Poetry Society of Tennessee

EST. 1953

PST News

  • PST 2024-2025 Student Contest Deadlines Near

    Two of our 2024-2025 Student Contest divisions nears the submission deadline. Entries for either division must be postmarked by February 22, 2025.

    For the Middle School Division, submit a free verse poem. For the Elementary Division, any form poem is acceptable. We invite all eligible students to submit a poem. Each student may submit only one poem. Both competitions are free to enter.

    Who is Eligible? 

    Public, private, and home school students are eligible.

    The Middle School Division competition is open to all Tennessee students in grades 6-8.

    The Elementary Division competition is free and open to all Tennessee students in grades 2-5. 

    Non-Tennessee residents may compete by joining the Poetry Society of Tennessee as Student Members. Get membership information.

    What do Winners Receive?

    Contest Awards: 1st place $25, 2nd $20, 3rd $15, 4th $10, and 5th $5.

    Winners will be announced on the PST website in the spring. Winning poems will be published in the 2024-2025 edition of Tennessee Voices.

    Get More Details

    Learn more about our student contests.

    Get a printer-friendly copy of contest instructions.

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  • Opportunities Abound: February Roundup

    Several organizations have reached out to the society this month to share opportunities, from calls for submissions to contests, conventions and conferences.

    James Agee Conference

    This FREE one day conference will be held February 22, 2025, at the Strawberry Plains Campus of Pellissippi State Community College. Get details.

    Submission Closing Soon!

    Poets for Peace Call for Submissions through March 31, 2025. Enter soon: submissions will close once 150 poets have submitted.

    Red Hawk Publications Aims Anthology at Helene Flood Relief

    Red Hawk Publications seeks poetry from Appalachian Poets for an anthology to help with Hurricane Helene Flood Relief. The working title for the anthology is The Unnatural Disaster of Hurricane Helene Flood: Appalachian Poets Holler from Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. Both published and unpublished poetry is welcome. Submissions are open through April 1, 2025. Get submission requirements.

    Tennessee Mountain Writers’ Conference

    The Tennessee Mountain Writers’ 36th Annual Conference, “Appalachian Ink,” is coming up April 3-5, 2025, at the Double Tree Hotel in Oak Ridge, TN. Early conference registration ends March 1, 2025. Get details at https://tmwi.org/2025-annual-conference-appalachian-ink/

    From NFSPS

    CONTESTS: The National Federation of State Poetry Societies’ Annual Poetry Contests are open to eligible members for entry through March 15, 2025. Learn more. Two of three BlackBerry Peach Spoken Word Contests & Events are also underway! The BlackBerry Peach Spoken & Written Contest is open for submissions through March 16, 2025. The BlackBerry Peach National Poetry Slam is open for registration (winner will represent the United States in international competition!).

    CONVENTION: NFSPS announced their annual convention will be held in Albuquerque, New Mexico from July 23-28, 2025. Naomi Shihab Nye will be their keynote speaker! Details on the BlackBerry Peach Youth Mini-Festival to be held July 25, 2025, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, will also become available in the coming months.

    Dancing Poetry Contest

    Artists Embassy International offers the 32nd Annual Dancing Poetry Contest. Grand Prize winners will win $100 and have their poems read and danced at the festival. Other winners will have the opportunity to read their poems. Winning poems will be featured on YouTube. Submissions close April 15, 2025. Get details.

    Oceanside Library “Near and Afar” Zoom Poetry

    From Oceanside Library in Oceanside NY enjoy their “Near and Afar” nights of poetry featuring poets from near and far away, held first and third Mondays. Get details here. See prior event replays here. (If any members would like to participate, please contact us at poetrytennessee@gmail.com.)

    New Writing Program from John Davis Jr.

    Like the idea of getting insights and tips from a poet by mail? Award-winning Florida-based author John Davis Jr. is offering a new program, Metacreativity: The Process Behind the Poetry, where he offers insights on the creation of his poems and provides insider tips on the craft. Learn more about the program. Learn more about John.

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  • February 2025 Poetry Contest Results

    The Poetry Society of Tennessee (PST) formally announced its members-only February 2025 contest results at their February 8 member meeting. Winners receive cash prizes. The first place poem will be published in an upcoming edition of PST’s anthology, Tennessee Voices.

