HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WORDS OF WISDOM

A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight,
and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest
of the world. 


~Oscar Wilde

Reading Life

This year I read twenty one books. I'm not sure it's the most I've read in a year but I'm proud of what I accomplished. I read two books by Jack Kerouac and one by Lawrence Ferlinghetti. These two authors were a part of the Beat Generation of the 1950s. 

I read more poetry this ear than ever before. Theodore Roethke was interesting in that his knowledge of the earth and plants and nature were astounding. It made me think of ways to improve my own writing. Delmore Schwartz' Screeno and Last and Lost Writings kept in line my interest in brilliant but obscure writers.

It's good to read biographies of the poets I'm reading. Sylvia Plath's bio help me comprehend the poignant and tempestuous words she penned. Reading more biographies is one goal I've set for 2013. I have been  challenging myself to be more daring so I'm making an attempt at play-writing.   

HOLIDAY GREETINGS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WORDS OF WISDOM

A book is a garden, an orchard, a storehouse, a party, a company by the way,
a counselor, a multitude of counselors.

~Charles Baudelaire

Lawrence Ferlinghetti

 I have read some of Lawrence Ferlinghetti's biography and found him fascinating. He worked with such luminaries as Allen Ginsberg, Diane diPrima, Jack Kerouac and Denise Levertov. Ferlinghetti has such a varied life; poet, publisher, painter, activist. This is something that I am striving to do.

I will need to read more of his work. If I ever go to San Francisco, I will visit City Light Bookstore. 

POEM

I read this poem last night which I found revealing and true. It struck a chord with me because I have seen this first hand.


The party hoppers wolfing down the wine and cheese
without a glance at what might be considered art 
At all those Thursday evening openings in San Francisco galleries
And the critics and the crickets and the singles out to score
And the docents of the donor classes
sheath in silk & Christian Dior holding long-stemmed glasses

With the tide of tinkled voices rising
And the painter to one side apprising
the whole uprising as if from a most distant shore
And say to himself Is this what I am painting for?
No wonder then that he adrift in this society
doth drink too much and roll upon the floor?


Poem #37 from 'A Far Rockaway of the Heart' by Lawrence Ferlinghetti  

Becoming A Well Rounded Writer

When I was in college I enjoyed the courses taken in Shakespeare, John Milton, film and theater. As an English minor my interest in modern and and ancient writing piqued my interest in literature as a whole. 

I started writing poetry in earnest only two years ago. I love to read horror stories and have attempted writing a story set in a castle. One goal I have is to write a full length play. As you can see I have interest in all forms of literature.  Part of being a good writer, I believe,is to try my hand in all forms of the arts.

 I have been evolving as a  poet because I want to share with the public about life and how we are all part of the solutions that will be needed to make our world a better place. The quote I posted in my last posting bears that thought out.  

WORDS OF WISDOM

A poet's work is to name the unnameable,
to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments,
shape the world, and stop it going to sleep.


~Salman Rushdie

Book Review

Title: Book of Blues

Author: Jack Kerouac

Publisher: Penguin Books

Rating: 6.5

I will admit that I'm fascinated with Jack Kerouac. He is a one of a kind author who has an every day style of writing. Book of Blues seems a bit disjointed in spots and not always easy to follow. By the end I could pick up on what Kerouac was communicating. I read his first book On The Road a couple of years back so I wasn't a stranger to his work. 

Book of Blues was the third book by Kerouac that I read. His writing is more prose than poetry. I admire his quirky personality and his many travels around the globe. It is because of his quirkiness that I will read his other work. I will read a biography of his life and then, maybe, I can have a grasp of writings.

WORDS OF WISDOM

POETRY IS THE RHYTHMIC CREATION OF BEAUTY IN WORDS.


~Edgar Allan Poe

Book Of Blues

I'm currently read Book Of Blues by Jack Kerouac. I read On The Road last year and a book of his poems earlier this year.

THE POET AS AN ORATOR

Over the past few days, I have had recurring thoughts that poets are orators. Words of  wisdom are imparted with an apathetic and discouraged populace. All throughout history, poets have had an influence on the course of a nation.

