Tag: creative-writing

How to Write Poems Within Poems

The Golden Shovel poetry

A child's yellow plastic spade and red pail on beach pebbles.

Image by Sebastian Mey from Pixabay

Terrance Hayes introduced this poetry style based on a poem by Gwendolyn Brooks. I read about it in Robert Lee Brewer’s Smash Poetry Journal. I like it when Lee challenges his readers to try new poetic styles and encourages them to create something different.

The rules of this style of poetry are simple:

· Take a line from a poem you wrote or read

· Use each word in the line as the end word in your new poem

· Keep the end words in order

I’d read a stirring poem by David Hollis on Medium that morning, so I chose this line from the poem as my new poem —

“Imagine if we swam against the tide of popular culture.”

Using each word as an end word, I wrote this new poem.

A woman praising God with uplifted arms.

Image by Barbara Jackson from Pixabay

Can You Imagine

Can you imagine

what life would be like if

all of us lived a fully devoted life and if we

did as Jesus did and swam

upstream against

these modern ideals and the

changes in moral tide

to fully embrace the life of

Christ, even if we’re not popular

with family, friends and the current culture?

~ Lynne

I hope you enjoyed reading this poetic form. I enjoyed writing it and intend to write more in this style. Have you heard of this style before? I hope you’ll try it out if it’s new to you.

’Til next time — remember you are loved by the One who created you in His image.

~ Lynne

This poem was originally published on Medium in the publication Koinonia

“Imagine” by David Hollis in “Messages From the Heart of God Volume 2”

“The Golden Shovel” by Terrance Hayes

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Why I Switched My NaNoWriMo Focus the Week Before

When life changes without warning

I planned to write a short, cozy garden mystery for NaNoWriMo. Dutifully, as a plantser (hybrid planner and pantser), I began jotting down notes for possible clues and motives and searching Pinterest to create my annual NaNo board to spur me onward to my goal.

Photo by Sam 🐷 on Unsplash

I felt good about my progress when a financial shift occurred out of the blue. We discovered our monthly income was not what we’d received in previous months. The only solution was for me to monetize my writing better.

That meant more writing of what would bring in a return the fastest. As I saw it, I had three options.

1. I could carry on writing my mystery story and hope for a fantastic book launch with considerable sales in three months (experience said, “not likely.”)

2. I could write several ebooks for my Etsy shop with more chances of earlier success.

3. I could write more on Medium and hope I’ve got the algorithm right this month.

Hmmm.

Daunted and confused, I turned to prayer. (I should have started there. Hey, that could be another poem!) It became more apparent that I had not one choice of three options but three options to achieve the same goal collectively.

NaNoWriMo Woes

I had an idea this time
to write a mysterious crime
with murderous beast
five suspects at least
and victim appearing deceased.

But life took a turn to the side
and all of my notes I did hide.
Instead, I did flop
facing my laptop
and outlined new books for my shop.

Then joy filled each thought
as I prayed like I ought
and I saw that I could do both.
With November’s troth
I wrote down a personal oath.

And now Nano’s here
and I have no fear.
I can write a cozy plus two
Etsy ebooks for you.
That’s three books in all brand new!

*originally published in KOINONIA on MEDIUM

Til next time, remember — you are loved by the One who created you in His image.

~ Lynne