napowrimo #16: a t-rex and a thesaurus
by Carolee Sherwood
Desperate just-past-the-half-way-mark-of-NaPoWriMo times call for a thesaurus. Write a poem today about a word trail. Pick a single word and play with its synonyms or mess around with its antonyms. Follow one word to another and another and then another and go with whatever poem idea emerges. Consider this a brainstorming exercise meets research project, but don’t get in too deep. There’s not a lot of time! Just have fun and loosen up and let some new words crawl into the open spaces.
You can also write about what a word conjures up, even if it’s silly. For example, I always thought that “thesaurus” sounded like a kind of dinosaur. (Is it T-rex or brontosaurus?) And “dictionary,” to me, sounds like a soft, flaky pastry. (Maybe it’s because of the word “confectionery” or maybe it’s because I have an insatiable sweet tooth; remember, it doesn’t have to make sense!)
If you prefer, you can follow a word’s perfect rhymes or pseudo-rhymes and see where they take you. “Papal” becomes “apple,” which becomes “grapple.” If you add “dabble” or “baffle,” what an interesting story you may have!
The goal is to start with a single word and see where it can take you. (Here’s a clue: The answer is “everywhere.”)
To help you on your journey, there are many versions of reference books online, such as The Free Dictionary and Write Express Online Rhyming Dictionary. Have fun!
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A note from “admin”: This month, since we’re all trying to write every day, we’re leaving the comments open with each prompt so you can post links to your poems as you write them. So, go ahead and write your poem, post your poem (with a link to Read Write Poem and a Read Write Poem tag, if you would) and come back to this very spot and share your link with us.
Of course, if you’re a creature of habit, you can always post your links at today’s “Get Your Poem On” post. Who are we to mess around with what works for you?
And don’t forget to go read the poems of others in this wonderful writing community. We’re all in this NaPoWriMo “mess” (ha ha!) together; let’s support each other in the insanity that is writing (every day)!
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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!”
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Day # 15 in California:
Technical Difficulties Only Corrected After 11 PM
http://brokeness.blogspot.com/2009/04/napowrimo-15.html
I did something different (and not as much fun from the sound of it!) for today’s poem
http://knittingthewind-westering.blogspot.com/2009/04/note-i-live-in-southern-hemisphere.html
My NaPoMo poem #16, a humorous lament: 15 Days To Go
Why is wom·an
Last segment of Triptych.
http://a-mus-ing.blogspot.com/2009/04/herd.html
FYI, I subscribe to the blog’s RSS feed, and this post is not coming through on the feed.
Also used the Random Poetry Prompt: sluice.
A Use for Cranberry Juice
WOW! This is a great one–this prompt, it really sounds like fun, can’t wait to try it. (Ignore the link, it’s the one posted yesterday–and I have a new one to post today–I can’t work as fast as some of y’all!)
Okay! After MANY edits I’m finally ready for display LOL.
http://lori102870.blogspot.com/2009/04/it-flows-freelynapowrimo-16by-me.html
Combined the prompt here with the one at Dash
to come up with
NaPoWriMo poem #16 Poised
which might be a good teaching poem !!!! ooooh….
It’s on my Facebook Notes
and my blog
http://dash30dash.ning.com/profiles/blogs/poised-napowrimo-16-4162009
Write On
Here you go: In a Cowslip’s Bell I Lie
didn’t follow the prompt.again.
rest
IT’S UP!
http://iwriteforreal.blogspot.com/2009/04/nawripomo-poem-16.html
This was fun!
http://freckledwriter.blogspot.com/2009/04/dont-fight-it.html
I’m back and on prompt ~ and I’ve got a lot of catching up to do… one poem at a time…
Image
finally the prompt. sort of….
I really liked the idea for today’s prompt but didn’t follow it. I wanted to but the classical music was playing and all the kids were writing and I didn’t want to spoil the mood by getting up to find a thesaurus.
Instead, this is my 3WW that I wrote on Thursday. These words brought back a memory I was hoping never to remember.
[...] a writer can be defined as someone who finds it impossible to look up one word in a dictionary. So today’s ReadWritePoem prompt felt especially apt: Write a poem today about a word trail. Pick a single word and play with its [...]
Hmm, hadn’t realised that my linking to the prompt would then come up in the comments.
I enjoyed this one a lot.
http://readwritepoem.org/2009/04/16/napowrimo-16-a-t-rex-and-a-thesaurus/
today’s shopping adventures led me to look up the word “money” — prom dress for #16
http://therer2doors-thespacebetweenwords.blogspot.com/2009/04/prom-dress.html
Got a late start today, but finished a rough poem:
Yellow Blues. Thanks to everybody who’s been commenting on my poems. I really enjoy the feedback.
http://blog.elizabethenslin.com/2009/04/yellow-blues
[...] For Read Write Poem’s [...]
Like Liz I got a really late start and this is a rough draft:
Someone Here is Stranded
http://alotus-poetry.livejournal.com/72389.html
#16 T REX
I managed to surprise myself with where my free associating with the word moth took me
Something old that I’ve been working with again… Taste.
I didn’t expand on a word, but a concept. Can’t seem to shake the morbidity in my poems… Oh well.
http://sintaxandsemantix.blogspot.com/2009/04/positively-euphemistic.html
GREEN – A CINQUAIN FOR SPRING
Word Trails, a little long, a little upsetting.
[...] t-rex and a thesaurus Somehow or other I missed Carolee’s lexical prompt. I had fun with this, although it’s only a fragment which I hope to develop later. I’m [...]
i wrote about abs and memories. not t-rex’s. haha.
[...] NaPoWriMo Read Write Poem Prompt #16 [...]
light’s dance … http://djkreutzer.com/moments/archives/429
I know this is really late, but I’ve been busy… I have nine poems to write today to catch up!
I used the word “blow” and it’s synonyms for this one.
http://cassandralee.tumblr.com/post/98675925