Friday, November 21, 2008

Poetry Friday - How I Write

Today I'm sharing an original poem, inspired by this week's poetry stretch to write a list poem.
How I Write

Preparation
Empty notebook
  Fine blue pen
    Comfortable chair
      Quiet room
        Stillness

Contemplation
Stare at page
  Just write
    Tap fingers
      Write something
        Twirl pen
Write anything!

Inspiration
Look closely
  Lines on my hand
    Drape of a blanket
      Spider on wall
        Bird at the feeder
          Squirrel climbing tree
            Dog at my feet
              AHA!
Pen glides across the page
  Line after line unfolds

Great Frustration
Cross out
  Rearrange
    Change form
      Make it rhyme
        Revise, revise, revise
          Doodle
Take out rhyme
  Search thesaurus
    Revise, revise, revise
      Tear out pages
        Put them back
          Close the book

Hibernation
Tuck away in dresser drawer
  Safe beneath pajamas
    Life intervenes

Revelation
Days
  Weeks
    Months pass
Preparing dinner
  Thoughts drift
    In my head
Run to drawer
  Open book
    At last!
      I’ve found the words
But is it poetry?
The round up this week is hosted by Holly at Brimstone Soup. Do stop by and check out all the great poetry being shared this week. Happy poetry Friday, all!

9 comments:

  1. That's always the question, isn't it?
    And the answer is really a matter of perspective.

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  2. Ha! This made me smile--with recognition. How can anyone describe how poetry is actually made? But this is a great picture of how it FEELS.

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  3. That space and time that the pajama drawer allows is so needed. :-) Loved the shape of this poem, too!

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  4. Out of a list you've created if not a poem, then something very close to it. I enjoyed it very much. Thanks for sharing.

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  5. Tricia,

    It's funny how some poems nearly write themselves--and how others involve so much time and effort. I know well the "putting away" of poems for a time.

    Years ago, I used to write all my poems in notebooks--that was before I had a typewriter...and later a computer. I still keep small journals in which I jot down ideas and rough drafts of many of my poems. Now, I love using a word processor to try out different drafts of poems.

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  6. Elaine - I wish I could write poetry on the computer. For me, it just doesn't leave the "trail of evidence" that paper versions do. I can see everything I have tried. On the computer, I forget to save as, so I often can't see how far I've come with a draft.

    I've had such a hard time writing lately. I think it's because work (and the administrative stuff I despise) has been consuming so much time. I hope that with the break I'll be able to write a bit easier!

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  7. Tricia,

    I haven't been writing much of anything lately myself.

    I just became so swamped in a sea of paper when I worked on all the different drafts of all my poems on paper. For a number of my manuscripts, I still keep a notebook with first drafts of poems and a "drafts" file in my computer. I also print out drafts of poems to work on when I'm not at my desk, or sitting outside, or on vacation. Those drafts I keep in labeled folders.

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  8. I love your list poem!!! And I just read Franki's post at A Year of Reading about Georgia Heard's new book of list poems. I think list poetry is something I may need to visit with my students after Thanksgiving -- it was meant to be!!

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  9. I love your poem. It makes my Wall of Writing - posts and thoughts that inspire me.

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