Day 30 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2024

Well, last day. Let's end with the Day 30 blog intro from that great year 2013: Day 30. One of the hallmarks of my "teenagehood" was the slogan of the youth movement of the '60s: "Don't trust anyone over 30." This turned out to be a severe irony of youth because all those people eventually turned 30 (who'll you trust then, Mac) and surely most of them are now double 30. Mick Jagger, for example, will be turning 70 soon. Who'd a-thunk it? He's still doing live performances with the Rolling Stones but now keeps a tank of oxygen just offstage so he can keep up his energetic on-stage persona. Good ol' Mick, now 80, still performing with the Stones. Probably still got that tank of oxygen handy! And now the last April poetry prompts for this year. Maureen Thorson’s NaPoWriMo suggestion: “Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem in which the speaker is identified with, or compared to, a character from myth or legend, as in Claire Scott’s poem ‘Scheherazade at the Doctor’s Office.’” Robert Lee Brewer’s Poem-a-Day suggestion: “For today's Two-for-Tuesday prompt: 1) Write a The End poem, and/or . . . 2) Write a Beginning poem. After all, endings are just opportunities for new beginnings, and beginnings tend to be the first step on the path to future endings (and so the cycle repeats).” Today, I'm writing a terza rima haiku sonnet to finish off a poem I've been working on for some weeks. My next book of poetry will be titled Dragons and Rayguns, and I have been trying to write a definitive raygun poem for that collection. Today's poem is the third section of "Time Lord Thief," which imagines a Gallifreyan cat burglar of rayguns, wily as Doctor Who, but not the Doctor himself. This poem merges the three prompts: the speaker likens himself to Loki, the Norse god of thieves, the poem tells of the beginning of the character's interest in rayguns, and then the speakers brags of his current thieving skills, his end of sorts. The form terza rima haiku sonnet is composed of four haiku-shaped 5-7-5-syllable stanzas rounded out by a 7-7 couplet, rhymed in interlocked terza rima: aba bcb cdc ded ee. I invented this form in the late 1970s and have written quite a few here during these April games. Time Lord Thief       1. I’ve had an interest in rayguns since I was five, when I saw my first. Father shot a live bird dead, right between the eyes. A needle hole gave the lone hint of why the bird had died. I was hooked. Some years later, I began to collect rayguns, from the famous and infamous. Intrigued by how anyone could end a life so quick, on command.       2. I tried to visit many warriors and spacemen’s chronotopes — planets and ships — for a chance to steal their weapons. Phasers hijacked from Captains Kirk, Picard. Blasters from Han Solo, Chewbacca. And Marvin of Mars — his trusty Acme pistol. Paralyzer gun made by Doc Zarkov for Flash Gordon (once Tarzan). My TARDIS filled with rayguns.       3. Friends, my life has stood — a loaded raygun, fully charged and ready, good for battle, truly primed. On Earth I’m like Loki the Trickster, wooly, wild, ghostlike, smoky. I drift like the breeze; you won’t see me, way low key. That’s how I’ve purloined these celebrity rayguns, magicked and siphoned in mystical elegance. I’m gone. And so’s your raygun. —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Space Pilot X Ray Gun made by Taiyo (1970s) I had toy rayguns similar to this when I was a kid. Well, friends, there we go. Thirty days, thirty poems. Thanks for reading this month. See you next April! Friends, won’t you comment, please? Love to know what you’re thinking. Thanks! Ingat, everyone.  ヅ

NaPoWriMo / PAD 2024 • Pick a day: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Day 19 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2016

