The only thing worse than having to listen to poetry, is having to listen to bad poetry. I kid, of course (I love poetry, I swear), except about the bad poetry part, that is really awful. But today, we celebrate that bad poetry in all it’s unpleasant glory, today is Bad Poetry Day.

Created by the good people at Wellcat Holidays & Herbs, Bad Poetry Day was originally celebrated by gathering old high school friends, writing bad poetry, and sending the finished products to old English teachers. But you can celebrate today by just creating some good ol’ bad verse. You can find your inspiration here, but whatever you do, make sure to have fun with it.

There’s nothing like the poetry of Sylvia Plath to brighten up any birthday celebration, and good thing, because today is Sylvia Plath Day to celebrate the anniversary of her birthday.

Sylvia Plath was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer born in Massachusetts. She married fellow poet, Ted Hughes, and they had two children together.

Plath is credited with advancing the genre of confessional poetry, and is best known for her two collections The Colossus and Other Poems and Ariel. She also published a semi-autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar, in which she wrote about struggles with depression and mental illness. The Bell Jar details the mental and emotional journey of a college student who interns at a New York fashion magazine.

In 1963, shortly after the publication of The Bell Jar, Plath committed suicide by p[lacing her head in the oven.

Nealry two decades after her death, Plath became the first poet to win a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for The Collected Poems published in 1981, and so today, we celebrate her.

You can celebrate in a few different ways:

• Read some of her poetry.
• Read The Bell Jar.
• Watch a movie. Plath was portrayed by Gwyneth Paltrow in the 2003 film, Sylvia, that tells the story of Plath’s troubled relationship with Hughes.
• Get more information about Sylvia Plath.

But please, please, whatever you do, do not celebrate by sticking your head in the oven, focus on Plath’s writing and the good that came from it.

Image from thebutterflydiaries.wordpress.com.