Summer Rerun – 10-Line Poems

This week’s summer rerun comes from Prompt #167. The challenge is for you to write a 10-line  poem (not a line less or more) using a prescribed format. For starters, the “rules” are specific, so try to follow them closely for your first draft. 

The “Rules”

1. Don’t use any terminal punctuation, but begin each line with a capital letter.

2. Throw out all prose impulses (no narrative poems).

3. Resist all formal tendencies (no metrical patterns or rhyme schemes).

4. Don’t plan any part of your poem—just write from line to line.

5. As you write, see what relationships develop; discover what’s going on in the poem.

6. When you finish, look through the poem for a word or phrase that you can use as a title.

7. Let the poem “sit” for a day or two and then look at it again. That will be the time to make changes, to break the rules, tweak, refine, and “color outside the margins.”

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Now ...

8. Make changes in capitalization and punctuation (add periods, question marks, commas etc).

9. Work on alliteration and other sound qualities in your poem.

10. Decide on line breaks. 

Ready?

Line 1: Open the poem with an action.

Line 2: Write a specific image related (even if only superficially) to the last word in line 1.

Line 3: Ask an unconnected question and put it in italics.

Line 4: Write an image related to the question in line 3.

Line 5: Answer the question in line 3 and include a color.

Line 6: Write an image related to the answer in line 5 (direct or suggested).

Line 7: Add a detail in which you modify a noun with an unusual or unlikely adjective.

Line 8: Add an image that echoes or relates to the action in line 1.

Line 9: Free line—add whatever you wish.

Line 10: Close with something seemingly unrelated, strange, or surreal. 

Sample Poem (Draft Only)

A Lingering Dream

Line 1:  She lifts the potted plant from its place on the windowsill

Line 2:  Dusk slips in through parted curtains

Line 3:  A lingering dream, and what came after

Line 4:  The evening sky deepens into something darker

Line 5:  A shade of blue she’s never seen before

Line 6:  Ghosts in spaces between the stars

Line 7:  The clattering choices were hers to make

Line 8:  Gently, her fingertip traces the edge of a tiny bloom

Line 9:  Choices, yes, and flowers among the regrets

Line 10: She removes the china doll from her dresser drawer

Summer Rerun – Memoir Poem

This week, I've gone all the way back to June 27, 2010 and Prompt #11. (You'll notice ow the prompt format has changed over the years).  Memoir poems are perennial favorites with many options for new work.

For this prompt, try writing a memoir poem about an experience that haunts you. This is not to suggest a bad experience but, rather, a memory that continues to inform the present.

Memoir poems are narrative because they tell stories. However, we often see memoir "poems" that "narrate" in what is essentially prose (with a couple of good images, a few similes or metaphors, and stanzaic arrangements). Most of these poems don't succeed because they never reach beyond the poet’s impulse to “tell.” The poem has to be more than the story – it has to be about what happened because of the story.

Watch out for abstractions and generalizations that equal sentimentality – there's a big difference between image and abstraction. A memoir poem needs a strong emotional center that doesn’t smother meaning with sentiment or read like a diary entry.

A poem should contain an element of mystery or surprise – first to the poet and then to the reader or listener. A lot of the poems that are read and published today are so cluttered with superfluous detail (and adjectives) that there are no mysteries or surprises, and the poems become claustrophobic experiences (I call it TMW – too many words). Write short for this one as a discipline against writing too much. Leave a few blanks for the reader to fill in. In other words, tell, but don't "tell it all." Your memoir poem should lead readers to something more than the memory.

A perfect example is John Ashbery's "This Room."

In this poem Ashbery remembers a room, a person, a relationship. He incorporates a few precise details, but not many – he leaves much to the reader and still achieves a startling sense of loss and remembrance.

Other great examples (and these, too, are short poems) are William Stafford's "Once in the 40s" and Gerald Stern's "The Dancing."

