Roses are red and violets are blue, but students who want to put a new twist on Valentine’s Day for their significant others have another option besides flowers this year.

Writer’s Bloc, a student organization for anyone interested in creative writing, is selling personalized valentine poems to raise money.

This is the first year the organization has offered this service, but, if it goes well, it may be offered again, said Jennifer Johnson, editorial assistant for the literary journal Flyway.

“The Valentine Poem Project is an effort to raise funds for our next issue of Flyway, which is currently experiencing financial difficulties,” said Johnson, graduate student in English.

The university’s budget cuts resulted in Flyway’s budget being cut, which meant they would need to do something to raise funds, said James Austin, president of Writer’s Bloc.

The idea for selling the poems came from another literary magazine, said Colin Rafferty, graduate assistant in English.

Flyway is a national professional literary journal produced by the English department, Johnson said. A large amount of the money the journal usually receives from subscription renewals and from a grant wasn’t received, Johnson said.

Austin, graduate student in English, said he will be helping to write the valentines Friday.

Everyone in Writer’s Bloc is meeting Friday night to write the poems, Rafferty said.

“It will be a one-night marathon session,” said Rafferty, treasurer of Writer’s Bloc.

There are reasons why having the Writer’s Bloc write a poem for a valentine would appeal to many people, Austin said.

“The idea is that we know how to write poetry and we can help people say things they don’t quite know how to,” he said.

The valentines are being sold between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. in the lobby of Pearson Hall or 203 Ross Hall through Friday, Johnson said.

“The sender fills out a short form, letting us know the recipient’s name and address, whether they want the poem to be funny or serious, and also answering questions about their valentine,” Johnson said.

These questions might include “How did you meet?” and “If you could go anywhere with your valentine, where would you go?”

“We use this information to compose a poem especially for that person,” she said.

The valentines are being written on decorated pink paper and can be either eight or 14 lines long, Johnson said. The prices for the valentines are $5 for an eight-line poem and $8 for a 14-line sonnet.