Young Writers Society

First things first, head over to the NaPo Forum! Here you'll find fellow poet's threads, information topics, and other relevant event information. To get started, create your own thread! Give it a super fun name, and if you want to get crazy— maybe a theme! To find out more about how to get started, you can always click on the 2023 NaPo Information thread. In this topic, you can read more about what NaPo is, how to get started, and what bonuses are going to be included on YWS this month to celebrate!

Next, you're going to want to head to Badge Information. In my humble opinion, the 2023 badges are the best NaPo badges we've had yet! Collect as many as you can before the month is over! Badge challenges include finishing NaPo (30 poems/30 days), commenting on other YWSer NaPo threads, and attending Poetry Jams. Can you collect them all?

Don't forget to check out what other YWSers have posted so far! The forum is already filling up with many prospective NaPoers, and we're excited for you to join us!

LadySpark is hosting a vocal poetry jam on April 15th and 8pm (EST). A vocal poetry jam is just like any other jam, but with a little bit of a twist! Bring a recording of yourself reading one of your NaPo poems and we'll jam! Use a service like this one to make your recording and be ready for a lot of fun!

Also, don't forget these things!

• Join the Poetry Jam Club so you make sure you know when a jam is happening! Or, to host your own! Remember, you need to attend 5 jams to gain your poetry jam badge!
• If you're having trouble getting started, head to the Poem Spot to get your creative juices flowing! That's right, you have to write a poem on the spot. But don't worry, I know whatever you write will be a great addition to your 30 poems!
• Take the pressure off and write the worst poem you can.
• Take part in all the fun hashtags of NaPo, #WhyNaPo, #AlphabetAnswers, #PoetryMusings, #NaPo2023, #ThePeople'sPick
  

One of my favorite things is to check out the threads that are lying quietly in wait for their first sprouts. After careful watering, poeting gardeners can feel confident that their first blooms will be plentiful, colorful, and diverse just like a flower garden. Here are some threads I'm especially excited for this NaPo! Don't worry, we'll be bringing this back every week— we've got too many amazing poets to only do this feature once!

_rida, so my silence won't be mistaken for peace
These images illicit such visceral reactions from me I had to share the amazing narrative rida is crafting in her NaPo thread with all of you. Her first poem is so evocative, yet is a universal experience that almost anyone can relate to. I highly reccomend subscribing to this one so you can keep up with what rida is doing. Because it's absolutely phenomenal!

_Apricity, tell me how all this, and love too, will ruin us
The way Apricity has taken their prompts each day and made them unique and true to their own poetic voice is so inspiring. She writes such vivid images it's hard not to picture them in your head, clear as day. Her structure is also so smooth, it's like honey! This is definitely one you want to keep up with as she continues to plant such beautiful poetry in her NaPo garden!

When I started thinking about poets that helped form new generations of poets on YWS, one of the first poets I think of is Audy. When she was active, she wasn't just an amazing poet. She was also a fabulous mentor who provided amazing reviews and words of advice to poets for many years while she helped lead the poetry crew.

In order to be a better writer, it's very important we read what other poets are writing. YWS is an oasis of amazing writers who are accesible to us in ways that our favorite, published poets may not be. While Audy may not be active regularly anymore, you can scroll through her amazing reviews on works and her own posts to her portfolio. You can learn so much from her distinct poetic voice and unparralled imagery.

There are a few poets on YWS who have such amazing NaPo threads, I can't stop reading them. Apricity is one of those poets. Her NaPo thread, tell me how all this, and love too, will ruin us, is absolutely breathtaking and full of stunning imagery and capitvating narratives. Her portfolio isn't anything less than absoutely drop-dead gorgeous.

Another poet that has me checking their thread over and over is Willard, with their thread, anatomy of a body that will soon be forgotten. Something about their poetic voice is so distinct and unique, you can't tear yourself away from the imagery that just sucks you right in. Willard is also known for their reviews, which are insightful and probing. Whenever you get a notification that you've gotten a review from them, you know they are going to be investigating the motivation into the why of your poem. If you're looking to learn something— as a reviewer, reader, or writer, just check out some of their latest reviews on works around YWS.

Check in next week to see what other poets we feature in this series, new and old!

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness! It's time for April Madness! The competitors have been announced, the first iteration of the bracket has been released, and the judges are sitting in wait for their cue to begin debating who moves on after the April 10th deadline.

But before we get into that, let's break down what April Madness is, who's competiting, what the rules are and what's going to happen next.

What it is
A March Madness-esque style competition, where poets go head to head in a series of poetry face-offs until there are only two poets left. In each round, poets submit one poem to go against a few other YWSer's poems, with the winner moving on to the next round.

Who's competiting?

Yours truly (LadySpark) in a group for round one with rubyxbanks, starshipgirl, Willard, and DreamyAlice. EsmerayaRose, Seirre, yamatri, and Apricity will all face off against each other, while another group for round one, Rook, ForeverYoung299, niteowl, Ventomology will challenge one another for spots in the next round. looseleaf, rida, SilverNight, yosh, and Euphory make up the final grouping for round one. Wow, what a talented group this is! I know there is going to be some really incredible poetry in the first round, and some stiff competition for everyone to advance!

What are the rules?
1. Submissions must be written in April
2. No set genre or length.
3. Poetry must be submitted in this thread by the deadline of each round. Please indicate that you've edited your submission if you have done so. If something comes up and you can't turn in your submission, please let me know!
4. Poetry may only be reused for the final round.

What happens next?
Competitors submit their poems by the deadline on April 10th. Judges will announce the results on April 12th. Don't forget there's also a redemption bracket!

I'm so excited to get to see everyone's submissions and follow along with the contest. There are some amazing poets competiting this year, it's bound to be an amazing month!

Good luck to everyone! This is going to be so exciting!

Along with many poetry-veterans, NaPo is always attracting new poets too! For this interview I decided to hear from a first-time-napo-goer to hear what inspired them to participate and get the scoop on their NaPo game plan. While @/FireEyes is new to NaPo, they certainly aren't new to poetry, and have been sharing their poems on YWS since 2020 ranging in topics from health, to love, to friendship. Let's see what they had to say!



FireEyes: My poetic voice is akin to song lyrics. I like to use a lot of metaphors and imagery that doesn't necessarily fit together thematically wise. More often than not, my writing is bitter and somber with undertones of subdue hope. Metaphorically the physical feel could be likened to the physical pain you feel in your chest after great emotional pain has happened.



FireEyes: have a few I really love, but the one I think I love the most is "are we friends?" ... "no." It's so raw and so much of the descriptive language makes me feel like a real poet.



FireEyes: I think I'm going to go for the most basic of the basic, angsty love poems. I've sent so many poetic messages to my friend about love and I need to use that energy in actual poems.



FireEyes: I hope to find my creative passion to out-of-the-blue poetry again. Most often now my poems are based off of very real feelings from real life events and sometimes some events don't happen for me to write about. I'm hoping to be able to write about a topic without feeling what I'm writing about firsthand.



FireEyes: It's not a competition. The poems don't have to be amazing, they have to be you. This can be a poetic exercise instead of a challenge.



FireEyes: Hmmm write a poem about something small and make it significant. That's what the most unique poems really are, something small that evoke big emotions.



Thanks for your answers FireEyes! You can find Fire helping out the site on the Resource & Community Crew on our Junior Moderator Team, and along with their portfolio you can check out their poetry this April over at their NaPo thread entitled: "lipstick stains on wet walls" - which I'm going to take a wild guess might hold a few love poems for us this April!