Poetry Tips: Boredom Before Concentration

Remember summer vacation? I miss it with a passion. Remember being bored? When you were bored you often wandered around and eventually stumbled onto a great idea and tried to put it into action. As a kid, I would always find a way to build more interesting forts in the backyard using the trees as support or when we lived in El Paso, we used tumbleweeds.

Nowadays we are overscheduled and distracted by our various electronics so that we often feel that this is the way life is. I’m asking you to switch off all those electronic devices and just sit there. That’s right, no books allowed, either. You may grab a journal or notebook and a pen, no cameras, nothing else. Allow yourself to finally be alone with your thoughts.

Uncomfortable? Maybe, but you’ll get used to it. Embrace being bored. Let your thoughts flow freely even if all your brain comes up with at first is a list of all the things you should be doing instead.

Next, concentrate on your breathing and county slowly as you breathe in and then count slowly as you breathe out. This will help clear your mind. After at least five long, slow breaths, focus your mind on what you would really like to do creatively.

Whatever you think up next, write it down. Write a list of all the ideas that begin to form in your head and then pick the best ones and try them!

Good luck to all who try this exercise, please drop by again next week…

Chiron Review Open Submissions

I urge you to go the link below because their submissions guidelines are very detailed. You may submit up to four times a year, you may send up to five poems or one long poem via snail mail or e-mail.

To submit by e-mail, put your name and submission genre (Poetry) in the subject line and attach your poems in ONE word document with all of your contact information included in the attachment. Read the on-line guidelines because they will reject your poems if you miss any of the steps. Send your poems to: editorATchironreviewDOTcom

To submit via snail mail: Send your poems with your contact information along with a Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope to:

Chiron Review
522 E. South Avenue
St. John, KS 67576-2212


For More Details, go to:
http://www.chironreview.com/

Good luck to all who submit, please stop by tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.coconutpoetry.org/arden1.html
Molly Arden’s “The Sign of Four”

http://www.swinkmag.com/index.php?page=archives&artID=70&catID=3
Richard Froude’s “Mike May”

Thanks for clicking in, please drop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Lilliput Review Issue #179

#179 is a good number, I have to say, like a good wine. It is meant to be savored and enjoyed, it contains precious notes of winds, seeds, and the aftertaste of the afterlife. I am happy to share with you some of my favorite poems:

The Expression of Rain

Just as water darkens wood
and brings its grain closer to the surface
rain can change a face.

“He wore the expression of rain” means
that his face could be seen through
seen into

suddenly fragile
as a drop just fallen
against a windowpane.

By: Karina Borowicz of Florence, MA

I like this one for its simple beauty when you first read it and then as you savor it, the layers of meaning underneath. We as humans watch facial expressions for clues to the emotions within a person. This poem brings that to the surface and likens it to wood grain changing as it darkens in the rain just as a person’s face darkens in mood and the lines or wrinkles appear more prominently with the change in the facial expression.



Seed and Wind

If life should always have such dandelion
fresh and shocking yellow-bright hello-ness
to the eyeball universe

how short our time would be before
seediness would settle in and winds
would blow away what seems to matter

to matter
as for instance maybe this.

By: Mark Rich of Cashton, WI

This poem struck me because it appears bright and cheerful like the dandelion at first but then it spreads out to mention how short life is and asks “how short our time would be before/seediness would settle in and winds/would blow away what seems to matter.” My take on it is that joy and light does not last forever even in the brightest of circumstances but to enjoy those short moments while you can.



It wouldn’t be hell

if heaven didn’t keep knocking on the door.

By: Charlie Mehrhoff of Oakland, ME

It’s so short yet so rich with meaning. There are countless ways to interpret the meaning. I interpret it to mean that if heaven is knocking then that must mean loved ones are passing away and that the poet is expressing his feelings about it.



