a gift is a ZINGY thing!

Day Twenty-nine at NaPoWriMo. The prompt for the day is to write a poem in which you muse on the gifts you received at birth — whether they are actual presents, like a teddy bear, or talents – like a good singing voice – or circumstances – like a kind older brother, as well as …

i XOXO I

Day Twenty-seven at NaPoWriMo and it gets no better! First the optional prompt that I decided to go with. The challenge is to write a “duplex.” A “duplex” is a variation on the sonnet, developed by the poet Jericho Brown. Here’s one of his first “Duplex” poems, and here is a duplex written by the …

Grief

Today's prompt at NaPoWriMo is to write a poem that contains at least one of a different kind of simile – an epic simile. Also known as Homeric similes, these are basically extended similes that develop over multiple lines. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they have mainly been used in epic poems, typically as decorative elements that emphasize the …

Weary Ants

Day 23 NaPoWriMo challenge is to write a poem in the style of Kay Ryan, whose poems tend to be short and snappy – with a lot of rhyme and soundplay. They also have a deceptive simplicity about them, like proverbs or aphorisms. Once you’ve read a few, you’ll see what I mean. Here’s her …

Day 21. Jade

Day 21 at NaPoWriMo. The prompt is an interesting one. This prompt asks you to write a poem in which you first recall someone you used to know closely but are no longer in touch with, then a job you used to have but no longer do, and then a piece of art that you …

On Love

Hello Poetry Lovers It’s been a hard-pressed weekend. With a little breather on Sunday, I decided to do two days of NaPoWriMo together. While I stuck to the prompt for Day Sixteen (A curtal sonnet. This is a variation on the classic 14-line sonnet. The curtal sonnet form was developed by Gerard Manley Hopkins, and he …