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THE MONDAY MADNESS poetry competition

ambiguity

ambiguity

Greenlighter
Joined
Sep 12, 2011
Messages
37
Location
Toronto, ON
Hey guys - ambiguity here

So basically... in an attempt to spice up this section of the forum, we came up with this wonderful idea to hold a weekly poetry competition. Well I should say, it WILL BE weekly... if it actually catches on and people participate! =)

here's how it works:

->In the initial thread (this one), poem's are entered EXCLUSIVELY. No comments or anything of the likes, just entries. Once we've reached a reasonable amount 5+ poems, I'll post a final comment to close the registration
and the judging will begin.

-> We will then start a second thread titled: "THE MONDAY MADNESS tally-up".
At which point, people will then get to pick they're favourite entry number, along with any comments or criticisms (but keep it respectful and helpful, dont pop in to tell us which poem sucked the most!)
ex. if your favourite poem was entry #3, you'd simply post "number 3" or "entry 3" or whatever, as along as you say the number, your vote is good. Obviously one vote is allowed per user.

->After the votes are counted we will declare the winner and we will record the user's name and their particular piece in a final thread titled: "THE MONDAY MADNESS winner's corner".
Here is where the best of the best will be posted, for all to see.
If your still following my train of thought... then as the weeks progress eventually we'll have a tally of weekly winner's poems too.

->As for entries, there aren't any restrictions for poetry structure or length as of yet.
Its possible we'll have specific themes and styles with weeks to come.
But as it is curently, a poem can be a couple lines or a couple paragraphs it's up to you. Dont make turn it into a "Paradise Lost" or anything crazy... and by the same token, dont be a smart-ass and write a two-word poem either.

-> Style is up to, make it ryhme, keep it free verse... anything you wish. Could be a limerick, a ballad, a couplet, an elegy, an epigram, a haiku, a romanticism, a sonnet, a stanza... I dont care what it is, just participate (and a little effort and thoughtfulness goes a long way) Lets make this interesting!

-> And if you dont want to post or you just want to observe that's fine, we still welcome your votes and comments all the same... but honestly, this is only going to work if we get a large enough reception, so pass the word along and participate if you can.

-> All works must be original works of the submitee. Keep it honest.

So... If you want to post one of your works here's an example of how you'd do it:
(scroll to the top and see what number was the last entry before yours)

write in bold:
Entry #1:
and then the title (or simply untitled if you choose) after the entry number.

Anyways, that's all it takes!
Just to recap, after we get a decent amount of poems submitted, a new thread will be created for the voting and comments. Please use the first thread strictly for submissions, nothing else!

Some reasons why we decided this would be a great idea...
a) There are quite a few people who like to starts threads with their poems in this section, and they often dont get many visits or replies for whatever reason or another. This way we can collect everyone's work and guarentee more views.
b) this will provide more critiques of the creations as well providing opinions of who's works are the best
c) this all aids in the main goal, which is to better our writing capabilities/become better poets.

Goodluck everyone, and thanks for your time.
 
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(examplary submission) to get things started..
Entry #1: The Clutter

Sprouting, shaking, ever-waking
Scrambling through the naked earth
Searching, scraping, always making
Deeper holes that date since birth

Sporadic shifting, as I'm sifting
Through the thoughts that made me sane
Soothing, searing, careful steering
Through my anguish, joy and pain

Closely coiled, in this soil
Still, my death creeps close each day
Cluttered crawling, as I'm clawing
Through the dirt to find my way

Desperate distance, still resistance
I may never reach my will
Darker dancing, still I'm prancing
As the holes begin to fill

Caged, but raging, still I'm taking
Hopeless routes as time draws near
And as I wander through the thunder
Life will never be so clear
 
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Entry #2

My Son’s Body

Dressed for a swim,
Ankles crossed, eyes open,
Hands folded in your lap,

You fell away

like a great wind that had,
( just now it seems! )
been wrestling all the grasses on the cliff,
drawing dazzling spray off the brawny shoulders
of the hard-charging waves
and holding the ruffled coal-eyed crows
aloft without
a single wingbeat.

“died down” we say of a wind,
but that is not the way it happened.

You fell away

as imperceptibly as a great wind
lifts itself off of ten thousand blades of grass,
drops the crows back into their labored rowing
and simply
ceases,
as if never
having been.

Before: a voice, small rattles, a scouring roar,
tumult.
Now: only gravity and the thud
of eternity’s heartbeat
wave upon wave upon wave of it
coursing into the silent day.
 
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Entry #3: Kai

flickering light, a burning candle, and one bare hand
three magnets, a lost pendant, and one metal chain
empty room, a broken needle, and some melting snow

catching bubbles, on a grassy hill, with our naked eyes
forgotten laughter, secret kisses, and stolen touch
holding hands, colliding souls, indelible tear drops - rain
a drifting bottle, torn paper, a letter without a stamp

collected regrets, maybe memories, at the burning end of today
precious words - grey sky, dust, November, fragments and ink
you - the reason, the only, sweet perfect ecchymosis
me - the dreamer, the void, in the stillness; still in screams.
 
