A list poem is just that, a list of items, ideas, or people. The list is usually placed in the middle of the poem, and most end with a surprise, ” a list with a twist”. But can a list be poetic? Of course!
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When I came across Strickland Gillilan’s 1927 poem, “Lines on the Antiquity of Microbes,” I had a good laugh. Not only because it’s a concise, funny poem but because the long, complicated title is comically in contrast. Apparently, someone else thought the same thing (as far as I can tell, nobody has fessed up yet) and later shortened the title to “fleas.” So here it is, the shortest poem in history:
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Having written poetry all my life, I’ve often wondered why. Why did I pick up a pen and write that first poem when I was a child? Why did I continue to write (and read) poetry through adulthood? What makes poetry so special? We’ve all heard that poetry is a form of self-expression, but it’s so much more than that.
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As we near the end of the year 2020, I look back at the hardships and challenges the pandemic has brought with it, but there have been some good things too. I’m grateful my family and friends are well and that I’ve been able to continue to work from home writing books and poems.
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It has been a long nine months since my home state of California locked down due to the pandemic. The entire world is going through a lot right now, but I am amazed at the creativity and resilience of people who are trying to hold on to some normalcy (and their sanity) while in isolation.
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When you write traditional verse, you are bound by rules. Rhyme, meter, stanza, length of line, and more are set up for you depending on which poetry form you have chosen. With free verse, you get to be the boss. You get to decide where to break your lines, which type of stanza to use, and when to end the poem.
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There are 24 days until Christmas, still plenty of time to shop online for the poet, reader, and writer in your life. I’ve gathered a handful of gift ideas that are sure to bring joy to the creative soul at Christmas time or any time. Slide the arrow on the image to “unwrap” the gift.
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We are nearing the end of an incredibly trying year. A small dose of silly is just what the doctor ordered in times like these. So, I challenged myself to come up with a nonsense poem to make you (and your kids) smile. I was having so much fun, I wrote three!
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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). Mask poems can be long or short, serious or humorous. There are no rules as far as meter or rhyme pattern goes but its important to select an interesting subject and use your imagination to reveal the feelings of the object. Is the object lonely, joyful, afraid? Why?
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