For a creative writing class, my offspring had to create a book of favorite words. Knowing a good thing when I see it, I stole a few of them for this poetry prompt.
The Words:
mimicry
testament
rapture
cool
dachshund
cherubim
heretic
infinitesimal
convenient
serendipity
Your Assignment:
Chose three words from the above list and compose a little bit of brilliance of sixty words or less. Bonus points if you title your poem "Book of Words."
Tarot cards have a long and fascinating history. Originally used for playing card games in the 15th century, the cards began to be used for divination in the blah, blah, blah. We don't need to know all that today! Today, we're just goofing.
Your assignment: visit Astrology.com to get your tarot card for the day (it's free; no sign-up). Explore the meaning of your card. Treat it as a joke, a portent, a really cool piece of art - whatever suits your muse. Just make sure your muse keeps her musings to 60 words or less.
For my final Words Count post of 2016, it seems only fitting to feature the Oxford Dictionaries words of the year. Are you ready?
The Oxford Dictionaries word of the year for 2016 is . . . (drum roll, please) . . .
Post-truth:an adjective relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals. But wait! There's more! The shortlist:
Adulting - The practice of behaving in a way characteristic of a responsible adult, especially the accomplishment of mundane but necessary tasks
Alt-right - An ideological grouping associated with extreme conservative or reactionary viewpoints, characterized by a rejection of mainstream politics and by the use of online media to disseminate deliberately controversial content
Brexiteer - A person who is in favour of the UK withdrawing from the European Union
Chatbot - A computer program designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet
Coulrophobia - Extreme or irrational fear of clowns
Glass cliff - Used with reference to a situation in which a woman or member of a minority group ascends to a leadership position in challenging circumstances where the risk of failure is high
Hygge - A quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being, regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture
Latinx - A person of Latin American origin or descent, used as a gender-neutral or non-binary alternative to Latino or Latina
Woke - Originally in African-American usage meaning alert to injustice in society, especially racism
Hell of a year, huh? Let's close it out with a poem (how about 70 words or less) using at least one of the words of the year. Have fun! After all, it's almost over!
Pull up some keyboard and grab yourself a pumpkin spice latte; let's talk about Halloween costumes. Do you dress up, or do you leave it to the kids? If you do dress up, are you an elaborate planner, or do you scrounge through your closet for something at the last minute? Do you go sexy or scary? Stick with the classics or dive into the trendy? Tell me about your dress up plans (or lack thereof) - in 65 words or less.
Note: Think I'm jumping the gun on the costume thing a bit? Nah, I've been working on Baby Puppy's cosplay since JULY!
As I write this (July 10th), I'm feeling bruised and battered by the news of the world. My heart is heavy, my hands feel useless, and I simply can't handle any more horror today. I need something beautiful. Maybe, you do, too.
Here, for your enjoyment and inspiration, are a few images that entered the public domain this year.
Emily Carr, "Big Raven" (1931) Käthe Kollwitz, "Frau mit totem Kind" (1903) Albert Richards, "France - the Beach Head, 1944" (1944) Milena Pavlović Barili
Now, write a poem inspired by one of these images . . . 60 words or less.
My name is Kelli, and blah, blah, blah, boring, boring, boring.
Lately, I've been working on some projects that require a bio. You know, "please include a short biographical statement." Don't you hate those? Wouldn't you, just once, like to tell who you REALLY are? Well, here's your chance. Give me your bio . . . the real story . . . in 50 words or less.
The Blood of a Poet (1930) is Jean Cocteau's first film. A dream-like sequence of vignettes, this avant garde film explores the role of sexuality, pain, and self-doubt in a poet's creative process. Cocteau (a poet himself who believed that poetry is the foundation of all the arts) depicts the creative act as a kind of dangerous, dark, self-inflicted suffering.
At this point in my post, I had planned to summarize the plot of Blood of a Poet. Really, I did. After a few failed attempts, however, I decided that summarizing the plot of a surrealist film is also an act of self-inflicted suffering. Instead, I'll let you check out this rather brilliant mashup of the first two "episodes" of the film (with music by Massive Attack) and form your own impressions.
