Saturday, September 20th . Monthly Meeting . In person at Windwood Presbyterian Church: 10555 Spring-Cypress Rd., Room A128, Houston, TX 77070 . 10:00 a.m.—12:00 p.m. and on ZOOM . Our program for September will be a presentation by @timothygreenpoetry and @khdpoet about their online and print poetry magazine, @rattlemagazine. This is a well-respected, popular journal with a circulation of 12,000 and many regular features. They will also likely treat us to some of their poetry. They recently moved from California to the Woodlands, so we're thrilled to welcome them to the Houston area. . Read-Around . Everyone is invited to read one or two original poems (with a one page limit each).

Hello.

I'm glad!

Just a few (more) of the books by our chapter and our members. Treat yourself to some poetry by Texas poets! Bluebonnet Whispers: Tales of a Gay Man (Fresh Poet Series), by Stephen Schwei https://amzn.to/3HqkBfh Seasoned, by Karen Betz Mastracchio https://amzn.to/4mGQoJf

Just a few (more) of the books by our chapter and our members. Treat yourself to some poetry by Texas poets! Bluebonnet Whispers: Tales of a Gay Man (Fresh Poet Series), by Stephen Schwei https://amzn.to/3HqkBfh Seasoned, by Karen Betz Mastracchio https://amzn.to/4mGQoJf

Just a few (more) of the books by our chapter and our members. Treat yourself to some poetry by Texas poets!

Bluebonnet Whispers: Tales of a Gay Man (Fresh Poet Series), by Stephen Schwei amzn.to/3HqkBfh

Seasoned, by Karen Betz Mastracchio amzn.to/4mGQoJf

Just a few of the books by our chapter and our members. Dreams + Nightmares, by Poets Northwest https://amzn.to/3FG1NYS Houston Skyline: Selected Poems, by Carol A. Taylor https://amzn.to/4ksKt95 In Fidelity, by Courtney O'Banion Smith https://amzn.to/45DxFYE Beware of Poet, by Eric Blanchard https://amzn.to/4kRTdW8

Just a few of the books by our chapter and our members. Dreams + Nightmares, by Poets Northwest https://amzn.to/3FG1NYS Houston Skyline: Selected Poems, by Carol A. Taylor https://amzn.to/4ksKt95 In Fidelity, by Courtney O'Banion Smith https://amzn.to/45DxFYE Beware of Poet, by Eric Blanchard https://amzn.to/4kRTdW8

Just a few of the books by our chapter and our members. Dreams + Nightmares, by Poets Northwest https://amzn.to/3FG1NYS Houston Skyline: Selected Poems, by Carol A. Taylor https://amzn.to/4ksKt95 In Fidelity, by Courtney O'Banion Smith https://amzn.to/45DxFYE Beware of Poet, by Eric Blanchard https://amzn.to/4kRTdW8

Just a few of the books by our chapter and our members. Dreams + Nightmares, by Poets Northwest https://amzn.to/3FG1NYS Houston Skyline: Selected Poems, by Carol A. Taylor https://amzn.to/4ksKt95 In Fidelity, by Courtney O'Banion Smith https://amzn.to/45DxFYE Beware of Poet, by Eric Blanchard https://amzn.to/4kRTdW8

Just a few of the books by our chapter and our members.

Dreams + Nightmares, by Poets Northwest amzn.to/3FG1NYS

Houston Skyline: Selected Poems, by Carol A. Taylor amzn.to/4ksKt95

In Fidelity, by Courtney O'Banion Smith amzn.to/45DxFYE

Beware of Poet, by Eric Blanchard amzn.to/4kRTdW8

Poets Northwest is a Chapter of the Poetry Society of Texas. We meet every third Saturday of the month from 10 AM to 12 PM at Windwood Presbyterian Church in NW Houston: 10555 Spring Cypress Rd. Houston, TX 77070 #poetrysociety #houstonpoetry #houstonpoets #poetrysocietyoftexas #poetrycommuníty #poetrycommunityoftexas

It's all about the chaos, the distraction, while they reach inside the piggy bank and rob the country blind.

Please join me in celebrating Texas poet Catherine Lu! Her latest piece “What Connects Us” has just been published in the latest issue of the @texasobserver.org.

www.texasobserver.org/what-connect...

Feeling a bit nihilistic.

from Beware of Poet
first published in Pudding Magazine.

#Sunflower #Photograph #May

Ann Fisher-Wirth is Mississippi's Poet Laureate - Mississippi Arts Commission Governor Tate Reeves has appointed accomplished poet Ann Fisher-Wirth of Oxford, Miss., as Mississippi’s Poet Laureate. Serving as the official state poet for a term of four years, the state’s Poet La...

Congratulations to Ann Fisher-Wirth, The new #poetlaureate of #Mississippi! Couldn't go to a better person!
arts.ms.gov/ann-fisher-w...

