read write prompt #77: opposites attract. (try it, you'll see!)

by Jill Crammond-Wickham

The opposite of a cloud could be
A white reflection on the sea,
Or a huge blueness in the air,
Caused by a cloud’s not being there.
– Richard Wilbur, “Some Opposites”

As the old saying goes, opposites attract. As I discovered in my IRL (in real life), writing group last week, this holds true for poetry as well. The poems everyone wrote blending two opposite experiences into one poem were amazing in their scope and meaning, both intended and accidental.

Last year around this time, Christine explained it this way: “What happens when you pour balsamic vinegar over extra-virgin olive oil? The oil rests on top of the vinegar in the cruet, but if you shake the contents, you create a delicious salad dressing.”

I am resurrecting this prompt simply because I love it so much, and because it produces the most wonderful poetry! I hope you will love it, too!

For your poem this week, try combining two elements that don’t seem to go together at first glance. Here’s the process:

  • Think of a happy memory, a moment that brings you joy. Write five to 10 lines about that moment, and then put the poem away.
  • Write about a moment or time of distress, sadness or anger. Once again, write five to 10 lines.
  • Get out the first poem and combine it with the second by alternating lines.

Don’t want to work with memories? Try combining some of these other opposites:

  • Warmth and cold
  • Fear and courage
  • Beauty and ugliness
  • Humor and seriousness

Patricia Lee Lewis, poet and workshop leader, introduced Christine to this type of poem. Patricia in turn learned about the process in an experimental writing workshop she attended by Carolyn Forché.

Please come back next Thursday and leave us a link to your poem!

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