Just updated my What’s New page for January. If you’re interested in what I’m excited about and what I’m not excited about in my writing life this month, feel free to drop by! And share what’s on your excited/not excited list in your comment:>)
Photo: Laura Purdie Salas
Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)!
We walked around The Atlantis resort in the Bahamas recently, and I loved all the fantastic ocean details. This is a sculptural element on a handrail. Here’s what it makes me think of:
1)?Medusa
2) Smaug (saw The Hobbit recently, too:>)
3) Those “Hang in there!” posters from the 80s with the cute kitten gripping a rope for dear life.
And here’s my poem first draft:
Under Currents
Sleek fangs send poison
rolling like tide,
flowing in
and out.
Shore
Sea
Shore–Laura Purdie Salas, all rights reserved
What do you think of when you look at this picture? Take any quick idea and jot down a 15 Words or Less poem. It doesn’t have to rhyme or describe this picture. It’s just about whatever you think of when you look at it.
184 Responses
Someone come find me!
I’m alone and free
But I want to stop being
so lonely
Sorry- one word over! But I couldn’t cut it up. I love your imagery, Ms. Salas! Great description and feeling! And the pic is great!
I thought the snake looked lonely too, Amelia. I had no time to comment last week, but wanted to say that I really enjoyed your poem, the first line especially. Loved your choice of teensy.
I really like “I’m alone and free” and then rhyming it with “lonely”. Sometimes it’s good to be alone… and sometimes it’s not.
Thanks, Amelia. Love this–so plaintive. And kind of like an eharmony ad for a snake:>)
Someone come find me!
I’m alone and free
But I want to stop being
so lonely
Sorry- one word over! But I couldn’t cut it up. I love your imagery, Ms. Salas! Great description and feeling! And the pic is great!
I thought the snake looked lonely too, Amelia. I had no time to comment last week, but wanted to say that I really enjoyed your poem, the first line especially. Loved your choice of teensy.
I really like “I’m alone and free” and then rhyming it with “lonely”. Sometimes it’s good to be alone… and sometimes it’s not.
Thanks, Amelia. Love this–so plaintive. And kind of like an eharmony ad for a snake:>)
Love the repetition at the end of yours, Laura. Here’s mine:
Frightfully fearsome fangs
Carelessly caught in a cord.
Here I hang,
Humiliated.
Ha Ha! Such a contradiction here. Love it.
I agree!!!
I love all the different reactions of the snakes, this one is fab!
I’m picturing an embarrassed cartoonish snake… 🙂 Fun poem!
Thanks, ellie–love the voice here. Poor snake. Trying to be fierce but hanging there. Like a macho jock whose mom makes him wear a fluffy sweater from Aunt Penelope.
Thanks, everyone.
Love the repetition at the end of yours, Laura. Here’s mine:
Frightfully fearsome fangs
Carelessly caught in a cord.
Here I hang,
Humiliated.
Ha Ha! Such a contradiction here. Love it.
I agree!!!
I love all the different reactions of the snakes, this one is fab!
I’m picturing an embarrassed cartoonish snake… 🙂 Fun poem!
Thanks, ellie–love the voice here. Poor snake. Trying to be fierce but hanging there. Like a macho jock whose mom makes him wear a fluffy sweater from Aunt Penelope.
Thanks, everyone.
Laura, the last three words of your poem remind me of the sound of waves. Nicely done.
Frontispiece
Early artists cast
serpent bodies
in brass
solidifying,
yet rendering
harmless the
ever-present fear.
© Diane Mayr
Ooh brilliant!
I really like this, the message and all the “s” sounds (which also came to my mind when I was writing!)
Nice! Very cool!
Thanks, Diane~ Love this take on war art. We just got home 10 minutes ago from seeing the terra cotta warriors exhibit from the Qin tomb. Such cool stuff. And there was lots of ancient Chinese art–lots more dragons and serpents than I expected!
I would love to see those terra cotta warriors, where are they being shown?
There’s a batch on exhibit in Minneapolis right now, at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Along with a whole exhibit of Chinese artifacts from that time period. Very cool stuff.
Laura, the last three words of your poem remind me of the sound of waves. Nicely done.
Frontispiece
Early artists cast
serpent bodies
in brass
solidifying,
yet rendering
harmless the
ever-present fear.
© Diane Mayr
Ooh brilliant!