SIGNED: Kendall Dunkelberg — Friendly City Books Order with Friendly City Books for a signed copy — personalization available! Treefall with Bird Song explores the natural world around the poet's home in Mississippi and delves into memories o...

Now you can order a signed copy of Tree Fall with Birdsong from my local bookstore, Friendly City Books, and I will come in and sign it for you.
www.friendlycitybooks.com/shop/p/signe...

bsky.app/starter-pack...

Inspiration "ripped from the headlines" - sometimes it comes from the strangest of places. www.msnbc.com/top-stories/...

#poem #rulesformen #toxicmasculinity #brainfreeze

go.bsky.app/5C5rMXf
If you are a poet from or residing in Texas, and would like to be included in this Starter Pack, please let me know.

If you are in Houston, Harris County, or one of the counties touching Harris County and would like to join Poets Northwest, please see poetsnw.com for info!

That's awesome! Was it a collaboration between you and Cravel? The phrases "And the poem is raised to a new level, I think" and "The text by" rankled a bit. Perhaps your words inspired. Your poetry raised the music and images to a whole new level.

One to make all the silk and paper flowers wilt in shame. Beautiful.

Stunning! GREAT morning!

Royalties from Dreams + Nightmares support Poets Northwest, a Chapter of the Poetry Society of Texas. If you are in Harris County or surrounding counties in Texas, we would love to have you drop in on one of our monthly meetings or join us as a member.

Dreams + Nightmares|Paperback We don't control where our brains take us when we surrender to sleep. In this anthology, twenty poets take us on that wild ride with unique perspectives. Some of the poems feature the theme literally,...

Our anthology, Dreams + Nightmares, is still available at your favorite online retailers!

www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dreams-nig...

Calls work better by all accounts. Letters do nothing. Calls work - if there are enough of them.

#poem #blueskypoets #texaspoet #houstonpoet #poetrycommunity #ekphrastic

February Program: Write and share an Ekphrastic Poem about a Local Artwork For the February meeting, write an ekphrastic poem about a local artwork, whether it was created locally or just displayed locally. Explore a museum, library, town square or wherever you find a work of art that strikes you. Please bring an image of the artwork to the meeting and share it on Zoom if possible. It can be a painting, photograph, sculpture, collage, etc. Meeting at Windwood Presbyterian Church, 10555 Spring-Cypress Rd, Houston, TX 77070 10-12 AM 2/15/2025

Student Contests The rules and instructions for the 17 contests in the Poetry Society of Texas Student Awards 2024 are shown below. You can download and print these instructions, as well. Best of luck to all entrants!

Student Poetry Contest - all Texas students eligible (entries must be submitted by teacher or - if homeschooled - parent) - postmark DEADLINE IS FEBRUARY 1.

poetrysocietyoftexas.org/contests/stu...

This should be the mascot for 2025!

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, a joyful celebration to end the year, the love of family and friends, and a New Year full of promise, prosperity, and happiness.

2025 National Federation of State Poetry Societies (NFSPS) 36th Annual College Undergraduate Poetry Contest National Federation of State Poetry Societies (NFSPS) announces 36th annual College Undergraduate Poetry Contest!

poetrysocietyoftexas.org/2025-nationa...

Poem, "Brighton's Bar & Grill," by Holly Jahangiri Brighton’s Bar & Grill I sip sorrow from a filthy glass. Cheap gin that tastes of disappointment Hides frustration drowned like an olive. Old smoke hangs like a dirty question Over the coiffed heads of shallow blondes-- Amateur lounge lizards' willing prey. My restless, roving eyes search for you, And travelling salesmen from Jersey Think I'm dropping hints, and head my way. Not inclined toward their idle chit-chat, I flash that "unavailable" look, But one's too brash to notice warnings. Eyes that are not yours, filled with longing-- He'll never be your equal in that Unavoidable comparison. But the vestiges of you are drowned In the haze of smoke and cheap cologne. Strange lips take liberties with my mouth. Sipping at his drink instead of mine, We dance the Texas Two-Step, wasted, (Badly) like the mating dance of crows. Slipping under silk stockings, black lace And a table that covers nothing, His hands press between too eager thighs. Not your hands, but near enough to fill Aching voids that lack of you has left, If only for an empty hour. No, I won't be coming here again. The junk in the jukebox fails to charm And the only ones who come here now Come to burn the refuse of their dreams Cinders of a thousand love letters The only light, a dying ember. The nearly dead, and nearly famous Not sawdust on the floor, but ashes-- Just another torch song up in flames Copyright 1989 - 2024 Holly Jahangiri. All rights reserved.

An old favorite - I think this is the first of my poems to have won awards, and it's won several.

The thing I most understand why they don't do:

Give a few lines of critique. What might have nudged a rejection into acceptance?

C'est la vie. I know why they don't. But you did ask.