Poetry was never something I considered myself a fan of. I had no issue with it in English classes, but never sought out poetry in my day to day reading. As a massive reader, it is only in retrospect I notice this big gap in my reading, and I know its something loads of other readers have too.
I was always drawn in by novels and short stories. At University, we studied poetry but again, it was the prose that was my highlight. The closest I got to modern poetry were the poems of my Creative Writing classes, but it still wasn’t enough to draw me in to seeking out more in my spare time. I guess, naively, I saw poetry as something not for me.
And, let’s be honest, this isn’t helped by fiction releases taking up 99.99% of literary headlines. Poetry collections are mostly published by small indie presses, with way less budget than your Harper Collins’ or Penguin publishing houses. Unless you have a gift for it, it can be difficult to know where to begin or event where to find poetry. In a bookshop where there’s a whole floor of fiction, but one shelf of poetry, what are you more likely to pick?
Fast forward to 2019, and through booktubers and book podcasts, I heard about modern poetry again. I started to pick some out, and went to the launch of Jen Campbell’s ‘Girl Aquarium’. I realised then that the weirdness and eccentricities I craved in prose could be found in poetry too.
From here, I have been to poetry launches and found a whole plethora of amazing indie and micro publishers, all publishing standout voices you need to read right now.
From ‘Bargain Bin Rom Com’ by Leena Norms, to Rupi Kaur’s ‘Milk and Honey’, and Dan Skentelbery’s collection ‘Miss Peacock and the Actress’, I have spent a good part of the past year surrounded by incredible works. Poetry is accessible for everyone, and captures the talents of so many marginalised writers. It is heartfelt and direct, with the ability to speak to you in merely a few lines. And, like a lot of my favourite fiction, you’ll be pleased to know that poetry can also, just like prose, be downright weird.
Poetry is a thing of beauty-and it’s time we all find our little piece of that.
Good places to start looking for poetry:
–Bent Key Publishing-one of my favourite indie presses
-Indie bookshops often have an amazing selection, such as Five Leaves in Nottingham
-Booktubers-I love Jen Campbell so will always recommend her (she is also a fantastic poet)
-Find a local poetry event (online or in person). Hear someone perform their work is just an incredible experience.
Mel Piper 