In Complete Refreshment

Ironically, a poem about finding refreshment and inspiration is proving hard to finish.

Thanks for stopping by though,

S

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52 Poems in the Future

As a child the future was something that could be cut out of the Argos catalogue and stuck inside a cardboard dream house. It was wishing to be older so I could play ‘proper’ Scrabble rather than Junior Scrabble. It was longing to be taller so I could ride the bigger rides.  Then, as a teenager, the future became more difficult to define and harder to decide upon. Cardboard boxes and one-dimensional paper objects didn’t seem as important; I was capable of beating my Nan at ‘proper’ Scrabble, and I was tall enough to wish I was shorter.

From those uncertain years of adolescence until now, my relationship with the future has always been a reluctant one – a concept I’d much rather keep at a distance. As a consequence I’m not very fond of New Year’s Eve (everyone looking forward, celebrating) and in response I rarely make resolutions for the year ahead.

However, after experiencing a twelve month drought with my poetry, I started to consider making a writing plan for 2014 – something that meant fewer blank pages, less fear, greater awareness and a rebuilding of confidence. And so when I saw Jo Bell’s latest poetry project  on my news feed yesterday morning it was like an elbow in my side, reminding me I’d failed to create a poetry resolution and that this year could end up being as wordless as the last. Thus, I have decided to attempt the 52 project, where the idea is to write a poem a week (with the aid of weekly blog posts) for a whole year, and hopefully this time next year I’ll have something rather than nothing.

Thank you for reading and please feel free to share your 2014 writing resolutions below.

Lara 

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Poetry Experiment: Substitution

When you can’t find the words or the words can’t find you; when you don’t want to write or writing doesn’t want you; when you know it is more than a spell of writer’s block…

Sometimes, writing exercises just aren’t enough to bring you back. They ask too much, don’t give enough. They tend to come with an expectation: the poet is willing rather than resistant.

So, what do you do when you can’t write poetry and writing exercises just produce more blank pages?

It is a question I’ve been asking myself a lot recently, and which I still have no definitive answer to. Yet my mind continues to ask it, so perhaps it would be premature and lazy to give up on searching for a way back.

In my search I’ve been reading Charles Bernstein’s 66 Writing Experiments and thought I’d share experiment 11 and the subsequent result of said experiment.

The Experiment

11. Substitution (2): "7 up or down." Take a poem or other, possibly well-known, text and substitute another word for every noun, adjective, adverb, and verb; determine the substitute word by looking up the index word in the dictionary and going 7 up or down, or one more, until you get a syntactically suitable replacement. (Cf.: Lee Ann Brown's "Pledge" or Clark Coolidge and Larry Fagin, On the Pumice of Morons.)

The Results

Fragment created by using Denise Levertov’s poem ‘Living’

The fin whale in leaf mould and grapple

so green-eyed it seeps

dystrophic summertime.

The wind chimes blotted out, the leatherback

shoaling in the sump,

dystrophic daydream.

Fragment created by using Sylvia Plath’s ‘Mirror’

I amalgamate silverfish and evolution. I haver niveous precision.

Whatever I seduce I swamp imminently.

Thank you for reading.

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Not Write

 by Ashley Lister

 There are many reasons why I don’t write:

Blogging. Pitching. Jogging. Bitching. Reading stuff that others wrote. Jotting ideas on a Post-It Note. Peer reviewing. Prepping classes. Looking at things whilst wearing glasses. Reviewing books. Composing rhymes. Skimming through the New York Times. Chewing. Chatting. Cleaning. Cooking. Eating. Drinking. Talking.

Sleeping.

Walking dogs. And feeding cats. Wearing pants. And shirts. And hats. Tweeting. Texting. Armchair surfing. Painting myself blue and dirty-smurfing. Shopping. Driving. Flopping. Skiving. Jumping from a plane to try skydiving. Playing games on the PS3. Eating pies. Drinking tea. Sending mail. Phoning friends. Despising those with Mercedes Benz. Watching movies and TV. Stealing ideas that might work for me. Immersed in fiction round the clock.

And moaning I’ve got writer’s block.

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If Found...

MISSING

Last seen three weeks ago mooching around my mind, sniffing at an unfinished poem.

Small, often invisible, and with a tendency to wander off during times of self-doubt.

Has previously been responsible for several ideas.

Invaluable to creative types.

If found, please return to the poet who can’t write.

*     *     *

Lara

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TV Guide.

Evening all,

I have no real excuse for not posting this writing task earlier, I just forgot about my early start. Sorry about that.

Anyway, this week's theme is Writing Exercises which I think could actually work in favour of my timing after all. I wrote this task for the Hodgsonberry festival event three of us attended at a local high school way back in July. I have actually aimed it to be a start point for some year 8s but I'm sure you can get along without my assistance and write something on your own, after all, there is nothing on TV tonight...

FINDING INSPIRATION: A WRITING WORKSHOP

When looking for something to inspire, it is easy to get lost in your own head, especially with a blank page in front of you. You are not stuck for ideas, you just think you are. Your body and mind have experienced thousands of different words and senses today and you have only just thought about it. With this in mind, before you start writing remember that 5 minutes of jotting is almost always more fruitful than an hour of thinking.

Today, we are looking at Objects. Objects can be great for inspiring you. They have been made, been lived with, been used and, somewhere along the line, probably seen or done something pretty wicked. Remember, there is a story behind everything.

Pick up the object. Turn it over. Ask yourself everything you can think of about it. Here are just a few to get you started

· What is it?

· Who does it belong to?

· Have you seen it before?

· What colour is it?

· Is it smooth?

· Does it smell?

· Does it say anything (i.e. is it religious, does it represent anything else)?

· Where did you pick it up?

· What has it seen?

· What does it do?

· Why does it interest you?

Think about all of these questions. Have a look at the POEMS idea below. Do you have enough ideas to piece together a picture now? Find a PERSPECTIVE you would like to write from and you are just about ready to dazzle with poetry.

	P is for People: Who are the characters in the poem? O is for Objects: What do they symbolise? Find 3 interesting things to say. E is for Emotion: Is the mood sad, happy, reflective, angry...? M is for Message: Is there something you’re trying to say? S is for Setting: Where is the poem set? Why here? What does this add?

Note: Nobody writes amazing poetry on a first draft. Never be afraid to cross out and re-write a line. You will know when a line fits, trust your instincts!

Thanks for reading guys, S.

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Writer's Block and a Stubborn Cat

My presence on the laptop has prevented this post from being written!
(Humans: 0 - Cats: 1)

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