Tag: ideas

inspiration, poetry

Responding to a Writing Challenge

carolyncordon

I have recently put together a new book of poems, all responses to breaking my ankle recently. I’ve written about this new book, titled “Angles on Ankles” both on this blog, and also on this one & this one as well. The book is going to be launched very soon, by a poet friend, John Malone, who is also a blogger, who posts regularly on his own blog, and sometimes comments on mine.

So when John suggested to me that now that my ankle is getting better and better, I could perhaps write poems about the good news, as I formerly wrote about the bad news. So, I thought, nah. Then I thought, well why the heck not? If I can write some poems about the good news regarding my ankle, that might indeed be a good thing.

So, having written that, I can now reveal that I have indeed written a good news  poem about my steadily improving ankle. And I’m thinking about other ideas for more possible poems I could write, celebrating the good news about my Right Ankle!

And because I believe a poem without an audience is a sad thing, here is my first good news poem about my ankle:

 

On the Road to a Resolution

The way is winding, like the bandages

formerly wrapped around my lower leg,

holding together the good work done.

 

Bandages gone now, medical procedures

completed, recovery now my task,

not someone else’s … Can I do it?

 

So far, yes, actually. I’m exercising 

daily – physio and others, as diligently 

as those former procedures were done.

 

Early days yet – these things, bones

healing, body and mind confidence

emerging, slowly, but surely, I hope …

 

Are balance and strength increasing? 

I hope so, yes – falling over isn’t on my

New Year’s Eve list of things to do!

 

So, the first of my new poems about my Right Ankle, is now revealed, is it a good poem? Who really knows. I hope writing this one makes it easier to write more, and if I can get some thoughts and feedback, who knows which direction/s my further poems might travel?

Therapeutic creative writing is definitely a favoured genre of mine, as and when needed, and it was definitely needed with my ankle, it helped to keep my mind active, when I had to just sit, and not put any weight on my right foot. Writing is a way to find out what the brain is thinking, when we’re not paying attention to it!

So if you have anything to say about this, please leave a message, I’d love to chat here with you about it!

inspiration, poetry, Story Ideas

My Next Book

carolyncordon

My next book is with the Publisher (Ginninderra Press), and it’s out now!  The book, “Angles on Ankles” proves to me, yet again, that writing about the less than lovely things that are in our lives, can give widespread interest to readers, and that has to be a good thing, right? Right!

20191122_122645

This book is a chap book, a small collection of poems I wrote after I recently broke my right ankle. I fell over, breaking two bones in the ankle. An ambulance took me to one hospital for treatment, then I went to another hospital, for more treatment for a day or so, and then I went, by ambulance again to a third hospital, where I had my ankle operated on, and fixed.

While I was in hospital a friend gave me a small notebook (many thanks Laura), and I wrote a couple of poems about my broken ankle experience. Then once I was home, and having to keep zero weight on my right ankle, I spent lots and lots of time sitting around, with my right foot up, and healing.

There are 21 poems in this book (more really, but I’m including the page of Senryu, as just one poem). So even though a writing friend didn’t think there was that much to write about breaking your ankle, I’ve certainly proved him wrong! I forgive him though, and have invited him (John Malone), to launch this book for me!

In this little collection, I mention pain, gratitude, friends, things that happened, or things I saw or was a part of during this time, as well as my thoughts about the whole process. When you have to sit and you’re unable to do much because you’re not supposed to put any weight at all on your broken ankle, it gives you lots of time to think.

And think I certainly did. I was fortunate, that my pain has been minimal, apart from the extreme pain when I fell over and did the actual breaking part of this drama, that was the worst pain I’ve ever felt. Once the ambulance and medical people got involved though, zero pain.

I was given extreme pain relief at the very start of all of this, when my ankle was initially treated, to get the ankle back into its proper position, and then after that at the hospitals, I was given medication so I could be comfortable, and pain free. Once I came home, I had the pain medication I picked up at the last hospital I attended, all good and all pain free now.

Some of these things are in this book, “Angles of Ankles”, and I hope I get many sales, and many hugs too, from people who want to have a copy of “Angles on Ankles”. I think this book would certainly be of interest to other people who have broken their own ankle, or perhaps sustained some other break of a limb. There are also thoughts about being in hospital, and about the resting and rehabilitation process.

