Honorably Mentioned
I began writing poetry several years ago and still think of myself as a literary fiction writer, not a poet. Not really. Poetry is something I dabble in and play with. Even after publishing a few poems, I still hesitate to call myself a poet. Yesterday, I learned that I received second honorable mention in [...]
From Prose to Poetry and Back
‘m sad that I’m not participating in the poem-a-day madness of National Poetry Month. That’s what pulled me into a poetry last year. I hoped to discover new ways to bring music and imagery into my prose, never thinking I’d fall in love with writing and reading poetry itself (something I’d always avoided)….
Another Bovine Poem Finds a Home
The High Desert Journal has accepted another poem of mine, this time for Issue 11 of their print journal, due out in April. Although it doesn’t focus exclusively on cows, my sestina, “Now That I’ve Moved Inland,” does feature them in every stanza….
Another Poem Finds a Home
I had my first poem published in January and am proud to announce that another poem, “What the Photo Shows,” has been accepted for publication….
Dances With Titles
I work hard to polish the content of my literary nonfiction and poetry but don’t always give the same attention to titles….
Yak: Species of the Week
I’m still celebrating the publication of my first poem in the High Desert Journal and its subject matter — cows. So perhaps now is a good time to share a shaggier bovine fantasy I’ve been nursing over the last few years….
How I Grabbed My Poetry Career by the Horns
I’m honored that my first poem ever to be published — “In the Flat Field” — is in The High Desert Journal. It’s a fabulous regional publication that showcases writing rooted in the Interior West of North America….
New Website for Poem Drafts
I’ve started a new website for my poetry drafts – www.poems.elizabethenslin.org. That’s where I’ve posted my response to “Get Your Poem On #105.”
Submissions for the Gods
A poem randomly assembled from words taken from the submission guidelines of literary journals. Written in response to Read Write Poem’s “Get Your Poem On #97.”
Walla Walla Sweets
In other gardens, I haven’t had much luck with bulbing onions. Rationing bed space in small spaces, I lavished most of my attention on more flashy vegetables: tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, corn. Walla Walla Sweet and friends: destined for the grill. But this year with plenty of space, I tried several different varieties of bulbing onions. [...]
Furr
I retired from teaching at an independent high school several years ago to free up time for writing and growing food. One of the things I miss most about it is the connection to all the wild creativity that comes from younger generations. Several days ago, I attended the graduation of students I taught in [...]
Sediment
I’m trying to catch up on all the work I didn’t do during National Poetry Writing Month, but I found it hard to resist the Read Write Poem wordle prompt this week. It’s a pretty rough attempt that has not faced much reflection or revision. Now back to working in the garden. I gather the [...]
Kreativ Blogger Award
Thanks to Both Erin at Freckled Writer and Carole at Watermaid’s Weblog for awarding me with the Kreativ Blogger Award. I’ve only been blogging a few months, so it’s an honor to be recognized by sister bloggers out there. I have now been charged with the task of identifying seven things I love and passing [...]
Apology to Dancing Parrots
Yesterday, I wrote a poem, “Thanks for the Feathers,” around some bird metaphors, and I used the parrot to embody some of my self-doubt about what I’ve written over the last month. “I mostly fear the parrot, preening her witty feathers, nodding her cocky head to the songs of others.” That was before I saw [...]
Experiments with Poetry
I overcame a lifelong fear of writing poetry on April Fool’s Day. It happened by accident. I had grown tired of my stale prose habits and surfed the web looking for distraction….
Lunacy
In grade school, I used to love those assignments where the teacher gave us ten vocabulary words and said we had to use all of them in a story. Those were good times, and I’ve already tried to revive them here in prose and poetry. Today, the NaPoWriMo prompt at Read Write Poem invited us [...]
Whys
The NaPoWriMo prompt at Read Write Poem asked us to ponder metaphysics, while the one at Poetic Asides asked for some reflection on miscommunication. This seemed like a good time to try a fibonacci poem. The words I had only filled out a shorter sequence at the end. I decided I liked it that way. [...]
Master the Art of Writer’s Block With Strunk and White
I wrote (or rather, pirated) this for the “How-To” prompt at Read Write Poem with inspiration from Geoffrey K. Pullum’s recent essay in the Chronicle of Higher Education. _______________________________________________ Master the Art of Writer’s Block With Strunk and White Avoid a succession of loose sentences. Use definite, specific, concrete language, place yourself in the background [...]