Poets are thought of as fools, wandering dreams with nothing better to do. To me poets keep the world sane from all the scoundrels. Orators have been tolerated because to some they are amusing. Do the people who dismiss them ever thought that maybe they HAVE a message. 

I began writing poetry a couple of yeas ago. Aware of the power of words, I see how much influence a poet can have. When I read my work to an audience, I prayed that some thing positive would have an affect on their lives. As I continue improving my craft, the need to share with others grows.    

WORDS OF WISDOM

The struggle for equality requires knowledge, information, determination,and perseverance.

Hurricane Sandy

Life is back to normal. Sandy didn't affect me that much, save some fallen trees. A number of areas were really hit hard. Some folks are still without power, heat, and adequate shelter. It snowed the other day and now it's getting warmer. The cleanup is massive and extensive.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher.    



William Wordsworth 

Obscurity vs. Fame

I have read biographies of numerous poets and writers. Some, who were famous at one time, died in obscurity. Some examples are Herman Melville (of Moby Dick fame), Phyllis Wheatley, Delmore Schwartz, Zora Neale Hurston, and Paul Laurence Dunbar. One constant I discovered was that they went against the prevailing convention of the literature of their times.

There are millions of authors who never achieved fame or fortune and died unknown. Just because one isn't in the spot doesn't mean that they are not talents or don't have anything to convey. Melville felt that he was a failure as a writer. The man who penned Moby Dick and Typee had a second career as poet during the Civil War. Melville was a skillled story teller and yet never hit it off with the public or critics.

While I have nothing against fame and fortune, getting your work out to the public is more important. I would rather that some one's life be touched by a poem or story. When a person's heart is touched by author's words, you can't put a price on that. 

POEM

POEM

In the morning, when it was raining,
Then the birds were hectic and loudy;
Through all the reign is fall's entertaining;
Their singing was erratic and full of disorder:
They did not remember the summer blue
Or the orange of June. They did not think at all
Of the great red and bursting ball
Of the kingly sun's terror and tempest, blazing,
Once the slanting rain threw over all
The colorless curtains of the ceasless spontaneous fall.



Delmore Schwartz (1913-1966)

WORDS OF WISDOM

The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet. 


~Aristotle  

Auden, Cummings & Moore

I have read poetry of W.H. Auden and E.E. Cummings. Now I'm reading Marianne Moore's poems. Cummings poetry is complex to me. Could be because I haven't read his work before in any detail or depth. Auden was deep but I got the gist of his words. I find Moore's work an easy read and something that I can relate to.

WORDS OF WISDOM

A writer is like a prospector searching for precious gold nuggets. She keeps searching until at last she finds her treasure.

Back In The Saddle

September was a trying month with family issues needing my time. Things are getting back to normal. I'm a little behind on my reading and writing but I'm back on it.

WORDS OF WISDOM

There is no better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time. 



Malcolm X

WORDS OF WISDOM

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.


Helen Keller

Enjoy The Weekend

Enjoy the Labor Day Weekend!

WORDS OF WISDOM

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.


~Sun Tzu

Can anyone tell me about goth literature?

Passing Thoughts

There's more to life than having a house, car, or bank account.


Keep a diary or journal.


Write every day.

WORDS OF WISDOM

You do not even have to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, remain still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you unasked. It has no choice. It will roll in ecstasy at your feet.


~Franz Kafka

INSPIRATION

Inspiration is not always measurable. We can never predict when we will be inspired. When the inspiration does come, it's like new batteries put into a radio. The thoughts are clear. We're charged up! Energized! Inspiration can be subtle or like a rushing wind. Sometimes by doing, inspiration will come as quietly as a gentle breeze. Inspired people see beyond limitations and obstacles. They see the prize!

Reading One Genre Recharged Another

Over the past week or so I have written a number of poems. My poetic battery has been recharged. Ever since reading two books of horror and ghost stories, my poetic bent has been going ahead like a locomotive. 

