read write prompt #38: scratch-and-sniff poetry, anyone?
by Blythe and Cynthia Cox
This week’s prompt is a collaborative work between me (Blythe) and the fabulous blogger and guest contributor Twitches.
Twitches loves smell, and she’s written blog entries about her favorite perfume brands that are more sensual and evocative than most of my poetry. So when she suggested a prompt on smell, I was excited to work with her on it.
Smell has always been Twitches’ favorite sense (Blythe loves it too, and it might be her favorite, but she is terribly indecisive). Powerful scents evoke memories, stir up emotions, connect us to certain people and places, to certain moments in time. (Check out “A Few Lines from Rehoboth Beach“, by Fleda Brown, for a good example of the link between smell and place.)
We were both fascinated by scratch-and-sniff books as kids. Twitches really wanted Smell-o-Vision to become a reality (think about all the visuals you see on TV which would be that much more horrible could you SMELL them as well. Genius!)
William Carlos Williams wrote a great piece, addressed to his nose, about the powerful draw of smell – and how it sometimes causes trouble. Here’s a link to his poem, “Smell.” (Although you have to scroll down to the bottom of the page to read it, it’s worth the milliseconds it takes get there. If you have time, meander through his other works; a little extra quality time spent on poetry like his never hurt anyone!)
So. Walk around this week with your sniffer in high gear. Or take a moment right now to conjure up your favorite sense memories: Movie popcorn, gasoline, firewood, bed linens hung out on a washing line to dry – what is it that the sense of smell evokes for you? Be it positive, negative, or a little bit of both, put it into poetic form and share it with the rest of us.
Ideas for collaboration:
- Make a list of your favorite unusual smells, exchange it with someone, and write on what the other person’s smells mean to you.
- Write a descriptive poem that describes a specific smell — but without actually naming what the smell is. Exchange this with a partner (or you could work as a group and shuffle them around) and have someone write a second piece, one based off each original, that describes the smell, name and all. See how well you did at describing/guessing smells.
- Keep a list of smells you encounter over a day or two. Then pass them to a partner, who will write a narrative poem based on what your day(s) smelled like.
Come back Monday after midnight and find the get your poem on post to leave a comment for us, with a link to your poem the week, whether it’s fresh as a morning flower, foul as decaying fish or an entirely scentless piece.
|
get the read write poem badge! 
Wear it loud, wear it proud! Display the Read Write Poem badge on your site. Just click here or on the image above to get the code! read write poem news- yes, yes, here’s another virtual book tour stop for ‘a walk through the memory palace’
February 6, 2010 | 11:37 amFind the latest tour stop for Pamela Johnson Parker’s debut collection, A Walk Through the Memory Palace at Jillypoet, Jill Crammond Wickham’s blog, where you can find an interview with Pamela that discusses how she creates manuscripts.
Previous stops include Daniel Romo at his blog, Peyote Soliloquies and James Brush at his blog, Coyote Mercury.
You can find all our plans for the tour here.
- the best of the web is in our ranks
February 6, 2010 | 11:35 amSarah J. Sloat’s poem,”Attending the Tasting” (published in The Literary Bohemian) has been selected for Best of the Web 2010. Congratulations, Sarah!
- another (w00t!) read write poem member on the joe milford poetry show
February 6, 2010 | 11:34 amOn the Joe Milford Poetry Show tomorrow (Feb. 6): W.F. Roby at 9 AM (PST). Find the show here!
Joe describes Will as a “great language poet and bad-ass.”
- ‘literary podcasting made simple with wordpress.com’
February 6, 2010 | 11:33 amDave Bonta has published a how-to article that might be of interest to WordPress users: “Literary Podcasting Made Simple with WordPress.com,” based on his and Beth Adams’ experience at Qarrtsiluni.
Thanks, Dave, for continuing to help make the community aware of technological resources that can expand our art.
- the latest (virtual) book tour stop for ‘a walk through the memory palace’
February 3, 2010 | 3:53 pmThe latest tour stop has been posted for Pamela Johnson Parker’s debut collection, A Walk Through the Memory Palace. Find out how Daniel Romo responded to the work at his blog, Peyote Soliloquies.
James Brush provided our first tour stop at his blog, Coyote Mercury.
You can find all our plans for the tour here.
- planning for napowrimo in april, and you are invited!
February 2, 2010 | 6:12 pmHello, hello dear Read Write Poem community members! We are in the planning stages for NaPoWriMo. (What? Is that a groan I hear, or an excited exclamation?)
We are planning another prompt-every-day for those folks who love to write a daily poem in April (which is, as most of you know, National Poetry Month in the United States — although there is an international following of writing poetry every day in April, too, so it is not just about the States).
Anyway! This is a call for prompts because we want to run your ideas, one every day, in April. So here’s what to do:
- Prompts must be no more than 250 words, and we will take the first 30 that we receive.
