Coffee and rhyming couplet, please

Poets seek cafe inspiration

Three Porirua cafes are among 40 Wellington cafes sponsoring the Eat Your Words poetry competition for 2012.

Cafe Kaizen, The Big Salami and Light House Pauatahanui are all taking part in the competition to produce poems inspired by cafes.

Eat Your Words is for poets and patrons of cafes who want to enter an original unpublished poem about their favourite cafe.

There are 40 prizes donated by the participating cafes, with Vivo Enoteca Cucina wine bar providing the main prize – a night’s dining to the value of $100.

People can enter up to three poems with a 30-line limit to each poem and entry is free.

The competition will be judged by awardwinning poet Hinemoana Baker, who is editor of The 4th Floor online literary journal and a selection of poems will be published in a book of cafe poetry.

Whitireia creative writing students and tutors have organised the competition. Its aim is to encourage budding writers and poets to have a go, and to promote cafes and poetry.

‘‘People often use cafes to write in and they’re busy, bustling places but often ideas come to you,’’ Whitireia Creative Writing Programme director Mary-Jane Duffy says.

‘‘You just have to write them down before they vanish. And let’s celebrate our cafes in poetry.’’

For more details visit wellingtonnz.com/ EatYourWords. You can email your entry to cafepoetrycomp@whitireia.ac.nz or post it to Cafe Poetry Competition, Whitireia Creative Writing Programme, PO Box 9511, Marion Square, Wellington 6140. Competition closes August 10.