‘Grief never goes away … it is almost as raw now as on the day it happened.’ A mother speaks about losing her son in Afghanistan. Lest we forget
In this month of Remembrance, Write Out Loud is giving space to poet and peace campaigner Antony Owen, who has interviewed the mother of a British paratrooper killed on active service in Afghanistan in 2008. Jeff Doherty, pictured, from Southam in Warwickshire, died in a Taliban attack in Helmand, just two days after his 20th birthday, along with Lance Corporal James Bateman, 29, from Staines, Middlesex. Two other British sold...
News and Opinion
A new poetry anthology has been praised in the editorial columns of a national newspaper. Earth Prayers, edited by the former poet laureate Carol Ann ...
12th Nov 2024 12:22 pm
As the clocks turned back and the moors darkened, November welcomed the inaugural Words Among the Heather, a new poetry, spoken word and storytelling ...
16th Nov 2024 12:20 pm
‘The Hottentot Venus’ was Sarah Baartman, a Khoikhoi woman from South Africa who was displayed at freak shows around 19th century Europe. It’s not ‘wo...
12th Nov 2024 12:14 pm
Did you know that the Write Out Loud website started out as just a gig guide, emailed to poets in Bolton and the surrounding area back in 2004? In the...
6th Nov 2024 5:47 pm
I could have kicked myself back in the summer when I realised I’d written the wrong date on the calendar for disabled poet and wheelchair user Shaun F...
12th Nov 2024 10:45 am
Michael Rosen, who has published several poetry collections with Smokestack Books, will be reading at a special event to mark the poetry publisher cea...
2nd Nov 2024 12:23 pm
There have been a number of poems on this website in recent months protesting about the situation in Gaza. Now the radical website Culture Matters is ...
30th Oct 2024 10:26 pm
A well-known north-west poet has written a poem that was performed in the final episode of the hit TV comedy series ‘Alma’s Not Normal’. Gerry Potter ...
12th Nov 2024 11:14 am
“It means the world to me to win the Foyle Young Poets award. I have been writing for a very long time – privately, always hunched over the family com...
9th Oct 2024 12:00 am
Helen Mort will be judging the 2025 Rialto Nature and Place poetry competition. First prize is £1,000, and the deadline is 1 April 2025. More details
...2nd Nov 2024 8:42 pm
Irish-born Pratibha Castle, who currently resides in Sussex, holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from the University of Chichester. A former si...
30th Oct 2024 10:21 pm
These are poems that you have to take time to, make time to read. I began by leafing through this Bloodaxe anthology – subtitled “Nourishing Poems of ...
13th Nov 2024 11:25 am
More articles …
Send your articles to news@writeoutloud.net
Upcoming Events
Albuquerque » ABQ Slams, Lobo Slam
7:00pm at 111 Harvard Dr SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, US
Tulsa, OK » Velvet Chair Poetry Night
7:00pm at 303 M.L.K. Jr Blvd, Tulsa, OK, 74103, US
Chicago » Guild Literary Complex, Palabra Pura
7:30pm at 2726 W. Division, Chicago, IL 60622, US
10:00pm at 7000 N Glenwood, Chicago, IL 60626, US
Maitland » Florida State Poets Assoc, Orlando Area Chapter
6:30pm at 501 Maitland Avenue South, Maitland, FL 32751, US
7:00pm at 5835 SW 111 St, Miami, FL 33156, US
7:30pm at 753 Cherokee Ave SE, Atlanta, GA 30316, US
2.00pm to 4.00pm at Online
11:00am at Zoom
7:30pm at 2199 California St., Denver, CO 80205, US
Join Write Out Loud
Join Write Out Loud to post your poems, join in the discussions and, optionally, receive our newsletter.
Recent Activity
All comments »
All discussions »
All profiles »
41 minutes ago
1 hour ago
13 hours ago
18 hours ago
All blogs »
26 minutes ago
26 minutes ago
27 minutes ago
28 minutes ago
Who runs Write Out Loud?
Contact Information
The site is run by a team of volunteers. So please be patient in waiting for replies.
Press releases, articles, gig reviews to news editor, Greg Freeman: news@writeoutloud.net
Poetry/book Reviews editor, reviews@writeoutloud.net
To list events, please submit your event. Queries to: gig@writeoutloud.net
The Poetry Directory of magazines, competitions, publishers, courses, etc. Listings info to: directory@writeoutloud.net.
Moderation, blogging and related issues: moderator@writeoutloud.net
Access/log-in or general enquiries: info@writeoutloud.net