I’ve spent the last couple of weeks rising before the sun to cheer Florida bayside days into view, the familiar morning song of Tennessee birds replaced with heron squawks, pelican takeoffs and splash landings, kingfisher rattles, osprey screeches, and the occasional splunk of jumping mullet. Enriched by these new sounds are the familiar calls of mockingbird and jay—and as I hear this eclectic music rising, I grow more eager for our celebration of your poetic voices during December’s member meeting and in our next edition of Tennessee Voices Anthology.

Our upcoming member program will celebrate the release of this year’s Tennessee Voices Anthology and the poetry of all our members. We recently sent members an invitation to read a poem at this event: we look forward to hearing from you!

For our next edition of Tennessee Voices Anthology, we have not only opened annual festival contests, but a call for submissions! We invite all members to participate in this opportunity to enrich our upcoming edition with your voice.

Here’s what else is happening:

Earlier this month, Julie Cummings explored digital pathways to publication with us. Members will have access not only to the replay of this meeting but another video with detailed guidance on setting up an account and using Submittable (and a guide on how to submit to the National Federation of State Poetry Society contests using this free software). Look for a link to this content in the December meeting notice. In January, we start the new year with a workshop from the wonderful Kory Wells! Stay tuned for details.

Student contests remain open through February 10, 2026. Festival contests are open through December 15, and our call for submissions is open through December 31. Sponsored by long-time member JoAn Howerton, next up for our monthly members-only contests is a sonnet that answers the question “What does Christmas mean to me?”  Open for entries December 1 through 15. Get contest details here.

If you haven’t visited our bookstore recently, check out what’s new from our member authors! This year we’ve added plenty of new books from members for your reading pleasure.

We are always looking for volunteers to support our mission. Would you like to … connect members in a region? write about poetic opportunities? share the latest author to be featured on our bookstore? support the mission in some other way? Contact us at poetrytennessee@gmail.com to learn more and get involved.

Curious about PST? Join us at a meeting or other activity. Reach out anytime. Peruse our website, monthly newsletters, social media (@poetrysocietyoftennessee on Facebook and Instagram). Ready to join? Find membership information here (online & mail options available). I hope to see you soon at an event—in person or virtual.

With gratitude and anticipation—
Lisa Kamolnick
President, Poetry Society of Tennessee