2014 April PAD Challenge: Day 20
I’ve been playing with forms a little this month. It’s something I do when I start to feel a little stuck in my writing. Imposing rules–oddly enough–seems to free me…
I've been playing with forms a little this month. It's something I do when I start to feel a little stuck in my writing. Imposing rules--oddly enough--seems to free me up a bit. So far this month, I've written a villanelle, sestina, a couple sonnets, and even a couple haiku on the side. As you'll see below, I went all triolet on today's prompt.
For today's prompt, write a family poem. I've actually written a few poems about my family this month already, but you don't have to restrict yourself to your own family. There are any number of human families, of course, but also animals, insects, and other organisms. Plus, there are "families" of other types as well. As usual, feel free to bend the prompt to your favor.
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Get feedback on your poetry!
If you want some professional feedback on your poeming efforts, the Writer’s Digest Advanced Poetry Writing course is a great place to start.
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Here's my attempt at a Family Poem:
"dinner"
Tammy asks us all to hold hands
as Will and Hannah lead the prayer
so fast that no one understands
Tammy asks us all to hold hands
and the boys make their food demands
while I start to growl like a bear
Tammy asks us all to hold hands
as Will and Hannah lead the prayer.
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Today's guest judge is...
Scott Owens
Originally from Greenwood, SC, Scott holds degrees from Ohio University, UNC Charlotte, and UNC Greensboro. He currently lives in Hickory, NC, where he teaches at Catawba Valley Community College, edits Wild Goose Poetry Review and serves as vice-president of the NC Poetry Society.
His 11th book of poetry, Eye of the Beholder, was recently released by Main Street Rag.
His work has received awards from the Academy of American Poets, the Pushcart Prize Anthology, the Next Generation/Indie Lit Awards, the NC Writers Network, the NC Poetry Society, and the Poetry Society of SC.
Learn more here: http://www.scottowenspoet.com/.
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Poem Your Heart Out
Poems, Prompts & Room to Add Your Own for the 2014 April PAD Challenge!
Words Dance Publishing is offering 20% off pre-orders for the Poem Your Heart Out anthology until May 1st! If you’d like to learn a bit more about our vision for the book, when it will be published, among other details.
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Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Content Editor of the Writer’s Digest Writing Community and author of Solving the World’s Problems. He thinks family is very, very important--no matter what structure that family takes. Learn more about Robert here: http://www.robertleebrewer.com/.
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Share these poetic posts with your family:
Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Editor of Writer's Digest, which includes managing the content on WritersDigest.com and programming virtual conferences. He's the author of 40 Plot Twist Prompts for Writers: Writing Ideas for Bending Stories in New Directions, The Complete Guide of Poetic Forms: 100+ Poetic Form Definitions and Examples for Poets, Poem-a-Day: 365 Poetry Writing Prompts for a Year of Poeming, and more. Also, he's the editor of Writer's Market, Poet's Market, and Guide to Literary Agents. Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.