- Include “NaPoWriMo Prompt” in the subject line of your email as well as your username (e.g., the name you use when you log in) so we can match you up with your prompt and give you the link love.
- Email your submission (in the body of the email — no attachments please) to prompts (at) readwritepoem (dot) org!
We’ll let you know when we’ve got the 30, but don’t delay because it takes a lot of time to format the posts and we want to be ready come April Fools’ Day. Woohoo!
- new senior contributors at read write poem
February 2, 2010 | 11:51 amWe are thrilled to announce that Ren Powell and Dave Jarecki are moving into the senior contributor role at Read Write Poem. Both have been writing feverishly for the site, as well as providing ideas for content and for the community as a whole. In short, they make this site a more lively, and better, place.
Ren and Dave will fill the roles vacated by Carolee Sherwood and Jill Crammond Wickham, who have moved into the manager role.
Everyone please thank Ren and Dave for their hard work and commitment to Read Write Poem.
- rounding out the virtual book tour of sarah j. sloat’s ‘in the voice of a minor saint’
January 31, 2010 | 1:53 pmOur last stop on the Virtual Book Tour of Sarah J. Sloat’s In the Voice of a Minor Saint is with Ren Powell. Find Ren’s review at More Babel.
Joseph Harker provided our first stop in December, and you can find David Moolten’s review at Edible Detritus. David’s was followed by Dave Jarecki’s. Dave’s review is at his blog. Find Jill Crammond Wickham’s at Jillypoet: Mom Trying to Write.
In case you missed the introduction, we are (virtually) hosting Sarah J. Sloat’s In the Voice of a Minor Saint. For complete tour information, such as how you can get your own copy of the collection or how you can get involved in future tours, read this post.
- make your own book: get off the computer and onto the paper
January 30, 2010 | 4:19 pmBeth Adams has posted her latest project at The Cassandra Pages. “A Handmade Book” may not explicate all the details of bookbinding, but Beth shows readers the “Secret Belgian Binding.” It’s a beautiful as well as inspiring post.
If you would like more detailed instructions, Google “secret Belgian bookbinding” and find sites such as this one. Or look for a local book arts class for hands-on instruction.
As Beth says, ” … it did me good to get away from the computer and feel my hands at work!”
 Archive for read write poem news »
|
|
Loading ...
OMG, this prompt is fabulous! I get to turn into a dog for a week! Woohoo! Although I’m not much of a “smeller”, this would inspire me to focus on this sense this week (I’m a good listener and have a fabulous sense of hearing!). Hmm, maybe a prompt about ears in the future?
I’d always thought of that too. If only we get to focus on smell or even touch when we’re watching TV! I mean, I’m sure it would even more helpful if visually impaired people can fine tune their sense of smell and touch while “watching” TV! Wouldn’t that be amazing? So sorry, I just had to put that out there. I think too much about people; I’m such a softie.
Oh, and when I was a kid, they also made scratch-n-sniff stickers, too. Then, there was a time when scented Crayola markers were around. I had way too much fun with that. Oh, the memories.
And William Carlos Williams is one of my favorite poets!! I can never get enough of his poetry!
Anyway, I would like to collaborate with someone on here! Would anyone would like to collab with a “newbie”?
I’m really looking forward to this!!
This prompt stinks!
I’ve written my response to this prompt, but as I’m going to be away from the internet for about 10 days (coincidentally in the very environment my poem describes!), I’m not going to be able to stop by and post my link in the usual way.
So I’d love it if some kind person could add the link to my poem, smell of the earth to the comments on the get-your-poem-on post next week so I can join the fun.
Then I’ll look forward to having lots of nice smelly poems waiting for me when I get back…
Now, off to schedule some posts to keep my blog alive while I’m away!
[...] know the incredible scents that come from the mad green diversity of life. In response to a prompt to write about smell at readwritepoem, I knew that I wanted to try and capture some of the amazing richness of this world, through its [...]
[...] Read Blythe and Twitches‘ complete prompt at Read Write Poem. [...]
I’m confused by that page of William Carlos Williams poems, which don’t look anything like the style of any of his poems I’ve come across before. (The Red Wheelbarrow, for instance, or the one about the plums in the icebox).
Did he have a radical mid-career change of style, or are they misattributed, or am I just plain confused?
oh my sweet night blooming jasmine! do i have a sense of smell for you!
I love how smell evokes memories more powerfully than anything else, well for me that’s the case. Good one, I’ll play.
[...] The Beach This hay(na)ku chain was written for Read Write Poem Prompt #38: Scratch-And-Sniff Poetry, Anyone?. Here is my take on the prompt. [...]
[...] and edited to fit my blog. Are you OK with that, PDW? And since I helped write this weeks’ RWP prompt about scents, I’m counting the few alluded to here and using this as my poem for the week. Do [...]
[...] at Watermark, Sharon has been walking around with her nose in high sensitivity mode in response to read-write-poem’s prompt to write about smells. She came up with a kaleidoscope of amazing and vivid images, and some great [...]