Timeless Lyrical Ephemera . . . a poetic journey: October 2009

About This Blog

I am a writer. I have no other choice. It is not what I do, it is who I am. As a writer, first and foremost, I am a poet. Poetry is where my pen goes when I'm too exhausted or emotionally distraught for any other sort of writing. It's the poem that my ink-blood was designed for. If I can write a poem, even a bad one, the world seems a little more right, and a little less wonky.

This blog is a place to collect my poems, my poem-pieces, my false starts and my ideas. It's a place to discuss poetry, to read and recognize the poetic prowess of others who love language as I do, and to play with language, pick some prompts and be inspired to keep writing.

It's a work in progress. I hope you'll stay a while and read, and keep coming back for more.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Autumn's Voices

Autumn speaks in the wind, several voices
drifting by late on a September breeze.

Fireflies dance to the calliope.
Leaves skitter like so much ephemera.

The melodies are often intimate,
lyrical whispers of a confidante.

Suddenly she shouts---a termagant storm,
vicious, clamoring, distorted and raw.

In the cool evening, facetious and gay
she secretly chortles, an inside joke.

Tugging crimson ribbons from tangled hair,
she ties them out of reach, in a high limb.

Sesquipedalian conversations
are soon silenced by her chattering chill.

She flippantly speaks before spoken to,
although, few will offer any protest.

She celebrates her loved propinquity
Bowing out just before winter’s advent.

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A semi-structured spilled-words poem with ten syllables per line, written to include words from a list of a dozen favorites: propinquity, calliope, firefly, sesquipedalian, crimson, confidante, lyrical, facetious, ephemera, intimate, termagant, distorted.

Poetry Prompts

Grab a word or phrase from this ever- changing list, and write a poem of your own. Be sure to let me know where I can read it in the comments section! I'll feature poems I love right here on the site, and link back to your site, too!

1. Meteor Shower due tonight, Tuesday, August 11, 2009. Write a poem about shooting stars.

2. Choose a cliche' and switch it up. For example: Instead of "just a drop in the bucket" try "just a grain of rice in the jambalaya". Now use this new phrase in your poem.

3. Pick three key items from your childhood memories of summer. Use them in a poem.

4. Start with a line from your favorite poem. (You could cheat a little and choose a line from a novel.) Recycle that line into a first line for your poem, and start writing.

5. Begin with the words, "He said". Then switch to "She said." Use this as a launch for a poem about opposing views.

6. Looking Through the Glass -- write about what you see through a window, a drinking glass, a pair of eyeglasses, a fishbowl or in a mirror... any sort of glass will do.

7. Write a poem where the sounds of the words are as important as what they mean. There's no wrong way to do this, just listen to your words and have fun with it.

8. Grab a book of poetry and choose a favorite, or look up a poem online. Select five words from that poem and incorporate them into your own.

9. Check out Poetic Asides Wednesday Poetry Prompts.

10. Check out Totally Optional Prompts!