Against Agamemnon: War Poetry

July 28th, 2008  |  Published in Opportunities  |  6 Comments

WaterWood Press, a publishing consortium with editorial offices in Texas, New York, London, Paris & Madrid will be accepting war poetry beginning May 1, 2008, and ending September 1, 2008 for its upcoming soft cover anthology entitled Against Agamemnon: War Poetry.

WaterWood Press is managed by a worldwide editorial staff, including faculty from top universities, who have been published by leading houses such as Peter Lang Publishing, Reed Elsevier Publishing,
Thomson Publishing, West Group, LEXIS NEXIS, and others.

American poet James Adams, a 2007 Pulitzer Prize nominee for his poetry collection Noble Savage (St.-Lukes Presse), which featured themes of American Indian genocide and African civil war, has agreed
to serve as editor. Noble Savage (available at Brazos Books, Houston, Texas) was called “a substantial achievement” by Houston poet-research physician Michael Lieberman. Adams’ war poetry has been called “original and moving” by American poet-humanitarian Carolyn Forché. Adams has edited over four dozen books and treatises.

Complete submission guidelines:

1. Seeking original poems/poetry translations on war from any good poet (“known” or unknown) in any style.

2. No reprints or previously published work. Prior to publication, all to-be-published poets will have to sign a document certifying that their chosen work has not been previously published in any format.

3. Non-English originals must be accompanied by English translations.

4. Mail to: WaterWood Press, 47 Waterwood, Huntsville, Texas 77320, Attn: 2008 War Poetry Editor

5. Snail mail submission only. No email submissions will be considered, unless the author is located in a foreign country, and regular U.S. mail is impracticable or overly expensive.

These foreign submissions may be made to: waterwood.press.poetry.editor(at)gmail.com (replace (at) with @)

Please place the poem in the body of the email and ALSO as an attachment. Note whether any attached poems are virus checked prior to sending by indicating in the “RE:” line: VIRUS CHECKED. Email submissions without such notice will not be opened.

6. 1-3 poems per poet. Three copies of each poem, each poem identified with author’s name only.

7. Length: no more than 30 lines per poem. Will consider one poem of two pages length maximum.

8. Include a separate one-page cover letter containing a list of your poems submitted (or poems and translations), a one paragraph biography (no more than 6 sentences), your mailing address, your email address, and SASE.

9. The Editor will read every submission and may comment upon each submission. Preference will be given to what poet Carolyn Forché has termed “the poetry of witness.” Please do not send poems about 9/11, as these will not be considered.

10. WaterWood Press will begin receiving submissions during National Poetry Month, April 1, 2008. Submission ends September 1, 2008, unless overload submissions force an earlier ending date. All entries must be postmarked by September 1, 2008.

11. The Editor has suggested that poets may wish to refer to American War Poetry, edited by Lorrie Goldensohn (Columbia University Press); Against Forgetting (Norton), edited by Carolyn Forché (also as
translator); Brian Hunter’s Here, Bullet (Alice James Books); and the poetry of Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon, Isaac Rosenberg, Walt Whitman, and other well known war poets.

12. There will be no fees charged to poets for submitting their work. Those poets selected for publication will receive a copy of the anthology as payment. All rights revert to poets except future reprint rights for further “Best Of”-type anthologies from WaterWood Press.

  • Dede Fox

    Just to be clear–If Mary Margaret Carlysle posted my poem online as part of her Sol E-Zine, does that mean I can NOT submit that poem? Thanks. Dede Fox

  • Dede Fox

    Just to be clear–If Mary Margaret Carlysle posted my poem online as part of her Sol E-Zine, does that mean I can NOT submit that poem? Thanks. Dede Fox

  • http://www.light-cards.com Joe DiMino

    My father was veteran of World War 2. Here is short poem I wrote about a true story he related to me. You have my permission to republish if you wish. Sincerely, Joe DiMino.

    “I Sat Beneath A Verteran-oak” (by Joe DiMino)

    I sat beneath a Veteran-oak,
    In awe of His strength—
    Here was a solid spirit!
    Sympathy you get from Willow,
    But stiff upper-lip from old soldiers,
    With forged bark —
    His limbs flexed, cut, rippled against the wind…
    No chinks in this warrior-wood…
    “Divide and Conquer!”

    Then I thought of my Father—
    A cook at the end of the war—The Big One!
    Your know the One I mean, as if there are small ones—
    When the commanders were through eating
    He was instructed to toss the leftovers
    From the belch of plates—
    Trashcans were in the alley,
    The steel that seems intrinsic to battles
    In one form or another—
    The hungry German children
    Would sneak pass the guards
    And line-up;
    My father would sneak pass his superiors
    And his honor
    To dispense carefully wrapped scraps…
    Well, soon the line was out into the street
    As my father was compelled to seek food
    From wherever he could steal, beg or barter
    To procure—

    This brought attention—the cat-out-of-the-bag,
    And all hell down on my father,
    As the captain screamed: Gus, these are the enemy (the children in the alley),
    What in God’s Name are doing?
    He was forced to stop—no Court Marshal though…
    I looked up again at the old oak,
    Through the snarled branches

    Deep into the staunch soldier,
    Where I spied a nest
    In a small, compact fork—
    Having a canopy of extra leaves
    For shade and shelter from the wind—
    I smiled—hum…
    His bark reddened, but like my father, no apology from this weathered soldier…

  • http://www.light-cards.com Joe DiMino

    My father was veteran of World War 2. Here is short poem I wrote about a true story he related to me. You have my permission to republish if you wish. Sincerely, Joe DiMino.

    “I Sat Beneath A Verteran-oak” (by Joe DiMino)

    I sat beneath a Veteran-oak,
    In awe of His strength—
    Here was a solid spirit!
    Sympathy you get from Willow,
    But stiff upper-lip from old soldiers,
    With forged bark —
    His limbs flexed, cut, rippled against the wind…
    No chinks in this warrior-wood…
    “Divide and Conquer!”

    Then I thought of my Father—
    A cook at the end of the war—The Big One!
    Your know the One I mean, as if there are small ones—
    When the commanders were through eating
    He was instructed to toss the leftovers
    From the belch of plates—
    Trashcans were in the alley,
    The steel that seems intrinsic to battles
    In one form or another—
    The hungry German children
    Would sneak pass the guards
    And line-up;
    My father would sneak pass his superiors
    And his honor
    To dispense carefully wrapped scraps…
    Well, soon the line was out into the street
    As my father was compelled to seek food
    From wherever he could steal, beg or barter
    To procure—

    This brought attention—the cat-out-of-the-bag,
    And all hell down on my father,
    As the captain screamed: Gus, these are the enemy (the children in the alley),
    What in God’s Name are doing?
    He was forced to stop—no Court Marshal though…
    I looked up again at the old oak,
    Through the snarled branches

    Deep into the staunch soldier,
    Where I spied a nest
    In a small, compact fork—
    Having a canopy of extra leaves
    For shade and shelter from the wind—
    I smiled—hum…
    His bark reddened, but like my father, no apology from this weathered soldier…

  • http://www.light-cards.com Joe DiMino

    Please edit: Thanks, Joe.

    needs “you” between are and doing:”What in God’s Name are you doing”

  • http://www.light-cards.com Joe DiMino

    Please edit: Thanks, Joe.

    needs “you” between are and doing:\”What in God’s Name are you doing”


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