Day 19. Another prime number . . . the 8th in the month so far. Maureen Thorson’s NaPoWriMo prompt: "Many years ago, 'didactic' poetry was very common – in other words, poetry that explicitly sought to instruct the reader in some kind of skill or knowledge, whether moral, philosophical, or practical. Today, I’d like to challenge you to write the latter kind of “how to” poem – a didactic poem that focuses on a practical skill. Hopefully, you’ll be able to weave the concrete details of the action into a compelling verse. Also, your 'practical' skill could be somewhat mythological, imaginary, or funny, like 'How to Capture a Mermaid' or 'How to Get Your Teenager to Take Out the Garbage When He Is Supposed To.' Happy writing!" Robert Lee Brewer’s PAD prompt (two for Tuesday): "Take on one (or both) of the following prompts: Write a cool poem. Or . . . write a[n] uncool poem." All five of us melded the prompts today, somehow or other; sometimes we mashed up all three, counting Robert's two prompts: "how-to," "cool," and "uncool." How To I’m not sure. Does it involve refrigerators? Sunglasses. And flashes of brilliance. Arrogance. Without seeming like an ___. How about I tell you how to not. (Be cool.) —Draft by Jedediah Kurth    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Jed, that's very funny. "Does it involve refrigerators?" Well, in a manner of speaking, yes. Ven's poem is funny too but in a fashion that's diametrically opposed from Jed's. How to be Cool Step 1) Give zero fucks. Step 2) Repeat step 1 until death. —Draft by Ven Batista    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Sarah gives us a list of how-to recommendations, also quite funny. How To Definitely Make New Friends and Be Super Popular Grow up in an ultra conservative family. Develop a knack for always arguing your point and obsessively, relentlessly, finding a way to be right. Attend a state-sponsored, liberal school and refuse to succumb to peer pressure in every critical discussion-based class, paper, organization . . . . Oh wait. —Draft by Sarah Smith    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Alan is very tongue-in-cheek today in his humor. Bravo! A fun poem to format in HTML. How to Be a Cool Poet (in Nineteen Steps So Far — a found poem) [W]rite a foolish poem. [W]rite a what he said and/or what she said poem. [T]ake the phrase “Three (blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. [W]rite a distance poem. As a runner, I automatically think of running when I think distance. But hey, there’s long distance relationships. Or why not get beyond geographic distance and consider distance in terms of time or emotional distance. Or some other interpretation. Write an experienced poem. Or . . . Write an inexperienced poem. [W]rite an ekphrastic poem. [T]ake the phrase “Urban (blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. [W]rite a doodle poem. In my mind, I’m thinking of how I like to doodle when I’m talking on the phone or sitting in a meeting. [W]rite a hide out poem. When I was a kid, we’d build “hide outs,” I guess from our parents or other kids. [P]ick an emotion, make it the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible titles might include: “Happy,” “Sad,” “Angry,” or well, there’s a universe of emotions out there. [W]rite a defensive poem. The first thing that springs to my mind is getting defensive about an accusation, which may or may not be true. The next thing I think about might be people or animals defending themselves. Or defense in sports. Or defense in the court room. Or well, there’s a lot to defend in this world. [T]ake on one (or both) of the following prompts: Write a serious poem. Or . . . Write a silly poem. [T]ake the phrase “Last (blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write the poem. [W]rite a time out poem. There are moments in my life that I wish I could take a time out. For instance, it would’ve been nice earlier this year when I had pneumonia . . . . [W]rite a poem with at least four of the following eight words: flat ring lavish vessel paper blacklist gaudy tooth Of course, ambitious poets will immediately try using all eight words, but four will do if you’re just trying to get through today’s prompt. [W]rite a poem about (or at) a food establishment. . . . Have fun with it, and if you need to do a little research, go out for something to eat. [W]rite a haiku. Simple as that. Or well, if you’d prefer, write a poem about haiku; I’ve done this before. So that’s an option too; or write about poetic forms in general. [W]rite an office poem. Maybe this is related to your work, but maybe this is a poem at a dentist’s office, doctor’s office, bank office, office in a car factory, or some other type of office. Write a cool poem. Or . . . Write a [sic] uncool poem. —Draft by Thomas Alan Holmes    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] I merged all three prompts while addressing an important dilemma of my teenage years. How to Be Cool in 1967 San Francisco If You're a Filipino American Teenager You gotta know how to pimp, walk a swinging strut. “Don’t fuck with me now, I’ll lay your ass out!” Dashikis and ironed jeans, black Cuban-heeled boots. Or . . . work pants from Ben Davis, blue Derby jackets, suede desert boots, pin- striped button-down shirts. Hope you’re cool enough, little honorary white. Caught in between, brown, uncool, can you solve that race riddle? —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] This is a terza rima haiku sonnet, a form of my own invention. You should try it! If you do, let me know how it goes, won't you? Speaking of San Francisco and the past, my old high school, St. Ignatius College Preparatory, today published a poem of mine. They have been publishing on their website poems from alums during National Poetry Month, and I'm the "Poet of the Day" for April 19th! (Click on the image below and you can see it; click here to go to the actual webpage.) The poem they published is my sonnet "What Matters," which won first place in the Rhyming Poetry division of the 84th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition in 2015. Published in the book Writer's Digest 84th Annual Writing Competition Collection, 2015. Friends, won’t you comment, please? Love to know what you’re thinking. To comment, look for a red line below that starts Posted by, then click once on the word comments in that line. If you don’t find the word "comments" in that line, then look for a blue link below that says Post a comment and click it once. Thanks! Ingat, everyone.  ヅ

