Bards in the Bog is the latest idea from Shetland Libraries’ Poet Partner project. Local poets interested in reaching a wider audience are invited to submit poems. Six of the best will be chosen each quarter, to display in public toilets around Shetland. The selection will be made by Shetlandâs Poet Partner â well known poet Jen Hadfield. âIâve always loved the idea of sneaking poetry into unexpected places,â said Jen, âproving that poetryâs place is in the real world, in real time. Iâm looking forward to another of the Libraryâs fantastic open mike events to celebrate the launch of Bards in the Bog.â
The first set of poems will be selected and installed in March. The competition is open to all ages, and poems may be on any subject. The only rule is that they must be short -12 lines or less in length – as the posters need to have large print which can easily be read from a seated position! Poems will also be published on the library website, and there may be a few toilet-related poetry events throughout the year as well.
To kick off the project, there will be a Poet Partner event at Shetland Library on Wednesday 11th February. It will feature a reading from Jen, and the second part of the evening will be âopen mikeâ poetry, which means anyone with a favourite poem to share can come along and read.
Full details are available from the Shetland Libraries web site.
