After an extended Christmas break, we are back a little later than expected, and the poems we have slated to publish in January will likely spill over into February now.

The most recent submission window closed on 15th January and we are starting the selection process – people can expect responses at the end of this month. The new window opened on 16th January and will run to the end of February – for poems to publish in April.

To get things rolling again, here is our usual bi-monthly poll for a Readers’ Choice poem. In November and December there were four poems that stood out in terms of reader response, and here they are. Voting will close on 26th January when our mug-winner will be announced.

• Together – by Stewart Carswell
• Unpeople Stay in a Travelodge – by Helen Kay
• Those Pyjamas – by Helen Freeman
• Most Determined Daughter – by Gareth Writer-Davies