I really like this, the message and all the “s” sounds (which also came to my mind when I was writing!)
Nice! Very cool!
Thanks, Diane~ Love this take on war art. We just got home 10 minutes ago from seeing the terra cotta warriors exhibit from the Qin tomb. Such cool stuff. And there was lots of ancient Chinese art–lots more dragons and serpents than I expected!
I would love to see those terra cotta warriors, where are they being shown?
There’s a batch on exhibit in Minneapolis right now, at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Along with a whole exhibit of Chinese artifacts from that time period. Very cool stuff.
It must have been very beautiful there, Laura. I love the ocean, and your ‘rolling like tide’. I caught into the ‘lonely’ a bit too, but turned it a different way.
Cold-blooded serpent,
even colder
trapped in metal,
waiting
waiting
for warm hands to awaken.
Thanks for ‘every week’!
Love the imagery of this, Linda!
Oooh, I love this one!
Ahh, that’s lovely, Linda. Love the repetition of waiting and all the w sounds near the end. Very warmish sounds:>)
It must have been very beautiful there, Laura. I love the ocean, and your ‘rolling like tide’. I caught into the ‘lonely’ a bit too, but turned it a different way.
Cold-blooded serpent,
even colder
trapped in metal,
waiting
waiting
for warm hands to awaken.
Thanks for ‘every week’!
Love the imagery of this, Linda!
Oooh, I love this one!
Ahh, that’s lovely, Linda. Love the repetition of waiting and all the w sounds near the end. Very warmish sounds:>)
My tummy’s so twisted,
a simple move stings.
Now I know better-
no swallowing springs.
Fun!
Yikes! LOL
I like the humor and the rhymes.
Hahaha! And I love the way the bouncy meter echoes the content.
Love where you took this.
My tummy’s so twisted,
a simple move stings.
Now I know better-
no swallowing springs.
Fun!
Yikes! LOL
I like the humor and the rhymes.
Hahaha! And I love the way the bouncy meter echoes the content.
Love where you took this.
S‑s-s-s-snake
quietly s‑s-s-slithers
s‑s-s-silently dissappears.
SSSplendid!
Sssuper! 🙂 Another one with lots of s words ~ love it!
Nicely s‑s-said!
I like not only the s but the short and long i sounds, too. This is such a nice, compact poem!
And I say th-th-th-thank goodness! Like your poem, Joy.
S‑s-s-s-snake
quietly s‑s-s-slithers
s‑s-s-silently dissappears.
SSSplendid!
Sssuper! 🙂 Another one with lots of s words ~ love it!
Nicely s‑s-said!
I like not only the s but the short and long i sounds, too. This is such a nice, compact poem!
And I say th-th-th-thank goodness! Like your poem, Joy.
These are so fun! Here’s mine:
Layers of scale
From nose to tail,
Protecting you like a reptilian veil.
Lovely!
That’s great! I love “reptilian veil” and the rhymes.
Thanks. 😀
Me, too!
I like the rhyming!
Thank you. 🙂
Reptilian veil–FABulous!
These are so fun! Here’s mine:
Layers of scale
From nose to tail,
Protecting you like a reptilian veil.
Lovely!
That’s great! I love “reptilian veil” and the rhymes.
Thanks. 😀
Me, too!
I like the rhyming!
Thank you. 🙂
Reptilian veil–FABulous!
Great poems everyone!
A unique end to tug of war.
Frozen stiff.
That IS a unique end!
Ha! It’s as if it played tug of war with Medusa!
What an image! But if a snake is playing, count me out!
Great poems everyone!
A unique end to tug of war.
Frozen stiff.
That IS a unique end!
Ha! It’s as if it played tug of war with Medusa!
What an image! But if a snake is playing, count me out!
Got called in to sub at 8 am, mid word…thus a very first draft. I went where my mind kept taking me.…..
Bronzed and Anchored
Alive, but supple no more,
golden-scaled memories,
time-frozen,
faded,
now gleam
without luster
without pain.
I really like the use of “supple” and “luster”, as well as the meaning of your poem.
My favorite bits are anchored and golden-scaled memories. Nice!
A feeling of melancholy tucked into so few words. Your first line grabbed me.
Got called in to sub at 8 am, mid word…thus a very first draft. I went where my mind kept taking me.…..
