“Poetry puts starch in your backbone so you can stand, so you can compose your life.” Maya Angelou
SECOND LIGHT NETWORK OF WOMEN POETS
It’s been way too long since I’ve reminded everyone of this organization, a fave of mine, and encouraged you to check it out. That’s only because I’ve been so busy and not because of any lack of enthusiasm for the organization or its poet members.
I favor Second Light because of its committment to poetry education and for encouraging, promoting, and publishing poetry by women, especially women who come to poetry late in life. It’s “never too late” the saying goes and Second Light seems to prove that indeed it is not too late to learn, to create and to appreciate beautiful poetry.
Membership information and sign-up for email alerts are HERE.
While membership in Second Light is restricted to women, the poetry shared is for everyone. This poetry includes works by accomplished – if lesser known poets – and works of well-established poets you may have long admired including R. V. Bailey, Jackie Kay, Mimi Khalvati, Anne Stewart, Myra Schneider and Dilys Wood, the founder of Second Light.
SECOND LIGHT Dates For Your Diary, 2019:
Fri 24th & Sat 25th May: Spring Festival: Writing Our Selves *
Mon 15th to Fri 19th July: Holland House: Location, location, location… *
[Jul/Aug date t/f] Second Light Poetry Competition for Long & Short Poems by Women *
Fri 22nd & Sat 23rd November Autumn Festival: ‘Poetry Makes Nothing Happen’ **
MORE INFORMATION on events and other activities HERE.
2019 Christopher Tower Poetry Competition
Demographic restrictions: youth aged 16 – 18 and in school in the U.K.
Every year, six young people are awarded a total of £5000 in prize-money for writing a poem. The first prize is £3000, second £1500, and third £500, with three runner-up prizes of £250 each. These awards are for a poem on a set theme, judged each year by a panel of contemporary poets.
The theme for 2019 is ‘Underwater’.
There is no entry fee. The competition is open to people between 16-and-18 years old, who are in full-or-part-time education in the UK. Entries are judged anonymously.
Poet and writer, I was once columnist and associate editor of a regional employment publication. I currently run this site, The Poet by Day, an information hub for poets and writers. I am the managing editor of The BeZine published by The Bardo Group Beguines (originally The Bardo Group), a virtual arts collective I founded. I am a weekly contributor to Beguine Again, a site showcasing spiritual writers. My work is featured in a variety of publications and on sites, including: Levure littéraure, Ramingo’s Porch, Vita Brevis Literature,Compass Rose, Connotation Press, The Bar None Group, Salamander Cove, Second Light, I Am Not a Silent Poet, Meta / Phor(e) /Play, and California Woman. My poetry was recently read byNorthern California actor Richard Lingua for Poetry Woodshed, Belfast Community Radio. I was featured in a lengthy interview on the Creative Nexus Radio Show where I was dubbed “Poetry Champion.”
“What if our religion was each other. If our practice was our life. If prayer, our words. What if the temple was the Earth. If forests were our church. If holy water–the rivers, lakes, and ocean. What if meditation was our relationships. If the teacher was life. If wisdom was self-knowledge. If love was the center of our being.” Ganga White, teacher and exponent of Yoga and founder of White Lotus, a Yoga center and retreat house in Santa Barbara, CA
“Every pair of eyes facing you has probably experienced something you could not endure.” Lucille Clifton
Thank you for sharing your love of words. Comments will appear after moderation.
“When a woman tells the truth, she is creating the possibility for more truth around her.” Adrienne Rich
This is dedicated to all those women . . .
Those who are blatantly themselves
You know the ones I mean –
Some, when seedlings, had folks or teachers
or maybe even married men
who jabbed a finger yelling: You! You! You!
accusing them of being quintessentially themselves . . .as though that was wrong.
They are the YOUs who come from multi-colored places
with varied dreams and
hearts woven of wonderlush
They are the womanish ~
sometimes childlike,
sometimes adultish.
They run from the gray streets to the green forest.
They take to long-lost roads and never-found pathways
with their song in a backpack and
a brown-bag lunch of no-baloney sandwiches.
When they elder they arrive back at the beginning
knowing who are they are
In an email yesterday award-winning poet, publisher, activist and mom,Victoria Bennet, founder of Wild Women community and Wild Woman Press asked me to tell the women here about a new initiative: Wild Women Web … Spining Our Stories Together:
“We love our Wild Women conversations so much that we have decided to make a space [on our site] for all those wonderful ideas, passions, inpirations and insights to be shared. Together, we want to create a Wild Woman Web and we want to bring you into the circle!
