Editor's Note

The idea for Shot Glass Journal came from the workshops I've held on short poetry forms. I once thought short poetry meant Limericks and Haiku, but I then began to research different poetic forms, including shorter work in free verse. With the influence Haiku and Fibonacci had on my poetry, I found that shorter poems could express a profound message in fewer verses.

Shot Glass Journal captures the essence of poetry in its shorter form. Poetry can have many messages and bring its reader to various places of understanding. It is, however, more of a challenge to portray an idea, an image, or an emotion with fewer words. As with all poetry, it takes a talented poet to craft a good poem, but by using fewer words, the weight of each word makes a more powerful impact and must be chosen wisely. It is for this reason that poets like William Carlos Williams changed the way people appreciate poetry.

This inaugural issue features poets from Australia, Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. The wide range of poems includes Free Verse poetry and poetic forms such as Cinquain, Rondolet, Sijo, Tanka, Triolet and Zen poetry. We hope you enjoy Shot Glass Journal.