So, poets, what do you think? Are you inspired? Confused? Both? Do you agree with Cocteau that creativity is dark and dangerous? Or, do you just wish that I had picked a cat playing piano video instead? What do you see when you peek through keyholes? Feel free to approach Blood of a Poet in any way you like. Just keep your act of self-inflicted suffering to 80 words or less.
Today, we're going to get conservative . . . with our words. A recent study by British researchers identified 23 "ultraconserved words" that have remained relatively unchanged since the Ice Age. All of those 23 are cognates (words that have the same meaning and sound in different languages) in at least four of the seven Eurasiatic language families. Translation: that's the 700 languages spoken from the British Isles to western China and from the Arctic to Southern India. Though many researchers remain skeptical, this seems to be compelling evidence of a 15,000 year old mother tongue.
So, want to do a little writing in the mother tongue? Pick a few words from the "ultraconserved words" list and write a poem of 60 words or less.
Here's the list:
thou
I
not
that
we
to give
who
this
what
man / male
ye
old
mother
to hear
hand
fire
to pull
black
to flow
bark
ashes
to spit
worm
As you can see, some of the words are pretty boring. Still, if they were good enough for the cave women . . .
A homophone is a word that is pronounced the same as another word but differs in meaning, and may differ in spelling. The words may be spelled the same, such as rose (flower) and rose (past tense of "rise"), or differently, such as carat, caret, and carrot, or to, two, and too. ---Wikipedia
Today, we're playing with homophones. Any topic, any form, but your piece must include at least one pair of homophones . . . and, be 75 words or less.
Personification - the attribution of human nature or character to animals, things, or abstractions.
Dearest Toads, I regret to inform you that the wind does not really whisper, flowers do not really dance, and the sun never, ever smiles. These are examples of personification, a favorite literary device of poets since dirt was young. Through personification, we can give verses and a voice to an animal, feelings to a toothbrush, or even physical characteristics to a feeling.
image via pinterest
Since this is the first day of October (a witchy fun month), let's throw some personification her way. Personify October in any way you choose. Just keep it to 53 words or less.
The older I get, the easier it is for me to admit that I'm a little weird. Yes, I can pick up a quarter using only my toes. Yes, I'm a water sign that hates the water. And, yes, I do watch Fox News just to piss myself off. See? A little weird.
What about you? Are you a little weird, too? Do tell . . . in 46 words or less.
I recently attended Formed in Stone: The Natural Beauty of Fossils, an exhibit featuring macro digital photographs of some of the earth's earliest life. So what do you get when you take the remains of small, 450 million year old life forms and magnify them up to sixty times? Unexpected complexity and beauty.
Today's prompt is pretty much wide open. Let the pictures inspire you; use them if you like. Explore the idea of complexity writ small. Or, just write me a tutorial on how to take better quality iPhone pictures (are you reading, Margaret?). Go any direction you like . . . just keep it to 60 words or less.
Toads, the number of the day is three. Throughout time and across cultures, the number three has been held as significant. Religion (the Trinity), visual arts (the rule of thirds), and Wicca (the three-fold law) are just a few examples of the widely held view - "onme trium perfectum"- that perfection comes in threes.
With that in mind, let's explore the rule of three as it relates to writing. It's pretty simple, really. Three is more satisfying to a reader than two. Three stanzas, three adjectives, three examples of something . . . three paragraphs, three elements, three rhymes . . . see what I mean? Play with the rule of three in any way you like . . . just keep it to 90 words or less.
In his masterpiece The Waste Land, poet T.S. Eliot describes April as the cruelest month (and, as far as we know, he wasn't even doing the poem a day thing!). Do you agree? Give me the best and worst of April, then render a verdict . . . in 66 words or less.
Today, I would like you to write a double inverse Venetian sonnet using the traditional hexatonic goatameter. Your piece must include two nuns, a priest, a gopher, and a space / time paradox. Please address either universal health care or twerking in the volta.
April Fool's!
How about you just surprise me . . . in 37 words or less.