William Stafford: "Once in the 40's"

Gerald Stern: "The Dancing"

Summer Rerun – Fly on the Wall

This week’s rerun dates to January 11, 2011 and the subject of flies (seems appropriate for summertime). Flies in poetry may not be common, but I'm sure you're familiar with Emily Dickinson's famous poem "I Heard a Fly Buzz."

I heard a Fly buzz - when I died - (591) By Emily Dickinson

I heard a Fly buzz - when I died –

The Stillness in the Room

Was like the Stillness in the Air –

Between the Heaves of Storm –

The Eyes around - had wrung them dry –

And Breaths were gathering firm

For that last Onset – when the King

Be witnessed – in the Room –

I willed my Keepsakes – Signed away

What portion of me be

Assignable – and then it was

There interposed a Fly –

With Blue - uncertain – stumbling Buzz –

Between the light – and me –

And then the Windows failed – and then

I could not see to see –

This week we're going to work with a "fly idea," but our treatment will be different from Emily D's. We've all heard the expression "fly on the wall." The meaning of the phrase suggests the ability to observe a situation without being seen or heard.

This isn't a new prompt idea, but it's one with lots of possibilities, and the challenge this week is to take yourself – in the form of a fly – into an unusual or emotionally charged place to tell what you see and hear. The idea is to become virtually invisible but nonetheless present.

1. You may "become" the fly and speak from the fly's point of view (persona/personification).

2. You may go back in time to observe yourself in a particular situation from your past.

3. You may eavesdrop on a conversation you were never intended to hear.

4. You may be anywhere, at any time, observing people and listening to what they say.

5. Your tone may be serious, humorous, or ironic.

To begin, imagine yourself as a fly on a wall. Where are you? What do you see? Who is there with you? What do you hear? What insights into a situation do you have from your unseen/unnoticed perspective? What can you (the fly) explain about human behavior in the situation you observe? Is there a situation in which you (the fly) can offer insights into your own actions or personality? What do you learn when you (the fly) observes you (the person)? How may the fly become a metaphor?

Some places to consider for your wall: a cocktail party, a wedding, a masked ball, a birthday party from your childhood, the midst of an argument, a classroom, a divorce court, a funeral parlor, a room in an altered dimension, an empty house, a cruise ship, a bar or pub, a tent deep in a forest. 

Summer Rerun Prompt #213– Tell It to the Birds

As noted in an earlier post, summer is the time for reruns here on the blog. I've selected a number of old prompts that I hope you'll find interesting and useful. Even if you've used these prompts before, revisiting them just might generate some new ideas for new poems.

Here we go!

Prompt #213 – Tell It to the Birds

I’ve always loved birds (they appear frequently in my poems), and I raised small exotic birds for many years. Although I don't have any exotics living in the house with me now, I feed the backyard birds, especially during the cold months, and I always look forward to seeing them—from the nondescript sparrows to the brilliant cardinals. Summer is, of course, a wonderful time for bird watching.

 

This week, I’d like you write create a poem in which you direct your comments (a kind of monologue) to a bird. You may be serious or humorous, but the idea is to come up with a theme that somehow relates to or juxtaposes bird life and human life. For example, some possible themes might include freedom, flight/flying, providing for children, and not wanting to be caged (literally or figuratively).

Guidelines:

Think of all the bird species you know and select one (i.e., sparrow, lark, robin, canary, zebra finch, parrot, macaw, hawk, egret, heron, mourning dove, early bird, night owl, phoenix, stork).

Make a list of things that you might say to a bird—work toward a single theme and stick to that theme.

Write a poem in which you talk to a bird-member of the species you chose.

An alternative might be to address comments to more than one bird (that reminds me of the story about St. Francis of Assisi and how he preached to a flock of birds).

Or, you might want to try a conversation with a bird in which you and the bird speak to one another (dialogue rather than monologue).

You may prefer a humorous approach and address a bird that dropped a little “something” on your shoulder or head, the stork that delivered your son or daughter, the crow that stole a piece of your jewelry, or the parrot (parakeet) that learned a few naughty words.

Tips:

Think in terms of no more than a 12-15 lines.

