National Poetry Month - here, not just over there and everywhere! Get a daily poem from Daily Lit, today's poem being Eliot and an extract from The Wasteland.
In other places, PFFA set their usual challenge of writing a poem a day for all 30 days of this month. I tried last year (lasted 17 days?) and the year before (lasted 3 days, I think). You do need strategies to get through this and the threads over at PFFA show how good the competition are ;)
Anyhoo - what am I doing? I'm thinking about using the Daily Lit poems as a daily bounce to get me going on some poems, since I've not been writing much of my own stuff for the last three months.
Instead, I was engaged in editing other people's writing - an art for which you need endless patience and a good computer programme (which hasn't been invented yet). The anthology runs to 136 pages (I hope) and will be published in May (I hope), to huge applause and interest (again, I hope!). What else - oh yes, it will be called, Drogheda Writes 2. Just hope I don't get into trouble with anyone here in Dundalk ;) Apparently these two towns, based in the same county aren't terribly fond of each other. Since I belong to neither town fully, I can mention this (I hope...)...
10 comments:
It must be a relief to be through the process. I hope it is well received and that you've got some editing tips as Pam and I head for our stint elsewhere.
The Daily Lit sounds a god spring-board to getting on with your own work
The only tip I can think of is to let yourself be surprised, A. :)
I hadn't come across the PFFA challenge. Thanks for putting me onto it. I took up the same exercise in hubris fom Poets Who Blog and no doubt it will come in useful to be able to read about other people's approaches to a crazy idea. Why do we do it?
Thanks for the Daily Lit link. I just signed up and look forward to reading the poems over the coming month.
C u 2moro!
N x
I've done the poem-a-day thing for the last 2 November's over on poetry ireland. A surprisingly beneficial exercise.
I didn't know about PI doing that one, PJ, so thanks for letting me know. It is beneficial sometimes writing because you are being made to: you must dig harder for the gems and it can be surprising what these look like sometimes.
N, you're welcome - there's so much happening in the poetry world during April it would nearly leave you breathless!
Mairi, hope that is useful to you and you enjoy reading the chaos - I warn you though, on the NaPo threads they go a lot lighter on criticism than they do normally - it's the one time they allow 'fluffs,' or being nice to one another ;)
Why do we do it - because we must write!
I tried the poem-a-day stunt two years ago and ran aground after three. In fact, I think it burned me out for a good month beyond so I'm watching from afar this time around!
Keep us posted on 'Drogheda Writes'. If you're in the chair then there'll be some good stuff on board. And that's so much punchier a title than, say, 'Berkshire Writes' somehow...
Thanks Dick, maybe it's because there's 3 syllables in the name *ducks* ;)
Hi Barbara,
Well done on Drogheda Writes - it has a certain ring...looking forward to the read.
I've done quite a few daily poem challenges but not in ages - am itching to maybe start one...keep opening Word and then x-ing out - no staying power at the moment!
Maybe it's because you're too excited by other things at the moment, Liz. The muse will strike you when you least expect it :)
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