This is the link about how to get yourself a copy of this book, if you’d like to. The book is not for sale by the publisher to people out of Australia, but as soon as my own copies of the book arrive, that I’m going to order, I will be able to see copies to people from anywhere, as long as those wanting a copy are prepared to pay for the postage costs, as well as actual book cost.

Because these chap books are so small, they only cost around $5, so that minimal size, and cost, means even with postage overseas, the cost isn’t high. And below, for your interest, is one of the poems from my book, I hope you enjoy it!

And if you have your own stories about injuries, and extended and unexpected times of rest and recovery, Please leave a message, I’d love to commiserate with you!

 

Tibia & Fibula

 

Boredom, 

ding! bang! 

people talking,

I remain here, 

still wriggling 

& wiggling my toes,

and learning a truth 

about time –

Hospital Time 

is not the same

as normal time, 

& plans made

by hospital staff, 

while worthy,

are as brittle 

& breakable

as a bone, 

or two bones 

at once.

poetry

A Chapbook Underway

carolyncordon

If you don’t know what a chapbook is, I’ll tell you – a chapbook is a small volume of poetry, usually somewhere around 15 to 40 pages, and in a size smaller than a common paperback size. They are a handy size to fit in a pocket, and usually sell for $5 or so, or are given away at times.

I’ve been thinking about putting together my first chapbook ever since I became aware of them, but until now, have never had a theme I could decide on, that seemed suitable. Until now. Now, I have a theme, I have a title, and at the moment I have 10 poems I am happy with, and hope to have at least one or two more poems before the end of the day.

I have written about this proposed chapbook on another of my blogs, the most relevant blog for this proposed book. Here is the link for that blog post. I plan to have this small book ready to send off for possible publication by the end of the month.

I know I can have a good book launch, in Gawler, where my writing group meets every week (usually), and where two of the group members (I’m one of them), hold a monthly poetry reading. All of this fun happens at the P/A Hotel on the main road in Gawler, and we have had many happy times with poetry there.

The idea of having a theme for a poetry collection always seems like a good idea to me, as it helps to hold poems together in some way, even if, as in my proposed collection, there are different poetic forms. Some of these poems are rhyming, others not. There is one page of Senryu (a Japanese poetic form, similar to Haiku). Some of the poems are serious, others not so serious.

The theme is very personal to me, as it relates to my most pressing thing for me right at the moment, the theme is my broken right ankle, which happened at the end of September. It happened on a date I will always be able to remember, it was the day of the AFL Grand Final, and it happened after the game was finished.

I suspect I should write a poem about that … Hmm, Yes, definitely, it will be a kind of wryly amusing poem, I suspect … I’m enjoying doing my wryly amusing thing, if feels right for me, and this kind of thing goes down well when reading poems to others, a bit funny, but not too much, something to connect with people without overwhelming them.

So who would have thought a broken ankle could lead to a new poetry book? Actually it isn’t that surprising. I’m a poet, I’m having to spend lots of time just sitting around at home as I heal, and my ankle and immobility are taking up a lot of my attention.

They say ‘write what you know’ and I sure know “Broken ankle”, now! I’d appreciate any thoughts about this project! It won’t be a morbid little book, I have a bit about having a Stoic attitude in there, and I’m aiming at wry rather than wretched …

 

poetry, Uncategorized

Some Poetic Forms

carolyncordon

There are many different ways to write poetry, or ‘poetic forms’. Here are a few you may have heard of, but never tried to write, or have written in the traditional form, but not in a new, stripped back form.

I like playing with different poetic forms, and am always happy to try something new, when it comes to my attention. My poetic attempts may interest others, or maybe they won’t it doesn’t matter. Trying these things out, using my own knowledge in different ways is good for my brain!

Give some of these forms a try yourself, and see whether your own brain feels pleasantly stretched in new ways! Firstly, I love sonnets, short poems of fourteen lines. They are distinguished by very strict rhyming schemes, in several different styles, as below:

  • Spenserian sonnet. 3 quatrains and a couplet – “abab bcbc cdcd ee”
  • english(shakespearean) sonnet. 3 quatrains of “abab cdcd efef” followed by a single couplet.
  • italian(petrarchan) sonnet. octave of “abba abba” then a sestet of “cdc cdc”

I have written in these three styles, having had some of my poems published in books, and online, and am proud of my work in the form. But today, I found a brand new form of the sonnet, and I hurriedly ‘gave it a go’!