Taking a break from what is our norm can turn out to be a blessing. It's good to pause when we run into roadblock  The best thing is to try and figure out which direction to go next. To forge ahead in the wrong direction and without a clear purpose could mean wasted time and energy.

I didn't plan on reading horror stories. The urge just came upon me so I pursued it. I read an old book called The Haunted Looking Glass by Edward Gorey and Bram Stoker's Best Ghost and Horror Stories. I was exposed to different styles of storytelling by different authors. I am a fan of castles and some of the stories fed my curiosity about them. I have written a few outlines for future stories with castles as the backdrop.

There's no harm in taking a break from whatever genre you write. I did this over 1 1/2 years ago when I began writing poems in earnest. My short stories, commentaries and essays seemed dry and uninteresting. Poetry revived by zest for writing. Think about trying something  different for a change. Dull and uninteresting stories aren't worth the time and effort. We don't want to bore our readers with stories that we find boring.  

WORDS OF WISDOM

A work of art defines itself into being, when we awaken into it and by it, when we are moved, altered, stirred. It feels as if we have done nothing, only given it a little time, a little space; some hairline-narrow crack opens in the self, and there it is.

                                                                                           ~Jane Hirshfield, poet 

Current Book

I am reading The Poetry Home Repair Manual by Ted Kooser. I've read only one chapter and already I gooten several good tips. Her are some of them.

1. Read poetry every day.

2. Make a place to read and write.

3. Work and rework. Edit and revise.

Theodore Roethke

I have taken an interest in the poetry of Theodore Roethke. Roethke  (1908-1963) was a lover of nature and was intimate with good and the bad. He grew up among the greenhouses his father owned. I like the metaphors that he uses. His style is clear and easy to understand. One example is a line of verse from his poem Four For Sir John Davies: The waves broke easy, cried to me in white. I immediately connected with this line. I'm also a nature lover so Roethke and I share a common passion. Just last night I read five of his poems in an anthology. I have to get a book of his poems and read his biography.

Picking Apples From a Tree in a Bus Depot

Yesterday, I was walking through the bus depot. People were rushing in all directions heading to their destinations. I reminisced my days of riding buses to vrious places. Almost immediately I thought of a story to write which I will post at a later date.

It was a stroll through a place that go to occasionally that I was able to formulate an idea for a story. It goes to show you that ideas are like apples hanging from a tree; they are there to grab and eat.

Book Review

Title: Best Ghost and Horror Stories
Author: Bram Stoker
Publisher: Dover Publications, 1997
Genre: Horror, ghost stories
Rating: 7.5

I enjoyed reading this book of short stories. Though Stoker is more known for his book Dracula, he wrote some excellent horror stories. My personal favorite is The Judge's House. It has all the elements I believe makes a great horror story. Fear, unwitting suspects, mystery, and  intrigue.

 I love the backdrop of many of Stoker's stories. I am fond of castles, haunted houses, cemeteries, dark legends and curses. I also liked The Squaw, The Burial of the Rats, The Secret of the Growing Gold, Crooken Sands, and Dracula's Guest.  The eighteenth and nineteenth century background is a personal favorite and has encouraged me to use it in my future writings. 

Best Ghost and Horror Stories is a good read. It recommend it, particularly to someone new to the genre, like myself.  

WORDS OF WISDOM

No matter how hard the road gets, keep on going.

WORDS OF WISDOM

They succeed, because they think they can.

                                          ~Virgil

The book I'm reading now is Best Ghost and Horror Stories by Bram Stoker. His most famous book is Dracula. I read Stoker's biography and find him to be a interesting author. I will write an article about him in a future posting.

POEM

                                 WORDS

A kind word can bring joy
A cruel word can destroy
A tender word can warm the heart
Bitter words make the spirit tart
Words are like the morning dew
It takes two to say 'thank  you'.
Words that tear down
Cause the spirit to drown
In sorrow and defeat
So words must be soft and discreet
Words can cause others to fall
If I don't have a kind word to say
Better to say nothing at all.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.


                                        ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

TODAY'S WORD

PABULUM, n.