    Many thanks to sponsor PST-Knox (and Sally Boyington) and judge Claudia Stanek, who selected the following winners and honorable mentions:

    • 1st: “Final Curtain Call” by Sarah Small
    • 2nd: ” Crazy for Cliches” by Fred Tudiver
    • 3rd: “Reinterpreting Robert Burns” by Connie Green
    • 1HM: “Birdsong” by Lisa Higginbotham
    • 2HM: “Lover’s Tale of Unrequited Love” by Amber Smith
    • 3HM: “Bad Poetry” by Russell H. Strauss

    Meeting attendees enjoyed the readings of these winning poems.

    Enter Your Poem

    March’s contest is open for submissions February 1-15. An ekphrastic poem in response to a specific picture. Many thanks to sponsor and judge Janet Qually.

    No contest will be held in April, as our regular meeting will not be held. Our 68th Annual Poetry Festival will take place April 25-26, 2025, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and virtually. Details will be shared soon.

    Get a head start on May’s two contests: one from sponsor Emory Jones about friends and another from sponsor Russell Strauss on a humorous subject. These contests open for submissions April 1-15.

    Entrants may mail or email entries. Mailed entries must be postmarked within the open submission period. Get contest details.

    Not a member? Join us. Learn more.

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  • Enchantments and Other Adventures

    As I write, icicles have just dropped off the balcony above my condo unit in Florida. During my previous time in the panhandle, I saw snow on the beach once, March 1993. It melted almost as fast as it fell onto the sugar-white sand. But this year, Enzo came for a visit. The view was “Florida, unhinged.” The snowfall resembled the heavy stuff that dropped on my Tennessee home mid-December 2009. The one where I couldn’t get my car up the hill to my house. Where I built snowmen, sledded down the backyard hill, and played in the snow long past sundown. In between the peace and beauty of it, I heard ice creak before branches cracked and tumbled. I saw eerie, blue-green snow lightning.

    Here, I lumbered out to the chilly beach as snow fell to an ocean wave soundtrack. Later came snowdrifts. Icy roads. A blanketed beach. The next morning, people walked the shoreline, exchanged greetings. A tiki hut wore a snow-covered roof. Tide pools iced over. In the snow-covered sand, children made snow angels. As the day drew on, a scatter of snowmen began to appear across the island. Today, the snow melt has made progress. Sand peeks out along well tread places. A lone snowman sits, disaggregated, at the tideline. Normality will resume soon.

    Normal is fine. Everyday enchantments are everywhere. As poets, we know wonderful things happen when we are intentional and attentive. Look to favorite poems: the magic of a well-crafted line, a breathtaking unexpected turn. Powerful opening lines, closing lines, and isolations. A clever enjambment. Music. Rhythm. A pull at our senses. We writers are the enchanted and enchanter. Keep observing, learning and creating. I can’t wait to experience your poems!

    Want more enchantment and adventures? The National Federation of State Poetry Societies (NFSPS) holds their annual convention in the Land of Enchantment July 23-28, 2025, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. With a theme of Enchanting Words and a host of workshops, readings, open mics, a youth event, and a National Slam competition, enchantment is inevitable. Registration is open. NFSPS annual contests and the BlackBerry Peach Spoken & Written contest are open. Registration is also open for the BlackBerry Peach National Slam Competition.

    If you missed it, January’s fascinating program on confessional poetry will soon be available to members for replay. Our February workshop will focus on a form that’s been around for centuries and remains relevant today: the ghazal. Member Cathy Hollister will present. Come prepared to explore and write!

    Fellow society members are preparing an amazing 68th Annual Poetry Festival to be held in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, on April 26, 2025. Make plans now to attend. More details to come.

    If you’re looking to get more involved in your poetry community, we’d be enchanted if you chose to support our society. Have a passion for contests, marketing, or engaging with people across regions or states? Reach out (poetrytennessee@gmail.com).

    Curious about PST? Join us at a meeting or event. Reach out anytime. I hope to see you soon at a PST event.

    With appreciation and excitement—
    Lisa Kamolnick
    President, Poetry Society of Tennessee

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  • Opportunities Abound: January Roundup

    Several organizations have reached out to the society this month to share opportunities, from calls for submissions to contests, conventions and conferences (one even has scholarship offerings!).

    Submission Closing Soon!

    Highland Park Poetry’s 2025 Poetry Challenge submission deadline is deadline is Monday, January 27, 2025 at 11:59PM. They offer three challenge options:

    • The Roaring Twenties – in honor of the 100th publication anniversary of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby
    • Ode to a Geographic Place – inspired by Diane L. Redleaf’s Odes to the States: Poems Inspired By the 50 States and the District of Columbia)
    • Dodoitsu (any subject written as a dodoitsu, Japanese form of four lines where first three lines have 7 syllables and the last line has 5; usually concerning topics of work or love; see attached description and examples)

    It’s free to submit one poem, and previously published poems are accepted (include the appropriate acknowledgment).

