POETS in Lancaster and Morecambe are being invited to take inspiration from the Internet to stand the chance of becoming the first ever "e-poet laureate."

To mark National Poetry Day, poet laureate Andrew Motion and The Poetry Society have teamed up with BT's free e-mail address service to launch a competition to find the best poem about the internet or e-mail.

The winning poem will receive £2,000 and recognition as the first e-poet laureate.

Said Andrew Motion: "The e-poet competition is proof of the ways in which poetry can touch all our lives and make the new forms of communications just as valuable as the old. In the past would-be poets were required to submit their works to publishers in order to gain recognition. Now poets can publish their works on websites dedicated to poetry or create their own home page for the whole world to see."

The Poetry Society will judge the competition and select a short-list of 10 poems. The winning poem will be announced at the end of November 1999. Poets should e-mail their entry from a BT e-mail address to "e-poetlaureate@talk21.com" giving their name, address and telephone number. There's no limit on the entry number.

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