If you are a poet writing in English, you might/ probably know Rattle.com and its amazing print journal.  Rattle is the online magazine, and information on how to subscribe to the fine quarterly print journal can be found here subscribe.

The magazine sponsors a weekly competition for poems written in response to current events.  See here: Poets Respond.

But for me, a poet who has always been inspired by other writers and artists, one  of the most fascinating aspects of this multi-faceted journal is Rattle sponsors an Ekphrastic Challenge each month, when poets respond to a work of visual art by writing poem inspired by this visual art.  Details may be found here: Rattle’s ekphrastic challenge.

The poetry is, in my opinion, amazing.  It is fresh and frightening, raw and refined.  It’s really good modern poetry.

But the site says it best:

Rattle’s mission is to promote the practice of poetry.

We feel that poetry lost its way in the 20th century, to the point that mainstream readers have forgotten how moving language alone can be…The pure love of language is one of the most important experiences in the history of human culture, and somehow most of us have forgotten about it.

If you are a poet, you can learn from the best modern poets by reading Rattle’s online magazine, their print magazine, and even their Facebook page.  If you say you don’t like poetry, I challenge you to read there for a few days and come back to me and tell me that again.

Rattle reminds us of the power of poetry.