Influence & Inspiration

 "The music of my youth." This is how one of my friends described Aretha's body of work. So many of us -- Detroiters, Americans, and citizens of the world -- mourned the loss of "The Queen of Soul" these past two weeks. Fellow musicians and regular folks, all fans, she inspired, bolstered, and comforted paid tribute to her in words and song.

Though her music and voice always made me stop and listen or move to the beat, my favorite Aretha moment happened in 2015 at the Kennedy Center Honors where she celebrated Carole King by singing "Natural Woman." Tears rolled as I sang (off-key) and watched the communication between Aretha and Carole and between Aretha and the star-studded audience. President Barack Obama wiped a tear from his eyes along with me.

With her music, her leadership, her example to her family and community, the legendary Aretha Franklin defined an era in our history.

Today's Prompt:
By this time in our lives, we've all experienced a loss of someone whose presence or actions on a large platform have affected us. We may not know the individual personally, but he or she has inspired or comforted or taught us. We've also had family and personal friends whose lives have had an impact on our own. Write an ode to that person. Or, write a poem about how that person influenced or inspired you.

Word Bank:
Tribute
Inspiration
Legend
Presence
Model
Mentor

Video Prompt:

We would love to read your work, so please share your poem or provide a link to your website or blog in the comments below. Thank you, and happy writing.

 
Annis Cassells is a writer, poet, life coach, and teacher.  She divides her time between Bakersfield, California and Coos Bay, Oregon, where she conducts memoir writing classes for senior adults. She is a member of Writers of Kern, a branch of the California Writers Club. See Annis’s blogs at www.thedaymaker.blogspot.com and www.poemsbyannis.blogspot.com and her website at www.connectionsandconversations.com

The Thing with Feathers: Hopeful Inspiration for OctPoWriMo from Emily Dickinson

Mixed Media: Emily Dickinson portrait with book page and leaf - 2012, Julie Jordan Scott

As we get closer to the beginning of OctPoWriMo, you may consider ways to stay inspired. Some of my greatest inspiration comes from the poets who have written before me, especially the women. 

I call them "Literary Grannies" because they have a feminine legacy that isn't often touted. 

I make it a mission to elevate the stature of all women writers and poets. Along the way, I fall in love with the poems and the women.

The more I get to know Emily Dickinson, the more I love her. I have been an admirer for quite a few years now, but my word-love has flourished since I visited her home in Amherst Massachusetts. Not once, not twice, but three times so far and I think another trip there is long overdue. 

It isn’t as if travel to Western Massachusetts is convenient: I live in Bakersfield, California. Visiting her home is like visiting Mecca.

 Not only do I visit her home, I take in the stomping grounds of other literary figures.

My visit, though, does not begin until I have paid due homage to Emily.

So many people think of her as an odd recluse who had agoraphobia among other mental illnesses. Perhaps she did fight some disease but we don’t know for certain. There are so many books of research about her poems, I am sure we could find a researcher or several right now who would argue for all sorts of illnesses and quirks.

What I feel most strongly about is this: Emily Dickinson was a one of a kind. She lived with great passion, continually learning via the news of the day from both her family and newspapers and magazines. She enjoyed baking for the neighborhood children – she would lower Ginger cookies in a basket to them as they waited below her bedroom window. She was a botanist – spending hours in

"The Thing with Feathers" inspired by Emily Dickinson's poetry. Mixed Media, Julie Jordan Scott, 2013

the garden drawing flora and communing with the trees.

 Yes, she sought refuge in solitude.

She spoke to people behind a curtain.

She also corresponded with many and grew friendships via her entertaining letters.

What impresses me most about her is how the mystery surrounding her continues to invite inquiry AND the more I know of her the more I want to know. The more I know of her the more I want to create in her honor. The more I know the more I want to share with others.

I created a mixed media work of art called “The Thing with Feathers” based on this stanza of hers, one of her famous oft quoted ones:

"Hope" is the thing with feathers—
That perches in the soul—
And sings the tune without the words—
And never stops—at all—

She inspires me as poet, a visual artist and as a human being.

It doesn't get much better than that.

What literary granny (or any other poet) inspires you to write? If you don't know of one yet, I urge you to begin reading more poetry. We can support poets (and poetry collections) by purchasing their books. My own skill as a poet increase multi-fold when I studied poets with a lasting legacy.

Honor your poetry by honoring wise sage poets.

