Two Line Tuesday: Rafael Sabatini

A-maze-ing Laughter by Yue Minjun                                  Photo by Wee Sen Goh

He was born with a gift of laughter 

and a sense that the world was mad.

                                   – Rafael Sabatini 

                                                                            from Scaramouche

Resolution

Keith Davenport

I like this resolution
             ... though it's similar to one I had three years ago.

For 2018, instead of focusing on who I am, 
                    I'd like to find out what I'm capable of.

New Year's resolutions are a prickly subject. For lots of folks, the only acceptable resolution is not to make resolutions! Does that describe you? It's easy to understand why, when only 8% of New Year's resolutions are successful. Why set yourself up for failure?

According to one poll, the three most common resolutions for 2018 were eating healthier, getting more exercise, and saving more money. In another poll the top spot was shared by weight loss and being a better person. "Being a better person"...? What does that even mean? While most resolutions are well-meant, they're not typically well-planned. Commitment to change requires preparation, not just a fresh start and good intentions. I'm proud of the fact that I've lost 30 pounds over the last several months by eating healthier and getting more exercise, but did it come about because of a New Year's resolution? Heck no.

I happen to like resolutions, but only after I've taken stock of my life and put significant thought and effort into what my priorities are, and how I'm going to carry them out. Generalities like "being a better person" just don't cut it. I need my resolutions to be specific, reasonable, and achievable. That doesn't mean they can't or shouldn't be challenging, but with all the disappointments this world has been doling out lately, the last thing I need is to break a promise I've made to myself.

Back in November, a friend of mine—author, professor, and Huffington Post columnist Stephanie Vanderslice—asked me if I had a writing resolution for 2018. After some thought, here's what I came up with:

While I've been blessed with an active and loyal blog following, I've also become a bit too comfortable. The time has come to be more proactive with my writing career. As a resolution, I've taken my cue from "2018"—complete 2 poetry collections (zero excuses!) and submit my work at least 18 times during the year.

I think that's doable. Though I'm not going to lie, I've been more than a bit nervous about returning to blogging because it tends to soak up my writing time like a sponge. This is not the first time I've tried to make changes to the blog to allow for more personal writing and submitting. Establishing new habits is a fragile undertaking at the best of times, but this year I've also got the aforementioned new exercise routine to consider, a son heading off to college, parents who are planning to move down here, plus all the usual everyday "grown-up blah-blah" as my son used to call it. This time things feel different, though, like the stars are aligned and I'm ready for whatever comes my way. Already well into drafting my first 2018 poetry manuscript, I sure hope so. This would not be a good time to lose my mojo or momentum!

Available at Amazon.com.

My writing resolution was published Wednesday as part of a social media campaign to promote Stephanie's new book The Geek's Guide to the Writing Life: An Instructional Memoir for Prose Writers (Bloomsbury Academic, December 2017). I highly recommend it—especially for beginning writers, but also for folks like me who suffer from recurring bouts of insecurity. Am I a prose writer? No, not really, but poets can also benefit from the strategies discussed.

In Stephanie's own words:

...writing life books are kind of like pep talks; we all need them once in a while to remind us of the difficulty and the importance of what we're trying to do.


This particular "pep talk" covers the nuts and bolts of what it takes to have a writing career. It includes everything from making the commitment and doing the work, to connecting with readers and finding your tribe, continuing education and making a living, and even platform building and finding an agent. Plus it has an appendix chock full of valuable resources. What I especially like is that the book is written in a way that's as warm, compassionate, and funny as it is practical, well-organized, and informative. Stephanie comes across as a friend... which she is. But even if she wasn't, she would be after reading this book! Her guidance comes from a place of honesty, integrity, nurturing, and experience, drawing from years as a Professor of Creative Writing and Director of the Arkansas Writer's MFA Workshop at the University of Central Arkansas, and from publishing fiction, nonfiction, and her regular column for the Huffington Post called "The Geek's Guide to the Writing Life."

To give you a taste, here's the opening paragraph of Chapter 1—Making the commitment:

You don't always choose writing. Sometimes writing chooses you. Sometimes it grabs you by the lapels, gets in your face, and keeps you awake at night, assuring you won't rest until you get your thoughts down, somehow. Sometimes it just feels like a constant malaise, a low-grade depression, like you're forgetting something, leaving something behind, by not writing. Sometimes it feels like a slow building up of thoughts and words until it feels as if your head, or your heart, might burst. You know you have to do something. You just don't know how or what.