Issue #179 is available for a mere $1.00 and well worth it, I’d say. You can order issues of Lilliput Review, edited by Don Wentworth, from his blog at:

http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com/

Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

The Guerriella Poetics Project Reader and Don Wentworth's Past All Traps

Hello Guerrilla Poetics Fans and Operatives! You will be thrilled to know that the GPP Reader is now available on-line, all 30 poets and 152 pages of it, so check it out at:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/62895


AND

Also, those of you who are fans of Lilliput Review will be thrilled to know that Don Wentworth has his very own collection of poems out, titled “Past All Traps. The book is available directly at the blog for $8, or from Amazon for $10:

http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com

check out the interview about his book at:
http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid:96315


Thanks for clicking in, please drop by tomorrow for another featured poetry issue…

Poetry Tips: Weathering The Storms

Well it is hurricane season here in Florida and while I’d love to say I’m all prepared I generally do the minimum required every year to weather out the storms that bear down on us.
Not to mention we’ve all seen the various floods, earthquakes, and tornadoes accompanied with their destruction, on various news channels.

This week I want you write poetry with the theme above: Weathering the Storms. Emotional, literal, or both, there is plenty to inspire in every day life to draw from so I wish you good luck and good poetry.

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by again next week…

Magma Poetry Open Submissions

Issue 51’s deadline is July 16th and the theme is “Profane and Sacred.” The editor is Jacqueline Saphra, the assistant editor is Ian McEwan. You can go off-theme of course, and you can send up to six poems via e-mail to: contributionsATmagmapoetryDOTcom
*Please include your poems in the body of the e-mail instead of as an attachment

For details about the theme, go to:
http://magmapoetry.com/submissions-magma-51/

For details about submissions, go to:
http://magmapoetry.com/contributions/

Also, please explore the archives at Magma Poetry to see the kinds of poems already published to get a feel for the journal.

Good luck to all who submit, please drop in tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.asu.edu/clas/pipercwcenter/publications/haydensferryreview/issue48/poetry/poetry_harrison.html
“Advice From A Head” by Evan Harrison


http://www.blossombones.com/winter_spring2011/bennett_ws2011.html
“Girl” by Roxanna Bennett


Thanks for clicking in, please stop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Waiting For Delivery

Well, everyone, I’m out of books at the moment but have no fear! I’ve ordered some books and I will also be receiving a useful book based on the positive use of constructive criticism which will help all of us I am sure. So please stay tuned and thanks for dropping in.

Please be sure to click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

Magma Poetry Site

Check out this site which publishes several times a year with different editors each time. You’ll find links to good poems and interesting poetry related articles.

Check it out at:

http://magmapoetry.com/

Thanks for clicking in, please stop by tomorrow for another featured poet…

Poetry Tips: General Poetry Guidelines for General Poetry Submissions

1.) Read Your Poem As Objectively As Possible: Many of us, myself included, have sent out poems that would not be understood by an outsider reading it. Therefore, make sure your poem can stand alone without explanation unless it is experimental language that fits the journal you are submitting to. Otherwise if you have to explain what it’s about either re-write it or send something else along.

2) Formatting submissions
a) E-mail: Most e-mail submissions should include the subject line “Poetry Submission/Your Last Name” unless otherwise specified. In the body of the e-mail you should address the editor, even if it is simply “Dear Editor,” and thank them for their time in reading your submission. Include your contact information such as full name, address, phone number and e-mail address.

If you read the guidelines some editors require you attach your poems as a separate document and others prefer you copy and paste your poems inside the body of the e-mail.

If the guidelines ask for a bio but do not specify what the bio should contain simply address yourself third person by giving your name, where you are from and any publishing credits you have (name up to three, any more than that and it gets too lengthy for a bio). You can include a personal detail about yourself such as what you enjoy doing besides writing poetry or what you do for a living.


b) Snail Mail: Most editors want a standard A10 envelope. This is basically a standard plain white envelope in which you can easily fold your poem into thirds and tuck it inside. *Always include a self-addressed stamped return envelope.* You can fold up the S.A.S.E. and tuck it in with your poems so the editors can easily mail back your submission.

If the guidelines do not specify how to format your poems, use 8.5 x 11 regular plain white paper, size 12 and regular font such as Arial or Times New Roman.

Also include your contact information on each and every page for each poem submitted. Your basic contact information is your full name, address, phone number, and e-mail address.

Make sure each poem is on its own sheet of paper or if it flows to additional pages that you number them to make it easy for the editor to keep the poems together and sorted properly.

