Wednesday Poetry Prompts: 286
This will be our final Wednesday Poetry Prompt until December. Beginning on Saturday, the November PAD (Poem-A-Day) Chapbook Challenge will provide a prompt and poem each day of the month. Click here for the guidelines.
For today's prompt, write an emerging poem. Some things emerge out of the shadows or the darkness. Some things emerge from the water. Others emerge in broad daylight, whether we're talking monsters, athletes, politicians, or what have you. Poems themselves emerge from the blank page and/or screen.
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Win $1,000 for Your Poetry!
Writer’s Digest is offering a contest strictly for poets with a top prize of $1,000, publication in Writer’s Digest magazine, and a copy of the 2015 Poet’s Market. There are cash prizes for Second ($250) and Third ($100) Prizes, as well as prizes for the Top 25 poems.
The deadline is October 31.
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Here's my attempt at an Emerging Poem:
"suburban coyote"
we stood together
with the rising sun
for the camera
when Simon saw it
and asked what is it
and without looking
we said it must be
a deer but he said
no that's not a deer
it's a coyote
we followed his eyes
and watched it emerge
from beneath a bush
and it was bigger
than I thought they got
and I worried for
the kids as it ran
one end of the yard
to the other like
lightning but under
that speed was a fear
of the chain link fence
and questioning eyes
as sun revealed all
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Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Content Editor of the Writer’s Digest Writing Community and author of the poetry collection, Solving the World’s Problems (Press 53). He edits Poet’s Market, Writer’s Market, and Guide to Self-Publishing, in addition to writing a free weekly WritersMarket.com newsletter and poetry column for Writer’s Digest magazine.
This will be his seventh year of hosting and participating in the November PAD (Poem-A-Day) Chapbook Challenge. As much as he loves the hustle and bustle of the April PAD Challenges, November is nice for a few reasons, including the focus on creating a chapbook and just the laid back feel. Some of his favorite poems have come out of the November challenges, and he can’t wait to get started again.
Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.
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