Challenges Options

[Sekhmet]

Good morning to anyone who reads this.

OK - Where are all the members when the gauntlet of a Challenge is thrown dawn?
I wander about the echoing halls of the weekly, monthly, slam, short prose, and drabble sections - and see only the same names, week after week.
It is now a cosy little corner, for just a few of us - but we need new blood to survive, and what better time than Halloween to go out and hunt for it?

Why not have an extra condition placed upon all members, (apart from the two responses to other writers' poems for each poem published) -
A response to at least one of the challenges every second month. That's sixty-odd days to think up some kind of response!

These Challenges stimulate the mind into branching off at a tangent; and are important tools in our poetic arsenal. I am amazed at what turns up, unbidden, when working on a challenge.

Surely, all the members are capable of meeting at least one of the challenges every couple of months? If not- they need assistance from the more experienced writers to achieve the required result.
When Newbies, (such as myself) squeaked;
' I know nothing about poetry criticism - I couldn't possibly crit anyone else's work.'
We were all briskly told to look at other members' crits, and do your best; you'll soon get the hang of it.

Why not give exactly the same advice to anyone who baulks at answering a Challenge? Just as in the various critical sections - the standard of work will vary,from writer to writer - but we are all learning, all the time. New Challengers will get bolder as time passes, and who knows what might be drawn forth?.

Leo

[Thoth]

Hi everyone,

Perhaps it should be pointed out that each of us have different motives for writing.

Poetry comes to me spontaneously, sometimes triggered by external experiences and emotions and sometimes from reading something that triggers a tension requiring release. I do not choose my topics or content of my poems nor the form or ideas and for the most part, the words used. Yes they are polished afterward to ensure grammatical conformity and use of the very best word I know that exactly fits the meaning and rhythm that the poem requires.

This is why I seldom respond to challenges. I simply cannot take a list of words and build a poem from them, it seems quite pointless to me.

I take a thought and build a poem around it.

I have limited time available to write my own poetry as well as comment and write crituque where I think my opinion may be of some value.

My goal is to eventually write a perfect poem so I simply don't have time to write prescribed verse which at the end the day would not fit into my humble collection, verse which is for me is inherently un-optimised.

Since it is an idea or thought which brings on inspiration, I find short forms such as senru inspiring and exciting. Kuku chains are great fun, as are limericks.

I would like to see a challenge using a thought as stimulus with a word or line limit imposed. Short phrases that stimulate an image or thought.

For example;

Day of the pumpkin - Prose, 500 words
Evening clouds - 14 lines
Kiss me goodbye - free verse
Starvation - 200 Words
Garden Flowers - 50 words
Whirlwind - Classic Haiku or 17 syllables
Dream Mountain - 40 syllables structured verse
The poisoned dog
Dragon's shadow . . . - 100 words
After the rain has gone - Free form
The Cockroach's domain . . . iambic verse
Hold my hand
The cuckoo clock strikes twelve
When the traffic lights change
Pour the tea dear, I won't be a minute . .
I still remember when . . . open

etc. etc. Snapshots of life that most of have stored away somewhere. The actual words may be used in the composition or title if desired. The moderator could allow both free or structured criteria so all preferences are covered. A competition could be done where each participant must rate two other poems (a prescribed set criteria - choose 1 to 5 on each) to make it more exciting.

I think it would be delightful reading each poet's response to stimuli such as these as well as extremely developmental for poetic skills. Participant would also end up with a poem from the muse that is not word-driven and can the polished and added proudly to their collection.

That's just my take on the subject. Something different and productive that no other forum offers.

Hugs,

Wally