2011 November PAD Chapbook Challenge: Day 16

For today’s prompt, take the phrase “Once Upon a (Blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write…

For today's prompt, take the phrase "Once Upon a (Blank)," replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Example titles could include: "Once Upon a Time," "Once Upon a Moon," or "Once Upon a Stage Accepting the Nobel Prize in Literature." Hey, a poet can dream, right?

Here's my attempt:

"Once upon a chair"

Climb onto a table
and call for daddy
to come get you--
unless you decide
it's a good idea
to jump to the floor.
Then, ignore
that feeling that
maybe just maybe
this isn't a good idea
and later--when
daddy is holding you
and saying, "It'll be
okay," and, "What
were you thinking"--
figure out what you
can climb on next.

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It's one thing to write poetry; it's something completely else to get it published. Learn how to do so effectively with the 2012 Poet's Market, edited by Robert Lee Brewer. This year's edition of the annual guide is loaded with articles by poets such as Taylor Mali, Sandra Beasley, Sage Cohen, and others, in addition to hundreds of publishing opportunities.

Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Editor of Writer's Digest, which includes managing the content on WritersDigest.com and programming virtual conferences. He's the author of 40 Plot Twist Prompts for Writers: Writing Ideas for Bending Stories in New Directions, The Complete Guide of Poetic Forms: 100+ Poetic Form Definitions and Examples for Poets, Poem-a-Day: 365 Poetry Writing Prompts for a Year of Poeming, and more. Also, he's the editor of Writer's Market, Poet's Market, and Guide to Literary Agents. Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.