Elemental Poetry Cambridge

Elemental Poetry Cambridge has a clear mission: to inspire anyone connected to Cambridge to create poems and prose poems centered on the elements that shape our world. The five classical elements, regardless of their evolving significance, remain integral to our lives, influencing how we interact with our environment amidst the exploitation and care we witness in and beyond our city. The elemental forces of Water, Earth, Air, Fire, and Ether are indispensable.

This project encompasses an annual cycle that extends further, with poet, publisher, and educator Peter Carpenter at the helm, guiding a group of skilled writers in offering free in-person poetry workshops during the autumn, winter, and spring at Pembroke College and various locations around Cambridge. Set to commence in October and continuing through May, this initiative will unfold for five years.

In May 2025, we will call for submissions of poems and prose poems for a collection of themed anthologies, particularly those emerging from the workshops. All works will be published by us at Worple Press, starting with the inaugural anthology titled Elemental: Water, co-edited by Peter Carpenter, Mark Wormald and Michael McKimm.

To support environmental stewardship, we pledge to donate at least 30% of the profits from each anthology to a cause aligned with its specific theme.