Which brings me to my "one little word" for 2018—RESOLVE—as in, I resolve to find out what I am capable of.

What are you capable of?

Let's make it happen together.

The Ditty of the Month Club returns next week! Sharpen your pencils and get ready to write!

It's great to be back and making the Poetry Friday rounds again. Join Carol Varsalona at Beyond LiteracyLink for this week's roundup.

Lighting a Fire for Change

Breaking Dawn by B. Gilmour

dawn chill—
the rooster
lights a fire

               © Michelle Heidenrich Barnes
                   Frogpond 40:3, Autumn 2017

Pardon my crowing. I'm just so excited to have my first haiku published in Frogpond Journal! I haven't seen it yet, but Jone MacCulloch assures me it's there. (Thanks, Jone!)

Why does this small acceptance mean so much? Because writing haiku is one of several new activities I've explored in 2017, my year of saying yes to Change. (Read Robyn Hood Black's recap of the Haiku Society of America workshop I attended last April.) I lit a fire under myself to try new things this year—to take risks, listen to my intuition, and trust that I won't get burned. On a smaller scale, it's a bit like searching the internet for photos for my blog posts. Although I never can be sure the right image is out there, or that I will find it, or that I will have permission to use it, I trust that it is (and I will), and then it appears. Every time.


Such is the nature of change, don't you think? 

Andrew Tinmouth

You can't fight it.

Sure, you can kick, splash, and make waves, but wouldn't it be better to go with the flow? Become a partner with change and see what happens? I'm not saying you should become someone you're not, I'm not even saying that you have to like the change (at least not at first). What I'm saying is that you should probably introduce yourself and get to know change. Show it respect and let it become your ally, not your enemy.


I know, easier said than done.

Embracing (and bracing for) Change.

When I chose Change as my one little word for 2017, it came with some trepidation and skepticism. Yet six months in, I noted the positive effects of opening myself up to possibilities, and now, as the year draws to a close, I'm not sure I want to give that one little word up. Change has accompanied me through several new undertakings, haiku being just one of them.

Most noteworthy are probably the poetry workshops I've presented this year. Although teaching poetry has been something I've wanted to do more of for some time, this is the year that made that desire a reality. I've discovered just how much I love sharing poetry with young people who haven't yet been exposed to the "right kind" of poem—the kind that meets them where they live and knocks their socks off. The summer workshops were great, but it was working with juvenile offenders that was truly transformative—for them and for me. I'd love to do more of that. I'd also love to share more about my teaching experiences on the blog.

But there's something else that I owe myself even more—attention to my own writing. This year I've had two acceptances in journals ("dawn chill" in Frogpond and "Look for the Helpers" in the Journal of Children's Literature), "Look for the Helpers" also appeared in HERE WE GO: A POETRY FRIDAY POWER BOOK (Pomelo Books) last January, THE BEST OF TODAY'S LITTLE DITTY 2016 is now available, and I have three or four publication credits in the works for next year. It's a respectable list for someone who can count her 2017 submissions on one hand, but it reflects the life of a productive blogger, not a productive writer.

My Summer with the Old Man

It's time to change the rules again—to go back for the Poet Toad who's been patiently waiting for a helping hand to cross the road.

Don't worry. Today's Little Ditty and the DMC aren't going anywhere! My plan is to have fewer formal interviews and introduce monthly challenges in a fun and interactive way. I've already got some ideas simmering, but by all means leave me a comment or email me at TodaysLittleDitty (at) gmail (dot) com if you have ideas of your own.

Anthony

Today's Little Ditty will be taking a break for the holidays, but I'm leaving the light on. Feel free to stop by anytime. You can access an alphabetical list of all TLD's spotlight interviews HERE and an alphabetical list of all the DMC challenges HERE.


And speaking of DMC challenges—

Last month was amazing. Carol Hinz inspired us to find beauty in so many surprising and wonderful places. We had 46 poems in all, at least 10 of which arrived after the wrap-up celebration was first posted! Please do yourself a favor and take another look. You won't be disappointed.

Random.org determined that the winner of THE SUN PLAYED HIDE-AND-SEEK: A PERSONIFICATION STORY by Brian P. Cleary and illustrated by Carol Crimmins (Millbrook Press, 2017) is . . .