If the guidelines ask for a bio it’s the same as what is described above for e-mail submissions.
For those of you relatively new to submitting poems I hope this helps you and for seasoned veterans any additional input is welcome in the comments section.

Thanks for dropping in, please stop in again next week…

Third Wednesday Open Submissions

Although open year round the deadlines for the Winter issue is August and the deadline for Spring issue is January so please be sure that any seasonal poems are sent at the right time. All styles of poems are accepted and will be judged on the basis of the beauty of expression and the picture left in the editor’s mind(s) at the end of the poem(s). Please do not send previously published poems. Otherwise, you may send up to five poems, no more than three pages in length, via e-mail to:
submissionsATthirdwednesdayDOTorg

Helpful hints: Title your subject line “Poetry submission/last name” and include all of your contact information in the body of the e-mail along with your poems.

You can also snail mail submissions to:
Third Wednesday
174 Greenside Up
Ypsilanti, MI 48197



For more details about submissions, go to:

http://www.thirdwednesday.org/submissions.php


Good luck to all who submit, please drop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.zygoteinmycoffee.com/100s/issue133tinylittleexplos.html
J. J. Campbell’s “Tiny Little Explosions”

http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/nwong/2011/05/money-in-the-time-of-cholera/
Nicholas Wong’s “Money In The Time of Cholera”


Thanks for clicking in, please drop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Jay Passer's My Part In The Works

Published by Ten Pages Press, Jay Passer’s collection My Part In The Works ranges from surreal to concrete, metaphorical to literal. I am happy to share a couple of them with you below:


Family

my brother the terrorist
wonders why his car was towed away
parked halfway up the sidewalk
crashed into a power pole.

my brother waits for the latest issue of Guns and Ammo to arrive in the mail
he plans to assassinate the President
on Mother’s Day
or maybe around Christmastime.

my brother was a Little-League All-Star
but these days he rides a bicycle through the rain over the French Alps
I saw it on television.

my brother is stuck in the tunnel
beneath a mountain somewhere in the French Alps
the signal on his cell phone’s gone dead.

my brother
like a wet finger on a light switch
is surprised to see the FBI man.

my brother in the old days
negotiated tightropes stretched across Circus Maximus
he’s a terrorist
whose mother wore white on her wedding day.

my brother waits for the result of the election
pistol in hand.

When I first read it, I couldn’t help but hope/wonder if any of these stanzas were true. What a colorful character to have in the family! I asked Mr. Passer about it and he explained that the poem is meant to be “somewhat metaphorical, referring in a generalized sense to the human family.” That explanation works for me, too. The human family is full of bizarre episodes, trials, and tribulations which the poem reveals stanza by stanza.



In The City

grandiose and greatness with capitals in the city
above it all a stunner on the billboard nighttime drama
gesticulate impresarios imps with invisible fingertips
glass-fragile ego of structural integrity staking claim
lawyers and lynch men snarling in the corners
mongers of catastrophe and battle profiteers
driven to the fanatical pulse-beat of our world

the mad grasping ideals, sentinels of our city
driven by hype and horsepower to awaken the type
of gods you don’t see painted on Sistine ceilings.


I like the pace of the poem, no periods or commas to relieve you just like the fast pace of a city. Mr. Passer pokes and prods at the cynical side of the kinds of men who are found there, “snarling in the corners,” “driven by hype and horsepower.” The last line is a perfect closing, a city awakening “gods you don’t see painted on Sistine ceilings,” or that is to say, mere men who believe they are gods when in fact they are not simply because of the ideals they adopt in a large, bustling city.





If you enjoyed this sample, Jay Passer’s collection, My Part In The Works, you’ll be happy to know it is available on-line through Ten Pages Press in its entirety, check it out at:

http://tenpagespress.wordpress.com/


Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

The Nervous Breakdown Website

I love the greeting line to this site: “Your attention span is hilarious.” The poetry tab holds reviews, interview, and of course, poems. It is a fun site to peruse so I urge you to take a look.

Check it out:
http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/


Thanks for dropping in, please stop by tomorrow for another featured poet…