Mayor Bloomberg Hosts 2nd Annual POETWEET Contest

In honor of April as National Poetry Month, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg is hosting the second annual Twitter "Poetweet" poetry contest. Starting April 1st and continuing throughout the month, the Office of the Mayor is collecting poems of 140 characters or less tweeted to @NYCMayorsOffice using #poetweet. Poems tweeted by April 13th will be considered for the grand prize: publication in Metro New York on the 9th annual Poem In Your Pocket (PIYP) day, Thursday, April 14, 2011.

The annual citywide PIYP day was initiated in 2002 by the Office of the Mayor in partnership with the New York City Departments of Cultural Affairs and Education to showcase the talented faculty and student poets in higher education and the K-12 system, and encourage New Yorkers to embrace literacy and poetry. On PIYP day and throughout the month of April, cultural organizations across the five boroughs will host poetry themed events. Partners for PIYP day include the Academy of American Poets, the Bryant Park Corporation, Metro New York, and the Poetry Society of America.

For more information about PIYP day and Mayor Bloomberg's Poetweet contest, visit www.nyc.gov/poem.

WHO: New Yorkers and Poetry Enthusiasts on Twitter

WHAT: Mayor Bloomberg Twitter "Poetweet" Poetry Contest

- To celebrate National Poetry Month and NYC's Poem In Your Pocket day
- The rules are simple: keep it clean, and keep it under 140 characters
- Winners selected by the Mayor published in Metro New York on PIYP day, April 14th

WHEN: Poetweet through Wednesday, April 13, 2011 to be published in Metro New York on
Poem In Your Pocket day, Thursday, April 14, 2011

WHERE: NYC Mayor's Office Twitter page (www.twitter.com/nycmayorsoffice), using #poetweet