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Letter from the Editor Cyber Poet's Niche Homepage: Current number of members, Current number of showcases, Who posted to showcase. Articles (this Issue): Special Bulletin/Yahoo Glitched! --by AngelPie_Mouse International Poetry --by Mgonzalez01 Starting a Writers' Group in Your Area --by Poetry_Gal Group Poem Club News: Club standing, new members, member news Condensed Reports: Poet of the Month, Challenge Poem Question of the Month Poetry Links Books on Poetry Credits

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Hello, Cyber Poets!

Most of us are preparing now for the old-fashioned family tradition of giving thanks for the bounty we enjoy. Rock music blares from a remote (we almost half wish it were more remote) bedroom, football standings and discussion of rivalries blast from the TV set, young ones scream for attention, and pencil and paper to hand, we try to remember everything we are going to need for one super-rush to the grocery store (if we are gone too long the house may not be standing when we get back). Some bounties we could do without.

At times like this, we are not thinking poetry. We are thinking survival. So, you're going to be forgiven if you don't post anything new for a while or if you accidentally post your grocery list or bread stuffing recipe as if it were a poem. Hey, it might be a poem�at least a poem for the dining room table. Ode to a stuffed turkey� 4-6 cups bread cubes; 1/2 cup finely chopped celery; 1 medium onion, diced; �

Of course, there are a lot of things people do in relation to the holiday that differ. I had one uncle who preferred to stuff the turkey with Italian sausage and make spaghetti on the side (yah, I had trouble putting the two together in my mind too). And turkey pizza was not exactly high on my list of uses for the leftovers. But, as they say, each to their own. It can't be worse than my turkey hash with cranberry sauce. Ever notice that you run out of cranberry sauce before you run out of turkey?

Rather than get sloppy sentimental here, which from this lead up seems impossible, I think I had better get on with the newsletter which is, after all, what I am supposed to be writing.  -- AngelPie_Mouse

Here's a swell idea! You know how you are always trying to get Aunt Gertrude out the kitchen�you know, the auntie who insists on making giblet gravy.(always a pleasant surprise when you mistake a piece of gizzard for a mushroom in your mashed potatoes). Well, this Thanksgiving, why not park her in front of your computer and let her read your poetry on our website. Just figuring out the hand-eye coordination of mouse control ought to keep her busy for thirty minutes.

Of course, you have to have a page on our website to do that. We'll be glad to make you one if you fill out the necessary questionnaire which releases us from all that liability nonsense should you ever become a famous poet. It really is a necessary legal waiver. It doesn't transfer copyright, instead it says we are not violating your copyright, but are publishing you with your full knowledge and consent. The copyright stays yours. The questionnaire is found on the website under Questionnaire at: questionnaire or write and ask for a copy at [email protected] (please reference Cyber Poet's Niche in the topic).

The website is authored and maintained by AngelPie_Mouse and is located at the following address: http://www.geocities.com/cyberpoetsniche.

Of the forty-seven members of CPN, sixteen are members with showcase pages on the club homepage. In alphabetic order, showcase members are: AngelPie_Mouse, ArrylT, Crowstouch, Elfenone, Faerimuse, Isitis, Lane_Ware, Mgonzalez01, MooseLodge1999, NALewis, Oldcusser, Poetry_Gal, Romusthepoet, Telescope07, TheCyberwitch, and vannah_b. If you want to be added, see the homepage Showcase Questionnaire.

This month (between October 21 and November 20) contributions were added to the showcase pages for the following members: AngelPie_Mouse, MGonzalez01, MooseLodge1999, OldCusser, Poetry_Gal, RomusthePoet, Telescope07, and vannah_b (new page). -- or for eight of our sixteen showcase members.   You may view these additions by clicking the name (on the website repost of this newsletter only).

Oh, say now, this is news! As if this isn't an almost daily occurrence. In this case, it was a major glitch, one they couldn't fix by running the back-up log. Did they bother telling anyone? No. Well, they sort of said something on the order of: "we apologize for the inconvenience. If you still have a problem, contact us. [No address.]"

