The Poem of the Month for August 2024, selected by 2024 Anthology editors Ivan Rehorek (Avalanche) and Martha Landman, is Content Warning by Gail Walker. The commended poems are Poetry Lesson by Steve Evans and It’s vain to ask a poet to say less by Stef Rozitis.
Content Warning
Gail Walker
This poem contains – adult themes
This poem contains – nudity
This poem contains – harsh language
This poem contains – domestic violence
This poem contains – suicide ideation
This poem contains – mental health issues
This poem contains – child sexual abuse
This poem contains – rape
This poem contains – murder
Sorry there is no time left for
This poem.
Poetry Lesson
Steve Evans
Avoid mentioning Eternity.
It shows a lack of imagination
and will weigh down any poem
like a sack of sand.
Take the knife to adjectives.
Ignore their pleas for mercy.
They breed like mice
and just grow fatter with attention.
Poetry should be practical,
not sleight of hand magic.
A good sonnet folded right, say,
will also stop a window’s rattle.
Write plain as air
and resist cleverness.
Start halfway down the page
so you will finish sooner.
When you think you finally have
a really good line
to end with,
cross it out.
Poets are jealous creatures
so if you must write poems,
keep them to yourself and, above all,
don’t listen to advice.
It’s vain to ask a poet to say less
Stef Rozitis
language will not be mastered
when you think the words are doing
exactly what you need them to
that is when you are most deluded
meanings will break free
fly off where you did not intend
to breed as you likely did not wish
their offspring will infest your 3am
dark thoughts and unbearable regrets
and yet when you wake you will try again
not containing your words as someone would
having wisdom
no
you will open up a blank page
and let the bastards breed anew.