Edik Poghosyan’s “Diary of a Waiting Man” (Trailer) Published by Newmag & Friends

The book is a collection of contemporary Iranian poetry, translated into Armenian by Edik Poghosyan. Translating modern Iranian verse has long been one of Poghosyan’s greatest passions.

“Translating one poem a day became a pleasant challenge for me,” says Edik. “After about six months, I decided to turn it into a collection with a unique concept — 365 short poems, one for each day of the year, plus one extra for leap years.”

Originally published in 2015 in a limited edition, the book was designed like a daily poetic diary - compact enough to fit in a pocket. Its structure was inspired by the 14th-century Iranian poet Hafez, whose collections Iranians often use for daily reflection or fortune-telling.

Just like that tradition, readers can open Diary of a Waiting Man to any random page and find their poem of the day. Poghosyan recalls how the idea came to life:

“When I first created Diary of a Waiting Man, this kind of poetic format felt new - a breath of fresh air. It doesn’t diminish the work of the older generation of translators; it’s just that social media helped these poems reach a much wider audience.”

Now, a decade later, the translator has decided to republish the book, bringing together his ten years of experience and refined sensibility. The new edition features updated language, mature editorial work, and a refreshed design — once again printed in 365 copies to reflect the book’s symbolic structure.