Call for Poetry Submissions - Leonard Cohen's b-day!

(I'm doing this!!!  xoxo J.M.)

CALL FOR POETRY SUBMISSIONS

In honour of Leonard Cohen’s 75th birthday (September 21, 2009,) the Foundation for Public Poetry/Fondation Poésie Publique is seeking submissions of poetry(poetic responses) based upon Leonard Cohen’s poetry. A maximum of seventy-five poems will be selected for this publication.

The publication is a fundraising initiative to help support the commencement of a Leonard Cohen Poet-In-Residence program at Leonard’s old high school(Westmount High.)

All submissions will be considered to grant the Foundation for Public Poetry anthology rights. Submissions should include a note of reference to the Cohen poem which the author is responding to. Authors should also include a three-line biography and complete contact information.

For more information, or to submit, please email: publicpoetry@gmail.com

or see FAQ in the [comments link] below.

Deadline for submissions is July 12, 2009.

FAQs

ACCEPTANCE OF PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED WORK

We will accept previously published work, but our preference is original material composed specifically tied/linked/inspired by a Leonard Cohen poem. We request reference to the poem’s title (and the book title if known.)

For previously published work, please include details of publication(publisher and date) with the submission. Where the publisher has copyright, the author MUST have the publisher send an email granting anthology rights to the Foundation for Public Poetry.”

ACCEPTANCE OF POEMS BASED ON COHEN’S SONGS

We will accept poems based upon Leonard Cohen’s songs. However, our preference is original material composed specifically tied/linked/inspired by a Leonard Cohen poem.

Comments

[jmac]

This is my poetry submission. I took Leonard Cohen's poem, "The Dream" from DEATH OF A LADY'S MAN as my inspiration. If I did not engage in romantic longing, I honestly do not know what I would do with all of my time . . . :)

***

The Dream by Leonard Cohen

O I had such a wonderful dream, she said.
I dreamed you made love to me.
At last, he said to himself, the spirit
has taken up some of the heavy work.

***
my poem:

The Wish

I had one wish
as I stood poised at the top of the staircase,
a bird preparing for lift off.
I watched you
as you waited in the light at the bottom of the stairs.
You turned and gazed up at me a few times.
As I made each step down
moving closer
and closer,
I was drawn to you by the force of gravity.
The descent seemed to last forever.
When I reached the bottom,
you put your arm around me.
A crowd of friends surrounded us.
We smiled
and walked out into the night.

And when I woke up, I was alone . . .
Tell me, did you ever have the same dream?