Is poetry your friend, loyal as a puppy or a treacherous object that is never read and only written. Are you a link slut or the genuine article? Poetry knows, it's watching you!

Walking on Water
Date: Monday 1st September
Time: 7.30pm to 10pm
Venue: Laneway Theatre, Perth . (The building is in the laneway that runs between Murray and Wellington streets, next to the Pier Street (carpark)
Cost: $5 waged, $3 unwaged
Poets, Kevin Gillam, Annamaria Weldon, Janet Jackson and OPEN readers.
Details: Unamplified. Open stage. Tea & coffee provided, BYO mug. Bring nibbles & drinks to share if you like.
Enquiries: Jane Cornes: 0414 862 306, jcornes@iinet.net.au

Date: August 30
Venue: Festival Arena Ba`8 Shangri-La Hotel, The Marina, Pierpoint Rd, Cairns, QLD Contact: Jacque Duffy, Innisfail Cultural Centre, 074065 3364
Details: Being part of a writers group is a tremendous way to learn, share, encourage and be encouraged by like minded people. WINQ is a group published and unpublished, poets, journalists, childrens writers, novelists and historians. Every month we get together to enjoy each others company, do creative writing exercises and assist each other with any problems we face with our writing.

Poetry @ the library
Date: 2 Sep,
Time: 7.00pm - 8.00pm
Venue: Eltham Library, Panther Place, Eltham, VIC
Contact: Yarra Plenty Regional Library
Details: Do you love listening to or reading poetry? Poets at Watsonia will perform poetry in the theme of "Dedications". Share your own poetry in a casual environment. Light supper provided.

Monster Open Reading: A celebration of Inclusiveness
Date: Sunday 31 August
Time: 2pm 6pm
Venue: Friend in Hand Hotel, Cowper Street, Glebe
Details: Free. No bookings necessary. Readers taken in order of arrival. Inquiries: 0410406 149

Winter Crop
Venue: The Goodradigbee Centre, Rossi Street, YASS
Date: Tuesday September 2
Time: 6.30pm
Contact: Jane Baker on 02 6226 2724
Details: Susan Hampton, well known Canberra poet, writer and editor, will be the guest poet of the evening. The Yass Valley Writers invite everyone to join them and poets from the Miles Franklin Writers, Goulburn, in an evening of poetry, poetry trivia, and open mike readings.

Top Shelf Poets
Venue: Smiths Alternative Bookshop 76 Alinga Street, Melbourne Bldg Canberra City
Time: 6 pm
Date: Thursday September 4
Details: Top shelf poets CAST their EYE/I over recent and new poems as well as old FRIENDS they SUSPECT fit some of the National Poetry Week theme. Hear some of Canberra Regions poets - entertaining, reflective, dynamic, challenging, uplifting, adventurous - they are: Nicola Bowery, Susan Hampton, Hal Judge, Kathy Kituai, Harry Laing and Lizz Murphy. There will also be in-store poetry displays by young hip poets. PLUS local poets can win $100 store credit if you enter a sonnet, haiku, villanelle or other suitably poetic masterpiece about Smiths Alternative Bookshop by August 31 email or drop it into the shop: 76 Alinga St Canberra City Phone 6247 4459 Email books@smithsbooks.com.au