NAPOWRIMO / PAD 2016 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Day Six ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2015

Day Six. Now 1/5 of the way through National Poem. Still 4/5 to go so lots more NaPoWriMo and Poem-a-Day pieces to read out there on the web. Twenty-four more days of poetic goodness. Be sure to check out the comments to each day in the NaPoWriMo and PAD webpages where participants post their day's poems. Speaking of which . . . Maureen Thorson's NaPoWriMo suggested form today is the aubade: "morning poems, about dawn and daybreak, [which often] take the form of lovers' morning farewells." Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Dans le Lit / In Bed (1893) Robert Lee Brewer's PAD challenge for day six is a "things-not-as-they-appear poem." An interesting challenge to try to combine these two prompts, especially if one takes on the aubade as a poem about lovers awakening at morning. Well, I think I successfully combined the two prompts. You be the judge. Here you go. Aubade Steve grinned, waking up to see Stephanie’s cute face, freckled, soft pink lips parted slightly, lace lingerie showing pale throat. Spring morning sun’s rays streaming in to light Steph’s bobbed hair on ginger fire. Her eyes opened, cobalt. “Can’t believe you’re here,” he said. She smiled, then her tongue — black, forked — shot out, her teeth yellow and crooked, fanged. He screamed. Then woke up. Alone. —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] This is a terza rima haiku sonnet, a form I invented. The first four stanzas are each a 5-7-5 haiku (in form, not sense), followed by a closing couplet of 7-7. The rhymes are terza rima, interlocked triple rhyme — aba bcb cdc ded ee — often slant rhymed. Give the form a try! Alan's intro today: "I attempted to combine the two prompts again, the aubade and the 'things are not as they seem' challenges." Elopement Aubade Beyond your sleeping form I see the sun; It rises on our unfamiliar day. No longer two, we start today as one. It’s not the life we thought we had begun. Without their blessing, we fear what they’d pray. Beyond your sleeping form I see the sun. Afraid, committed to our loving run, You fell asleep with hurt from what they’d say. No longer two, we start today as one. They thought our love was only play and fun and learned, too late, their own was in decay. Beyond your sleeping form I see the sun. Regrets? I’ve none at all. I’ve none. The state line’s just a few more miles away. No longer two, we start today as one. And you, my darling, think of what we’ve done with happiness. Be brave. We’ll find our way. Beyond your sleeping form I see the sun. No longer two, we start today as one. —Draft by Thomas Alan Holmes    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Alan, great job with the villanelle and also with the prompt combining. My favorite line is "Regrets? I've none at all. I've none." The repetition of "I've none" suggests the possibility that the speaker doth protest too much. And that there are deeper, perhaps contradictory meanings in the poem. Bravo. Friends, won't you comment, please? Love to know what you're thinking. To comment, look for a red line below that starts Posted by, then click once on the word comments in that line. If you don't find the word "comments" in that line, then look for a blue link below that says Post a comment and click it once. Thanks! Ingat, everyone.  ヅ

NAPOWRIMO / PAD 2015 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

National Poetry Month / NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2015