1. Any substance giving nourishment, food.

2. Nourishment for the mind; food for thought.

TODAY'S WORD

JOCOSE, adj.


Humorous; playful


Joking

WORDS OF WISDOM

We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.

~Buddha

Summer Reading

Here in New York City there's an annual program at the public library which encourages young people to read during the summer. It reminds me of when I was in grade school in the early sixties all students in my parochial school had to read six books during the summer. I completed the assignment and ever since then I have been a lifelong reader.


I read at least one book a month. There are many benefits to having an active reading life. You learn new words, discover something that you may not have known before, and open up new horizons. I read many different topics as to not to grow stale. I like to challenge myself so reading about economics, for example, will take me into another realm of thinking. I never enjoyed history until I was thirty- five. So it goes to show that it's never too late to learn something new.

TODAY'S WORD

RUBICUND


Inclining to redness


Ruddy; red

Words Of Wisdom

A little knowledge that acts is worth infinitely more than much knowledge that is idle.

                                                                                           ~Khalil Gibran

Horror Fan

I am a big fan of horror and mystery stories. Not the gory kind, but more psychological fare. I'm reading The Haunted Looking Glass by Edward Gorey. It's an old book (1959) of twelve short stories filled with ghosts and mysteries.

Words Of Wisdom

Painting is poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks.

                                                            Plutarch, Greek Philosopher (46-120)

Boook Review Magazine

There are many magazines of book reviews. One of my favorites is Rain Taxi. Reviews of everthing from non-fiction to poetry to chapbooks are scrutinized.I also learn new words, many of which I've never heard before. I'm getting two lessons in one.


http://www.raintaxi.com/

Immerse Yourself On Many subjects

I read books on many subjects. It's not beyond me to pick up a science book and read it. I may read the Wall Street Journal one day and biography the next. The particular subject I'm reading may not be my area of expertise but it does expand my horizons. This is important to a writer.

I am current working on a story with a castle as a backdrop. I've never visited a castle before but have a fascination with them. I find it exciting because it opens my mind to new possiblities. It's a way of challenging myself. An example is that I never liked history until I was thirty five. Now I enjoy doing historical research. 

Being open to new ideas and experiences is a boon to any writer. Never limit or close your mind to areas you're not familiar with. This may be the change to work through that writer's block you may be experiencing. It could open up new avenues of thought.   

Words Of Wisdom

A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.



Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

Words Of Wisdom

All great achievements require time.

~Maya Angelou

POEM

 

A Summer Garden

By Louise Glück b. 1943 Louise Gluck

1

Several weeks ago I discovered a photograph of my mother

sitting in the sun, her face flushed as with achievement or triumph.

The sun was shining. The dogs

were sleeping at her feet where time was also sleeping,

calm and unmoving as in all photographs.

I wiped the dust from my mother’s face.

Indeed, dust covered everything; it seemed to me the persistent

haze of nostalgia that protects all relics of childhood.

In the background, an assortment of park furniture, trees and shrubbery.

The sun moved lower in the sky, the shadows lengthened and darkened.

The more dust I removed, the more these shadows grew.

Summer arrived. The children

leaned over the rose border, their shadows

merging with the shadows of the roses.

A word came into my head, referring

to this shifting and changing, these erasures

that were now obvious—

it appeared, and as quickly vanished.

Was it blindness or darkness, peril, confusion?

Summer arrived, then autumn. The leaves turning,

the children bright spots in a mash of bronze and sienna.

2

When I had recovered somewhat from these events,

I replaced the photograph as I had found it

between the pages of an ancient paperback,

many parts of which had been

annotated in the margins, sometimes in words but more often

in spirited questions and exclamations

meaning “I agree” or “I’m unsure, puzzled—”

The ink was faded. Here and there I couldn’t tell

what thoughts occurred to the reader

but through the bruise-like blotches I could sense

urgency, as though tears had fallen.

I held the book awhile.

It was Death in Venice (in translation);

I had noted the page in case, as Freud believed,

nothing is an accident.

Thus the little photograph

was buried again, as the past is buried in the future.

