I’ve been trying to write poems for my book, but have been feeling stuck. I can’t seem to find a thread that inspires me to begin.

I was feeling pretty bad about that. I was afraid that somehow my decision to get serious about writing and creating was what sabotaged my ability to produce.

Then I came across someone who encouraged me to write some bad poetry, to get over my need to write good poetry. BRILLIANT!

Then I found another bit of advice on how to title your work. This really helped put things into perspective for me.

So I pulled out all my bad poems that I’ve already written, and re-examined their titles (or lack thereof). I also touched up the wording in some bad verses, which I think makes them a bit better. I feel really good about having the freedom to re-examine a bit of old work to make it better. I don’t know why I somehow felt that if I wrote something mediocre that I had to just accept that it was a lousy poem, rather than believing I still had the right to improve it!

Anyway, this morning I began to write about homelessness. I realized the way for me to begin writing would be to write something that ISN’T a poem. Just write. Keep writing until something begins to fall into a poetic rhythm for me, or a beautiful phrase somehow falls out of my pen. Then I can begin to weave my new poem around that.

So YAY! Writing block seems to be solved, at least for now. 2 months ago

To start myself thinking in terms of a poetry collection, I gathered together all the poems that I’ve written here. (All my original ones, at least, and some of the others which may serve as a model for future attempts.)

I have about a dozen poems already! I’m surprised. I thought I only had four or five. I guess they have a way of slipping my memory. But then, I am not a steady or prolific writer, so taken as a saturation of my life, it isn’t really much. But then, with me, nothing is.

I don’t know how many of these may be appropriate to share with others at church, as a fundraiser. They are okay, but maybe not relevant. I’ll have to give it more thought. 2 months ago

Yesterday I read one of my poems at church. It was the one written for “The Families at the Dump”, entitled Hope is a Bumpy Road. I read it because there was a bake sale being held that day at the church as a fundraiser for this cause, and I hoped it would help draw attention so it would be successful in raising all the money needed to send these kids to school for another year.

We were very successful! Everything in the bake sale sold out, and we made about $100.00 more than our goal! That extra money will be saved towards next year’s school expenses for the same kids.

I was somewhat confused as I read the poem, because everyone in the audience had such a blank look on their face that I could not tell whether they were moved at all, or merely bored. But at least half a dozen people approached me afterwards and gave me hugs, saying the poem was very moving as well as me having a particularly good way of speaking/delivery. That made me feel much better. I guess people just don’t express much on their faces during church, when they feel their heartstrings tugged.

One friend told me she thought I should make a book of poetry. I humbly deferred, saying I don’t really have that many poems, and surely they aren’t really all that good. She said I should WRITE more poems if I thought that were the case, because the few poems of mine she’s aware of are both VERY good. Well, what can a modest person say to that?

So I thought about it. Of course I know NOBODY ever buys books of poetry. I’ve always dreamed of being an author, but I know full well I can’t write stories because I have no concept of how to make a plot. But my friend assured me that although she can write stories she thought my ability to write poems with particularly good rhythm and rhyme was a special gift. She can’t do that. We both guessed that maybe it uses different parts of the brain to do these different tasks well. She associated my good poetry skills with my good singing skills, where I show a natural ability to keep excellent time and stay on pitch, which apparently are also somewhat rare skills.

So I kept thinking. I now realize I should respect this ability of mine, and not discount it just because it seems easy to me, or because I assume it wouldn’t be a best-seller.

Then a new thought occurred to me. After I make this collection I might ask children or other members of my congregation to make illustrations for it. This would be especially appropriate if the poems I choose are ones about subjects my church regularly thinks about or causes we support. And people in my church would buy it! Especially if they or someone they love contributed an illustration. This would make an excellent fundraiser for my church!

So now I’m very excited to have a new project. I have a focus on WHY I would write the poems. That’s a big help to me, since writing poetry, though fun, has always seemed rather self-indulgent before. Writing just to show off that I can write seems egotistical. But writing to throw a light onto a subject that people care about is not only generous, it is necessary!

So that’s my plan. I’m going to review the poems I’ve written already to see if any of them may apply to this new goal. Then I’m going to start thinking about new topics and new forms to attempt, to compile a collection of however many poems it takes to feel like it’s “enough”. I honestly have no idea how many that will end up needing to be.

I can tell already that this will be a great project for me, and for my church! I’m so thrilled to be involved in a meaningful endeavor again. 2 months ago

One of my favorite poems called Haystack in the Floods by William Morris.

Had she come all the way for this
To part at last without a kiss
Yea had she borne the dirt and rain
That her own eyes might see him slain
Beside the haystack in the floods

Eh? lies my Jehane? by God’s head
At Paris folks would deem them true!
Do you know Jehane they cry for you
‘Jehane the Brown! Jehane the Brown!
Give us Jehane to burn and drown!’

She shook her head and gazed a while
At her cold hands with a cold smile
As though this thing had made her mad
This was the parting they had
Beside the haystack in the floods 1 year ago

I’d like the poetry to tell a story, as well as be combined with pictures. I kinda want to have it like a dark and twisted fantasy but have it set up and told like Alice in Wonderland. Any like minded people?

I’m also a fan of nonsense verse. 1 year ago