Hello, NaPoWriMo and PAD fans! If you don't know what I'm referring to, those words unpack as "National Poetry Writing Month" and "Poem-a-Day." They both refer to the same basic project: writing a poem every day of April, National Poetry Month in the US. NaPoWriMo is headquartered at NaPoWriMo.net, helmed by Maureen Thorson, and PAD's home is the Poetic Asides blog, written by Robert Lee Brewer. If you've followed my April shenanigans before, you'll know that I try to combine the NaPoWriMo and PAD prompts whenever possible in my single poem of the day. It's my way of having fun with the whole shebang. Okay, then, here are the Day One "official" prompts. Maureen Thorson's first NaPoWriMo prompt is "a poem of negation – yes (or maybe, no), I challenge you to write a poem that involves describing something in terms of what it is not, or not like. For example, if you chose a whale as the topic of your poem, you might have lines like It does not settle down in trees at night, cooing / Nor will it fit in your hand." Robert Lee Brewer's first PAD prompt for the season is "write a resistance poem. There are many forms of resistance, including militant resistance, resistance to new ideas, the resistance in exercise, and maybe even a little resistance to starting a new project. I hope you don’t resist the urge to write a poem today." I was successful today in combining the two prompts in what one might call a geek anthem, esp. for Star Trek and Doctor Who fans. Hope you like it! Resistance Is Futile Friends, we are not who you think we are. No, we are not metal men, two- by-two, steel shoulder to steel shoulder, goose-stepping down your streets. We are not angels weeping stone tears, just waiting until you blink. Not reaping, that’s not what we will do with you. We harbor you no ill will. Futile resistance, who said that? You are safe, dear ones. We love you. —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] This poem is in a form I invented, the terza rima haiku sonnet. I've called this a "terzaiku sonnet" in the past, though I'm not really in love with that term. Anyone got a suggestion for a form name? Basically, four 5-7-5 haiku stanzas (haiku in form, not substance) with an ending couplet that has 7-syllable lines. Rhyming in terza rima, often via slant rhymes. What do you think? Comment below? Just like last year, I am pleased and honored to present, all month, the PAD/NaPoWriMo poems of my writing buddy Thomas Alan Holmes. Alan teaches in the Literature and Language department of East Tennessee State University in Johnson City. I know Alan through Facebook and hope to meet him f2f, as the kids say, "face to face." I think you should bring me out to Johnson City to give a reading, Alan, ole buddy. Here is Alan's Day One poem. By way of introduction, he says, "I have not seen a prompt to suit me today, but I am feeling the after-effects of the recent Appalachian Studies Association meeting here at ETSU." Lyric If I should sing an Appalachian song and never mention mining coal, deny a legacy of stripping land, decry a handicapping poverty, the wrong committed with disinterest among empowered generations, no ally to working people, making law apply extraction’s terms, their exploitation long, deliberate, and scarring, can you hear a wearied resignation? Like the air, an elemental setting seeming clear until contamination, unaware as we may be to find it first, I swear it’s there, it’s there, it’s always there, it’s there. Photo by Jeff Hardin —Draft by Thomas Alan Holmes    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Wow. That's all I can say. I'm continually amazed by your writing prowess, Alan. I don't know many people who can whip up a Petrarchan sonnet, at such short notice, like you. Friends, won't you comment, please? Alan and I would love to hear what you think. To comment, look for a red line below that starts Posted by Vince, then click once on the word comments in that line. If you don't find the word "comments" in that line, then look for a blue link below that says Post a comment and click it once. Ingat, everyone.  ヅ  Happy National Poetry Month!

NAPOWRIMO / PAD 2015 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Day 15 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2014

Day 15. The halfway point. What can I say. Sad if we think about National Poetry Month as ending. But it's also got 15 good days to go yet, right? Bravo! Keep writing a poem a day, friends. And keep coming back here to check out ours. Robert Lee Brewer has a "two-for-Tuesday" prompt today: love poem and/or anti-love poem (Poetic Asides). Maureen Thorson suggests using terza rima (NaPoWriMo). "I hope," Alan says, "I hope Vince will recover from the shock that I combined the two poetry prompts today. If his mustache suddenly turns white, it's my fault." My Undergraduates Don’t Get Toni Morrison In Morrison’s Beloved, Sixo walks past thirty miles between two suns to see the woman that he loves. In classroom talks I learn priorities. “Is it just me,” one asks, “or is it nuts to go so far?” “It’s fifteen miles a night,” I say, “to be with one he loves more than his life.” Their car- eased lives make them mismeasure miles. “We all should walk it in two long nights, tops, North Star for bearings should we miss the path.” “I’d call that reckless,” someone says, “the chance he took that he’d get caught.” There’s coughing in the hall, and I dismiss them for the day. They look at me as lost; they click online and get delivered their desires. “This stupid book,” one says, who might feel love but hasn’t yet. —Draft by Thomas Alan Holmes     [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Book Cover, Beloved by Toni Morrison Oh . . . so that's what happened to my mustache. I was wondering. Good job mashing up the two prompts, Alan! From me today, a musical collage, or maybe a montage. Or whatever, whatsit. You decide. Guitar matrix of metal cross-pieces and sharp steel shine vibrate musical wood shaved into fine curves curlicues channeling bronze shimmery line waves downbeat upswing staccato fingertip jive hard plectrum bee-sting swift sustain alive vermillion green bruise echoes rise purple sheer dive ultramarine lava flows love love muse almost so close —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] It's got the word "love" in it for Brewer's prompt, or half of it anyway, 'cause I couldn't work in "anti-love" without getting clunky. Seems to me pretty clearly on love, though. Thorson's terza rima is there, in a haiku sonnet shape. And here's a little visual noodle doodle too.  ヅ Won't you comment, please, friends? To make a comment, look for a blue link below that says Post a comment; if you don't see that, look in the red line that starts Posted by Vince and click on the word comments. Ingat, everyone.   ヅ

POEM-A-DAY 2014 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Wild Nights, Wild Nights