In the margin there were two words,

linked by an arrow: “sterility” and, down the page, “oblivion”—

“And it seemed to him the pale and lovely

summoner out there smiled at him and beckoned...”

3

How quiet the garden is;

no breeze ruffles the Cornelian cherry.

Summer has come.

How quiet it is

now that life has triumphed. The rough

pillars of the sycamores

support the immobile

shelves of the foliage,

the lawn beneath

lush, iridescent—

And in the middle of the sky,

the immodest god.

Things are, he says. They are, they do not change;

response does not change.

How hushed it is, the stage

as well as the audience; it seems

breathing is an intrusion.

He must be very close,

the grass is shadowless.

How quiet it is, how silent,

like an afternoon in Pompeii.

4

Beatrice took the children to the park in Cedarhurst.

The sun was shining. Airplanes

passed back and forth overhead, peaceful because the war was over.

It was the world of her imagination:

true and false were of no importance.

Freshly polished and glittering—

that was the world. Dust

had not yet erupted on the surface of things.

The planes passed back and forth, bound

for Rome and Paris—you couldn’t get there

unless you flew over the park. Everything

must pass through, nothing can stop—

The children held hands, leaning

to smell the roses.

They were five and seven.

Infinite, infinite—that

was her perception of time.

She sat on a bench, somewhat hidden by oak trees.

Far away, fear approached and departed;

from the train station came the sound it made.

The sky was pink and orange, older because the day was over.

There was no wind. The summer day

cast oak-shaped shadows on the green grass.

 

Source: Poetry (January 2012).

Today's Word

PENTAMETER

1. A line of verse consisting of five metrical feet.

2. English verse composed in iambic pentameter.

Words Of Wisdom

A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language.



W. H. Auden

WORDS OF WISDOM

A faith is a necessity to a man. Woe to him who believes in nothing.



~Victor Hugo

I'm currently reading A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver. When I read the statement below, I decided to share it with you all.

Poetry is a river.; many voices travel in it; poem after poem moves along in the exciting 
crests and falls of the river waves. None is timeless; each arrives in a historical context;
almost everything, in the end passes. But the desire to make a poem, and the world's
willingness to receive it-indeed the world's need of it-these never pass.  
 

Color Change

As you may have noticed, I have changd th design of my blog. Pink, carnation, and rose are a few of my favorite colors. They are bright, soft, and express what I believe represents spring.

Words Of Wisdom

Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work.



~Rita Mae Brown

TODAY'S WORD

OPUSCULE  n.

A small, minor work.

Words Of Wisdom

If you do not expect the unexpected you will not find it, for it is not to be reached by search or trail.



~ Heraclitus

Dry Periods Have Led That Expanding My Writing Life

I have had dry periods in my writing life. I can't say why that is but it does happen. Sometimes it's good to step back and see where I am.

I took up poetry writing a year and a half ago.  I felt that my short stories, essays and commetaries had grown stale. A lot of imagination? Maybe. I saw it as a chance to branch out by tackling another genre. What it has done is expand my writing. I found that some of my short stories can be written as poems and/or prose. I find that the reverse is also true . What has resulted is that my writing has more depth and quality to it. I'm venturing into emotional settings that I was reluctant to go into.  There's more personality and emotions rather than just mere details and simple story telling. 

I have had a long interest in playwriting. I have writing a few short plays in the past. Now I'm pursuing a full length play. Tackling classics such as Dante's Inferno, the Greek and Latin poems and plays, and modern poetry and essays have reinvigored to try my hand. I just have to tackle one thing at a time because my mind can be like a runaway train.       

Words Of Wisdom

Do not plan for ventures before finishing what's at hand. ~Euripides

Latin Poets

Here is a list of some of the famous Latin Poets. Cattulus Persius Ennius Plautus Horace Propertius Juvenal Vergil or Virgil Lucan Sulpicia Ovid

READING

Rutgers MFA Reading



KGB Bar, 85 East 4th StreetNew York City, NY


April 28, 2012


7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

WORDS OF WISDOM

The price of inaction is far greater than the cost of making a mistake.



