Editors

The Tuesday Poem collective was founded by Wellington writer and publisher Mary McCallum and Dunedin poet and artist Claire Beynon. They have overseen hundreds of poems posted and shared here at the hub since 2010. Poets in the collective share the role of Hub Editor each week, and in 2014, the TP hub has been supported by a new roster of poets helping with the hub editing. We call them hub subbies. TP hub subbies in 2014 include Michelle Elvy, Andrew Bell, Tim Jones and Sarah Jane Barnett.

Below: 1. the role of Tuesday Poem editor
       2. the role of Tuesday Poem hub subbie


1. Tuesday Poem editor - what to do: 
As a Tuesday Poet, you can become an editor of the hub at any time. We have a 'hub subbie' who takes over the organisation of the hub poem posts for a quarter of the year – organising the schedule for the hub editors, editing the posts and helping with formatting and posting issues, publicising the posts, and liaising with the Tuesday Poem community. If you wish to be an editor, email the hub subbie and you'll be directed to a google spreadsheet where you can schedule yourself to be hub editor. 

You need to be invited by email to be a contributor to the Tuesday Poem blog. Once you have confirmed this, your name will automatically be included on the blog list of editors and be able to post directly on Tuesday Poem. It's simple - when you log into your own blog you'll see Tuesday Poem there too. 

For your post as editor, pick a poem that you admire. It can be unpublished or published, and be by anyone from a fellow Tuesday Poet to a Poet Laureate. It should not be by you, the editor.

Bear in mind world events - a major disaster like the Christchurch Earthquake could do with some acknowledgement either in the choice of poem or in the commentary, as could an international poetry day. 

Apply the usual rules about published work. The poem must be accurately reproduced, both words and layout, and be a whole poem unless it says it is an extract; and it must not offend or libel. For a second opinion email the hub subbie. 

Get poet permission, and publisher permission if appropriate. Forward the email giving permission to the hub subbie - and say in your post that you have permission. Note even if you have poet permission the poet's contract may require you to get publisher permission too. To be on the safe side, ask for publisher contact details. 

Hunting for a poet? Contacting the publisher is often the easiest way to find a poet and get permission. Ask the hub subbie for help, who may put it out the community as jointly we have a number of contacts that may be helpful. 

Explain to poet and publisher that we can't pay for the poem, but the poet will benefit from having the poem read by a wide international audience that can build to thousands of page views in a short time. We have many subscribers, a Facebook page and Twitter profile, and the superb Beattie's bookblog publicises our poems every Tuesday. Many poets also talk about their Tuesday Poems on Facebook and Twitter. 

Tell the poet that publishing the poem on the blog is considered published in some countries but not in others. It appears that in the US, blog publishing means the poem is published, not so in all cases in NZ. If this concerns your poet then only post a poem that has been previously published. 

Point the poet to the copyright conditions on our blog [see sidebar].  

Post the poem in this way and in this order - and preferably have it ready a week prior as a draft so it can be checked prior to posting. 

If you have any questions or problems contact your hub subbie, or try Bloggerhelp on Youtube or on their help site. If you find it difficult or you're pressed for time, email hub subbie the draft post, links and images, and ask if s/he can post it for you.  
  • Go to www.tuesdaypoem.blogspot.com
  • Sign in using your blogger name and password.
  • Go to TUESDAY POEM New Post.
  • POST TITLE IN THE TITLE BOX: (title of the poem) by (name of poet) eg. No Metaphor by Bryan Walpert[the 'by' is important 
  • Don't write 'Tuesday Poem' in the title.
  • POST: the whole poem without preamble - and just the poem itself without title or poet name because it doubles up the title of the post. 
  • If you are 'PASTING' a poem into blogger, it works best to use EDIT HTML at the top of the text box where you write the post, rather than using the COMPOSE mode. This stops glitches in font and format. Paste the poem in there then return to COMPOSE. Check the poem. You may need to adjust font variations e.g. italics, and line breaks/indents and other formatting issues. 
  • In italics, write - Editor: (your name) e.g. Mary McCallum
  • WRITE A COMMENTARY: Short bio details, writing background of poet and the poem, and your relationship to the poet if there is one are a good way to start. Our posts are known for their personal and engaging style. The more of the personal you can bring to your post the better e.g. how you knew the poet, what s/he said about the poem, why you chose it. 
  • Try to keep commentary to half a dozen short paragraphs (2-3 sentences max per paragraph for blog writing)if you can. Use links where you can rather than inserting large amounts of material into the body of the post e.g. bio material, reviews.   
  • INSERT cover photo of the book the poem comes from (if you can) and/or author photo. No other images. 
  • LINK PARAGRAPH: At the end of your post include a separate short paragraph which says something like: (Name of poem) is published on Tuesday Poem with permission.  (Name of editor) is a poet etc from (country)(more details on work etc). Visit his/her Tuesday Poem (link to your blog if you can) and the other Tuesday Poets using our blog list.
  • INSERT KEY labels in the right hand column beside the post: title of poem, author, your name as editor etc
  • FONT: don't change the font or colour. The font goes a bit awry in this template sometimes -  if it looks too small or too large: select the whole post,  click on the Font buttons on the toolbar at the top of the draft post and click 'normal' and 'Georgia'.
  • Press PREVIEW to check the post looks ok. Problems you can't correct? Email Mary or Claire. SAVE the post as a draft. 
  • If you make a mistake and publish the post before it's ready or with an error. DON'T WORRY. You can simply press 'edit', then 'save' the post as a draft. This will remove it from the blog until it's ready. 
  • Insert labels in right toolbar [helps blogreaders find us]: name of poet, name of poem, your name; and schedule the poem as below
    • SCHEDULE THE POST in right toolbar. Click on the Tuesday date you want and the time:  00:01. Press PUBLISH. The post will now be scheduled. IF you publish without meaning to, simply open the post again using 'EDIT' and SAVE it as a draft. This will remove it from the blog hub page. Or email the hub subbie urgently. 
  • Email the hub subbie to say the poem is up. 
  • Let the poet know and thank him/her for participating.Remember to post a poem on your blog or website and  link to the Tuesday Poem blog at the end.  
    2. Hub Subbie - what to do

    [to come]