NPN and NaPoWriMo -- What's the Deal?

Need a refresher on the acronyms?

NPM: National Poetry Month. Founded by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, NPM has become a community effort to raise awareness of poetry and poetry events across the country.

NaPoWriMo: National Poetry Writing Month. Started by a group of rag-tag poets … hmmm … I don’t know how NaPoWriMo started. I just know that I’ve been writing a poem a day in the month of April for the last three years. And, NaPoWriMo has taken on an international appeal in our global poetry community, so the effort is a far-reaching one (read: I'm not the only one daft enough to do this!).

In this ever-changing economic climate, poetry is needed now more than ever. Poetry is where we go when nowhere else will do. What better way to make a contribution to the larger literary community than to participate in April poetry activities?

Here are a few suggestions.

  1. April 1 - Upload video or audio of you reading an original poem. Let's see the faces and hear the voices behind the blogs. OR, post a picture of your writing space or bookshelves. Show us a bit of your creative space.
  2. Write a poem a day in April. NaPoWriMo is extreme, but what better what to kick-start your writing than with a month-long writing challenge. Even if you don’t make it to month’s end, tell us about the experience. You can make your poems public, or not. That's up to you.
  3. Support a print publication or Web zine by buying a subscription. I know money is tight, but many quality journals may go out of print without our help during this recession. Consider buying a subscription or making a donation to your favorite literary publication or arts organization in April.
  4. Take a poet to lunch. I’m just throwing it out there! (Are you reading, coworkers?!)


Give me your feedback. Let me know if you’re participating and I’ll keep a running list. And let me know what else you’re doing during National Poetry Month. At the very least, stop lurking and say hello to the poet/writer bloggers you’ve been reading—you'll be glad you did!

Comments

Anonymous said…
i'm doing a poem a day at my blog (i am maureen) and we're providing a prompt each day at read write poem!

i love the video post you added above!
Deb said…
Lat year's RWP intro gave some history on how NaPoWriMo started, and I added it again to this year's kickoff.

http://readwritepoem.org/2009/03/19/in-case-you-were-wondering-napowrimo-2009/

And there's a new button, too! wOOt!
(Love the video & idea, but I can barely write. :-) )
I'm in for NaPoWriMo-- do we post our poems on our blogs? I think that's how we did it last year...yes, I remember people complaining that they were getting a lot of poems and not posts on blogs-- perfect! ;-)
January said…
Yes, post your poems on your own blog. And if you're worried about being able to publish those poems elsewhere, you can pull them down when you wish. Or not post them at all.

Woo hoo! NaPoWriMo, baby!
Catherine said…
I'm thinking about posting a poem a day, but I have no idea how to post an audio. I gather you can do it from a phone, but that only works if you are in the US.
I'm supporting a print publication by keeping their accounts in order, I've been doing that for quite a few years now. (It's amazing how many creative people - among whose ranks the editors are generally selected - just can't keep the books straight).
I'll be writing a poem a day, but probably not posting them. I wasn't keeping a blog last year, so it will be interesting to see if I can keep up with blog postings AND daily poem writings.

I'm finding that keeping a blog on a regular basis is similar to my experience writing a poem a day: I'm much more alert as I go through the day, always on the lookout for raw material (to turn into a blog posting--and a poem a day, during April).
T. said…
Hello poet/writer/mom/blogger from another poet/writer/mom/blogger!

(Thanks for the de-lurking prompt!)
January said…
Thanks for stopping by, T! Nice to meet you (virtually).

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