This new form is the Monosyllabic Sonnet. I found it in an email, sent by a poetic friend, with details of his own poetry blog, https://playground.poetry.blog/ I strongly suggest you go there and explore the many poetic forms Paul has on display on his blog. I have a few of my own attempts at the forms Paul talks about, and encourage you to have a go too, and get involved in what Paul is doing, sharing poetry with the world!

So with the Monosyllabic Sonnet, the poet is to stick to the rhyming schemes for sonnets, as I have put above, but instead of writing in iambic pentametre, you are to write just one word of one syllable only, for each line, instead of longer lines of far more syllables for each line. You are also free to use the title of your poem to fill in more meaning to the poem, by indicating what it is about to aid with clarity.

Here is a new poem I have written to demonstrate what is meant:

On bringing meaning, by sharing your wisdom.

 

We

live, 

free 

give.

 

 

Wonder

much,

ponder 

such …

 

You 

know?

Do 

so!

 

Yell!

Tell!

 

If you like this poetic form please feel free to say so! If you wish, you can share your own attempt at writing a Monosyllabic Sonnet of your own.

 

Now a look at the short Japanese poems. The Haiku is the best know form of Japanese Poems. In the Western world, Haiku are often presented as being written in three lines, with five syllables in the first and final lines, and seven syllables in the middle line. This though is not quite what the Haiku is in its ‘native’ world, where the Haiku is an exceptionally short poem, usually of fewer characters than the English form indicates.

For this blog though, I am going to talk about a related poetry form, the Senryu. Where Haiku relates to poems written about Nature, and referring to the season, the Senryu is written about people, and can more than Haiku, be a funny poem, talking about perhaps a comical part of human nature.

The Senryu has the same form as Haiku, being a short poem, usually of three lines, short, long, short, as with the Haiku. I have written a new poem in this form, and hope you enjoy my words. Again, feel free to comment, and have a go yourself, if you feel so inspired! I love comments on this blog.

 

My Senryu:

 

Wisdom is

saying very little,

or staying mute …

 

 

 

 

Cozy Mystery, inspiration, Uncategorized

Talk to your Character

carolyncordon

A dear friend of mine, Martin Christmas, is a fine poet, and even finer human being. He is a doer, an encourager, and as I said, a dear friend. Martin knows of my current troubles (a fractured ankle), and he is making sure my brain is still good, even if my ankle is busted.

I appreciate his effort, and his ideas that it might be a good chance to work on my written work. I agree that is should be a good chance for that, I’m comfortably seated, my laptop on my lap, with plenty of power available. So why is there no action going on with my proposed series of Cozy Mysteries, featuring Meredith, my main character.

I want this to happen, this series of books. I did lots of work on them earlier, perhaps when I was in hospital? Or it may have been before that. Hmm, before, I think. My mind is a little befuddled with all of the pain relief I had been taking, over the past fortnight … but anyway, I did manage to have a Talloola township thought while in hospital. I thought that I had to have a hospital in my town in my books, Talloola, and there had to be a murder in the Talloola Hospital, for Meredith to solve that crime.

I haven’t got much further than that thought, consciously, but I hope my subconscious mind may have been fiddling with the idea. To that end, I am going to do some free writing, chatting with Meredith, and see where (or if) things go. Meredith and I are good friends, she is a bit like the me I’d like to be, taller, prettier, a working woman, with a hunk of a football player as her love interest. (that bit is not me, my love interest is the wonderful man who is looking after me at the moment (and always).

So excuse me, while I go away and talk with my main character. If anything happens, and I sincerely hope something will happen, well, I’ll come back here and talk about it! I am very grateful to have Martin as a good friend, am hope I can live up to his (and my) expectations of what I am capable of doing!

Writing a whole series of Cozy Mysteries was a big project, but if I can live through a fractured ankle, and do it well, there’s no telling what else I can do, Ciao!