Many people consider slam poetry to be an edgier, more modern feeling twist on the more traditional poems and poetry styles out there. It takes the classic styles and adds an urban layer, making it a favourite even of people who have no interest in traditional styles of poetry.

As with pretty much anything in life, including more traditional art forms, the way in which the internet has evolved has had a massive impact on slam poetry. But how has this incredibly expressive and modern art form been affected by developments to the way we access the Internet?

Well, arguably the most noticeable and best change is how much easier it has become for poets to share their work. You don’t need to have a series of books published or appear on TV performing your poetry for people to hear or read you anymore. Blogging portals such as blogspot.com and wordpress.com mean you can instantly set up a blog at no cost to yourself and start “publishing” your work online quickly and easily. If you have a little budget and a more technical mind, you could purchase a domain and set your own site or blog up. You can record your performance of your poems in audio or even video format and share these, not just on your blog, but on massive websites such as Youtube. Basically, there is a massive global audience for you to potentially tap into. This has resulted in exposure for many unpublished poets.

Another way that the internet has made life easier for poets in general, is the increase in internet-based self publishing facilities. Lulu.com is an example of such, and is a website on which you create an electronic version of a book, that they then turn into hardback or paperback for you, with no minimum order requirements and with the ability to even sell the books through the Lulu website!

But looking at slam poetry style specifically, a form that is brought to life in performance rather than on paper, one of the most exciting internet developments is that of virtual world performance opportunities. Second Life, for example, has a number of slam poets performing at a wide range of virtual venues in the world regularly. The Lyrical Cafe is one such venue founded by poet, Kamille Kamala.

Find out more about slam poetry in Second Life or visit the SL Lyrical Cafe website.