Sometimes words are hard to find. Like now, for me, when the words and feelings are so big they look like a giant ball of yarn; overwhelming and untangle-able. 

That is when I find my words elsewhere. It might be “black-out poetry”, like the one made from my poetry submissions rejection letter collection. Or, it might be from refrigerator word magnets. Or, it might be from headlines in the New York Times. Opportunities abound and are yours for the taking. “Found Poetry”, which I first thought of as just weird, is actually quite fun. So, what is “found poetry”, anyway?

Found poetry is a literary collage, crafted by selecting and rearranging words from other sources to create something fresh and meaningful. Blackout poetry, cento, erasure poetry, and cut-up techniques are all ways to engage with found poetry. Not only is it a great exercise in close reading and creativity, but it can also be a meditative way to reconnect with language when traditional writing feels out of reach.

 How to Create Found Poetry

1. Gather Your Source Material – This could be an old book, a newspaper, a diary entry, or any text that speaks to you.

2. Highlight Interesting Phrases – Look for unexpected word combinations, evocative imagery, or intriguing snippets of text.

3. Rearrange and Shape – Remove, rearrange, and add punctuation to shape the poem into something that feels complete.

4. Experiment with Form – Try blackout poetry (blotting out words with ink), centos (poems composed of lines from other works), or even digital found poetry using search engine results.

Literary Journals That Accept Found Poetry

If you’ve crafted a found poem that feels right, consider submitting it to a literary journal. Here are a few that welcome found poetry:

• The Found Poetry Review – Dedicated to publishing only found poetry (currently on hiatus, but their archives are rich with inspiration).

• Diode Poetry Journal – Occasionally publishes found poetry alongside traditional forms.

• River Teeth: Beautiful Things – Accepts short, poetic nonfiction, including experimental found forms.

• The Indianapolis Review – A journal that appreciates erasure poetry and visual found poetry.

• Pangyrus – Open to hybrid and experimental poetry forms, including found poetry.

• Entropy (Closed, but check for archives) – Previously published a variety of found and hybrid poetic works.

• Fence – Open to experimental poetry, including found forms.

If you’re feeling stuck in your writing practice, found poetry offers a playful and rewarding way to engage with language. Whether you keep your found poems private or submit them for publication, the process itself can rekindle your creative spark, or even maybe begin to gently loosen your own giant yarnball. 

Have you tried writing found poetry before? Share your favorite sources of inspiration in the comments!