    Learn more about this and other opportunities from Highland Park Poetry at www.HighlandParkPoetry.org.

    Tennessee Mountain Writers Competition and Conference

    FESTIVAL INFORMATION: The Tennessee Mountain Writers’ 36th Annual Conference, “Appalachian Ink,” is coming up April 3-5, 2025, at the Double Tree Hotel in Oak Ridge, TN. More info coming soon.

    For more information, please contact us at scholarships@tmwi.org.

    From NFSPS

    CONTESTS: The National Federation of State Poetry Societies’ Annual Poetry Contests are open to eligible members for entry through March 15, 2025. Learn more. Two of three BlackBerry Peach Spoken Word Contests & Events are also underway! The BlackBerry Peach Spoken & Written Contest is open for submissions through March 16, 2025. The BlackBerry Peach National Poetry Slam is open for registration (winner will represent the United States in international competition!).


    CONVENTION: NFSPS announced their annual convention will be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico from July 23-28, 2025. Naomi Shihab Nye will be their keynote speaker! Details on the BlackBerry Peach Youth Mini-Festival to be held July 25, 2025, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, will also become available in the coming months.

    POETS FOR PEACE Call for Submissions

    Poets for Peace has a call for submissions open now through March 31, 2025. Please note submissions will close once 150 poets have submitted.

    From North Carolina Poetry Society

    This society offers 11 poetry contests for adults, with a deadline of February 1, 2025. Learn more.

    Title Writing Workshop

    Poetry Society of Tennessee member Shuly Cawood is once again offering her popular “Let Your Titles Do More of the Heavy Lifting” workshop in partnership with Press 53 on February 13, 2025. Learn more.

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  • February 2025 with Cathy Hollister

    LET’S GUZZLE A GHAZAL

    The ghazal (rhymes with muzzle) is an ancient form of poetry from 14th Century Arabia. Originally used to profess love or express the pain of unrequited love, modern poets use the unique structure of the ghazal for a variety of topics. In this generative workshop we will explore the history of the form, identify the most common elements, read excerpts from classic and contemporary ghazals, and draft a few lines on a topic of your choice. 

    photograph of Cathy Hollister
    About the Presenter

    Cathy Hollister is the author of Seasoned Women, A Collection of Poems published by Poet’s Choice. A 2024 Best of the Net and Pushcart Prize nominee, her work has been in Eclectica Magazine, Burningword Literary Journal, Smoky Blue Literary and Arts Magazine, The Ekphrastic Review, and others. Cathy is a retired public health professional and fills her days with dance, church choir, hiking and lots of family time.

    MEETING INFORMATION

    This program will be presented during our upcoming PST member meeting, to be held February 8 from 2:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern / 1:00 – 3:00 pm Central via Zoom. Members will be provided a link a few days prior. If you are interested in learning more about PST, check out our website. If you’d like to attend our meeting as a guest, contact us at poetrytennessee@gmail.com.

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  • January 2025 Poetry Contest Results

    The Poetry Society of Tennessee (PST) formally announced its members-only January 2025 contest results at their January 11 member meeting. Winners receive cash prizes. The first place poem will be published in an upcoming edition of PST’s anthology, Tennessee Voices.

    Many thanks to sponsor and judge UPDATE, who selected the following winners and honorable mentions:

    • 1st: “ThinBlue Line” by Patricia Hope
    • 2nd: “Truncheon or Tolerance” by Howard S. Carman,Jr.
    • 3rd: “Young Symphony” by Russell H. Strauss
    • HM: “please pick it up” by Kayla Nichols

    Meeting attendees enjoyed the readings of these winning poems.

    Enter Your Poem

    Only two more months of members-only contests left in the year.

    February’s contest is open for submissions January 1-15. “Crazy for Cliches” Use those trite ideas we’ve all been warned to avoid. Focus on a poetic cliche. Many thanks to sponsor Sally Boyington and judge Claudia Stanek.

    March’s contest is open for submissions February 1-15. An ekphrastic poem in response to a specific picture. Many thanks to sponsor and judge Janet Qually. (See contest details.)

    Entrants may mail or email entries. Mailed entries must be postmarked within the open submission period. Get contest details.

    Not a member? Join us. Learn more.

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  • January 2025 with Adam Lambert

    CONFESSIONAL POETRY

    Confessional poetry is dominated by themes of intimacy, self-revelation, and tragedy. But not everyone is Sylvia Plath. This workshop aims to generate “seeds” for confessional poems, and give you direction on how to write confessionally without airing your dirty laundry, word-for-word.