Don’t spend a lot of time in describing the bird—focus on what you have to say to it.

Depending on which source you consult, you’ll find that various birds are symbolic of different qualities. Here are a few general ideas:

• Doves symbolize peace.

• Eagles symbolize power, resurrection, and courage.

• Cranes symbolizes long life and immortality.

• Falcons symbolize protection.

• Nightingales symbolize love and longing.

• Sparrows symbolize hope, gentleness, and intelligence.

• Swans symbolize gracefulness and beauty.

• Herons symbolize self-reliance and determination.

• Hawks symbolize guardianship, illumination, and truth.

• Woodpeckers symbolize magic and prophecy.

• Robins symbolize joy, hope, and happiness.

• Cardinals symbolize loved ones who have passed.

• Crows symbolize trickery, cunning, and theft.

Example: 

"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe

P.S. The image above was taken three years ago when a mama robin built her nest in one of my cedar trees. There were four babies, and all grew up to be fully feathered and to fly away.

Book Giveaway at Goodreads!

There's a giveaway being offered at Goodreads 

for a copy of my new book, Not Asking What If. 

June 30th – July 30th

I hope you'll enter!

 
 

    Goodreads Book Giveaway
 

   

       
   

   

     

          Not Asking What If
     

     

          by Adele Kenny
     

     

         
            Giveaway ends July 30, 2016.
         

         
            See the giveaway details
            at Goodreads.
         

     

   

   

    Enter Giveaway

Summer Reading

Today we celebrate the summer solstice here in the Northern Hemisphere—

the longest day of the year and the shortest night—
a good time to discover or revisit Shakespeare's
A Midsummer Night's Dream
(which you can read online by clicking on the title above).

I thought today would also be a good time to share some of my favorite recently-published poetry books by way of  recommendation for your summer reading.

Before I list the books, and I know I promised myself that this wouldn't be an "about me" poetry blog, I'm breaking my own rule because I'm so happy and honored to share that my book A Lightness, A Thirst, or Nothing At All is a 2016 Paterson Poetry Prize finalist (for books published in 2015). 

   

  
Mark Doty's book Deep Lane is the winner and here are the finalists:

• Reginald Dwayne Betts, Bastards of the Reagan Era (Four Way Books, New York, NY) 
• Tony Hoagland, Application for Release from the Dream (Graywolf Press, Minneapolis, MN

• Patricia Spears Jones, A Lucent Fire: New & Selected Poems (White Pine Press, Buffalo, NY)

• Adele Kenny, A Lightness, A Thirst, or Nothing at All (Welcome Rain Publishers, New York, NY)

• Richard Michelson, More Money Than God (University of Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, PA)

• Vivian Shipley, Perennial (Negative Capability Press, Mobile, AL)

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Following are my top ten 2016 poetry books 
recommended for your summer reading 
(in alphabetical order by title).
 

 Atlas Apothecary by Tom Plante (Finishing Line Press)

Bright Stranger by Katherine Soniat (Louisiana State University Press)

Coat Thief by Jeffrey Davis (Saint Julian Press)

Collected Poems: 1974–2004 by Rita Dove (Norton).

Confessions of a Captured Angel by Neil Carpathios (Terrapin Books)

The Big Book of Exit Strategies by Jamaal May (Alice James)

The Uneaten Carrots of Atonement by Diane Lockward (Wind Publications)

The View from the Body by Renée Ashley (Black Lawrence Press)

Then Come Back: The Lost Neruda by Pablo Neruda (Copper Canyon)

To the Left of Time by Thomas Lux (Mariner: Houghton)

If you have other poetry books that you recommend,
I'd love to know about them, so please post their titles and authors as comments!

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BTW ...

If you're looking for journals that accept submissions during the summer, 

be sure to visit Diane Lockward's blog, Blogalicious.

Summer Journals A-F

Summer Journals G-P

Summer Journals Q-Z

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Enjoy the season and all the poetry that comes your way!

 I wish each of you, dear blog readers,

 a happy, restful, and healthy summer! 

