About this site It all started with a book. This site is a companion to the book, Newspaper Blackout, a collection of poems made by redacting newspapers with a permanent marker. The book contains my original poems, a 250-year-old history of finding poetry in the newspaper, and a “How-To” section to get readers started making their own poems. Here’s what some folks have said about it: "Instead of starting with a blank page, poet Austin Kleon grabs the New York Times and a permanent marker and eliminates the words he doesn’t need." — NPR’s Morning Edition “Brilliant.” — New York Magazine “[The poems] resurrect the newspaper when everyone else is declaring it dead.” — The New Yorker Read the book → Now it’s your turn. This site is a place where I encourage folks to try out the method and share their own poems. Here’s how it’s done: Get a copy of Newspaper Blackout or check out the "how-to" tag for tips on how to make a blackout poem. Grab a marker and a newspaper and make your poem. Head over to the submission form to share a photo or a scan of what you come up with. Who’s behind all this? That’d be me, Austin Kleon. I’m a writer and artist living in Austin, Texas. Read more about me over here. If you want, you can holler at me over on Twitter or Facebook. How did this all get started? I get a lot of questions about the origins / background of this project. This Newshour piece has most of the story: Read the book About the project Share your poem Ask a question Twitter Instagram Facebook My blog All of Tumblr Follow on Tumblr RSS Feed Random Archive Mobile © 2010–2014 Powered by Tumblr