~Meister Eckhart (1260-1328) 

Favorite Writers

Here is a list of my favorite authors.

Edgar Allan Poe
Langston Hughes
Sylvia Plath
Paul Laurence Dunbar

TODAY'S WORD

APOCOPE

: the loss of one or more sounds or letters at the end of a word (as in sing from Old English singan)

Tonight @ Bluestockings

Friday, April 20th @ 7PM – $5 Suggested



Discussion: “Women’s and Trans’ Prisoner Issues”


In conjunction with the Prisoner Art Show, join us for a discussion about issues and difficulties face by incarcerated people who identify as women or trans, outlining the historical development of incarceration to issues of privatization, personal experience and resistance. Panelists to be announced.


Bluestockings
172 Allen Street
New York, NY

Subway: F train to 2nd Ave

WORDS OF WISDOM

Knowledge never becomes irrelevant.

TODAY'S WORD

CHIMERICAL

Unreal and existing only as the product of wild unrestrained imagination.

Unrealistic  

TODAY'S WORD

COMPENDIUM

A brief compilation or composition consisting of a reduction
and condensation of the subject matter of a larger work.

In brief form

TODAY'S WORD

ALACRITY


A promptness in responding.
Cheerful readiness; briskness, eagerness.

TODAY'S WORD

QUEUE

Tail piece of a violin or other stringed  instrument.

WORDS OF WISDOM

From a little spark may burst a flame.


~Dante Alighieri, Italian Poet (1265-1321)

Divine Comedy

I'm reading Dante's The Divine Comedy. It is a trilogy of three Dante classics; Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. It's considered a great work and I've been wanting to read it for years. I do recommend it. I have thought of a few ideas for future stories just from reading Inferno. 

TODAY'S WORD

LABRYRINTH

1a: a place constructed of or full of intricate passageways and blind alleys 

  b: a maze (as in a garden) formed by paths separated by high hedges

WORDS OF WISDOM

Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.


Theodore Roethke 

TODAY'S WORD

SYNECHDOCHE, n.

noun

• a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa, as in Cleveland won by six runs (meaning “Cleveland’s baseball team”).

TODAY'S WORD

OMNI-


All; universal.


ex.- omnipotent, omnidirectional, omnigender.

TODAY'S WORD

EPINICIA


Songs celebrating victors in the Panhellenic games.

TODAY'S WORD

EPIGRAM

Concise, clever, often paradoxical statement or line of verse.

TODAY'S WORD

ENCOMIA, n.


1. A speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something. 


2. Tribute; warm, glowing praise.  

WORDS OF WISDOM

Good writers are those who keep the language efficient. That is to say, keep it accurate, keep it clear.




~Ezra Pound 

TODAY'S WORD

DITHYRAMB

1. A usually short poem in an inspired wild irregular strain.

2. A statement or writing in an exalted or enthusiastic vein.

3. Homage.

TODAY'S WORD

ARBOREAL, adj.

1. (chiefly of animals) living in trees.

2. Of a relating to trees.

TODAY'S WORD

HETEROGLOSSIC

A diversity of voices, style of discourse, or points of view in a literary work and especially a novel.

TODAY'S WORD

JUVESCENCE, n.


A youthful state

TODAY'S WORD

FALDERAL, n.

1. Showy but worthless trifle.

2. Foolish nonsense.

3. (Music, often) a nonsensical refrain in old songs.

Book Review

Title: The American Night-The Writings of Jim Morrison, Volume 2
Author: Jim Morrison
Publisher: Wilderness Publications
Rate: 8

Next to Sylvia Plath, Jim Morrison is a poet that it would take many readings to grasp a hold of what he is saying. Unconventional, bold, and startling, he displayed an intellect and depth that is confounding and creative.

I was a teen when Morrison burst on the rock scene. Jim was the charasmatic singer, sonwriter and poet the the 1960s rock band, the Doors. Their sound was like no other and Morrison's poetry is the same way. His lyric verse could be dark and stormy. Yet, it spoke of a world succimbing to war, death, pollution, and destruction by corporations. To me, Morrison preferred death over such a life.

