Sadly, the postcard poetry festival for 2022 ends today, but if you’re a poet, I recommend you participate in the festival next year.
This year’s festival had 541 participants from 12 different countries, 49 different states, and Canadian Provinces.
Participants collect postcards or create personal cards all year, but write the poems in August. The recommendation is to write ekphrastic poems–relate the poems to the cards you have received or the one you are sending. All year I search for unique postcards that might inspire me to write a poem in August. An added appeal of this festival, is the postcards make inexpensive souvenirs to share. I usually buy two of each card. In the past, I sent Mother a card every day. It was hard to write the poems this year because I lost my mom in October.
To be a good writer, one must write daily. The postcard festival is a great stimulus for me because it forces me to write a poem even when I don’t feel inspired by life around me. More importantly, it gives me a reason to rush to the mailbox. The poems I receive are varied and priceless connections to strangers.
Epistle poems (letters to the recipient) are also fun to receive and to write. Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes’s “Dear Mama” is a poignant example of the form. You can Google and find it if you’re interested in writing your own epistles.
Consider signing up for next year’s festival. When it comes available, I’ll post the link for next year’s festival on My News.