his own unique take on writing what he calls a Pseudo Haiku.

Punatik is just getting started on his poetry blogger adventure so I'm sure he would appreciate all the support he could get.

Poets Who Blog wishes great success to Fragments of Reality.