The Academy of American Poets Announces 30 Guest Poets on Twitter

Guest tweeters include:

4/1 D.A. Powell 4/2 Dawn Lundy Martin 4/3 Noelle Kocot 4/4 Richard Siken 4/5 Jennifer Chang 4/6 Joshua Clover 4/7 J. Michael Martinez 4/8 Mark Bibbins 4/9 Jenn Knox 4/10 Randall Mann

4/11 CAConrad 4/12 Ada Limon 4/13 Graham Foust 4/14 Evie Shockley 4/15 Jen Bervin 4/16 Ken Chen 4/17 Sherwin Bitsui 4/18 Noah Eli Gordon 4/19 Ronaldo Wilson 4/20 Nate Pritts

4/21 Danielle Pafunda 4/22 Amy King 4/23 Ching-in Chen 4/24 John Gallaher 4/25 Srikanth Reddy 4/26 Jericho Brown 4/27 Gabrielle Calvocoressi 4/28 Kazim Ali 4/29 Lyrae Van Clief-Stefanon 4/30 Dorothea Lasky

In April, the Academy of American Poets will launch a month-long series of guest poets featured on its streaming Twitter feed. Throughout each day during National Poetry Month, a selected poet will have 24 hours to post his or her daily insights before passing the baton.

Users are invited to follow the Academy of American Poets on Twitter to keep up-to-date on the latest poetry posts online at: http://twitter.com/POETSorg

Oprah Does Poets

Sort of. Poets are cool. Sort of. As long as we don't have to listen to what they have to say. As long as they can capitalize on that lurky murky stereotype of someone having a mysterious soul, dressing in black, and thinking deep thoughts we aren't subjected too. They feel a lot, so goes the tales of yore. So when we conjure them for our fashion shoots, we hope that aura follows. The poet as mystical soul person who dabbles in wordsmithing and ripples the fabric of our emotional lives - gently.

So when Oprah dresses poets, who usually make very little to no money on their craft, affixes poets in hyperbolic writing poses and dresses them in clothing they likely could not afford, what does she hope to achieve? Further, all of the poets she locates are pretty poets: thin, young, fresh faced, without a nose too long or crooked or a blemish to be seen. Some of these poets are Eccentric, wearing turbans with words and wigs. These poets are to be seen, but are they heard?

David Orr's take @ The New York Times.