The poet won’t buy you a drink
Don’t request it
Don’t suggest it
Because the poet won’t buy you a drink
It’s not that he wants to refuse
If he could do
He would love to
But the poet won’t buy you a drink
It’s not personal, please understand
Don’t feel rejected
Or neglected
If the poet doesn’t buy you a drink
The problem is purely financial
There’s no way
On his pay
That the poet could buy you a drink
So next time you go to a gig
Do your part
Support art
And buy the poor poet a drink
Joe Williams is a writer from Leeds and the creator of Haiku Hole. In 2015 Joe began performing on the poetry and open mic circuit to inflict his work on a wider audience. Some of them claimed to enjoy it, so you can blame them for encouraging him to continue.