April 26, 2024

NaPoWriMo 2014 Day 26 – brambly blooms

By Kat Myrman 
brambly blooms

the wild blackberry blooms gleam
stars bursting ‘midst a sea of green
promise plump berries
fruit fit for faeries
be wary
barbs unseen

~kat

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 26 Challenge: write a poem that involves alliteration, consonance, and assonance. Alliteration is the repetition of a particular consonant sound at the beginning of multiple words. Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds elsewhere in multiple words, and assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds. Traci Brimhall’s poem “A Group of Moths” provides a great example of these poetic devices at work, with each line playing with different sounds that seem to move the poem along on a sonorous wave.

Poetry Form: Clogyrnach – A Welsh syllabic and rhyming form with 6 lines. The syllable count is 8/8/5/5/3/3 and the rhyme scheme is a/a/b/b/b/a. There is no required theme.

3 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in 2024, Challenges and Writing Prompts, Clogyrnach, Digital Art & Photos, napowrimo, Poetry

April 25, 2024

NaPoWriMo 2024 – Day 25 – if you’re listening

By Kat Myrman 
if you’re listening

ask me anything
this or that, but only
if you really want 
to know…my heart is
weary of bleeding secrets

~kat

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 25 Challenge: write a poem based on the “Proust Questionnaire,” a set of questions drawn from Victorian-era parlor games, and adapted by modern interviewers. You could choose to answer the whole questionnaire, and then write a poem based on your answers, answer just a few, or just write a poem that’s based on the questions. You could even write a poem in the form of an entirely new Proust Questionnaire.

Poetry Form: Magnetic Poetry – Poet’s Edition

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April 24, 2024

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 24 – simple dreams

By Kat Myrman 
simple dreams

I am worn out with dreams
finished with futile endeavors
no more wishing on shooting stars 
what will be, will be, it’s all good, whatever…

don’t need to make things happen
I’m learning to go with the flow
it’s quite a ride, just cruising along
no pressure, nothing to prove, no show

my dreams these days are simpler things
the season of striving has come to an end
my focus is now on the joy that life brings and the treasure found in single sweet moments

~kat

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 24 Challenge: write a poem that begins with a line from another poem (not necessarily the first one), but then goes elsewhere with it. This will work best if you just start with a line of poetry you remember, but without looking up the whole original poem. Or you could find a poem that you haven’t read before and then use a line that interests you. The idea is for the original to furnish the backdrop for your work, but without influencing you so much that you feel as if you are just rewriting the original! For example, you could begin, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day,” or “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons,” or “I miss them, but it wasn’t a disaster,” or “they persevere in swimming where they like.” Really, any poem will do to provide your starter line – just so long as it gives you the scope to explore.

The line I chose is from the poem, “Men Improve with the Years” by William Butler Yeats: “I am worn out with dreams”.

11 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in 2024, Challenges and Writing Prompts, Digital Art & Photos, napowrimo, Poetry, Rhymed Verse

April 23, 2024

NaPoWriMo 2024 – Day 23 – ode to unsung heroes

By Kat Myrman 
ode to unsung heroes

they’re not obvious, 
your superpowers,
but I’ve seen you 
light up a room
with a simple smile
I’ve watched you slay 
the closet monsters
with a lullaby and
heal wounds with a kiss 
I’ve watched you juggle
groceries, several toddlers, 
an infant on your hip, and
an over-stuffed handbag
filled with bandaids, bottles,
diapers, wipes, and snacks, 
while navigating across a busy 
parking lot, arriving safely 
at the car where you deftly
pack, strap, and tuck everyone 
in for the ride home…
you wake up early,
lay your head down late 
sleep lightly, always 
at the ready to serve, 
and you do all this without 
expecting anything in return
you love deeply, so deeply
you are the wind beneath
the wings of your fledglings
you may think nobody notices
but I do…you’re a true superhero 
don’t you dare let anyone 
tell you that you’re weak

~kat

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 23 Challenge: write a poem about, or involving, a superhero, taking your inspiration from these four poems in which Lucille Clifton addresses Clark Kent/Superman.

8 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in 2024, Challenges and Writing Prompts, Digital Art & Photos, free verse, napowrimo, Poetry

April 22, 2024

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 22 – lying eyes

By Kat Myrman 
lying eyes

we’re told
not to believe
what we see with our eyes
“trust us,” they say, “we’ll tell you what
is true

it’s impossible 
to know the truth; what is truth?
it’s an opinion

~kat

NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 22 Challenge: write a poem in which two things have a fight. Two very unlikely things, if you can manage it. Like, maybe a comb and a spatula. Or a daffodil and a bag of potato chips. Or perhaps your two things could be linked somehow – like a rock and a hard place – and be utterly sick of being so joined. The possibilities are endless!

Poetry Forms: Cinquain and Senryu

A cinquain is a five-line poem consisting of twenty-two syllables: two in the first line, then four, then six, then eight, and then two syllables again in the last line.

Senryū is a Japanese form of short poetry similar to haiku in construction: three lines with 17 morae. Senryū tend to be about human foibles while haiku tend to be about nature, and senryū are often cynical or darkly humorous while haiku are more serious.

4 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in 2024, Challenges and Writing Prompts, Cinquain, Digital Art & Photos, Poetry, Senryu