-- Julie Jordan Scott

* This entry is a revised blog entry from the Julie Unplugged Blog.

 = = =

Time is going by quickly, are you ready for this poetry challenge, will you be sharing your poetry on your blog? Make sure you if you are on Twitter that you share your poem posts with the hashtag #OctPoWriMo so that other participants can find you. You can also share and chat with us on Facebook in our Writing Poetry Group.

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Finding inspiration in the world around you

Some people say writer's block is a myth. I think it's more of just a lack of inspiration. The imagination well may feel dry, but trying to observe like around you in a different way can dispel that gray pall. 

Take a good look around you. 

Your walk to work. Are there people sleeping on benches? Is your favorite coffee shop on your way? 

Car ride to drop off the kids at soccer practice. Is there a Mom you try to avoid? Wonder what her life is like at home? 

The scar on your knee: Remember that time you were trying to sneak into a concert, 

and you snagged your jeans while trying to snake through that hole in the fence?

You cats wrapped around your ankles while sipping pumpkin latte from your favorite mug. Feels like home doesn't it? 

The crisp sounds of leaves crunching under your feet. Can you smell autumn in the air? 

Stopping to smell the roses on your way to the mailbox, It reminds you of grandmother.

Anything can be inspiration. 

The best tool to have in your poet's kit, are your senses, especially when you're paying attention to the emotions. One of the reasons people connect to poetry is the feelings it evokes. Taking in the words, interpreting them through the reader's lens of experience and then she nods in understanding.

If you're feeling the pinch of writer's block and you're wondering what to write. If you're looking for inspiration and you're coming up short, try looking at things a different way. Try closing your eyes and listening to the world around you. What do you hear? Even if your home is quiet, you may still hear birds tweeting outside, the house settling on its haunches or the clack of your dogs toenails against the vinyl kitchen floor. What do the sounds tell you?

Try imagining what your life would look like from the outside looking in. You may find it mundane, but your grandchildren running around driving around batty while your husband is snoozing in the lounge chair could make for an interesting poem about home, family and life. 

There's so much inspiration in the world around you. You may just need to look a with a new pair of eyes. 

Count Down: 9 Days until OctPoWriMo!

Tamara Woods was raised (fairly happily) in West Virginia, where she began writing poetry at the age of 12. She shares poetry and short stories on her blog PenPaperPad, is a contributing writer for the online ‘zineLefty Pop and writes articles as a full-time freelance writer. She is editor for an upcoming poetry journal collaboration, and hosts #writestuff TweetChat where writers talk about writing. She is a hillbilly hermit in Honolulu living with her Mathmagician.

Poetry: A Must-See Film for Poets (and the people who love them.)

I first heard about “Poetry” written and directed by Lee Chong Dong and simply had to see it. I sought a venue within a reasonable driving distance from Bakersfield.  A movie house specializing in art and foreign film in Santa Monica became my poetic and cinematic mecca on that day in 2010. Emma, who was twelve-years-old at the time didn't want to go because she thought subtitles would be "boring." Within moments of the film beginning, she discovered the joy of foreign film. It was through experiencing this captivating stories she learned subtitles do indeed disappear within a well-hued story.

I have linked to a video which includes snippets from the movie and a gloriously written review from the New York Times as a melodic counterpoint. It is only five minutes long.

Please take a moment to visit YouTube to watch the video (The owner does not allow me to embed it here) and consider how movies about poets, poetry and leading a poetic life may make your experience of any writing challenge more rich and rewarding.)

Because I also wanted to include some video from Poetry you could see here on the blog, here is the trailer:

 

What movies inspire you as a poet?

-- Julie Jordan Scott

OctPoWriMo Writing Prompt: Day 22 - A Picture Paints a Thousand Poems

If a picture paints a thousand words, then why can't it paint poems? A photograph tells a story and that story is usually pretty open to interpretation. Using the images that surround us is another way to find inspiration for poetry. What does it make you feel? What is your experience with the image? Or what do you think the subject is thinking, feeling and experiencing? Does the photograph make a statement about the world? Is it whimsical and surreal? Can it be funny, serious? Tragic? 

Writing Prompt: Choose one of the photos below and use it as inspiration for your poetry. You can tell us a story with your prose or mention the photograph within the body of the poem.  Have fun with it! There's no limit to where your imagination can take you. 

photo by Stephen Hernandez

photo by Robert Rauschenberg 

photo by Rodney Smith 

photo by Ben Heine