Thursday- Finding a Moment

Toads!  Manicddaily, Karin Gustafson here, wishing you all well. 

I had a hard time thinking of today’s prompt in part because I have had a hard time lately thinking about poetry.  I wanted the prompt to be something to goad me as much as you, but not through a search of old poems that I might use.  I wanted a prompt that would force me to write something new.

So, here it is:  I’d like you to write about this very moment.  That is, the moment in which you are sitting down (or standing up) to compose your poem.  Ideally, I’d like you to write about that very moment in rhyme or meter--that is, with some element of musicality.  

You can write the merest impression of this moment, or you can tell its fuller story.  This impression or story can, of course, include other moments--moments which led to this moment, or that come to mind in this moment.  Or, you can stick with what feels absolutely present right now. 

In other words, your poem can be a wide-angle lens, or a telescopic; a mirror, a window, a keyhole.   

To get you thinking of the layers of the moment, I include here two time-lapse videos made by a drawing/painting app that I sometimes use.  The one above is the video that resulted from my illustration of my newest (soon-to-be-published) children’s book, called “Baa Baa Briar!” and the one below ifsfrom a book I’ve just published called “Little Dog’s Thirst for Adventure.”  (I hope the uploads work!)   (All rights reserved.)

Note that the fact that you are writing about this very moment does not mean that you can not revise.  You can and should revise before posting, especially for musicality. 

See you on the flip side.