Summer reruns will begin on Saturday, July 2nd, 

so please stay tuned!

Prompt #258 – My New Book & Honoring the Art of Detachment

I'm so happy to share the exciting news that my most recent poetry book, a collection of haiku (new and selected), has been published by Muse-Pie Press. It's been almost 20 years since my last haiku collection, so this book is really special to me. It's also very special to me because it's dedicated to my godson, Gabriel. 

Not Asking what if

ISBN: 978-0-918453-51-8
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016902139

Cover Photograph by Bob Fiorellino
 “Great Blue in Silhouette” Copyright © 2016 by Robert J. Fiorellino
All rights reserved.

Muse-Pie Press
73 Pennington Avenue
Passaic, NJ
www.musepiepress.com

80 Pages
105 Haiku
$14.00

If you'd like to order a copy, and I hope you will, payment is easy via PayPal. Just click on the link below, and many thanks in advance for your order!

Click here to Order NOT ASKING WHAT IF

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Prompt

I thought that this week, in keeping with the subject of haiku, we might revisit a haiku prompt from some time ago (Prompt #187). 

 Haiku: Honoring the Art of Detachment

Haiku’s origins have been traced to a form of Japanese poetry known as haikai no renga, a kind of linked poetry that was practiced widely by Matsuo Bashō (1644-94) and his contemporaries. Over time, the first link in a renga, the hokku, evolved into the haiku as we understand it today. A minimalist form of poetry, haiku has been popular among modern poets since the 1960s, when a western-world haiku movement generated increased interest in the form. Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Gary Snyder, Billy Collins, John Ashbery, and Paul Muldoon have written haiku, and haiku-like poems are found in the works of such literary greats as Ezra Pound, Amy Lowell, and Richard Wright. Although something other than “mainstream” poetry and very much its own genre, haiku is a unique and demanding form to master.

In traditional Japanese, the haiku is typically written vertically on the page  (from top to bottom). Each haiku contains seventeen onji (sound symbols). However, early translators were mistaken when they assumed that onji were equivalent to syllables in the English language and that haiku should be written in three lines containing 5,7, and 5 syllables respectively. Although incorrect, these “defining” qualities of haiku are still regarded as “haiku format” by many. A more acceptable standard for English-language haiku is 10-20 syllables in 3 lines with a longer second line and shorter first and third lines. That said, the parameters are often stretched depending on content and meaning. Three lines have become the norm, but haiku of one and two lines are also seen, and syllable count varies.

Traditional haiku contain a kigo (season word) to indicate the season or time of year in which the haiku takes place, along with two phrases (or images) that are inherently unrelated but are juxtaposed to show some commonality within a particular experience. Normally, one idea is presented in the first two lines and then a switch occurs in the third. Alternatively, a single idea is presented in the first line and a switch occurs in the second and third lines. Nearly every haiku has this kind of two-part, juxtapositional structure. The shift is achieved with what is called a kireji or cutting word, which “cuts” the poem into two parts. The kireji is a kind of caesura (and similar in theory to the volta in a sonnet) that signals a pause in the poem’s “thought” and suggests a parallel to the preceding phrase, the following phrase, or provides a “dismount for the poem that offers a finely tuned sense of closure.   

Haiku is, in a sense, an art of detachment in which the poet is removed enough from the subject to write without self-interest or self-absorption but, rather, with a sense of both inward and outward direction. The best haiku are life-affirming and eternity-conscious, spontaneous and unpretentious but entirely focused and either gently or startlingly profound. 

Note: The word haiku forms its own plural – haikus is incorrect.

Acknowledgment: The essay part of this prompt (above) first appeared in 

Tiferet: Literature, Art, & The Creative Spirit (Digital Issue, April 2014) 

Guidelines: 

1. Haiku describe things in a very few words – they never tell, intellectualize, or state feelings outrightly. They never use figures of speech (similes, metaphors, etc.) and should not rhyme.