Yah, right! Okay, so what's the problem? Sometime in September, they accidentally deleted some club records--information such as links, your membership in our club. Nothing too important �LOL. If it were not for the fact that I keep accurate records of club members independent of Yahoo, some of you would not be getting this newsletter or last month's (that's more because I am also tenacious about letting people go).

What do we want you to do about it? For starters, check the clubsite Contacts listing and make sure your name and all the data you want known is there. If you were deleted, please re-add your name and send me an e-mail at: [email protected]. Please reference CyberPoet's Niche in the topic area. If you have any problems, contact me as well.

  Being Published

You've seen Mary discuss them on our message board. The International Library of Poetry, although a vanity press, also offers contests and opportunities to publish that do not require fees or other obligations.

Both she and NA Lewis have been accepted for publication in a new anthology to be called "America in the Millenium." If you are interested in more information about this publication check out the web address: http://www.poetry.com.

  Starting a Writers Group in Your Area

One of the reasons that we gather around the CyberPoet hearth is our need to talk to OTHER writers about our work and to learn from them. Although many of you live in metropolitan areas with many opportunities to participate in writers groups, those of us who are more rural suffer from a lack of camaraderie with fellow writers.

Since there is no group of writers in my area, on November 16, 1999, I began a writers group with fear and trembling. In fact, I was so sure that no one would show up that I didn't go to my own meeting until the restaurant called me and said, "What do you want us to do with the people here for the writer's group?" I was there in four minutes!

Three writers attended the first meeting of the Parkland Writers Group, not counting its leader. Among them was the editor of the Farmington Press who had put the ad in the Community News and was curious. She was extremely helpful in connecting us with other groups within a hundred-mile radius of ours. The other participants included a woman who had published a book of poetry dedicated to her daughter who had been murdered and a lady just wanting to find someone who shared her love of writing. A fourth person came briefly to show us the book he had published. He promised to return.

Several others have e-mailed stated the desire to come after the holidays are over. I am hopeful of expanded interest as people find out we are in existence.

If you would like to start a group in your area, here are my suggestions:

1. Decide if you want your group to meet the needs of all writers in your area or just poets.
2. Find out if your local newspaper has a "Community News" section to post area meetings. Set a time and date. Publish your announcement.
3. Decide on a location as central as possible to the people you wish to attend and make arrangements for the meeting.
4. BE THERE EARLY!

Mindy Phillips Lawrence
Parkland Writers Group

Last month, in a move to save space, we stopped publishing the group (or interactive) poem from the message board in the newsletter. Instead, we simply presented a review of how it had progressed and the link to the homepage where it could be read in entirety. This month, by request, it returns.

The group (or interactive) poem begins on the 20th of each month with any member of the club posting a few lines that suggest a topic to the message board under the heading "[month] Interactive." It may then be added to by other members of the club, who repost the material preceding their entry. The purpose of the group (or interactive) is to provide an exercise in critical reading skills and promote participation. You may read more about it on our homepage at: http://www.geocities.com/cyber_poets/ourwrite/interactive1.html

This month, for the month of November, the topic was "November" and the Club composed this poem:

We presently have 47 members at the CyberPoet�s Niche. We have Chat Night every Wednesday at 10 PM Eastern.

Club Ratings. The ranking of clubs in Yahoo! is based solely on the number of members, not on member participation. This month we gained three new members and lost none. Still the sad news is that we slipped to a tie at 20th position among the standings of Yahoo! Chat Clubs of our category from 17th position last month. The question is: do we like it that way? As they say: "too many cooks, spoil the broth," and you have to admit, what we lack in number, we make up for in intimacy.

New Members. We have three new members this month: Cendrilloner, starofsirius, and vernon_bc. Cendrilloner and starofsirius jumped right into it with discussions of a favorite poet and posts of their own work and we hope that all three will be active on the message board, continuing to share with us for a long time to come. Anyway, welcome Cendrilloner, starofsirius, and vernon_bc!

