NaPoWriMo Day 24: Today I challenge you to write a “mix-and-match” poem in which you mingle fancy vocabulary with distinctly un-fancy words. First, spend five minutes writing a list of overly poetic words – words that you think just sound too high-flown to really be used by anyone in everyday speech. Examples might be vesper, … Continue reading Seeking Punctuation
romance
You might be broke up
If you've had one trip to Mexico Two Brazilian waxes Three birthday bouquets delivered to your home And more strange men kiss you than you can count on two hands* Since your last date with your boyfriend You might be broke up. ~Just L (April 21, 2016) *Not really, but it rhymes #abouthim
How to (almost) Kiss
NaPoWriMo Day 19: Many years ago, “didactic” poetry was very common – in other words, poetry that explicitly sought to instruct the reader in some kind of skill or knowledge, whether moral, philosophical, or practical. Today, I’d like to challenge you to write the latter kind of “how to” poem – a didactic poem that … Continue reading How to (almost) Kiss
Tempting Fate
It was a beautiful, warm spring afternoon Perfectly staged for a romantic picnic No sooner had I laid down a boundary How this would go between you and me I was offered a private party for two An adventure to another country Followed by a late night text from an ex Three that same day tempting fate So … Continue reading Tempting Fate
Unseasonably Hot
NaPoWriMo Day 16: Today, I challenge you to fill out, in no more than five minutes, the following “Almanac Questionnaire,” which solicits concrete details about a specific place (real or imagined). Then write a poem incorporating or based on one or more of your answers. Happy writing! A powerful storm produced piles of agates, three … Continue reading Unseasonably Hot
Traveling Light
The road I travel will always be bright, because it is and forever completely mine-- Your inability to see me for the beauty and light that I am does not dull my shine-- It simply makes your path darker. ~Just L (April 16, 2016)
An effort to make sense out of the essentially senseless
NaPoWriMo Day 14: Today’s prompt comes to us from TJ Kearney, who invites us to try a seven-line poem called a san san, which means “three three” in Chinese (It’s also a term of art in the game Go). The san san has some things in common with the tritina, including repetition and rhyme. In particular, the san san repeats, three … Continue reading An effort to make sense out of the essentially senseless
Indecision becomes a decision with time
NaPoWriMo Day 9: This one sounds simple, but it can be pretty difficult. Today, I challenge you to write a poem that includes a line that you’re afraid to write. This might be because it expresses something very personal that makes you uncomfortable – either because of its content (“I always hated grandma”), or because … Continue reading Indecision becomes a decision with time
One Cannot Attempt or Invent Perfection
NaPoWriMo Day 7: Our prompt for Day Seven comes to us from Gloria Gonsalves, who challenges us all to write a tritina. The tritina is a shorter cousin to the sestina, involving three, three-line stanzas, and a final concluding line. Three “end words” are used to conclude the lines of each stanza, in a set pattern of ABC, … Continue reading One Cannot Attempt or Invent Perfection
The Legend of Antirrhinum
NaPoWriMo Day 5: April is a time for planting things. At any rate, I’ve recently been paging through seed catalogs, many of which feature “heirloom” seeds with fabulous names. Consider the “Old Ivory Egg” tomato, the “Ozark Razorback” or “Fast Lady” cow-pea, “Neal’s Paymaster” dent corn, or the “Tongues of Fire” bush bean. Today, I … Continue reading The Legend of Antirrhinum
Just L Poetry 