There are just 35 days until Christmas but you still plenty of time to shop online for the poet, reader, and writer in your life. I’ve gathered a handful of my favorite gift ideas that are sure to bring joy to the creative soul at Christmas time or any time.
Continue readingAuthor: Danna Smith
Visual Prompt: Nature is My Church
We’ve all been there, pen in hand, waiting for a poem to arrive. Poetry prompts are a great way to get the juices flowing on those inevitable days when a poem doesn’t show up.
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Tattoo Tanka
I was in the mood to write tanka today and I thought it’d switch things up by writing one inspired by one of my daughter’s tattoos. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen this done before, I’m calling it Tattoo Tanka.
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Found Poem: Look for Me Among the Flowers
Found poetry is the literary version of a collage. The poems are made up of words taken from a printed document like a newspaper article, a speech, or in this case, the introduction of the coffee table book Seeing Flowers by Robert Llewellyn and Teri Dunn Chace. The poet selects words from the document and rearranges them to create a unique poem.
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A Publication Celebration and Interview
I’m happy to have my newest book, “How Do You Haiku?” featured on Matt Esenwine’s blog this Poetry Friday! Head over to Radio, Rhythm, & Rhyme for my interview with Matt on the making of the book and to celebrate with us!
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Zen Pop: Hope Matters
Periodically on Poetry Pop, you will see a Zen Pop blog post. These posts are my way of sharing on a personal level and giving you a bit of poetic encouragement while traversing this beautiful (and often challenging) thing we call life.
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Author Interview: Haiku Makes Me Happy
I am pleased to share my interview with Literary Titan about my new how-to haiku handbook and why I wrote it. Click the bolded title below for the scoop!
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How to Create Haiga (With Paint Blots)
Often called Zen Art, Haiga (hi-gah) combines Haiku and drawings on the same page. The poetry and the images work together to strengthen one another. Japanese poets often created Haiga in ink with simple brush strokes. In my book, How Do You Haiku? A Step-by-Step Guide with Templates, we explore Haiga through paint blots. A swipe of paint on paper feels much like the brush stroke the masters used. This project is fun for the whole family or classroom! Enjoy!
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Writing a Mask Poem: Who Am I?
A mask poem (also called a Persona) is written from the point of view of an object, an animal, or a person (other than yourself). Can you guess the subject of the three mask poems below? Read the poems then click the right arrow for the answers.
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