Bronzed and Anchored
Alive, but supple no more,
golden-scaled memories,
time-frozen,
faded,
now gleam
without luster
without pain.
I really like the use of “supple” and “luster”, as well as the meaning of your poem.
My favorite bits are anchored and golden-scaled memories. Nice!
A feeling of melancholy tucked into so few words. Your first line grabbed me.
Dangling
from a
giant’s
bracelet,
this snake
is charmed!
I didn’t see it until you wrote the words. Great imagination!
I see it now, too — clever!
Love this, JoAnn–makes me see a whole different image!
JoAnn,
You wrote the poem I was trying to write. Kept thinking about Cleopatra’s necklace (well Liz Taylor’s actually). Love the giant’s bracelet!
Love the double meaning of “charmed”. Very clever!
Dangling
from a
giant’s
bracelet,
this snake
is charmed!
I didn’t see it until you wrote the words. Great imagination!
I see it now, too — clever!
Love this, JoAnn–makes me see a whole different image!
JoAnn,
You wrote the poem I was trying to write. Kept thinking about Cleopatra’s necklace (well Liz Taylor’s actually). Love the giant’s bracelet!
Love the double meaning of “charmed”. Very clever!
Snake Spell
Blue ice
twists down
my spine,
snuffing
the orange fire
of my sinuous
life.
–Kate Coombs (Book Aunt)
Ah, powerful image!
You’ve evoked the mood of a snake without including one–love it.
Ooh, full of mystery and mood. I love the blue ice and also the f and long i sounds.
Snake Spell
Blue ice
twists down
my spine,
snuffing
the orange fire
of my sinuous
life.
–Kate Coombs (Book Aunt)
Ah, powerful image!
You’ve evoked the mood of a snake without including one–love it.
Ooh, full of mystery and mood. I love the blue ice and also the f and long i sounds.
Oh, and I meant to say–love your poem, Laura. Tide of poison: creepy cool!
Thanks:)
Oh, and I meant to say–love your poem, Laura. Tide of poison: creepy cool!
Thanks:)
Great poem, Laura! I especially like the first two lines.
I came up with two different poems by changing my ending:
slippery scales
slither
and slide
across
the sidewalk,
a sinuous
stride.
or
slippery scales
slither
and slide
across
the interstate:
snake suicide
~Janelle (Blue Sky, Big Dreams)
Love the ess sounds of your first poem, and the humor of your second!
Love both poems- the first is more thought-provoking, and the second is very funny. Thanks for the laugh!
Ha! What a powerful demo of how changing just a few words totally changes a poem. I like the first one slightly better because I love sinuous…
What a treat to see both poems. I have to go with snake suicide — how unexpected!
Thanks, everyone! 🙂
Great poem, Laura! I especially like the first two lines.
I came up with two different poems by changing my ending:
slippery scales
slither
and slide
across
the sidewalk,
a sinuous
stride.
or
slippery scales
slither
and slide
across
the interstate:
snake suicide
~Janelle (Blue Sky, Big Dreams)
Love the ess sounds of your first poem, and the humor of your second!
Love both poems- the first is more thought-provoking, and the second is very funny. Thanks for the laugh!
Ha! What a powerful demo of how changing just a few words totally changes a poem. I like the first one slightly better because I love sinuous…
What a treat to see both poems. I have to go with snake suicide — how unexpected!
Thanks, everyone! 🙂
Snake guards the door:
Flicks its tongue
in judgement.
Hands waver,
courage falters.
I like the judging tongue, Buffy!
I like how you’ve used “waver” and “falters”, as if there could be a summoning of bravery and ultimately success.
I can just picture this!
Snake guards the door:
Flicks its tongue
in judgement.
Hands waver,
courage falters.
I like the judging tongue, Buffy!
I like how you’ve used “waver” and “falters”, as if there could be a summoning of bravery and ultimately success.
I can just picture this!
Silver sequined scales
slither soundlessly
searching
searching
settling serpentine
on sunny slate
sssssss
Sssstellar, Susanna–love that first line especially! Thanks for playing:)
Sensational s words! 🙂
Silver sequined scales
slither soundlessly
searching
searching
settling serpentine
on sunny slate
sssssss
Sssstellar, Susanna–love that first line especially! Thanks for playing:)
Sensational s words! 🙂
I thought of the the symbol of the medical profession.