    About the Presenter

    Adam Lambert is a writer and marketing professional living in Johnson City, TN. He’s written Super Bowl commercials, launched global marketing campaigns, and published dozens of poems. Adam was nominated for a Pushcart Prize for his confessional poetry at age 20, and continues to write intimate poems about place and people.

    MEETING INFORMATION

    This program will be presented during our upcoming PST member meeting, to be held January 11 from 2:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern / 1:00 – 3:00 pm Central via Zoom. Members will be provided a link a few days prior. If you are interested in learning more about PST, check out our website. If you’d like to attend our meeting as a guest, contact us at poetrytennessee@gmail.com.

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  • A Year in the Balance

    As I write, the winter solstice has given way to the first of hundreds of longer-than-yesterday days. I’m settled on the beach, channeling a surfside Christmas, something I’ve not experienced for more than a decade. Replacing our traditional live tree and various decor, a hand-crafted, wooden “winter holiday” wave sits on a console, a pair of water-blue stockings and tiny, striped surfboard affixed. With gifts wrapped and plans in place, my mind has been poised not upon sugar plums or egg nog (or flip flops or beach hair) but upon a year of poets, poetry, and community in Tennessee and other parts, thanks to modern technology and a year’s travels.

    What wonder a trip around the sun delivers. In the poetic realm, it’s been an incredible year of meeting fine people in person or in online gatherings at conventions, workshops, open mics, and readings; learning and improving practice, celebrating our poetry wins and publications; and reading your work in anthologies and collections (or experiencing you perform or read it!).

    In 2024 I set my first-ever rejection goal, which quickly moved from 50 to 100. (I won’t hit 100 rejections this year, but I came close!) I encourage you to set a rejection goal in 2025. You not only create accountability to submit poems and increase your publication odds, but you defang the sting of rejections. Maybe a New Year’s resolution? Here’s another: treat yourself to a poetry collection from our book store and support a member author.

    We closed out 2024 with a lively and productive discussion on group work. I am pleased to share that the poem attendees authored together during that session will be published in Tennessee Voices Anthology. We’ll kick off 2025 with a program on confessional poetry, then we’ll move focus to form with a February workshop on the ghazal.(Members, meeting replay links are available in meeting notice emails.) We’ll close the 2024-2025 program year with our poetry festival April 26, 2025. More details will be be shared soon.

    Other opportunities opening soon include the National Federation of State Poetry Societies annual contests (PST members are also NFSPS members) and Poets for Peace call for submissions. Stay tuned for details. (These could be a great way to work toward your 2025 #rejectiongoals!)

    If you’re looking for ways to be part of your poetry community, our society offers opportunities (no pressure to take on a role just for inquiring). Have a passion for contests, events, marketing, or finance? Know someone who’d make a great program presenter? Reach out (poetrytennessee@gmail.com).

    Curious about PST? Join us at a meeting or event, or take the plunge and join us for our 71st year. Reach out anytime. I hope to see you soon at a PST event.

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

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  • December 2024 Poetry Contest Results

    The Poetry Society of Tennessee (PST) formally announced its members-only December 2024 contest results at their December 14 member meeting. Winners receive cash prizes. The first place poem will be published in an upcoming edition of PST’s anthology, Tennessee Voices.

    Many thanks to sponsor and judge JoAn Howerton and co-judge Crystal Robbins Czerwinski, who selected the following winners:

    • 1st: “A Christmas Card from the Ghost of Christmas Future” Kayla Nichols
    • 2nd: ” Paper Windows” Laura Gunnels Miller
    • 3rd: ” Even the Lights Rejoiced” Cynthia Storrs
    • 1HM: ” Ode to Snow Cream” Pat Hope
    • 2HM: ” Christmas Haiku” Cathy Hollister
    • 3HM: ” Rocking Chair Snow Day” Chrissie Anderson Peters

    Enter Your Poem

    Meeting attendees enjoyed the readings of these winning poems.

    February’s contest is open for submissions January 1-15. “Crazy for Cliches” Any form or subject, but use those trite ideas we’ve all been warned to avoid. Focus on a poetic cliche. Many thanks to sponsor PST-Knox (East TN study group) from member Sally Boyington and judge Claudia Stanek.

    March’s contest is open for submissions February 1-15. An ekphrastic poem in response to the picture shown below. Many thanks to sponsor and judge Janet Qually. 

    Entrants may mail or email entries. Mailed entries must be postmarked within the open submission period. Get contest details.

    Not a member? It’s not too late to join. Learn more.

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