Writers of gloomy verse drop off in deep south (9)

I believe the answer is:

monodists

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'writers of gloomy verse' is the definition.
The definition suggests a plural noun which matches the answer.

'drop off in deep south' is the wordplay.
'drop off' becomes 'nod' (I've seen this before).
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'deep' becomes 'moist' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'south' becomes 's' (abbreviation).
'nod' placed within 'moist' is 'monodist'.
'monodist'+'s'='MONODISTS'

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I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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