Morrison's use metaphors and similes were were similar to Sylvia Plath's in that he often used the sea and ocean as a back drop (he was an avid swimmer). He challenged people to go beyond convention and to break down barriers. In the Paris Journal, Morrison wrote an angry and reflective poem about the world he lived in.

Jim liked to read and talk, so I would have loved to talked with him aboout literature because of my interest in it also. The American Night is not one of those books that you can easily decipher, if that's possible. I like the books because I'm drawn to cmplex characters. Jim Morrison was certainly one of them.

TODAY'S WORD

SATURNINE, adj.

Having a grave,gloomy,or morose disposition or character.

I believe in the imagination. What I cannot see is infinitely more important than what I can see.


~Duane Michals

More Wisdom

I would rather be a poet than the president.

TODAY'S WORD

CONCITATION


Stirring up, rousing, or exciting; agitation, excitement; esp. of the mind.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Poetry is like a deep river; one never knows what will be drawn out of it.

TODAY'S WORD

ANFRACTUOUS, adj.

1. Winding, sinuous,involved; roundabout, circuitous, spiral.

Book Recommendation

On ocaasion I will recommend a book that may be a valuable to writers of all experiences. Here is one listed below.


The Poetry Home Repair Manual-Ted Kooser

WORDS OF WISDOM

Poetry refreshes a weary soul.

TODAY'S WORD

COGNOSCENTI, adj.

Wise; haviing good judgment.

A person having or claiming expert knowledge in on or more realms of the fine arts or of fashion.

Connoisseur

TODAY'S WORD

ANTEDILUVIAN


Concerning or referring to the period before the Flood.

TODAY'S WORD

BODHISATTVA

1. One whose essence is enlightment.

2. A being that compassionately refrains from entering nirvana in order to save others.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each other.

~Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926)

EDITING

Editing is the final activity before publishing. It is the opportunity to change some thing in an article. How much we exit depends on how we we wish to convey our thought to our readers.

When I complete a writing assignment, I set it aside for a day then go back to it. At times I've added a sentence or deleted a paragraph or rewrote the whole story. Editing is something that shouldn't be taken lightly. It can be the difference between acceptance and rejection. Presenting our best work is a reflection on the author.

I find editing fun some times because I found a better way of conveying my thought. It can be a metaphor, or a quote, or learning a new word. It's also an education in the writing process.

TODAY'S WORD

CANTO n. pl.

Then division of a long poem.

TODAY'S WORD

MULTI-

1. Many; multiple; much
b : more than two : more than one

2: many times over

mulitmillionaire; multitask.

TODAY'S WORD

ROOKERY

The nests or breeding place of a colony of rooks;
also : a colony of rooks b : a breeding ground or haunt especially
of gregarious birds or mammals (as penguins or seals);
also : a colony of such birds or mammals


2: a crowded dilapidated tenement or group of dwellings

Words Of Wisdom

We do not need to proselytise either by our speech or by our writing. We can only do so really with our lives. Let our lives be open books for all to study.

~Mahatma Gandhi

TODAY'S WORD

ANATHEMA, n pl.

1. A formal ban or curse; as excommunication.

2. One who or that which is cursed. Or shunned.

Words Of Wisdom

Change your thoughts and you change your world.

~Norman Vincent Peale

Words Of Wisdom

Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.


~William James

TODAY'S WORD

CONSISTORY

1 : a solemn assembly :council

2 : a church tribunal or governing body: as a : a solemn meeting of Roman Catholic cardinals convoked and presided over by the pope b : a church session in some Reformed churches

3 : the organization that confers the degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry usually from the 19th to the 32d inclusive; also : a meeting of such an organization

Place

Just as in novels and short stories, place has a central point in poems also. I like writing poems about my own neighborhood, a park, bookstore, or a restuarant. Making the readers feel a part of a particular place puts them in tune with the author.