“To start this off, we will be posting one blog a month, from a member of Wild Women or Wild Guest. There isn’t a set theme — think of it rather as a conversation around the cauldron, a gathering space for women to share stories, songs, howls, and hopes — with each blog being another thread in the web.
“If you would like to be part of the Wild Woman Web, please give us a howl.” Victoria Bennet
Poet, publisher, activist and wild woman, Victoria Bennet
VICTORIA BENNET (Wild Woman Press) is an award-winning poet, creative activist and full-time home-educating Wild Mama to her son, Django. Originating from the borderlands below Scotland, she is the Founder of Wild Women Press and has spent the last quarter of a century instigating creative experiences in her community. Her poetry has appeared in print, online and even in the popular video game, Minecraft. She has published four collections and performed live across the UK, from Glastonbury Festival to a Franciscan Convent.
Poetry publications include:
Anchoring the Light
Fragile Bodies
Fragments
Byron Makes His Bed My Mother’s House – a Poetry & Minecraft Collaboration with Adam Clarke, that explores grief and letting go
What We Now Know – digital VR music collaboration with Adam Clarke and The Bookshop Band, inspired by the #MeToo anthology
Poet and writer, I was once columnist and associate editor of a regional employment publication. Currently I run this site, The Poet by Day, an information hub for poets and writers. I am the managing editor of The BeZine published by The Bardo Group Beguines (originally The Bardo Group), a virtual arts collective I founded. I am a weekly contributor to Beguine Again, a site showcasing spiritual writers.
My work is featured in a variety of publications and on sites, including: Levure littéraure, Ramingo’s Porch, Vita Brevis Literature,Compass Rose, Connotation Press, The Bar None Group, Salamander Cove, Second Light, I Am Not a Silent Poet, Meta / Phor(e) /Play, and California Woman.
Thank you for sharing your love of words. Comments will appear after moderation.
“Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside a dog, it’s too dark to read.” Boys Life Magazine, 1954
CALLS FOR SUBMISSIONS
Opportunity Knocks
32POEMS is open year-round for submissions of poems 32 lines or less. $3 reading fee. $25 payment. There is an interest in reviews as well. Details HERE.
ABRAMELIN accepts submissions of literary poetry year-round. Details HERE.
ABSINTHE: A JOURNAL OF WORLD LITERATURE IN TRANSLATION, foreign literature (fiction, poetry and creative nonfiction by living authors) in English translation. The journal is hosted by University of Michigan, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Details HERE.
AUTUMN HOUSE PRESS has a call for submissions of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction books, which is open from August 1 – November 1, 2018. Details HERE.
BLOODAXE BOOKS considers submissions from poets who are published poetry in reputable literary magazines or in a pamphlet from a reputable small press. Details HERE.
COFFEE HOUSE PRESS publishes literary novels, short story collections, poetry, creative nonfiction, book-length essays and essay collections. Check the site in March 2019 for the next reading period for Coffee House Press. Emily Books is an imprint of Coffee House. Emily Press is open for reading through September 1. No poetry. Details HERE. Scroll down on the page.
THE FROGMORE PAPERS publishes poetry and will open for submissions to its March issue 2019 from 1-31 October, 2018. Details HERE.
FRONTIER POETRY is a “quality home” for new and emerging poets with no more than one full-length published work. Details HERE.
THE HUNGER JOURNAL publishes fiction, poetry, nonfiction, hybrid/experimental, art/photograph is open for submissions through August 15 for its Fall Issue. The Journal’s theme “is not confined only to food, but hungers and thirsts of all kinds: the craving for connection, the human need to be filled or emptied, the devastating desires that define our most alive moments. Hungers can be sexual, romantic, familial, individualistic, spiritual, creative, sorrowful, conflicted, humanistic, and/or existential.” Each issue also features The Glutton’s Digest, which is “dedicated to filling the emptiness.” Submissions by email. No submission fee. No payment. Details HERE.
THE MATADOR REVIEW is open or submissions to its Fall 2018 issue. The editors seek poetry, fiction, flash fiction, and creative non-fiction, inviting all unpublished literature written in the English language (and translations that are accompanied by the original text) as well as many forms of visual art. The call for submissions will end August 31.
NARRATIVE MAGAZINE publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Submission fee for unsolicited manuscripts. Paying market. $150 for a Story of the Week, with $400 each for the annual Top Five Stories of the Week; $150 to $350 for 500 to 2,000 word manuscripts; $350 to $1,000 for 2,000 to 15,000 word manuscripts; Rates for book-length works vary, depending on the length and nature of the work; $50 minimum for each accepted poem and audio piece. ($25 for poetry reprints.); $200 each for the annual Top Five Poems of the Week; $100 for Readers’ Narratives. Details HERE.
SEQUESTRUM is open or submission through July 15 for Issue 17. Sequestrum publishes fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry. Details HERE.
SYCAMORE REVIEW publishes fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and art and book reviews and works of translation. Query first for reviews. Submissions open on September 1. Details HERE.
WASAFIRI INTERNATIONAL CONTEMPORARY WRITING publishes academic articles, essays, fiction, interviews, book reviews and review essays, and poetry. Submission details and style sheet HERE.
XI DRACONIS BOOKS is currently reading through 31 July 2018 for its 2019 publication year. The interest is in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and visual arts. Xi Draconis publishes one fiction, one nonfiction and one poetry title yearly. Details HERE.
Caveat Emptor: Please be sure to verify information for yourself before submitting work, buying products, paying fees or attending events et al.
THE BeZINE, Be Inspired, Be Creative, Be Peace, Be. Submissions for the September issue – themed Social Justice – close on August 10 at 11:59 p.m. PDT .
NEW NOTATION: There will be a subsection themed Be the Peace. Submissions are invited to that section as well and you can submit to both sections.
Please send text in the body of the email not as an attachment. Send photographs or illustrations as attachments. No google docs or Dropbox or other such. No rich text. Send submissions to bardogroup@gmail.com.
Publication is September 15th. Poetry, essays, fiction and creative nonfiction, art and photography, music (videos or essays), and whatever lends itself to online presentation is welcome for consideration.
No demographic restrictions.
Please read at least one issue. We DO NOT publish anything that promotes hate, divisiveness or violence or that is scornful or in any way dismissive of “other” peoples.
September 2018 issue, Deadline August 10th, Theme: Human Rights/Social Justice
December 2018 issue, Deadline November 10th, Theme: A Life of the Spirit
The BeZine is an entirely volunteer effort, a mission. It is not a paying market but neither does it charge submission or subscription fees.
Previously published work may be submitted IF you hold the copyright. Submissions from beginning and emerging artists as well as pro are encouraged and we have a special interest in getting more submissions of short stores, feature articles, music videos and art for consideration.
The Poet by Day
WEDNESDAY WRITING PROMPT
Reminder:
Response deadline is Monday, July 9, at 8 p.m. PDT. Poems are on theme are published on this site on Tuesday, the July 10. Details HERE.
CONTESTS
FRONTIER SUMMER POETRY AWARD 2018 is open or submissions through July 15. $20 entry fee. $2,000 award to winning poet. $100 for honorable mention. Details HERE.
The Wasafiri New Writing Prize 2018 is open for submission through 5 p.m. GMT on July 13, 2018. Details HERE.
A POEM AND A PINT poetry competition is open through 16 July 2018. Entry fee. Snail mail submissions only. Details HERE.
SIX-FOLD PRESS, short stories and poetry / the completely writer-voted journal. Entry fee: $5 by July 24, 11:59 pm ET. Details HERE.
EVENTS
ENQUIRE for places or reserve list places at Holland House, Worcestershire, July 30th to August 3rd 2018, Second Light Network of Women Poets… Anne Stewart 01689 811394 / 07850 537489 straight to booking form
100,000 Poets for Change, 2018, virtual event at The BeZine on September 29th with Master of Ceremonies, American-Israeli Poet, Michael Dickel (Meta/ Phor(e) /Play). You will be able to participate in this event no matter where you are in the world and there’s no reason why you can’t do both our virtual event and an offline event should you choose to do so. Between them Michael Dickel and Jamie Dedes will keep the virtual event going for at least 24 hours. Yes! It’s a marathon. Watch The Poet by Day for details on how the virtual event works soon. It’s easy-peasy, as they say. You’ll enjoy.
100,000 Poets for Change, Voices on the Bridge, The National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay, C99 1NA Cardiff. September 29, 1 pm – 4 pm UTC+01. Details HERE.
Irish Poetry Therapy Network Annual Conference Weekend Sat and Sun 13 and 14 October 2018 in Ashdown Park Hotel, Gorey with IPTN and Lapidus and iaPoetry – a tripartite programme of self-discovery through poetry and writing for well-being. Details HERE.
Accessible anytime from anywhere in the world:
The Poet by Day always available online with poems, poets and writers, news and information.
The Poet by Day, Wednesday Writing Prompt, online every week (except for vacation) and all are invited to take part no matter the stage of career or status. Poems related to the challenge of the week (always theme based not form based) will be published here on the following Tuesday.
The Poet by Day, Sunday Announcements. Every week (except for vacation) opportunity knocks for poets and writers. Due to other Sunday commitments, this post will often go up late in the day.
THE BeZINE, Be Inspired, Be Creative, Be Peace, Be – always online HERE.
Beguine Again, daily inspiration and spiritual practice – always online HERE. Beguine Again is the sister site to The BeZine.
YOUR SUNDAY ANNOUNCEMENTS may be emailed to thepoetbyday@gmail.com. Please do so at least a week in advance.
If you would like me to consider reviewing your book, chapbook, magazine or film, here are some general guidelines:
send PDF to jamiededes@gmail.com (Note: I have a backlog of six or seven months, so at this writing I suggest you wait until June 2018 to forward anything.Thank you!)
nothing that foments hate or misunderstanding
nothing violent or encouraging of violence
English only, though Spanish is okay if accompanied by translation
your book or other product should be easy for readers to find through your site or other venues.
TO CONTACT ME WITH ANNOUNCEMENTS AND OTHER INFORMATION FOR THE POET BY DAY: thepoetbyday@gmail.com
TO CONTACT ME REGARDING SUBMISSIONS FOR THE BeZINE: bardogroup@gmail.com
PLEASE do not mix the communications between the two.
Often information is just that–information– and not necessarily recommendation. I haven’t worked with all the publications or other organizations featured in my regular Sunday Announcements or other announcements shared on this site. Awards and contests are often (generally) a means to generate income, publicity and marketing mailing lists for the host organizations, some of which are more reputable than others. I rarely attend events anymore. Caveat Emptor: Please be sure to verify information for yourself before submitting work, buying products, paying fees or attending events et al.
Poet and writer, I was once columnist and associate editor of a regional employment publication. I currently run this site, The Poet by Day, an information hub for poets and writers. I am the managing editor of The BeZine published by The Bardo Group Beguines (originally The Bardo Group), a virtual arts collective I founded. I am a weekly contributor to Beguine Again, a site showcasing spiritual writers. My work is featured in a variety of publications and on sites, including: Levure littéraure, Ramingo’s Porch, Vita Brevis Literature,Compass Rose, Connotation Press, The Bar None Group, Salamander Cove, Second Light, I Am Not a Silent Poet, Meta / Phor(e) /Play, and California Woman. My poetry was recently read byNorthern California actor Richard Lingua for Poetry Woodshed, Belfast Community Radio. I was featured in a lengthy interview on the Creative Nexus Radio Show where I was dubbed “Poetry Champion.”
“Sequestrum is a competitive, paying market which publishes high-quality short fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual arts on a rolling basis. Recent contributors include Pulitzer Prize nominees, Guggenheim and NEA Fellows, award-winning novelists and poets, as well as many new and emerging voices. We’re committed to publishing the bulk of our publications from unsolicited manuscripts and are open to all stylistic schools and ‘isms,’ including the occasional genre piece. The best way to familiarize yourself with our tastes is to read what we’ve published.”
Sequestrum publishes fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry.
Caveat Emptor: Please be sure to verify information for yourself before submitting work, buying products, paying fees or attending events et al. / J.D.
Poet and writer, I was once columnist and associate editor of a regional employment publication. Currently I run this site, The Poet by Day, an information hub for poets and writers. I am the managing editor of The BeZine published by The Bardo Group Beguines (originally The Bardo Group), a virtual arts collective I founded. I am a weekly contributor to Beguine Again, a site showcasing spiritual writers.
My work is featured in a variety of publications and on sites, including: Levure littéraure, Ramingo’s Porch, Vita Brevis Literature,Compass Rose, Connotation Press, The Bar None Group, Salamander Cove, Second Light, I Am Not a Silent Poet, Meta / Phor(e) /Play, and California Woman.
My poetry was recently read byNorthern California actor Richard Lingua for Poetry Woodshed, Belfast Community Radio. I was featured in a lengthy interview on the Creative Nexus Radio Show where I was dubbed “Poetry Champion.”
Thank you for sharing your love of words. Comments will appear after moderation.
Jamie Dedes' THE POET BY DAY Webzine 