After some searching, I stumbled upon the literary journal Field. It is published twice a year by Oberlin College, and each issue features a collection of different styles of poems from many different poets, as well as a small collection of critical essays relating to other published poems. There’s a list in the back of the book of the poet’s credentials, and almost everyone featured in the book has already produced at least one of their own books of poetry. Field is set up like a normal book – black text on normal paper white, nothing too fancy. However, the covers usually feature colorful/unique photos or pieces of art.
I took a look at the Spring 2006 edition of Field, and to say it was interesting would be an understatement. Now I don’t necessarily mean interesting as in “I must read more!” though some poems definitely fell under that category – I mean interesting as in “um… that’s pretty far out there.” Almost all of the poems are free verse, and that really lends itself to some creative (if not confusing) results from the poets. Some of the works were so “out there” that I thought they were writing in a form like N+7, but things seemed to fit just well enough that I concluded the poets were just being extremely abstract.
This really creative, somewhat abstract poetry – while difficult to comprehend sometimes – does produce some very cool lines. One of my favorites comes from Victoria Bosch Murray’s “Milking the Lion,” where one line simply states, “How do magnets reproduce?” While it is a very odd question to ask, considering magnets obviously don’t reproduce, it produces an image in your mind of thinking about something you’ve (probably) never thought about before – what would it be like if magnets did try to reproduce? Knowing that the ends push away from each other, it’s a humorous line that really stands out in her work.
My favorite poem from the issue would probably be Angela Ball’s “Singles.” Not only does it contain a cool, abstract line (“Sleep’s a jukebox in a defunct drive-in”), but it also expands on that metaphor by saying how “someone / Punches 68 and I dream suitcases. 89, / The dark-haired woman smiles, unties / A sheaf of billet doux.” I think it’s a neat, creative way to think about dreaming; what if someone really could control your dreams just by hitting a button and putting on their favorite “single” from the jukebox of your mind? I think all great works of art, written, aural, or visual have that in common, that they make you think.
A lot of the poetry in Field wasn’t quite to my liking however. As I said, most of it is abstract, and I had trouble being able to tell if there was a point to the poem, or if the poet was just going off on a tangent.
Overall, I’d say Field is worth looking into if you’re one for “out there” and abstract poems. What kept me reading was the occasional line of gold in a poem, but I didn’t enjoy too many of the poems as a whole. For that reason, I think I would personally hold off on picking up another issue, or at least consider skimming the next one for some cool lines.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The literary magazine I chose was "Poetry." The poetry foundation published the magazine and was printed by Cadmus Professional Communications whom I had never heard of before. The journal did not look like a magazine at first until I found out that the magazine is printed every month. The magazine is made up of twenty-nine poems and translations after each author's section. The cover of the book is what first attracted it to me; it is bright and colorful and had a funny picture of what seemed like a man's head. The size of the magazine is very small; it is the size of a short read (I.E. less than 100 pages) and also has a hard cover compared to other magazines but, if it were a book, it would be claimed a soft cover. After I read the magazine I wasn't able to make a connection between the cover and any of the poems. Inside the book the pages are plain and came across very book like. The overall main attraction to the magazine was the simplicity in the layout. The theme that I gathered from the magazine was that each and every poem had a sense of eeriness. Many of the poems in this journal related to a time of war or another tragic time in history. Other poems related to the bible, relics or religious figures.
Many of the poets in the magazine I found out to be very renown writers. Some of the poets were editors or still are editors, others have appeared in many literary magazines and newspapers such as The New York Times. The older poets I noticed, are authors of many novels such as Watermark, The Long Meadow, and Hurry Home Honey.
My favorite poet in the magazine happened to be Dahlia Ravikovitch (1936-2005). She was one of the greatest Hebrew woman poets of her time. Dahlia was a peace activist and awarded the Israel Prize which was cited as "a central pillar of Hebrew lyric poetry." For the first time in English (W.W. Norton, 2009) presented the full trajectory of her life in poetry.
My Favorite poem of Dahlia Ravikovitch was The Love of an Orange. The title didn't come off as grotesque and when I first read I didn't think much of it, until I read through the translation and went back to reread. The first read through I understood the poem as a man who just liked eating oranges. However, while reading the translations I understood the poem completely differently. The man that loved oranges represented a man who desired maidens. The oranges were maidens in disguise. The overall poem weaved the desires of the man and the Garden of Eden story. When I realized the poems underlying theme I noticed a densely allusive style while the author acquired an ironic modernistic tone. The theme all made sense when I understood here expressions summon up an entire universe of discourse.
After I read The love of an Orange I heavily read into each translation of every poem in the magazine. As I began to understand the underlying tones and themes of the poems, I began to enjoy them. I went back and reread all the poems I was questionable about and I couldn't find one I disliked. Overall, I would say I would go by another issue of this magazine or at least this issue!
Many of the poets in the magazine I found out to be very renown writers. Some of the poets were editors or still are editors, others have appeared in many literary magazines and newspapers such as The New York Times. The older poets I noticed, are authors of many novels such as Watermark, The Long Meadow, and Hurry Home Honey.
My favorite poet in the magazine happened to be Dahlia Ravikovitch (1936-2005). She was one of the greatest Hebrew woman poets of her time. Dahlia was a peace activist and awarded the Israel Prize which was cited as "a central pillar of Hebrew lyric poetry." For the first time in English (W.W. Norton, 2009) presented the full trajectory of her life in poetry.
My Favorite poem of Dahlia Ravikovitch was The Love of an Orange. The title didn't come off as grotesque and when I first read I didn't think much of it, until I read through the translation and went back to reread. The first read through I understood the poem as a man who just liked eating oranges. However, while reading the translations I understood the poem completely differently. The man that loved oranges represented a man who desired maidens. The oranges were maidens in disguise. The overall poem weaved the desires of the man and the Garden of Eden story. When I realized the poems underlying theme I noticed a densely allusive style while the author acquired an ironic modernistic tone. The theme all made sense when I understood here expressions summon up an entire universe of discourse.
After I read The love of an Orange I heavily read into each translation of every poem in the magazine. As I began to understand the underlying tones and themes of the poems, I began to enjoy them. I went back and reread all the poems I was questionable about and I couldn't find one I disliked. Overall, I would say I would go by another issue of this magazine or at least this issue!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Literary Mag Review
I took a look at the PNR Review based out of England. I’m not going to lie, it caught my eye because it said ‘Poetry’ on it, and it also had a picture of a bicycle (credited to Colin Still). Poetry and bikes, I can dig it.
I’ve never read a literary journal before, so I really had no idea to expect. The layout was quite simple: Editorials, news, and letters. Reports. Poems. Articles. Reviews.
The first poem I came across was The Dice Player by Mahmoud Darwish. It was an extremely long poem, but the best part about it was this stanza, which was structured very differently than the stanzas around it, which were prose and flowed well:
I’d walk/ jog/ run/ ascend/ descend/ scream/ bark/ howl/ call/ wail/ speed up/ slow down/ plummet/ lighten/ dry up/ march/ fly/ see/ not see/ stumble/ turn yellow/ green/ blue/ crack/ sob/ thirst/ tire/ starve/ get up/ run/ forget/ see/ not see/ remember/ hear/ envision/ mumble/ hallucinate/ whisper/ scream/ or not/ moan/ go mad/ get lost/ become less/ become more/ drop/ soar/ descend/ bleed/ fall unconscious/
I loved it! I really like the opposites and the repeated see/ not see lines.
Also, because this journal is international, there were a lot of translated works. I’ve always wondered about the integrity of translated works, only because it seems like some languages are so much more complex OR simple compared to English, that words could be lost or added depending on the language, and then the real poem (and its effect) could be lost. I guess we just have to trust the translator is really giving us the best literal and figurative translation.
My favorite piece in the magazine, however, were a collection of 5 poems by Ernest Farres about Cape Cod, and I really enjoy the poem Nighthawks, 1942 because it is structured like a small play between a man and a woman, and I loved that. Really, anything can be poetry if you call it poetry. The conversation was so menial, I really liked the idea that normal every day conversations could be considered artful:
Woman: We’re both very touchy
Man: yeah, I’ve picked up on it
Woman: And tense and anxious
Man: We’ve got good reason to be.
Woman: Work is a problem,
and life, more or less
the same.
Man: That’s for sure
Woman: Let’s try not to think about it.
Man: Right. It don’t matter.
Overall, I really enjoyed taking a peek into the world of the literary journal. I don’t know if I would subscribe to this one, but maybe if I found one I really enjoyed, I’d become a follower!
I’ve never read a literary journal before, so I really had no idea to expect. The layout was quite simple: Editorials, news, and letters. Reports. Poems. Articles. Reviews.
The first poem I came across was The Dice Player by Mahmoud Darwish. It was an extremely long poem, but the best part about it was this stanza, which was structured very differently than the stanzas around it, which were prose and flowed well:
I’d walk/ jog/ run/ ascend/ descend/ scream/ bark/ howl/ call/ wail/ speed up/ slow down/ plummet/ lighten/ dry up/ march/ fly/ see/ not see/ stumble/ turn yellow/ green/ blue/ crack/ sob/ thirst/ tire/ starve/ get up/ run/ forget/ see/ not see/ remember/ hear/ envision/ mumble/ hallucinate/ whisper/ scream/ or not/ moan/ go mad/ get lost/ become less/ become more/ drop/ soar/ descend/ bleed/ fall unconscious/
I loved it! I really like the opposites and the repeated see/ not see lines.
Also, because this journal is international, there were a lot of translated works. I’ve always wondered about the integrity of translated works, only because it seems like some languages are so much more complex OR simple compared to English, that words could be lost or added depending on the language, and then the real poem (and its effect) could be lost. I guess we just have to trust the translator is really giving us the best literal and figurative translation.
My favorite piece in the magazine, however, were a collection of 5 poems by Ernest Farres about Cape Cod, and I really enjoy the poem Nighthawks, 1942 because it is structured like a small play between a man and a woman, and I loved that. Really, anything can be poetry if you call it poetry. The conversation was so menial, I really liked the idea that normal every day conversations could be considered artful:
Woman: We’re both very touchy
Man: yeah, I’ve picked up on it
Woman: And tense and anxious
Man: We’ve got good reason to be.
Woman: Work is a problem,
and life, more or less
the same.
Man: That’s for sure
Woman: Let’s try not to think about it.
Man: Right. It don’t matter.
Overall, I really enjoyed taking a peek into the world of the literary journal. I don’t know if I would subscribe to this one, but maybe if I found one I really enjoyed, I’d become a follower!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Assignment 8: Review of "The Southern Review"
I know you aren’t supposed to judge a book by its cover, but while skimming through the literary journals in ODY, the cover of the most recent Southern Review was the first thing that caught my attention about this literary journal. The picture on the front cover features a very abstract, unusual, unidentifiable…thing, drawn in a rainbow of colors. It is actually a work called "Husky" by John J. O’Connor, an artist whose work is featured in an eight page insert in the journal along with the essays, poetry and short stories. Drawn in by the cover, I decided to check this volume (Volume 25, number 1, Winter 2009) of the journal out.
What a good decision! The Southern Review, published quarterly at Louisiana State University, is a great mixture of essays, poems, short stories, and artwork. It is a high-quality journal, with colorful artwork printed on glossy pages and literature printed on thick paper that makes you feel like you are reading your favorite novel as you are flipping through. Though the table of contents is listed in the front of the book in sections (poetry, fiction, essays, review, visual art), making it easy to find what you are looking for, the actual contents of the journal are mixed together (although they are organized by author), poems and stories all jumbled together. For me, this made the journal even more fun to read—it was spontaneous and kept me interested wondering what was going to come next.
Unlike some of the other journals that I picked up while browsing, The Southern Review does not seem to have one theme tying all of the featured works together. (River Styx is one journal that I looked at that stood out in my mind as a journal centered on a specific theme. I spent quite a bit of time reading one particular issue that was a special edition all about food! There were recipes included, along with short stories and poetry solely about food and eating! If anyone is looking for a journal to review, River Styx seemed like a good one… it’s down in the periodical section of ODY.) Back to The Southern Review, this issue of the journal is not a special edition and does not center on one specific theme. There does not seem to be an obvious mission statement about the goals or project vision of the journal, either. There is no introduction, only the table of contents and brief biographies of each featured author before the works themselves appear. Because of this, when I began reading, I wasn’t really sure what to expect.
I was pleasantly surprised. The first poem in the issue actually turned out to be among my favorites. It’s called "The Chair" by Robert Cording. It is a free verse poem without rhyme about a loved one left behind after someone’s death. The poem impressively captures a feeling of loneliness and melancholy, the tone, setting and imagery of the poem echoing sadness. The Chair also develops the idea of missing someone and feeling lost in their absence, a concept that makes the poem quite easy to relate to and connect with, drawing the reader in. It was a very powerful poem to feature as the initial entry of the journal. A bit further into the journal, I found a poem entitled "Time and Time Again" by Roy Jacobstein. This poem reminded me a bit of the some of the poetry we read this week (like "Fountain" and "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner") which included some historical information as a central element. This poem was another free verse poem, one long stanza which felt complete in that it began with the lines “If you don’t write it down/ it disappears” and ended with the line “write it all down, it still disappears.” Another poem that I particularly liked was "Careful" by Erika Meitner. This poem starts with the concept of a supposedly unbreakable, durable Pyrex dish shattering and connects this later with the fragility and resilience of children, while including an array of what seem to be personal memories in the middle. The poem is arranged in unrhymed couplets, and seems to be a modern, contemporary poem.
Other poems I really liked included "My Wife and I Learn to Accept Our Clutter" by Martin Lammon (a very simple, short, yet powerful poem with a nice message about the disorganization of life), "As Mastery Gives Way into Altitude and Forgiveness" by G.C. Waldrep (a poem which depicts a plane crash in a surprisingly elegant, graceful way that is somewhat bothersome), "Cold War" by Joshua Rivken (a poem that reminds me a lot of "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner". It personifies the fighter jets and ends in an incredibly powerful line: “like Achilles/mourning the end of one world and living in the next.”), and "Moments" by Brent Pallas (a reflection on life filled with powerful imagery and concise yet creative descriptions). These poems are only some of the many poems I would like to mention and recommend here! I enjoyed most of the poems in the journal.
There were a couple of poems that I did not appreciate quite as much as some of the others. For instance, the poem "Two Spices" by John W. Evans was not one of my favorites. I felt that although the poem was quite creative and contained some mythological and historical references, there was not much for a reader to hold onto or relate to in the poem. There did not seem to be a powerful message in the incomplete sentences filled with unusual words like ‘carminative,’ ‘glumes,’ and ‘transductant,’ along with a few words here and there in another language that made up the unrhymed lines of the poem. But for the most part, I can’t complain. There were very few poems I disliked—I thought the vast majority were great!
Just as a side note, besides the poetry in this issue, the artwork and the short stories were wonderful as well. John J. O’Connor’s artwork is accompanied by a few pages explaining how and why his pieces turned out the way they did (which was REALLY interesting and made his drawings even cooler). The short stories covered a variety of topics, from a powerful story of female friendship and uncomfortable secrets in Winter Formal by Victoria Patterson to glimpses of life as a soldier and anecdotes about war and basic training in Hand-me-down War Stories by Jerry D. Mathes II.
I would HIGHLY recommend this literary journal! The biographies of the contributors reflect a wide variety of individuals, but seem to imply that many of these writers are quite experienced and somewhat distinguished writers. This may somewhat explain the high quality of the work selected and included in this journal. Overall, I think that this issue of The Southern Review would be an appropriate (and somewhat inspirational) read for anyone in our class and it would be a great journal to strive to contribute poetry to! The poetry in this issue was awesome, some serious, some lighthearted, a variety of topics and styles. I will definitely pick up another issue of this journal in the future. I really enjoyed reading it and in my opinion, this journal is 184 pages of literature well worth reading!
The journal is at ODY in print, or you can check out the website at www.lsu.edu/tsr.
Enjoy!!
What a good decision! The Southern Review, published quarterly at Louisiana State University, is a great mixture of essays, poems, short stories, and artwork. It is a high-quality journal, with colorful artwork printed on glossy pages and literature printed on thick paper that makes you feel like you are reading your favorite novel as you are flipping through. Though the table of contents is listed in the front of the book in sections (poetry, fiction, essays, review, visual art), making it easy to find what you are looking for, the actual contents of the journal are mixed together (although they are organized by author), poems and stories all jumbled together. For me, this made the journal even more fun to read—it was spontaneous and kept me interested wondering what was going to come next.
Unlike some of the other journals that I picked up while browsing, The Southern Review does not seem to have one theme tying all of the featured works together. (River Styx is one journal that I looked at that stood out in my mind as a journal centered on a specific theme. I spent quite a bit of time reading one particular issue that was a special edition all about food! There were recipes included, along with short stories and poetry solely about food and eating! If anyone is looking for a journal to review, River Styx seemed like a good one… it’s down in the periodical section of ODY.) Back to The Southern Review, this issue of the journal is not a special edition and does not center on one specific theme. There does not seem to be an obvious mission statement about the goals or project vision of the journal, either. There is no introduction, only the table of contents and brief biographies of each featured author before the works themselves appear. Because of this, when I began reading, I wasn’t really sure what to expect.
I was pleasantly surprised. The first poem in the issue actually turned out to be among my favorites. It’s called "The Chair" by Robert Cording. It is a free verse poem without rhyme about a loved one left behind after someone’s death. The poem impressively captures a feeling of loneliness and melancholy, the tone, setting and imagery of the poem echoing sadness. The Chair also develops the idea of missing someone and feeling lost in their absence, a concept that makes the poem quite easy to relate to and connect with, drawing the reader in. It was a very powerful poem to feature as the initial entry of the journal. A bit further into the journal, I found a poem entitled "Time and Time Again" by Roy Jacobstein. This poem reminded me a bit of the some of the poetry we read this week (like "Fountain" and "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner") which included some historical information as a central element. This poem was another free verse poem, one long stanza which felt complete in that it began with the lines “If you don’t write it down/ it disappears” and ended with the line “write it all down, it still disappears.” Another poem that I particularly liked was "Careful" by Erika Meitner. This poem starts with the concept of a supposedly unbreakable, durable Pyrex dish shattering and connects this later with the fragility and resilience of children, while including an array of what seem to be personal memories in the middle. The poem is arranged in unrhymed couplets, and seems to be a modern, contemporary poem.
Other poems I really liked included "My Wife and I Learn to Accept Our Clutter" by Martin Lammon (a very simple, short, yet powerful poem with a nice message about the disorganization of life), "As Mastery Gives Way into Altitude and Forgiveness" by G.C. Waldrep (a poem which depicts a plane crash in a surprisingly elegant, graceful way that is somewhat bothersome), "Cold War" by Joshua Rivken (a poem that reminds me a lot of "The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner". It personifies the fighter jets and ends in an incredibly powerful line: “like Achilles/mourning the end of one world and living in the next.”), and "Moments" by Brent Pallas (a reflection on life filled with powerful imagery and concise yet creative descriptions). These poems are only some of the many poems I would like to mention and recommend here! I enjoyed most of the poems in the journal.
There were a couple of poems that I did not appreciate quite as much as some of the others. For instance, the poem "Two Spices" by John W. Evans was not one of my favorites. I felt that although the poem was quite creative and contained some mythological and historical references, there was not much for a reader to hold onto or relate to in the poem. There did not seem to be a powerful message in the incomplete sentences filled with unusual words like ‘carminative,’ ‘glumes,’ and ‘transductant,’ along with a few words here and there in another language that made up the unrhymed lines of the poem. But for the most part, I can’t complain. There were very few poems I disliked—I thought the vast majority were great!
Just as a side note, besides the poetry in this issue, the artwork and the short stories were wonderful as well. John J. O’Connor’s artwork is accompanied by a few pages explaining how and why his pieces turned out the way they did (which was REALLY interesting and made his drawings even cooler). The short stories covered a variety of topics, from a powerful story of female friendship and uncomfortable secrets in Winter Formal by Victoria Patterson to glimpses of life as a soldier and anecdotes about war and basic training in Hand-me-down War Stories by Jerry D. Mathes II.
I would HIGHLY recommend this literary journal! The biographies of the contributors reflect a wide variety of individuals, but seem to imply that many of these writers are quite experienced and somewhat distinguished writers. This may somewhat explain the high quality of the work selected and included in this journal. Overall, I think that this issue of The Southern Review would be an appropriate (and somewhat inspirational) read for anyone in our class and it would be a great journal to strive to contribute poetry to! The poetry in this issue was awesome, some serious, some lighthearted, a variety of topics and styles. I will definitely pick up another issue of this journal in the future. I really enjoyed reading it and in my opinion, this journal is 184 pages of literature well worth reading!
The journal is at ODY in print, or you can check out the website at www.lsu.edu/tsr.
Enjoy!!
Seriously, check this out, and really click on some of the poems, they are great! (THEO is on here)
Chelsea Nuffer
Assignment 8: Review of a Literary Journal
Where can a professional writer and professional facebook stalker meet to share artistic thoughts? You obviously have not heard of UpRightDown.
UpRightDown is a literary journal where every issue features a single plot, and multiple ways of telling it. Poet’s can write it, painters can paint it, singers can sing it, and even you could capture the plot in video form, whether a professor at MIT or a nanny in NYC. The plot for issue one was simple, yet could be made complex however interpreted. The plot and theme for this issue was set in a bistro where a young woman tells her three girlfriends about an affair with an American tourist. He has gone home and hasn’t called like he promised. One friend tells her to call, another says to e-mail and the third tells her to forget him. She doesn’t tell the three friends she is carrying his child. Into the bistro enters a fat American couple both with a different speech impediment. They order food. The man chokes and one of the friends performs the Heimlich maneuver on him, and saves his life. Do you think you have the creativity to spell this plot out in another way?
This issue included a fourteen second youtube video, twenty-six pieces of verse and prose poetry, six video clips, two word/image pieces, one animation piece, three of drama, three strictly image and two interactive medium pieces. This collaborative multi-media site changes every week with new additions and invites one and all of many levels and with different passions to participate by reading and/or submitting work from poems to videos and paintings. The contributors for this issue included forty-four individuals of different ages, and artistic backgrounds. For example, the brief summary of Amy Woolensack introduced her as a professional nanny and amateur Facebook stalker who lives and stalks in New York City. Avery Smith lives in Cincinnati, Ohio where she attends the School for Creative and Performing. Lastly, Nick Montfort is one of the author’s of A Palindrome Story, the longest palindrome ever written. He is an assistant professor of digital media at the MIT. These three examples prove that anyone can participate with URD, from students, to professors and professional writers, and even nannies.
The versatility and freedom of this site will capture your attention. It is a fun, colorful site that can bring out the funniest entertainment in the arts to date. Plots can be expressed with youtube videos, the most popular site of college students with procrastination issues, so you should check it out. If you wish you can even upload your most recent AIM conversation with your friend if it fits the plot, or even the cross word puzzle you found in the paper at the student center. You don’t know what artistic expression is until you check out URD.
Visit http://www.uprightdown.com to read the plot and go to the issue or even suggest a plot for a future issue!
I will be returning to this site because it is so entertaining. It will inspire me that not all poetry is serious and romantic. Jess Young, I am dedicating the above URL to you. Have fun. I am not sure if we should workshop this poetry but we should spend a day having fun with this site. I would definitely want to publish in this journal, the freedom, the fun! This was a hard choice, but here is my favorite poem in this issue on the above topic was the first poem in the first column a prose poem by Ann Buechner. I FOUND THEO’S WORK ON THIS SITE! Awesome! Also, I found a poem written about the above plot, only using words starting with B. That was neat. I also really like the AIM conversation about the plot. There is also a poem using the dictionary type form to describe the event.
Assignment 8: Review of a Literary Journal
Where can a professional writer and professional facebook stalker meet to share artistic thoughts? You obviously have not heard of UpRightDown.
UpRightDown is a literary journal where every issue features a single plot, and multiple ways of telling it. Poet’s can write it, painters can paint it, singers can sing it, and even you could capture the plot in video form, whether a professor at MIT or a nanny in NYC. The plot for issue one was simple, yet could be made complex however interpreted. The plot and theme for this issue was set in a bistro where a young woman tells her three girlfriends about an affair with an American tourist. He has gone home and hasn’t called like he promised. One friend tells her to call, another says to e-mail and the third tells her to forget him. She doesn’t tell the three friends she is carrying his child. Into the bistro enters a fat American couple both with a different speech impediment. They order food. The man chokes and one of the friends performs the Heimlich maneuver on him, and saves his life. Do you think you have the creativity to spell this plot out in another way?
This issue included a fourteen second youtube video, twenty-six pieces of verse and prose poetry, six video clips, two word/image pieces, one animation piece, three of drama, three strictly image and two interactive medium pieces. This collaborative multi-media site changes every week with new additions and invites one and all of many levels and with different passions to participate by reading and/or submitting work from poems to videos and paintings. The contributors for this issue included forty-four individuals of different ages, and artistic backgrounds. For example, the brief summary of Amy Woolensack introduced her as a professional nanny and amateur Facebook stalker who lives and stalks in New York City. Avery Smith lives in Cincinnati, Ohio where she attends the School for Creative and Performing. Lastly, Nick Montfort is one of the author’s of A Palindrome Story, the longest palindrome ever written. He is an assistant professor of digital media at the MIT. These three examples prove that anyone can participate with URD, from students, to professors and professional writers, and even nannies.
The versatility and freedom of this site will capture your attention. It is a fun, colorful site that can bring out the funniest entertainment in the arts to date. Plots can be expressed with youtube videos, the most popular site of college students with procrastination issues, so you should check it out. If you wish you can even upload your most recent AIM conversation with your friend if it fits the plot, or even the cross word puzzle you found in the paper at the student center. You don’t know what artistic expression is until you check out URD.
Visit http://www.uprightdown.com to read the plot and go to the issue or even suggest a plot for a future issue!
I will be returning to this site because it is so entertaining. It will inspire me that not all poetry is serious and romantic. Jess Young, I am dedicating the above URL to you. Have fun. I am not sure if we should workshop this poetry but we should spend a day having fun with this site. I would definitely want to publish in this journal, the freedom, the fun! This was a hard choice, but here is my favorite poem in this issue on the above topic was the first poem in the first column a prose poem by Ann Buechner. I FOUND THEO’S WORK ON THIS SITE! Awesome! Also, I found a poem written about the above plot, only using words starting with B. That was neat. I also really like the AIM conversation about the plot. There is also a poem using the dictionary type form to describe the event.
Attention: group 2
I revised my poem for Tuesday (group two). So hopefully, you can print that off again if you had already. I used the following lexical sets below to write a poem with. It was pretty hard to put together. I had to use my imagination and think of ways the four words related. My first attempt was ok, but the poem had no form. I just revised the sets of poems into further like groups. I then titled those different mini poems so the reader can understand them as mini stories. Just focus on the sounds of the words, and have fun with it. Don’t read into it too much.
Chelsea
Lexical set Examples
KIT (ship, rip, dim)
DRESS (step, ebb, hem)
TRAP (bad, cab, ham)
LOT (stop, rob, swan)
STRUT (cub, rub, hum)
FOOT (full, look, could)
BATH (staff, clasp, dance)
CLOTH (cough, long, gone)
NURSE (hurt, term, work)
FLEECE (seed, key, seize)
FACE (weight, rein, steak)
PALM (calm, bra, father)
THOUGHT (taut, hawk, broad)
GOAT (soap, soul, home)
GOOSE (who, group, few)
PRICE (ripe, tribe, aisle)
CHOICE (boy, void, coin)
MOUTH (pouch, noun, crowd)
NEAR (beer, pier, fierce)
SQUARE (care, air, wear)
START (far, sharp, farm)
NORTH (war, storm, for)
FORCE (floor, coarse, ore)
CURE (poor, tour, fury)
Chelsea
Lexical set Examples
KIT (ship, rip, dim)
DRESS (step, ebb, hem)
TRAP (bad, cab, ham)
LOT (stop, rob, swan)
STRUT (cub, rub, hum)
FOOT (full, look, could)
BATH (staff, clasp, dance)
CLOTH (cough, long, gone)
NURSE (hurt, term, work)
FLEECE (seed, key, seize)
FACE (weight, rein, steak)
PALM (calm, bra, father)
THOUGHT (taut, hawk, broad)
GOAT (soap, soul, home)
GOOSE (who, group, few)
PRICE (ripe, tribe, aisle)
CHOICE (boy, void, coin)
MOUTH (pouch, noun, crowd)
NEAR (beer, pier, fierce)
SQUARE (care, air, wear)
START (far, sharp, farm)
NORTH (war, storm, for)
FORCE (floor, coarse, ore)
CURE (poor, tour, fury)
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Today's Writing Exercise
I really liked the writing exercise that we did today. I ended up with the historical moment of "JFK's Assasination" with the character of a 20 year old janitor. I was very lucky to end up with this topic as I am and have always been interested in the JFK assasination. After some editing, I would like to share this poem with you, comments and criticism is more than welcome!
"The 20 Year Old Janitor"
As I sat outside on the park bench
I noticed there were crouds of people-
Ass ignoring me of course,
I don't look like someone they would talk to
I held my head high,
I was only twenty years old,
My life still had a future,
Their lives just had a past.
I didn't know why
All the boring people had gathered
But they all stayed far away
So we wouldn't have to talk.
Suddenly the lifeless people started cheering
For what I did not understand.
Black shiny cars began driving right past me
I was in eyelock-With the president.
As he startedback and waved
I knew he wished me well.
He believed that I still had a future,
Thats why he had chose me.
I slowly raised my hand to return his gesture,
There was a gun shot.
He layed in his seat, head back, blood surrounded,
His car rushed to the hospital,
But I knew, he believed, he believed in me.
I know it's still a little rough, but I hope you enjoy!!
"The 20 Year Old Janitor"
As I sat outside on the park bench
I noticed there were crouds of people-
Ass ignoring me of course,
I don't look like someone they would talk to
I held my head high,
I was only twenty years old,
My life still had a future,
Their lives just had a past.
I didn't know why
All the boring people had gathered
But they all stayed far away
So we wouldn't have to talk.
Suddenly the lifeless people started cheering
For what I did not understand.
Black shiny cars began driving right past me
I was in eyelock-With the president.
As he startedback and waved
I knew he wished me well.
He believed that I still had a future,
Thats why he had chose me.
I slowly raised my hand to return his gesture,
There was a gun shot.
He layed in his seat, head back, blood surrounded,
His car rushed to the hospital,
But I knew, he believed, he believed in me.
I know it's still a little rough, but I hope you enjoy!!
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