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Poetry Contest
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Poetry Contest
Poetry Contest
Well, we haven't had one of these in a while, have we? Time for a new one, I say! Welcome, resident poets!
The rules are pretty simple. I am the first judge. I will give you a theme, and you must write a poem relating to the theme. Be creative with your interpretations! I will then judge the entries by a set date, and the winner will then be the next judge, and set the next theme. And so on, and so forth.
The first theme will be... *dramatic drumroll*
Stars! Whether you chose to write about the kind of stars you wish on, or the kind that take the stage, I will be eagerly awaiting your sparkly, shiny, beautiful poems. Have them in by... Saturday, March 18. Two weeks. Sound fair?
I hope to see your poems soon!
~Booksy <3
submitted by Booksy Owly
(March 4, 2017 - 8:58 pm)
(March 4, 2017 - 8:58 pm)
Stars numerous
More than you can count
Floating in the void of space
What is the universe
But a library?
(January 6, 2020 - 10:28 pm)
What is your story?
She stares down at her feet,
slipping through the crowds;
Everything is stained a bleak monochrome,
all of it crumpling like old post-it notes behind her.
Her footfalls gradually cease like a sunshower,
tearstained cheeks turned up
to a golden pyramid, standing perfect;
Tall, measured, beautiful; everything it should be.
A hollow gaze, turns away, empty;
as if denied entry by an unseen force.
The stucture glows warmly, before sputtering
to a cold drowsy grey, as it too crumbles into sand.
She now stands on a jutting cliff,
Vermilion tears streaking the sky,
Watching the ebbing emerald waves die,
mountains caving, while the sun melts away.
What is my story?
She tilts her head,
colours fading, forms
colliding, only silence prevailing.
(January 7, 2020 - 8:37 pm)
Sunshowers and awe-inducing gold-rimmed cumulous,
Treehouses and swordfights, sailing the seas in far off places;
Old, faded yellow parchement dotted with blossoms of ink,
Rings binding families, promises, secrets;
Islands bearing exotic plants and fine-golden beaches,
Erasers and blackboards dulling those vivid young imaginations;
Seeking knowledge to become the change the world oh-so-desperately needs.
(January 10, 2020 - 3:03 pm)
The "needs" at the end was supposed to be part of the line before it, just so you know.
(January 11, 2020 - 9:09 pm)
You know, you'll all have more patience once you read the rankings, so might as well state them up front:
Honorable mention: Jaybells. The beautiful emotions in your poem were so powerful. I loved the line, "tearstained cheeks turned up/ to a golden pyramid, standing perfect;" It really did its job in conveying an image. I don't know how much the poem held true to the prompt, but I really liked it.
Third place: Spellbound. This poem felt like it represented the true meaning of what stories are. The idea was haunting and beautiful, in the best possible sense. The ending seemed a little abrupt and out of place, but the line, "people may mourn at the sweet sound/ of your beautiful name" was heartfelt and rich in imagination.
Second place: Leo. Leo, your poem made no sense, but it also made perfect sense. Does that make sense? You combined seemingly unrelated words and ideas and threaded them together clearly and thrillingly- oh, forget it, now I'm the one writing poetry. I loved "jigsaw discipline," and your final line, "im a candle, flicker, flicker out."
First place: Abigail. This poem felt true in a way that I haven't seen before. I could imagine that girl and her mother so clearly; it felt like real life. The disconnect between the characters felt real, too, as in, "i will never brace my hands to/ splintery blue starboard/ i cannot know the apple tree on the balcony..." Congratulations! You deserve it.
I'd also like to point out that, due to the huge number of entries (nine poems! Wow!), I had to leave out some pretty amazing ones. PLEASE don't feel badly! The competition was rough! But I'm happy so many people entered. Please feel free to enter the next round!
Well, that's it for today. Thanks again for entering!
(January 12, 2020 - 8:15 pm)
Thank you so much! I really wasn't expecting to place, everyone's poems were amazing, super amazing! Congrats Abi!
(January 13, 2020 - 5:25 pm)
Congratulations, everyone! And thanks for the prompt, Summer - it was one of the better ones. :)
(January 13, 2020 - 6:03 pm)
Oh gosh, thank you so much, Summer! I was not expecting to win, there were so many amazing poems this round. Congrats, everbody!
The new theme will be yearning. I'll judge on... hm, how about the 28th? If that's too far away I can also do the 23rd. Let me know what you guys think is best. Happy writing!
(January 14, 2020 - 12:12 am)
I think the 28th is fine. This is a cool prompt - I’m looking forward to writing it!
(January 15, 2020 - 12:26 am)
Thank you, Summer! I wasn't expecting to place. Everyone's poems were awesome! Congratulations, Abigail! I love your poem and the new prompt.
(January 15, 2020 - 6:42 am)
ophelia + icarus
i. knowing that i'll/ never know
singing through the sadness
just that i might/ collapse any day but/ going on because i have to
a tree towering so high
a broken girl beyond/ repair
itching to climb
crying at night for the life i've/ never known
twisted branches grasped in hand
wanting so badly to be/ anyone but/ myself
not knowing where i have been or where i will go
watching the/ ones with their lovely little/ lives talking of/ complaints i would love to/ worry about instead of/ what i have for myself
a crack and a gripping feeling of
wishing i could be you instead of me
ii. waking up and/ telling myself it is not a/ facade i don
trapped away in a cage of our own invention
knowing i am/ so lucky but at the/ same time never/ feeling the happiness i/ know i should
as he procures his own means of escape
knowing that i/ am the one to covet but/ vying for a life/ anew
giving me a warning i do not need
drowing out the/ petty struggles of/ my friends' lives with my own/ forbidden thoughts
putting on wings to learn to fly
having no right to/ feel the things i do but/ i'm sorry but i can't/ stop myself
the freedom of the open air
the goodness of the life i have will/ never be enough
a sizzling sensation and suddenly i'm
wishing i could be you instead of me
(January 19, 2020 - 10:18 am)
Oh, I totally interpreted it differently! I was thinking that there were four different people (verse one italics and regular and verse two italics and regular), each wanting to be one of the others, not knowing that those people that they want to be are hiding their own problems.
I really like this!
(January 22, 2020 - 8:40 pm)
Yeah, I realized soon after writing it that it could easily be interpreted in the way you did. I also made a mistake in the original comment; I said Icarus's bit was in italics in stanza 2, but the other person was actually the italics speaker then. There were actually four people; Ophelia and Icarus were just wanting to Not Die while Nameless #1 and Nameless #2 wanted to be each other.
Thank you!
(January 24, 2020 - 10:16 pm)
Tears~
i was waiting
not a single speck of light
shinig through
though the world was
bright and the sun
was glorious that day
i felt cold and
darkness was haunting me
as i yearned for him
i pretended it wasn't true
he would come to me
like he always had
i was waiting at the window
like every day that had
come before this
but this day was
different and i
already knew it
but i couldn't accept it
not by the window
not ever
he would come back
he would jog up to
the mudstained door
and greet me with a hug
i would smile
and would ask him about the day
he would tell me
and mom would call us for dinner
and daddy would take my hand
and we would wander into
the small kitchen
and today was going to be
no different
but no matter how hard
i tried
daddy was gone
he had slipped away
right from me
right from my finger tips
his silhouette wouldn't
grow against the fading
pink and orange light
he wasn't coming
no matter how hard i willed
him to jog up to the
mudstained door
he wouldn't
and i yearned
and let emotion flood over me
and i cried
tears flowing
streaking my dirty cheeks
leaving a path
leaving a trail of sorrow
and yearning
a trail like daddy
had left behind
phox says yoeue. you? me? what?
(January 20, 2020 - 5:24 pm)
Take me as a treasure,
Praise me for my feathers,
But soon you'll lock me away,
In that golden cage you call a palace.
Horrors hidden behind thin gilded glitter,
Their jealousy burns and sears; licking at my ankles as they twitter,
Deceptively sweet honey blanketing all true intention;
And yet, I'll still accept my fate, this "honor," for my kin.
Whispers whip about like tempest winds,
While royal ladies hide behind silken folding-fans;
Bright colours that flow like ink, neat fabric and porcelain skin
Are all that paint a charming picture; one actually riddled with far more sin.
I take to plastering make-up, smiles and cheerful words
Over my longing, yearning, aching to return;
Back to me, back to home, back to where I belong,
I'm not a simple creature, I can't be stashed away, just to sing a pretty song.
With this life comes
Vermilion with cinnabar; staining lips, eyelids, heart--
Gold and amber; melting, fusing to the palace and its jewelry, setting them apart.
Charcoal, then ebony; coating teeth, lashes, soul--
Chalky pearls; only adorning the face, all else having been burnt down to coal.
Cerulean; snatched away but for the memories of a now-lost, vast and sprawling sky,
The capital's apricot and cherry blush, soon to fade and die;
Bleeding, soaking into the sky as she slips down to a sea of ink,
Finally, peaceful gingko leaves rain down, tears pressing the brink,
Forgetting that in clinging to their prison-cells they, too, are falling.
(January 21, 2020 - 7:01 pm)