First poem after April's poem-a-day hullabaloo. Dedicated to Kathy Lawrence, my lovely muse.   ;-) P O E M   R E M O V E D while being submitted for publication. Please come back later. The poem may return at some time in the future. Thank you! Again a terzaiku sonnet: haiku stanzas rhymed in terza rima. Many thanks to Emily Dickinson for the post title I nicked. Friends, won't you comment, please? Look for a blue link below that says "Post a comment"; if you don't see that, look in the red line that says "Posted by" and click on the word "comments." Ingat, everyone.   ;-)

Day 17 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2013

Day 17, everyone. 17 is the number of syllables in a haiku . . . that will show up again with regard to my poem below. Surprised that neither of our prompters came up with a haiku prompt today. Robert Lee Brewer suggests, "write an express poem. This might be about an express train or express delivery. It might have something to do with expression painting. However you come at this prompt, be sure to express yourself" (Poetic Asides). From Maureen Thorson today, "write poems of greeting. There’s lots of things you could greet. The spring? Your new stapler? A favorite classmate? An addition to the menu at your local cafe? The subject’s up to you — now get out there and say 'hello!'" (NaPoWriMo). I'm taking on Maureen's challenge today and saying "hello" as my first word. Not sure how to work with Robert's prompt because every poem is an "express poem," isn't it? Here goes. Remembering You Laying Out on the Eigenmann Dorm Roof Hello bikini. I'm ashamed to say that's all I recall: teeny knit, jade, halter style. Jade green so aflame your eyes would match. And freckle galaxy! — that was your body. I admired you but couldn’t say — hush. So slim I called you, like it was fifth grade again, chicken legs. But you know, I loved your legs, so tan. All of you sun-drenched, golden. —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] Once again, as on Day 15, a haiku sonnet rhyming in terza rima. Each of the three-line stanzas above has 17 syllables, in honor of today being Day 17. Remember I asked the other day for a possible name for this poetic form I invented? How about terzaiku sonnet. Let me know what you think in a comment below, okay? Mark me done for poem #17. A baker's dozen of poems left to go. Won't you comment, please? Look for a blue link below that says "Post a comment"; if you don't see that, look in the red line that says "Posted by" and click on the word "comments." Ingat, everyone.   ;-) POEM-A-DAY 2013 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Day 15 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2013

Tax day, everyone. Hope you didn't forget!   ;-)   Also, "the ides of April." And exactly halfway through National Poetry Month. Can you believe how quickly it's gone by? From NaPoWriMo HQ, we get Maureen Thorson's challenge: "write a pantun. Not a pantoum." From his blog Poetic Asides, the poem-a-day HQ, Robert Lee Brewer suggests, "write an infested poem." Although there are surely many ways to merge these two prompts — zombies! — I decided today not to follow the prompts, as promising as they are. An ironic decision because I published an essay on the history of the pantun and the pantoum in the book An Exaltation of Forms: Contemporary Poets Celebrate the Diversity of Their Art, edited by Annie Finch and Kathrine Varnes. You can see part of this essay in the Google books preview of this anthology. Anyway, here is today's non-pantun, non-infested poem . . . a sonnet: After Dashing Home Through a Rainshower Thirty Years Ago Rainy light filtered through those gauzy, sheer curtains. Kath, when you entered the bedroom, wearing only rainwater sheen, I fell in love again. Such a cliché, my bookish mind says, but it’s true. You slipped me a shy glance with those green-blue eyes, slid into bed with me. In rain-streaked light, you closed my eyes, kissed each one. We live there still . . . fragile memory. —Draft by Vince Gotera    [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] This love sonnet is, more specifically, a terza rima haiku sonnet, a form I invented in 1978 or thereabouts. The 14 lines are made up of four linked haiku followed at the end by a couplet of 7-syllable lines, so that the last two stanzas together are, at least in syllabics and lineation, a tanka. I should say that haiku and tanka are invoked here only in shape, not in spirit. Only in form, not in meaning. With regard to the sonnet per se, there is no volta or turn, which in a traditional sonnet occurs either at the beginning of the 9th line or the 13th line. Anyone have a suggestion for what I might call this form? Some name more graceful than "terza rima haiku sonnet." All right, 15 poems down, 15 poems to go. Won't you comment below, please? Look for a blue link that says "Post a comment"; if you don't see that, look in the red line that says "Posted by" and click on the word "comments." Ingat, everyone.   ;-) P.S.  I forgot to announce last week that the North American Review Blog published my colleague Rachel Morgan's interview in The Next Big Thing poetry series. Congrats, Rachel! POEM-A-DAY 2013 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30