ATLAS POETICA 4 – AUTUMN 2009
Twitterati, or Microblogging Tanka Poets
“People are tweeting tanka (and haiku and micropoetry) in great numbers on Twitter. ... a surprising amount is good.
Further, because each poet has ‘followers’ who often ‘retweet’ items they like, a good poem will be seen far beyond
the poet’s personal circle. As a result, each tanka poet has a readership larger than many tanka journals. The thing
that strikes me most about these poets is how they use tanka not as literature, but as communication. They talk to
friends and strangers online and use tanka to illustrate something they have seen or experienced. They often accompany
their tanka with images, links, and other items that provide context and amplify their conversation. Because their
primary goal is to express themselves as effectively as possible, they have written eloquent, natural language poetry.”
—M. Kei, Editor
~K~
M. Kei
Editor, Atlas Poetica
"Image courtesy of USGS National Center for EROS and NASA Landsat Project Science Office"
Issue Notes:
