RoadWriter

Heart, Soul, and Rough Edges — A Gypsy Journey of Words and Wonder

Archive for the tag “challenge”

"Only Traces"

More rhymes.

Only Traces

To find your dreams
within the pages of a magazine
would seem impossible
if not obscene.

Cut out words and pictures, they say
that represent your future
come what may, anything
to keep the fear at bay.

To peruse the air-brushed faces
and wish for far off places,
I languish here still, looking for illumination,
finding only traces.

(1st Poetic Muselings Summer Poetry Challenge

The Poetic Muselings (Michele Graf, Margaret Fieland, Mary Jensen and Anne Westlund) are having a poetry contest to see which one of us can write and post the most poems between July 15th, 2014 and September 1st, 2014. The author who writes and posts the most new poems on the Poetic Muselings Group Blog will win a writing book of their choice from Amazon.com.

There will be opportunities for reader participation. So watch this space!)

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Make Visible: September Facebook Poetry Challenge

This September I had the pleasure and privilege to share an original poem-a-day challenge on Facebook with my friends Michelle Hedgecock, Margaret Fieland, Lotus Vele, Becky La Bella, Cai Von Kugler and David Robbins.  Dave is a chat buddy of mine from New York State.  Dave floated the idea of a poetry challenge and I went along with it.  I’m glad I did!  I  managed to write, type and post 30 new poems to Facebook in September.  I also enjoyed reading and commenting everyone else’s poems.  Make visible, indeed!

 

Here is one of the poems I wrote during this challenge:

 

Butcher Shop

 

 

 

Sadness

settles in my bones

like the cold,

stays there.

 

Your words are sharper

than a butcher’s cleaver

reducing me to roasts, chops,

and cold cuts.

 

I don’t know if it’s my own helplessness

I’m wallowing in,

or yours.

 

I can do one thing well,

walk in a circle every day,

stopping only

long enough

just long enough

to be buried

in 6 feet of freshly turned earth.

 

No, I’m not dead yet.

 

A stone cold heifer

just bones left now

munching on grass

dripping blood—

 

pooling at my hooves.

 

 

©  Anne Westlund

 

“Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen.”~Robert Bresson, French Film Director

Make Visible: Story a Day

It’s almost May…

On the Story a Day website it boldly says: StoryADay.org is home to an annual Extreme Writing Challenge:

Write a story every day in May.

Still confused.  Want more info.  Here are “The Rules” from StoryADay.org.

The Rules

You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you. ~Ray Bradbury

The Story A Day Challenge is a creativity challenge.

It came about when I (Julie) needed to prove to myself that I could still actually write stories — not just talk about writing, read about writing or even write about writing!

I needed bootcamp.

I declared May 2010 to be StoryADay May and set about telling the world (to keep myself honest).

As other writers started to hear about it, they clamored to sign up. They got excited. They challenged themselves. They challenged their friends. They wrote a lot. And some of them went on to do great things.

So here we are, declaring May 2012 to be:

The 3rd Annual Story A Day May

The rules:

  • Write (finish) a story every day in May.

The details:

  • Stories may be any length (50 words? 5,000?) but they must be stories (they must take us or the characters somewhere).
  • Stories may be fiction or non-fiction (but if you’re already blogging in non-fiction or keeping a journal, consider trying fiction)
  • You get to decide what “every day” means. If you need to take Sundays off, go for it. You make your own rules, but you are encouraged to set them up early, and stick to them!
  • Sign up as part of the community here. Get a username and join in the groups and comments. (sign-ups open soon. join the StoryADay Advance Notice List to be first in line)
  • You can post your story at your site, or in the forums here or you can simply post an update in the Victory Dance Group saying that you completed that day’s story.

The point:

  • To foster creativity
  • To come out with 31 first drafts, nuggets, chapterettes, ideas, and
  • To prove that you can craft a story. Lots of stories. To practice that craft

What Should You Do Next?

  • Get on the Advance Notice List to find out when sign-ups open (I only open it up sporadically, to combat spam sign-ups) PLEASE email me at editor at story a day dot org or contact me on twitter @StoryADayMay if you have questions. Really sorry for any inconvenience.
  • Take a look at the Inspiration and Productivity links on the Resources page.
  • When you have a username, Make some friends,, Join or create a group.
  • Most of all, gather your ideas between now and May 1. You’re going to need at least 31 of them.

This story a day business sounds intriguing and challenging!  If you are interested please go to the Story A Day website to find out more.

The Stories of Ray Bradbury

The Stories of Ray Bradbury (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

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