Guidelines



Submission Guidelines: Send 1-3 unpublished poems in the body of an email (NO ATTACHMENTS) to nvneditor[at]gmail.com. No simultaneous submissions. Use "Verse News Submission" as the subject line. Send a brief bio. No payment. Authors retain all rights after 1st-time appearance here. Scroll down the right sidebar for the fine print.

Saturday, February 28, 2026

IN THE MARKET


by Angie Minkin





Here we are again, 

an unseasonably warm day at the end of February

and San Francisco’s Alemany Farmer’s Market

bursts with early blueberries and babies, 

the first pink tulips and yellow ranunculus. 

A three-year-old in ruffles, her white dress tied

with a sash, smiles as she pushes her brother

in his stroller, her mama close by in case of trouble. 

I imagine markets in Iran, babies and strollers, 

mamas in hijabs buying dates and radishes. 

Little girls playing with their brothers. 

I imagine bombs and blood.

These babies.

This market. 

Here we are again.

 

                                    

A poetry reader for The MacGuffin, Angie Minkin stands on her head for inspiration. Her poems are widely published and she is honored to be named the 2025 Passager Poet. Her chapbook, Balm for the Living, was published in 2023.  She is a co-author of Season Lightly with Salt.