Poet of the Month/George Gordon, Lord Byron. You have to hand it to a guy who was an admired poet and given recognition for it in his lifetime. I mean most poets toil away in obscurity and poverty and never know they have an audience until they're at least up there in age if ever. And they say he was a really nice guy, generous to a fault, and a wonderful person to have as a friend, a man of action and causes, and �well, nice.

This month we've been looking at some of the poetry of Lord Byron. While we haven't had much to actually say about it, we can admire it. You can see our entire report at: byron1.html Next month, we are going to explore a poet who wrote something about Christmas and no, it isn't going to be Clement Clarke Moore.

Challenge Poem. There is no current challenge poem for the month although the one mgonzalez01 opened last month is still running. If you've a dream of your own you would like to write about, just check out the actual challenge on the club homepage. It is in the section "Our Writings" subsection "Writing Exercises/Challenge Poem 3: Dreams" or at the address: http://www.geocities.com/cyber_poets/ourwrite/challengepoem3.html

No one answered the question of the month last month: "are you inspired by the work of your fellow members in Cyber Poet's Niche to write works of your own?" Maybe, it was just too complicated a question or maybe you declined to answer on the grounds that it might be self-incriminating. Hmmm? We'll let that go. This month, we are going to answer a much simpler question: "Who was Clement Clarke Moore?"

A Page of Prose and Poetry
The personal website of student of...we hesitate to suggest that he is a student of literature and creative writing only because we do not know. But he does write poetry, reproduce works of his friends and various favorite poets, and provide many good links to collections. [http://members.aol.com/Warlock716/poetry.html]

Writers Digest
The ultimate resource for publication of your work, be it poetry or other forms of writing. These are the Writer's Market guys. It lists writer's guidelines and a market of the day plus schools and workshops. [http://www.writersdigest.com]

Poetry.com
An on-line page for the vanity press publisher. Sponsors contests and anthologies of new poets (see the article above). [http://www.poetry.com]

Being a librarian, Mary naturally has an affinity for books. Combining that with her Internet interests and her interest in verse, she scours the on-line booksellers for new offerings. This month, she makes the following recommendations, which you can purchase from http://www.amazon.com.

100 Love Sonnets
/Cien Sonetos De Amor
(Texas Pan American Series)
by Pablo Neruda (Author),
Stephen Tapscott (Translator)
Univ of Texas Pr; ISBN: 0292760280

If you've ever wished for a fresh and imaginative way of saying "I love you" to your beloved, peruse Chilean poet Pablo Neruda's 100 Love Sonnets. This intimate bilingual collection overflows with the master poet's signature sensuality and inventive imagery. Written in the 1950s for his cherished wife Matilde Urrutia, Neruda's earnest adoration leaps off the page in poem after poem: "Your heart is a clay toy shaped like a dove"; "Your kisses are clusters of fruit, fresh with dew." Thanks to translator Stephen Tapscott, Neruda's dreamy images carry over vividly from the Spanish and dance in the mind for days after they're read.

Americans' Favorite Poems
by Robert Pinsky (Editor),
Maggie Dietz (Editor)
W.W. Norton & Company;
ISBN: 0393048209

Earlier this year, during National Poetry Month (April), Mary introduced us to the project of collecting America's best loved poets. She provided the e-mail address, and some of us wrote. This publication is the result.

Americans' Favorite Poems offers keen proof that poetry does make something happen, that it can give strength and perspective, inspire and alter lives, and comfort and surprise. How did this grassroots golden anthology come about? When Robert Pinsky was named U.S. poet laureate in 1997, he hoped to persuade 100 Americans to recite and discuss their favorite works. Even he may have been surprised when thousands were moved to contribute and commune. From the wave of responses, Pinsky has selected 200 poems, each preceded by one or more testimonials. Make no mistake: this collection, ranging in alphabetical order from Ammons to Zagajewski, would be a keeper without any commentary whatsoever.

Credits:
Link information by Poetry_Gal (Mindy Lawrence) and mgonzalez01 (Mary)
Book information by mgonzalez01 (Mary) and AngelPie_Mouse
Editorial and page layout by AngelPie_Mouse

For those who check the Readability of this newsletter: Flesch Reading Ease: 62.9 (within average) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8.4 (slightly higher than average).

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