CINDY BREEDLOVE 

Congratulations, Cindy!

Wishing you blessings of the season, my friends. See you in 2018.

Sunset by Tanja Rott

Mary Lee Hahn shares her own haiku at this week's Poetry Friday roundup. Find her at A Year of Reading.

Hooray! The second volume of The Best of Today's Little Ditty (2016) is now available at Amazon.com. (Click HERE to purchase.) I'm so proud of this collection of 75 poems by 50 poets. In addition to some great work, including contributions by Jane Yolen, David L. Harrison, and a whole bunch of folks you'll recognize from Poetry Friday, the book has an extra section on using poetry in the classroom. At only $9.95, it makes a great holiday gift for teachers, or anyone who enjoys readng and/or writing poetry!

DMC: "I'll Wash, You Dry" by Robyn Hood Black

I'LL WASH, YOU DRY

Pile of dishes in the sink -
remnants of our food and drink.

Fulsome meal and laughter, too -
now we have a job to do.

Messy saucepan, crusty cup;
we’ll need time to clean this up.

Spray of water, sudsy foam –
we are grateful for our home.

Grateful, grateful
here at home. 

© 2017 Robyn Hood Black. All rights reserved.


Click HERE to read this month's interview with Carol Hinz, Editorial Director of Millbrook Press and Carolrhoda Books, divisions of Lerner Publishing Group. Her challenge is to write a poem that finds beauty in something that is not usually considered beautiful.

You have until today, November 30th, at 5:00 pm (EST) to join in! Post your poem on our November 2017 padlet and I will add it to the wrap-up presentation HERE. One lucky participant will win a copy of The Sun Played Hide-and-Seek: A Personification Story by Brian P. Cleary, illustrated by Carol Crimmins, and published by Millbrook Press earlier this year.

DMC: "The Beauty of Grief" by Jone Rush MacCulloch

THE BEAUTY OF GRIEF

It arrives
unexpectedly.
Song lyrics
driving home.
The woodsy clove scent lingers
with his memory.

Grace moments,
sorting memories.
Hold this one,
free others.
Watching the sunrise with him.
Soaring with eagles.

© 2017 Jone Rush MacCulloch. All rights reserved.


Click HERE to read this month's interview with Carol Hinz, Editorial Director of Millbrook Press and Carolrhoda Books, divisions of Lerner Publishing Group. Her challenge is to write a poem that finds beauty in something that is not usually considered beautiful.

You have until Thursday, November 30th, at 5:00 pm (EST) to join in! Post your poem on our November 2017 padlet and I will add it to the wrap-up presentation HERE. One lucky participant will win a copy of The Sun Played Hide-and-Seek: A Personification Story by Brian P. Cleary, illustrated by Carol Crimmins, and published by Millbrook Press earlier this year.

Two Line Tuesday: Rabindranath Tagore

Hernán Piñera

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain 

or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.

– Rabindranath Tagore

from Stray Birds

Carol Hinz has challenged us to write poems that find beauty in things that are not usually considered beautiful. You have until Thursday, November 30th, at 5:00 pm (EST) to join in! Post your poem on our November 2017 padlet and I will add it to the wrap-up presentation HERE.

DMC: "Oxblood Red" by Juanita Havill

OXBLOOD RED

Once it was red
now no longer
the color of ox blood
the barn stands gray and bleak
in disrepair
gaps where boards have split
the farmer would paint it
replace the boards
if he were still alive

pigeons don’t mind
roosting on rafters
cooing in the morning
mice don’t mind
sheltering in aging straw
hiding from the owl

the wind doesn’t mind
it blows through chinks
reclaims the loft
and one day
collapses the boards in a heap
of memories
strong as the smell
of fresh-baled hay

© 2017 Juanita Havill. All rights reserved.


Click HERE to read this month's interview with Carol Hinz, Editorial Director of Millbrook Press and Carolrhoda Books, divisions of Lerner Publishing Group. Her challenge is to write a poem that finds beauty in something that is not usually considered beautiful.

You have until Thursday, November 30th, at 5:00 pm (EST) to join in! Post your poem on our November 2017 padlet and I will add it to the wrap-up presentation HERE. One lucky participant will win a copy of The Sun Played Hide-and-Seek: A Personification Story by Brian P. Cleary, illustrated by Carol Crimmins, and published by Millbrook Press earlier this year.