In this special edition of our weekly Note, we are excited to share news about the first book of poetry by Dark Angels. ‘Dark Angels: Three Contemporary Poets — Book One’ features the work of poets Thérèse Kieran, Tim Rich and John Simmons.

Why publish a Dark Angels Poetry book, one that proposes to be the first in an ongoing series?

John Simmons reflects on his case for writing poetry to make you a better writer of any kind – copywriter, business writer or novelist.

This week marks the anniversary of the passing of poet Philip Levine who died at the age of 87 on 14 February 2015. This award-winning poet published 17 collections and was appointed Poet Laureate in the US in 2011.

This week marks the birthday of Jules Verne (February 8, 1828 – March 24, 1905). Verne was a French playwright, poet and novelist famous for several beloved novels.

This week marks the birthday of American novelist Gertrude Stein (3 February 1874 - 27 July 1946). Friends with Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, Stein was synonymous with the Paris art scene in the early 1900s and introduced the artists to one another at one of her weekly salons.

This week we are celebrating the life of Virginia Woolf who was born on 25th January 1882. Recognised as “one of the most innovative writers of the 20th century”, Woolf is well known for her novels Mrs Dalloway and To The Lighthouse.

This week marks the birthday of Nazim Hikmet (15 January 1902 - 3 June 1963) Hikmet had a varied writing career, working as a journalist, scriptwriter, proofreader and translator while writing poems and plays about love and war.

This week we are celebrating the birthday of Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, who was born in Kyoto, Japan on January 12, 1949. Before becoming a writer, he ran a jazz bar with his wife, which he ran for seven years.

This week marks the birthday of Stella Gibbons (5 January 1902 – 19 December 1989), English writer, poet and journalist. During her life, she wrote 25 novels, along with short stories and several volumes of poetry.

This week we are celebrating the Icelandic tradition of Jólabókaflóðið, which roughly translates as The Christmas Book Flood. A swell of book buying starts as the festive season approaches and ends with the gifting of books on Christmas Eve.

This week we’re celebrating the birthday of Emily Dickinson (10 December 1830 – 15 May 1886). Dickinson was an American poet whose work was little known outside her circle of family and friends until after her death.