Poetry Challenge #166-Princess Day!
Spit-shine your tiara! Bust out the sparkle gown and magic wand! Tra-La Tra-Lay It’s National Princess Day (November 18th). The one day of the year where we can all unapologetically unleash our inner princess!
We certainly are fascinated by the royals: princesses and princes, kings and queens, knights and castles. We love stories about kingdoms and dragons.
Poetry Challenge #166
Princess for Today!
Choose one of the words above or think of your own and write an acrostic poem using that word as your title and subject. (To write an acrostic, write one letter of your chosen word on each line going down the page and use that letter as the first letter for the line.)
Set your time for 7 minutes
Set your intentions to Royal
Start writing! Don’t think too much—just do it!
For Your Viewing Pleasure: Princess Movies!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than 1680 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.
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Poetry Challenge #165-Dino Romp-Pom
It’s said a picture is worth a thousand words, and so by way of sparing you reading 983 more:
Poetry Challenge #165
Dino Romp-Pom
Write a poem inspired by this image (borrowed from @visualverseanthology).
Set your time for 7 minutes
Set your intentions to POEM
Start writing! Don’t think too much—just do it!
And when you’re finished, click over to @visualverseanthology to post—it might be published in the Visual Verse Anthology.
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than 1680 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
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Poetry Challenge #164-Candy Anadilosis
Not sure who’s brilliant idea it was—maybe Milton Hershey’s —but it’s official: November 4th, four gluttonous days past “Trick or Treat” comes the sweetest day of all: National Candy Day!
Note the absence of chocolate…
I have it a half-hearted search but couldn’t find the origin story of the holiday. So here, I’m thinking, is the logic behind the day: everyone with access has had four whole days to cherry pick through the Halloween stash. Really all that’s left is the dregs, so let’s get it over with ripping-off-the-Band-Aid style: Dump whatever is left into a pile, pluck out the odd pencils, toothbrushes & stickers, unwrap the rest, and go for it!
Yoda “Dylan” & Ewok “Aiden”
Stuff as much will fit into our mouths and chew, chew, chew, chew, chew . . .
or maybe safer: join us for the 7-Minute Challenge!
Poetry Challenge #164
Candy Anadiplosis aka the Illusion of Logic
Anadiplosis is a repeated word or phrase. This repetition adds emphasis. It makes your words sound strong and sure. It adds music to your poem. Many poets and politicians use anadiplosis when they’re making a point. Yoda used anadiplosis in Star Wars when he said,
“Fear leads to anger; anger leads to hatred; hatred leads to suffering.”
In honor of National candy day, write a poem using anadiplosis. Make the first line end with the word candy or the name of a particular candy. The second line will begin with the last word and so on.
Try to use strong words—usually nouns—for the last word of each line. Write at least five lines.
Read it aloud to hear the sweet if illogical music!
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; just do it!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than 1680 days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
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Poetry Challenge #163-The Answer is always Chocolate!
Now, what’s your question?
As if we need an excuse It’s National Chocolate Day. Yep! An entire 24 hours, 1440 minutes, not to mention seconds! At 1 chocolatey nibble per second that’s 86,400 nibbles! That’s my kind of day!
Like Willie Wonka, I think of the chocolate factory with chocolate trees and rivers. I imagine everything you can dip in chocolate.
My VCFA class, “Unreliable Narrators” splurged on a chocolate fountain, gobbled obscene quantities of chocolate dipped strawberries, marshmallows, cake, grahams, carrots, celery, radish . . . after donated it to the school. Writers require chocolate PRN!
Poetry Challenge #163
The Answer is Always Chocolate
Write an acrostic poem, using the letters
C-H-O-C-O-L-A-T-E as the first letter in each line.
Your poem can be about chocolate or candy or anything else you want it to be—as long as it’s ooey, gooey delicious!
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; just indulge!
Chocolate as good to read as it is to nibble! & If you like yours chocolate dark, dip into Robert Cormier’s The Chocolate War
Post a review, I’ll give you a glug!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than SIXTEEN HUNDRED days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
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Poetry Challenge #162-Be Kind to Your Cold-Blooded Friends
This is a tuatara. Who knew?
Be kind to your cold-blooded friends, for that gecko maybe some critter’s mo-ther/Be kind to snakes, crocs, turtles, tuatara, too/And don’t just stick them all in the zoo…
There are approximately 10,700 species of reptile, that is four-limbed (or like snakes, related to four-limbed) cold-blooded, egg-laying, creatures that have been walking-climbing-crawling-slithering over this planet for more than 312 million years, including turtles, snakes, lizards, crocodiles, turtles, and tortoises. Besides staring in horror films, what exactly do you know about them?
It’s said knowledge is the best way to raise awareness, so, since today (Oct 21) is National Reptile Awareness Day, that’s what we’ll do with poetry—in the form of a lantern poem!
Snakes, snakes…them too!
Poetry Challenge #162
Be Kind to Your Cold-Blooded Friends
A Lantern Poem is a type of descriptive poetry that originates from Japan.
The Lantern poem uses five lines with a structure of one, two, three, four and one syllables (or words) per line.
