Poems of Future Past

On By GirlGriotIn choose your own adventure, NaPoMo, NaPoWriMo, poetry, slice of life, stories

It’s that time of March when I need to start thinking about what form I’m going to write in April. I’m not sure how able I’ll be when it’s time for a poem every day. Doing my daily slices and trying to keep up with the 100 Day Project is truly kicking my butt. I am nothing if not stubborn, however, and I’m not ready to say I won’t be taking on the NaPoWriMo challenge. So here I am, trying to get my brain primed for poetry.

If you’re new to this page … well, if you’re new here, then welcome. It’s lovely that you’ve decided to click through and read! 🙂 If you’re new to this page, I’ll just say that a) I’m not a poet, but b) I like writing poetry, and so c) to honor National Poetry Month, I like to pick a poetic form and write it all month … or try to. I haven’t always made it through 30 poems in the 30 days of April. And in 2016 I forgot poetry month all together (I still have no idea how that happened).

It often takes me a while to choose a form, so I need to start figuring it out early. The forms I’ve chosen over the years are:

  • Tanka
  • Rhyme Royal
  • Nove Otto
  • Zeno
  • Arun (I did Aruns two years in a row because I wanted to push it out there and see if it might take hold … and it kind of has, which is wild)
  • Prose
  • Chōka
  • Erasure
  • Pantoum
  • Epistolary
  • Golden Shovel
  • Ghazal
  • Sijo

Thirteen forms over the last 15 years. Still so many forms to be attempted. I’ve begun looking through lists of forms, but nothing has called my name so far.

Do you write poetry for April? Do you participate in Poem-in-Your-Pocket Day? What are you planning for National Poetry Month?

It’s the 17th annual Slice of Life Story Challenge!
Head on over to Two Writing Teachers
and see what the rest of this year’s slicers are up to!

Original Slicer - GirlGriot

16 thoughts on “Poems of Future Past”

  2. Which was the most challenging of the forms you have tackled? Which was your favorite? I like to have a focused poetry project for April and often play along with someone else’s project. I typically don’t decide what I’m doing until about April 1!

    Like

    Reply

    1. For-sure the most challenging ones were rhyme royal and nove otto (that one really kicked my behind) . Others were hard, but those two were like a torture. Picking a favorite is harder. I loved the tanka. It’s the form that has felt the most natural to write. But some of the other forms have opened up important writing for me, so they are kind of favorites, too: Prose, Erasure, Pantoum, Epistolary. Like you, I will surely not make my final decision until April get here!

      Like

      Reply

  3. I applaud your stamina. I know I couldn’t do it. This March challenge is enough for me. I admit that I have no idea what some of these forms are. I need to do some research. Good luck in picking a format for this year.

    Like

    Reply
  4. Akilah

    Good luck choosing a form. I sometimes do the A to Z challenge, but I have never attempted National Poetry Month. I should someday since I have my students do it in the intro creative writing class.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Teaching is what brought me back to writing poetry — I didn’t feel right having my students do something I wouldn’t do — so I’m definitely an advocate for diving in with your students on a challenge!

      Like

      Reply

  5. Pingback: Day 18 of the March SOLSC #SOL24 – TWO WRITING TEACHERS

Your turn ...