2. Haiku is more than a simple genre or form of poetry—haiku is a way of seeing, a way of capturing experience, a kind of “aha” moment or instant when something in the ordinary captures our attention and leads us to a closer, more concentrated look at its connection to nature, and human nature.

3. Haiku don’t have titles, although haiku sequences do.

4. Brevity is key, along with a sense of immediacy (written in the present tense) and often a sense of relationship between nature and human nature. Some haiku poets feel that one measure of a haiku’s success is its ability to be read in a single breath. Most will agree that a successful haiku is characterized by crystal-cutting clarity and in-the-moment presence.

5. Haiku are about spiritual realities, the realities of our every-day lives, and the realities of human- and natural-world relationships. Most importantly, haiku honor the inside of an experience through attention to the outside.

6. Compact and direct, haiku appear to be light and spontaneous, but their writing requires careful reflection and discipline—haiku may even be considered a kind of meditation. Finely-tuned powers of observation reveal the haiku moments that happen continually in the world around us. 

7. Don’t be bound by any notions of 5,7,5 syllable structure—focus instead on use of season words, two-part juxtapositions, and objective sensory imagery. 

Tips: 

1. Bashō said that each haiku should be “a thousand times on the tongue.” Before writing anything, read many haiku from a range of sources to get a “feel” for the form. Be sure to read some haiku that have been translated from the Japanese, but spend more time on good haiku written in English. Read some of the haiku aloud.

2. After you’ve read many haiku and have a sense of what they’re about, think about an experience you’ve had.

3. Remember the season in which you had the experience, and then think of a word or phrase that suggests that season. For example, peonies is a season word for spring; snow and ice are season words for winter. A simple phrase like “autumn leaves” can evoke feelings of loneliness and the coming of darkness (shorted days, longer nights) in winter. While many haiku appear to have a nature focus, they are more-specifically based on a seasonal reference that as much about nature as it is within nature.

4. Organize your thoughts into approximately three lines. First, set the scene, then suggest a feeling and, finally, make an observation or record an action.  Write in the present tense, don’t use figures of speech (similes, metaphors), and keep things simple.

5. Be sure to include a contrast or a comparison. Remember that haiku often present one idea in the first two lines and then switch quickly to something else in the third. One of your goals is to create a “leap” between the two parts of your haiku without making too obvious a connection between the parts or leaping to a distance that’s unclear or obscure. At the same time, you must reveal the emotions (not ideas) that you want to communicate without stating them overtly.

6. Try to think of haiku in terms of your five senses—things you experience directly, not ideas or your interpretation or analysis of “things.” Think in terms of sensory description and avoid subjective terms. 

7. Spend time working on punctuation. In poems so brief, punctuation is important. Read some of the examples and see how other haiku poets make punctuation work for them in their haiku. 


Examples: 

From the Japanese Masters


Winter seclusion –

Listening, that evening,

To the rain in the mountain.

— Issa

My life, –

How much more of it remains?

The night is brief.

— Shiki

Over the wintry

forest, winds howl in rage

with no leaves to blow.

— Soseki

No one travels

Along this way but I,

This autumn evening.

— Bashō 

Contemporary Haiku from Frogpond (Journal of the Haiku Society of America) 

Frogpond 37.1 • Winter 2014

Frogpond 36.3 • Autumn 2013

Frogpond 36.2 • Summer 2013

Frogpond 36.1 • Winter 2013

Frogpond 35.3 • Autumn 2012

Frogpond 35.2 • Summer 2012

Frogpond 35.1 • Winter 2012

Frogpond 34.3 • Autumn 2011

Frogpond 34.2 • Summer 2011

Frogpond 34.1 • Winter 2011

Frogpond 33.3 • Autumn 2010

Frogpond 33.2 • Summer 2010

Frogpond 33.1 • Winter 2010

Frogpond 32.3 • Autumn 2009

Frogpond 32.2 • Summer 2009

Frogpond 32.1 • Winter 2009

Frogpond 31.3 • Autumn 2008

Frogpond 31.2 • Spring/Summer 2008