It’s called a Lantern poem because, when finished, the shape resembles a Japanese lantern.
Begin by choosing a one-reptile as the subject of your poem. Now, with that reptile in mind, follow these instructions to craft your lantern poem
Line #1: 1 word noun
Line #2: 2 words to describe appearance
Line #3: 3 words to describe action
Line #4: 2 words simile or metaphor
Line #5: 1 synonym
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; Just slither, creep, crawl into it!
Post a review, I’ll give you a glug!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than SIXTEEN HUNDRED days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
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Poetry Challenge #161-Love Me Some D-E-S-S-E-R-T
Crumpet, Pumpkin, Sugar, Cupcake, Sweetie…the variety of ways we call loved ones by dessert names make me want to burst into song: Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch…Can’t help myself!
Especially not today, Oct. 14th, officially, unapologetically, National Dessert Day! Or, as I prefer to call it, Don’t Forget What Erma Said Day:
Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart. ~ Erma Bombeck
7-Minute Poetry Challenge #161
Love Me Some D-E-S-S-E-R-T
Dessert! There’s always room for dessert! Cindy’s niece and nephew say everyone has a dessert stomach separate from their very full dinner stomachs. If you ask my kids if they have room for dessert, the standard answer is “YES! And it’s shaped just like an ice cream cone!”
List as many kinds of dessert as you can think of. Put your list into some sort of order: biggest to smallest? best to worst? colors of the rainbow? alphabetical?
Write a 2-4 line refrain to stick into your list a couple times.
This will be a sweet, sweet poem!
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; Just do it!
Love Me Some D-E-S-S-E-R-T Playlist:
Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch sung by The Four Tops
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than SIXTEEN HUNDRED days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
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Poetry Challenge #160-Walk or Bike to School Day!
With this new wonky school year—with all the variations—underway, today’s designation as National Walk or Bike to School Day (Oct 7) may be wonky, too.
Check the date on this poster…brings Carly Simon to mind: “Rolling around again. How did you get to school 5, 15, 25 years ago?
Some places, just as they do every year, are holding Walk to School Parades—with everyone socially distancing, of course!
For many, who used to ride buses and carpool but now attend classes online, that walk to school, might be just a few steps. Whatever your commute, here’s a chance to step out—physically & mentally!
Poetry Challenge # 160
On My Way To School. . .
Happy Walk & Roll Day! Take a walk or bike to school today—even if only in your mind. Rev up that Time Machine! Note what you see. Look closer. What words can you use to describe this object? What other thing does it look like?
Write a poem describing your walk. Title it
“A Walk in/around/through ___________”
Norman’s on the roll to school!
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; Just do it!
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than SIXTEEN HUNDRED days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
Click on Fishbowl link below and sign up to receive email notifications from Kelly's blog (aka The Fishbowl):
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Poetry Challenge #159-Chew On This!
Double mint chewing gum/it’s the one/tastes so fun/made for me and you…
For much of my young life, that jingle—like the gum it touted—was stuck in my head. I resurrected it and a few others especially for today, September 30th—otherwise celebrated as National Chewing Gum Day!
Gift for my 17th birthday & blatant product placement…
“Get your skis shined up, grab a stick of Juicy Fruit — the taste is gonna move you! Move you up! Move you out! The taste is gonna move you when you pop it in your mouth!
Juicy Fruit is gonna move ya! It’s got a taste that gets right through ya!”
Along with digging through drawers and bags for a stray stick, I dug up some chewing gum history (and finally broke down and “treated” myself to a chipped gumball from my ancient dispenser.) Chewing on:
“Kiss a little longer, stay close a little longer, hold tight a little longer — longer with Big Red!”
Seems as long as humans have been walking upright, they’ve been chewing some sort of gum. Evidence, dating back more than 5,000 years, shows humans chewing gum-like substances: sap resin, tar, bark, wax, gristle, for various reasons: staving off hunger, freshening breath, working out nervous energy—you name it, apparently they chewed it. So maybe it’s true that gum isn’t digestible and thus stays forever in one’s stomach (otherwise how would they know?)
To paraphrase Cole Porter:
Mayans chewed it, Greeks chewed it, even Neanderthals in skins chewed. They chewed it—Babe Ruth did, too! How’s about yoooouuuuuuu.
When I think of gum—aside from it being stuck—in hair, on sofas, clothing…shoes—and chewing, it’s the jingles. Which lead to this prompt.
Poetry Challenge #159
Chew on This!
Pop a stick of gum into your gob—literally or figuratively—and chew away. There you go: chew, chew, chew. Now, with that repetitive rhythm in mind, write a poem.
The subject of the poem doesn’t have to be chewing gum. It can be, of course. Whichever subject you choose—be it chewing gum or otherwise—focus on the rhythm, that repetitive chewing action. Try to get that repetitive motion and sound into your poem.
If you’d like to chomp off a bigger challenge, see if you can shape your poem into a jingle.
Set Your Timer for 7 Minutes
Start Writing
Don’t Think Too Much About it; Just chew-chew-chew it!
More to chew on:
Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than SIXTEEN HUNDRED days ago! (without a miss!!!) We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the Challenge, let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments. And scroll down for my happy news:
