A gorgeous journal arrived to my deep mulberry front door a couple of weeks ago, filled with page after page of poems you want to eat, each one almost more wonderful than the next.
I am so pleased to be part of the Crosswinds Poetry Journal: I truly am in great company!
Not only that, but the Rhode Island publication makes a tradition of donating funds from competition entry fees to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. For journal sales from within the state, they donate a portion to that food bank; for sales from continental USA, they donate a portion to a national organisation, Feeding America.
Continental Drift began when I was standing on Reynisfjara, a black beach on the south coast of Iceland, looking toward Ireland and thinking about the great crashing waves between my love and I. It’s got almost everything Icelandic except geysers, referencing basalt rock, lava, the Mid Atlantic Ridge where Europe and North America meet, and Nordic sagas, but its really about relationships.
In other poetry news, a tiny poem I wrote is part of Briefly Write‘s inaugural issue, launched tonight, 27 June at 8 pm BST here on Twitter (you can follow it even if you’re not on Twitter yourself). I sleep a poem is a short 10 lines long and skinny five words wide slip of a thing. From tonight you’ll be able to read it and 24 other micro pieces of poetry and fiction — and hear them too, as each writer has recorded a reading of their piece. The beginning of this poem elbowed its way in as I was falling asleep one night, when it sometimes seems my creative brain goes into overdrive. Fortunately I turned the light back on and wrote it in my bedside journal, a treasure store of words.
If you’re feeling like you need a little poetry pick up yourself today, you have the Poetry Phone, courtesy of Kilkenny County Council’s arts office. It’s conjures up lucky dip prizes at school fairs, as you get to choose a number to receive your poem. All the poetry was written by Kilkenny poets and may be in Irish or English. 
I could listen to them all day.
And for #rejection100 my total so far is 45 rejections (I’m counting each journal/contest/whatever as one rejection, rather than counting up each poem or piece rejected) for 2020, just under half at the halfway point of the year. Must try harder!
kennedy street 