Whining for My Twining Twin
Solitude is not a crime?
We needed alone time?
Alas, a mess!
An untwined Caduceus!
~Penny Klostermann
So clever! And great title!
What an imagination — to see in the picture something that’s missing! Wonderful poem.
Love that last line!
I thought of the the symbol of the medical profession.
Whining for My Twining Twin
Solitude is not a crime?
We needed alone time?
Alas, a mess!
An untwined Caduceus!
~Penny Klostermann
So clever! And great title!
What an imagination — to see in the picture something that’s missing! Wonderful poem.
Love that last line!
Laura,
I just want to say again how much I enjoy Thursdays at your blog! I don’t get my commenting done on each poem each week…but I do read them all. I admire your talent and the talent of the poets that join in and amaze me with 15 words or less!
Thank you, Penny. That is so nice to hear. And I don’t expect anybody to comment on every poem! It’s wonderful if people are able to comment on 2–3–and it’s absolutely fine if they’re not. Time is short, and I’m perennially behind on my blog reading and commenting, too. These brief poems are fun to read, aren’t they? I think the variety of ideas/approaches is my favorite part. It’s like seeing the inner workings of everyone’s brains–and it’s so fun how people come up with stuff that never would have occurred to me in a million years. Little by little, it’s stretching my brain and making me more creative, too. Always happy to see you here!
Yes, Laura,
Thank you for s‑s-s-stretching all of our brains and making us all more creative.
Wishing you JOY today.
Thanks, Joy:>)
Laura,
I just want to say again how much I enjoy Thursdays at your blog! I don’t get my commenting done on each poem each week…but I do read them all. I admire your talent and the talent of the poets that join in and amaze me with 15 words or less!
Thank you, Penny. That is so nice to hear. And I don’t expect anybody to comment on every poem! It’s wonderful if people are able to comment on 2–3–and it’s absolutely fine if they’re not. Time is short, and I’m perennially behind on my blog reading and commenting, too. These brief poems are fun to read, aren’t they? I think the variety of ideas/approaches is my favorite part. It’s like seeing the inner workings of everyone’s brains–and it’s so fun how people come up with stuff that never would have occurred to me in a million years. Little by little, it’s stretching my brain and making me more creative, too. Always happy to see you here!
Yes, Laura,
Thank you for s‑s-s-stretching all of our brains and making us all more creative.
Wishing you JOY today.
Thanks, Joy:>)
Rhapsody in Flu
Klezmer music
snaked around
the room,
luring dancers,
contagiously,
to lose themselves
into hypnotic trance
-Pamela Ross
Oh, this is SO exotic. Luring and contagiously are my two favorite words here. Who knew the flu could be so poetic!
Awesome title!
Rhapsody in Flu
Klezmer music
snaked around
the room,
luring dancers,
contagiously,
to lose themselves
into hypnotic trance
-Pamela Ross
Oh, this is SO exotic. Luring and contagiously are my two favorite words here. Who knew the flu could be so poetic!
Awesome title!
This is a snippet from a concrete poem I wrote a while back…
Metaphor
He
snakes
a bit
like
candlelight
through
cresting
meringue
seas?a
bucket
with
a
jagged
hole
I love your poem, Julie. How perfectly it seems to match the photo! Love snakes like candlelight through cresting meringue seas.
Ooh. That is sneaky and ominous. Love those meringue seas!
Oh, I just love “cresting meringue seas”!
Thank you, all, Ladies. Looking forward to reading your poems, too!
This is a snippet from a concrete poem I wrote a while back…
Metaphor
He
snakes
a bit
like
candlelight
through
cresting
meringue
seas?a
bucket
with
a
jagged
hole
I love your poem, Julie. How perfectly it seems to match the photo! Love snakes like candlelight through cresting meringue seas.
Ooh. That is sneaky and ominous. Love those meringue seas!
Oh, I just love “cresting meringue seas”!
Thank you, all, Ladies. Looking forward to reading your poems, too!
ANIMAL HUNT
Serpent slithers through
Green papery blades seeking
Supper. TAG! You’re it.
© Charles Waters 2013 all rights reserved.
Seaweed as green papery blades=brilliant
ANIMAL HUNT
Serpent slithers through
Green papery blades seeking
Supper. TAG! You’re it.
© Charles Waters 2013 all rights reserved.
Seaweed as green papery blades=brilliant