"Nature's world is brazen, the poets only deliver a golden". —Sir Philip

Challenge Yourself

By sarajean on 7/8/10 11:26pm
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There are a few different poetry challenges that I love to participate in. Most people know about NaPoWriMo—or National Poetry Writing Month—which occurs every spring. That one is pretty straightforward; you write a poem every day for thirty days. Fun and simple, it’s a fantastic way to challenge yourself and get those creative juices flowing.

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Fancy a Game of Splatt?

By sarajean on 6/28/10 10:52pm
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splattsplatt

We used to have a big freezer in my office. It took up way too much room, so we moved it to the basement. I don’t miss the ginormous thing, but I do miss the little poetry magnets I kept on its door. When I had my daughter, a friend bought me a set of “Motherhood” poetry magnets and I turned to them over and over—not for lengthy periods of time, but for some starter fluid (as Jill Badonsky calls it) now and again when I was feeling a little blocked.

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Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?

By sarajean on 4/29/10 1:39am
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Today, April 29, is Poem in Your Pocket Day! The concept for participation is very simple: just type up or print out your favorite poem, put it in your pocket, and share it with everyone all day. Sounds like fun, right? Here are a few ways you might want to share your poem.

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Break Out Your Quills for NaPoWriMo

By sarajean on 4/1/10 4:50pm
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Today marks the beginning of National Poetry Writing Month, also known as NaPoWriMo. (It’s also simply National Poetry Month.) It’s a very simple concept that still maintains its elusiveness for many writers: you simply write a poem every day throughout the month of April to participate.

Many writers (me included) have attempted to write a poem every single day and failed. For me, it’s always mid-month, when I’m busy and think, “I can catch up tomorrow.” I always have great intentions at the beginning of anything I participate in, but the problem is that I participate in too many things! The results are a lot of half-finished projects, unfortunately.

So how can procrastinators, eager beavers who burn out, and other people like me conquer NaPoWriMo this month and really get on the ball? Here are a few ideas.

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The Argument Against Imagism

By msarko on 3/24/10 6:20am
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Anyone who had the experience of pursuing an English degree in American universities over the past 25 years likely got their fill of the Imagist school of poetry. In the 1980's, a large crop of academic poets cleaved close to the principles of writers like Theodore Roethke and Elizabeth Bishop, as well as somewhat erroneously claiming William Carlos Williams and e.e. cummings among their forebears. They dubbed themselves The New Imagists, a loose collective of creative writing professors who by some fluke of timing came to occupy a majority of the top posts in higher education in America. This, thanks in large part to their artistic myopia, resulted in a woefully lopsided poetry curriculum.



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Burns' Night

By lisala on 1/25/10 5:58pm
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Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759 to 1796) is probably best known, outside of Scotland, for writing "Auld Lang Syne." In Scotland he's known as a fiercely Scottish and incredibly prolific poet and balladeer. Every January 25, or near to it, people all over the world gather together for a Burns Supper, or Burns Night, in honor of the poet, and all things Scottish. The traditional meal is haggis, neeps and tatties, or a boiled mince and oat stuffing (haggis is cognate with hash) with mashed potatoes and turnips, and, in most cases, plenty of Scots whisky (better known to the Gaels as uisge beatha), and recitations and performances of Burns' works.

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National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week

By sarajean on 1/13/10 10:30pm
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Is this not the goofiest, most insane way to have fun with poetry you’ve ever heard of? If someone mentioned “cowbody poetry” to me, I would think of being an Okie from Muskogee, refusing to use a rocking chair, and rhyming the two with Mama, Elvis, and a favorite family dog. But really, think of the possibilities this week…

Learn about, write, and submit some cowboy poetry.

Wear a cowboy hat while you write. If you have it, wear a whole cowboy costume. (Then go shopping.)

Use this word bank for a poem: coyote, spurs, buckle, ranch, Texan, chaps, yodel, ten gallon hat, boots, lasso, cattle, beans, campfire, cactus, roundup.

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Arseny Tarkovsky: 20th Century Russian Poet

By msarko on 11/16/09 8:16pm
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Some of the greatest poets of 20th century came out of what was then the Soviet Union. Names like Marina Tsvetaeva and Anna Akhmatova are highly celebrated in modern academic circles, and their words are held up as some of the most inspiring in any language. The days of communism were both a boon and a hurdle to Russian-language writers. The Soviet Union was known for its tendency to strongly censor creative individuals, but it also strongly supported a few who were in the Party's favor. The poet Arseny Tarkovsky, who studied under and among many of the greats of his time, owed much of his career as a professional writer, though he struggled as an artist in a time of oppression.



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Open Mic Etiquette

By msarko on 11/9/09 7:57pm
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Since time immemorial people have gathered to listen to others recite poetry. These days, open mic nights are the preferred setting, so readings don't really have the awe and gravitas of the Greek lyricists or the guest poets of Renaissance courts. But just because the circumstances have grown less formal over the years doesn't mean that there aren't still proper manners for attending and reading poetry in public. Follow these simple courtesies to have the best open mic experience wherever you go.



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The Sonnet

By lisala on 11/7/09 6:36pm
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The "standard" definition of a sonnet is fourteen lines of iambic pentameter, but such was not always the case. The most frequent departures from the standard, especially in the very early Italian sonnets involves a number of lines other than fourteen, or, especially in sonnets after the Elizabethan era, all sorts of metrical differences. The sonnet was an Italian poetic form that entered English literature by way of two sixteenth century English poets, Thomas Wyatt and Sir Henry Surrey. The two translated the sonnets of the medieval Italian poet Petrarch, their sonnets were printed in Tottle's Miscellany, and from there, the form became increasingly popular with court poets and musicians alike.

There are three principal sonnet styles or forms, with a number of minor variations and hybrid forms.

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