Entry #4

As my world behind eyes
I'm not surprise if with proof I'm still a lose teeth verbal assault
will only go so far cuz I choose to not
cuz in lighten your brain with my perfection of my WORLD
I'm a thinker
not smart enough to be a drinker
if you throw cotton at my glass house then I understand you come as
FRYEND
 
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Entry #5

Different

I wish I were able to flutter along with the rest of normality's cult.

If only my mind was simple in nature
and I could see what was layed before my eyes, and appreciate it for what it is...
rather than what it could be.

If I could hear the reverberative sounds echoing off the concave orchaestry of life...
and not for a minute contest to the underlurking music of parallel existences.

To sink my teeth
into the crisp-sweetness of a golden apple...
and experience those veils of warmth
descending upon me and wrapping me in familiar feelings
of previous apples tasted.

To have my senses intake
all these 'things' that were meant to be sensed
and to still be in content!
And to not have my mind linger over what else there is to be heard and seen and tasted.

If I could live such a day...

Where I was pleased to be living in the moment
and found every accumulation of perception,
existing and persisting within that moment,
to be nothing short of 'gratifying'.

But I has never been this way
for I am like the shrew,
scratching away,
at the soil

while rabbits hop
on sunny surfaces

Alienation is all I have come to know.
 
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Entry #6

The "Whore Of Babylon"

all she wants, are the flowers brought to her, and when they are, and she laces with them - our hearts will drop and poor and shower - our own light for our own day , in her thirteenth hour.
her weeping is all that has remained - her tears have feed the forests glaciers and plains,
her every sob is with out vein - for if they were there would be no rain

... only there can she never answer - as her only reply is the same -
"if all is mine, then what am I - if all is mine, then whos am I?"


let go - let love be free
 
This is cool. I had the desire to start something like this up, but my real life schedule got hectic after I became a mod here. Glad you took the initiative :)
I was wondering, what is the prompt, or central theme, that is being written about for this one? It'd be hard to fully evaluate each one without some sort of overarching directive, even just a vague one. Nothing too strict. That way you can allow the specific to generate ideas, and to see how well the ideas are expressed, could give people more to ponder when it comes to casting their votes.
 
That does seem like a good idea and one which the OP originally suggested but considering the paucity of entries/threads in Words maybe it was better for the first one to just let people post something no matter what the subject matter. Maybe it would be good for the future ones just to motivate us all.

I am still wondering about the competition aspect. Why? Maybe it is because I am an old hippie or maybe it is because I am an art teacher that spends my life telling students that they are not in competition with anyone when it comes to their self-expression. Their task is to banish the cruel self-critic within so that they feel free to try something. Step two is to develop their own positive ability to critique their own work and the work of others in order to make their work more powerful and effective. Making it a competition makes an already vulnerable activity, for many people, downright stifling. I would rather just celebrate everyone's attempt to express themselves.
 
^
it is true what you say.

i only love what i wrote, because of what it means to me
there is no other way to write...


but to some, the concept of 'view counts' and replies to their own thread can be a tally of credit.
~
i also feel strongly that for every other visitor drawn to the Words forum, because of this thread in-particular, will check out more goings on in the forum as a whole; as the OP did mention as a motivation.

if i felt it was strictly competition- personally -i wouldnt want to put my emotion into it - we must try ! ;) we will be better writers, stronger individuals in little ways, and as Forum doing so...maybe(?)
 
Hmm...I just wanna stress that people shouldn't take the competition aspect of it all that seriously, they should just write what they want to write, maybe it'd be good to have them stretch their writing muscle, whether or not they win on the first try. It's all about the process, and just continuing to do it over and over. Write from different perspectives, real or invented, write from different places emotionally. Just try to express yourself using all methods of word-smithery. Maybe it'll give you some impetus to write slightly outside your comfort zone, but still make it true to yourself, or at least some aspect of yourself. Try to connect seemingly random metaphors in your descriptions, and never be afraid to show the reader some images with your words. Paint a picture! A self-portrait of some part of who you are.

This should be fun!
 
Ok guys I just made a new thread for the votes... and please add comments and encouragements/criticisms with your votes. Remember not to crush anyone's dreams, only icriticize if you can do it in a respectful manner and if you actually have some constructive to say. I think CoffeeDrinker makes a fantastic point, but at the same time, I truly believe that most people who are into the creative writing situation have always done it for pleasure and for themselves in the first place. The voting should by no means represent the better poet or more skilled writer, but rather... the most favoured one of THIS WEEK. Thanks for the participation :)
 
too long, didn't read
sorry didn't see the need
structure doesn't work for me
especially when it comes to poetry

lol, how stupid, i just rhymed and kept in time and yeh that fine
but obviously i'm not aligned with the thoughts i think in that part of my mind
so maybe i can't disagree that this weekly comp is not for me
but i won't enter my work as an entry should be
sorry
that's just not me :)
 
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