U.S., U.K. Poets Laureate on Being Public Face for Poetry

World Book Night

What were you doing on World Book Night? (It was Monday 23rd  April!).  I was actually in Chichester Library and really enjoyed myself.  Hubby and I only went over to the library to ask about something (we've just spend a few days in Chichester) but stayed for free nibbles and drinks, took part in a fun quiz competition about authors and I received a free book.  I chose The Road by Cormac McCarthy which I think I'll read next as I've just finished my Book Club read.  It was lovely to take part in something like that.  If you did anything or someone handed you a free book (or you handed some out yourself) let me know.

Working with dreams

Dreams are funny things, well some of mine are! I know I've written about using dreams as a way into stories and poems before but lately I've had two good ideas from my dreams. The last one was very audible as I had music ringing in my ears! But it was also quite vivid and as soon as I got up I knew where I wanted to go with this and I scribbled everything down.  It is still in draft form but I will leave it now and come back to is another time and see how it works.

A previous dream was also very vivid, funnily enough also with a link to music, but also art (two of my other passions so is it any wonder I dream about them!), but it was also about a meeting with someone I didn't know but there was a great attraction! Again this provided material for a poem which I am still working on.

Don't dismiss dreams because often they place you in positions you might not find yourself in real life and you can use as much or as little of the original dream in your writing.  All you need is an idea from that dream which will take you to an interesting place or different situation, evoke a whole span of emotions that can be captured. My dreams are often very noisy, I don't know why. Music does seem to feature quite a lot as I have heard the most wonderful music, something I'd not heard in waking life!  I also dream in colour, so it's full on!

A writer needs inspiration and if dreams can be used to flush out ideas then use them.

Are you sitting comfortably...?

Okay, stand back in amazement for today I give you a STORY!  I do feel guilty that my blog is called story and verse and the story side is sadly lacking. The following is edited from a morning pages session from about two years ago, so short, simple and, well make up your own mind!

The Girl and the Lamb

Pretty little Kate with her long blond hair loved living on the farm with her brother. Their father was away fighting in the war and mother had sent them to live with her sister and husband, Kate’s aunt and uncle, in the countryside because it was safer than being in London where all the bombs dropped.

Katie loved it when her aunt wound her hair up for her at night so that in the morning Kate had springy ringlets and she also loved all the animals and helped with the chickens feeding them and collecting the eggs, as long as she was careful, which she was.

John was her cousin.  He was older than Kate at thirteen. He helped his dad on the farm when he wasn’t at school and he enjoyed teasing Kate and her brother about being townies and pulling Kate’s ringlets so Kate ignored him if she could and when she was sad she told her troubles to the sheepdog, Bess.

Springtime was Kate’s favourite time, seeing the little lambs being born and watching them bounce around the field full of energy.  Secretly Kate gave some of the lambs names but Bop was her special lamb.  He was out in the field now but everyday Kate went to see him and seemed to love her fussing over him.  John said that sheep were stupid but Kate knew different for Bop followed her around when he was small and still came to her when she called.

One day after coming back from school she went to find Bop as usual but he wasn’t there.  In fact the field seemed rather empty of lambs.  Kate went to the barn but there were no lambs there. 

Kate ran to her aunt, “Where’s Bop? Where are lambs?”

“Oh! Kate, don’t fret. They’ve gone to market.  You know they can’t stay forever.  They’ll be others next year. Now wash your hands, there’s a good girl, dinner’s nearly ready.”

“There’ll never be another Bop.” Kate said sadly, already missing her special friend.  “What happens at market, anyway?” she asked.

“Well, it’s like this........" Her aunt hesitated, began again, "er...well........someone else buys them.”

“So Bop will have a new home?”

“Something like that.”

Still thoughtful Kate went to the sink to wash her hands.  Her aunt picked up a container of green looking sauce and placed it on the table and sighed.

“Where are those men?” her aunt said almost to herself. She opened the oven door and took out a large joint of meat.  Kate’s aunt smiled at her, but it was a weird sort of smile and Kate was rather confused.  She turned as John walked through the kitchen door.

“Oh! great, Mum”, he said sniffing the air and licking his lips, “Lamb for dinner.”

Entries are in!

Just entered the Nature Poetry Competition run by The RSPB and The Rialto magazine.  Been agonising over the three poems I wanted to submit, well one in particular, but have done a re-edit on it and feel much happier with it.  It's in the lap of the gods now, or rather the judges, one of whom is Sir Andrew Motion.

Finding alternative words and the art of Acrostics

Where would I be without my Thesaurus?  Today it has been most essential as I've been writing an Acrostic poem with the added stipulation that there must be one other word in the line which starts with the same letter as the first letter in that line.  Do you follow?

This poem is now in it's fourth draft.  It began as an exercise with my name but quickly evolved into something else I rather liked so I felt I had to go with it and change the Acrostic letters to match the poem.  The second draft was rather cumbersome, some nice words or phrases but it didn't flow well.  The third draft began to take shape and I was able to expand on the last two lines which really began to come together. The fourth draft, done with the aid of the Thesaurus,  is about there.  I need to leave it to marinate for a short time and then see if it still works.

Using the Thesaurus was much easier than using a dictionary for this and when I either can't find the right word or need another/better option this book comes into its own.  In this case it really helped me to tease out meaning, losing that rather disjointed use of words to something that began to flow.  Anything that aids writing is a useful tool.

If you want to have a go at an Acrostic think of word and then write it vertically down the page like so:

P
L
U
T
O

Here's a first line:

Pluto was a planet once
L


Okay, off you go!

Here is another example, rather good, I think, but not mine unfortunately!

A Poem for Easter

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Easter Day

Spring crocus in fine vestments, white and gold

Line the winding pathway to the church, where

Worshippers have come since days of old

To celebrate Christ’s resurrection there.

The rough wood crosses stand uncovered now

And all adornments beautify anew

Among the fragrant flowers which take a bow

And candle light in spreading, dazzling hue.

And while the ancient stones resound in praise

In hymns of ‘Alleluia’, for at last

The light has overcome the darker days

And sin and death are banished to the past.

A flock of Daffodils dance with the sun

Fine adoration of the victory won.

©2010

HAPPY EASTER

Notebooks....ignore them at your peril

The first rule of writing (or is it the second?) is to keep a notebook.  I have one.  Do I use it?  Er.....now and then, but not as much as I should.  Hence when trying to recall an unusual moment to write about (I'm working through the chapter on Voice in W.N. Herbert's book Writing Poetry) I knew there was a moment recently but of course I didn't write it down and I couldn't recall it!

There am I telling you all you should do this and do that and what am I doing?  Breaking the rules.  But like everything in life whether you choose to follow my advice is up to you - I obviously don't.

Still, all is not lost.  I was able to recall another unusual incident and wrote about that and actually liked what I wrote! So there.

We have internet problems at the moment but are switching over to Virgin Media on the 13th April (going fibre optic).  I've finally got internet access today so am making the most of it, but if it all goes quiet for a while you'll know why.  To quote those famous lines - I'LL BE BACK.

Meanwhile here is the winning poem from the National Poetry Competition 2011.