There are some examples. In his poem 125th Street, Langston Hughes made me feel that I was strolling along side of him during that time. Jack Kerouac's novel On The Road took me on a crazy cross country trip. Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven was both scary and haunting. If I'm not familiar with a place I'll do some research about it. If the opportunity avails me I'll visit the place and spend time there.

Places aren't limited to time or space. I have written poems about the seasons. I have used rooms, a city, or country as backdrops. Going back to a particular time in history requires more research and accuracy in the facts. I love castle but have never visited one. In my mind there are some wonderful mysteries that a poem can present to readers.

Being creative is a consitent elemnt of any genre. Writng allows one to do whatever they desire. That's the beauty of writing. Dull places can be made lively. Some of the best poems written present elemnts of creativity and imagination.

Today's Word

POLYGLOT

adj. Expressed in r speaking several languages; multilingual.

n. 1. A polyglot book or person.

2. A mixture of several languages.

Words Of Wisdom

He whose wisdom cannot help him, gets no good from being wise.

~Quintus Ennius, Roman Poet

Reading Many Styles OF Writing

As I have written more poetry, I have also written short stories and commentarites also. I have been able to come up with words when I read stories or books. Sometimes it doesn't take much to generate a poem. My wife is amazed how I can write a poem after I think of one.

I just finished a book of ancient Greek poems. I have an interest in Greek and Roman poetry. In college, I studied Western Civilization and became fascinated with daily life in those societies. I imagined myself a citizen of those places. I've done the same with ancient Africa and Native Americans.

I don't believe that there's an exact science to writing poetry. There's so many styles and experiences of different authors. I never criticise other poets because every one has a story to share from their own experiences. Herman Melville, Langston Hughes, Edgar Allan Poe, and Sylvia Plath are some of my favorite authors. They were all so different and unique.

Reading so many different styles of poetry has helped me hone my craft. I have written about nature, gender, horror, a political poem, and redemption. This just scratches the surface of what I want to accomplish as I continue to evolve as a poet.

POEM

Explore I must

The need to expand and grow

I can’t stay where I am.

The road is open

There are mountains to climb,

And valleys to cross.

I rest awhile

Then pick up stakes.

My spirit is restless

The urge to explore and dream is strong,

And to pass on what I have discovered.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.

~Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Words Of Wisdom

Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.

~Carl Jung

Sound The Same-Spelled Different

bazaar; bizarre

suite; sweet

warn; worn

TODAY'S WORD

GRIOT, N.

A member of a class of travelling poets, musicians, and entertainers in North and West Africa, whose duties include the recitation of tribal and family histories; an oral folk-historian or village story-teller, a praise-singer.

Read Everything

I read quite a bit. I read everything from history to economics to science to mathematics. Reading expands our knowledge of the world and our base of what kind of stories and articles we write.

I'm amazed at how many genres can be intertwined. An example is novels which have been made into movies or plays. I'm working on stories that are poems. When I moved to poems a year ago, I read my short stories and concluded that some could be turned into poems, plays, or an essay.

I'm reading much about biographies of various authors. It has helped me to understand the mind and perhaps the heart of the author. When I feel that I have a basic idea of who the author is, I have felt that I'm walking beside the author or in the same room with them.

Read everything that you can. Challenge yourself by tackling a different genre from the one that you write.

Today's Word

PSEUDO- adj.

1. Spurious; sham.

2. False; pretended.

Words Of Wisdom

Believe you can and you're halfway there.

~Theodore Roosevelt

Today's Word

TRAVERSE

n. Something that crosses or lies across.

1. To go or travel across or over.

2. to move or pass along or through.

3. To extend over.

4. Swivel.

Today's Word

MIGNONETTE


n. An annual garden herb with spikes of tiny fragrant flowers.

Today's Word

EQUERRY

n. An officer in charge of the horses of a prince or noble.

2. A personal attendant of a member of the British royal family.

Explore I must

I can’t stay where I am.

The road is open

There are mountains to climb

And valleys to cross.

I rest awhile

Then pick up stakes.

My spirit is restless

The urge to explore and dream is strong,

The need to expand and grow

And to pass what I have discovered.