the real deal: a report from the 2008 awp conference

Last month marked my fourth year attending the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) Conference, this year in New York City. And because it was in the Big Apple, it certainly was … well … ginormous! With a reported 7,500 people registered, I couldn’t help but think about the poets and writers who have [...]

Posted by January on 02.14.2008 at 12:01 am// Tagged: Discussion Thread, January , , , , , , , , , , , ,


welcome to read write poem

Read Write Poem is an online gathering place for those who love poetry — and for those who suspect that, with a little nurturing, they could grow to love poetry. Whether you are new to writing poetry or have been writing for years, you are welcome here. If you don’t write poetry but love to read and discuss it, this is also the place for you. Read more about the project.


Get the Read Write Poem badge for your site! We have two versions to choose from. Just click on the badge to the left to snag the code.


read write poll

Do your new year's resolutions include poetry goals? (Choose the best answer.)

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

other read write poem joints

Facebook (sign up to be added to our mailing list)
Identica (sign up to be part of impromptu collaborative poem events)

participant-run journals, zines and sites


  • read write poem newsfeed

      "Adam Penna is on a roll. For nearly a decade, he’s written one poem every day, almost without fail. He writes for the love of poetry, believing that poems reveal truths that can easily be missed, and offer a way of connecting the universal human condition with individual experiences.

      Mr. Penna writes poetry because he believes it’s the best type of writing to distill the essence of a simple moment. Simply put, poems transform the ordinary into extraordinary, he said."

      Read the full article, which includes news about his *two* new books, published by different houses. "Success for an everyday poet" is written by Pat Rogers for The East Hampton Press & The Southampton.

      And visit Adam Penna's online poetry journal, Best Poem.

      -----

      Have you visited The Page? It's a spot for gleaning bits of "poetry, essays, language, ideas."

      Cool content, and it looks good, too. Edited by Andrew Johnston, with contributions by Stephen Burt.

      -----

      Dana and Jacob are at it again. If you are interested in learning more about The Seattle Poetry Brothel they are creating, visit My Gorgeous Somewhere for the scoop.

      -----

      A new poem by Sean O'Brien, written in response to the latest phase of conflict between Israel and Hamas:

      Katyusha, Katyusha

      -----

      One of our new participants, Lyn Hopper, will be using our writing prompts as a way to fulfill her personal challenge and be creative every day. Sound like something you'd like to do? I am sure you would be welcomed by Leah Piken Kolidas, the CED diva, into her creative fold.

      -----

  • Read all newsfeed items.

  • random
    poetry prompt

      A different word or phrase will appear here each time you visit the site or refresh the page. Your current prompt is — alibi

  • random
    collaborating tip

    Send one of your poems to a collaborator so he or she can write a companion piece.


  • random
    writing tip

    Think of all the things that provoke anxiety in you, and write them into a poem.

  • random
    reading tip

    Slow down when you read, even when you're reading silently to yourself. Focus on visualizing the characters' world -- the details make a difference and deliver us to that place where we suspend our own reality. Don't cheat yourself!

  • random
    poetry quote

    Inside my empty bottle I was constructing a lighthouse while all the others were making ships. — Charles Simic