W3 Prompt #23: Wea’ve Written Weekly

Intro

Dear friends,

Welcome to our W³ Poetry Prompt, which goes live on Wednesdays at The Skeptic’s Kaddish.

You may click here for a fuller explanation of W³; but here’s the ‘tldr’ version:

Part I

The main ingredient of W³ is a weekly poem written by a Poet of the Week (PoW), which participants respond to in verse.

Part II

The second ingredient is a writing guideline (or two) provided by the PoW. Guidelines may include, but are not limited to: word counts, poetic forms, inclusion of specific words, and use of particular poetic devices.

Part III

After four days, when the prompt closes, the PoW shall select one participant’s poem as the W³ prompt for the following week, and its author becomes the next PoW.

Simple enough, right?

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Okie dokie ~ Let’s do this thing!

I. The prompt poem:

‘In Praise of What is Private’ by Steven S. Wallace

Were I to say what truly mattered
Upon whose winds my hopes are scattered
My voice I would lift up in praising
The ever clever turn of phrasing
That speaks in riddled kabuki notes
Smiles, shakes hands and counts the votes
At all times cultivating ease
Starting scenes that only please

Behind the glint of twinkling eyes
Refrigerates an icy prize
That privacy has sealed up tight
You — my circling satellite
Secrets on the midnight ceiling 
Vaulted locked never revealing
This my love — what truly mattered
My shell facade has just been shattered

II. Steven’s prompt guideline

• Read ‘Superiority to Fate’ by Emily Dickinson… then write a poem with no restrictions on form, rhyme, meter, etc.

‘Superiority to Fate’

Superiority to Fate
Is difficult to gain
’Tis not conferred of Any
But possible to earn

A pittance at a time
Until to Her surprise
The Soul with strict economy
Subsist till Paradise.

III. Submit: Click on ‘Mr. Linky’ below

In order to participate and share a poem, open up this blog post, outside of the WordPress reader. At the bottom, just below these words, you will see a small rectangular graphic with the words ‘Mr Linky’. Click on that to submit.

Submissions are open for 4 days, until Sunday, October 9, 10:00 AM (GMT+3)

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Last week’s W³ poem

This week’s W³ prompt poem (above), composed by Steven S. Wallace, was written in response to last week’s W³ prompt poem, which Deepthy wrote:

‘Blinding Noise’ by Deepthy

Fiery red does my soul burn and sizzle,
With eyes shut – lost, drowning in noise so bleak;
Purple, yellow and neon green; chisel
These puzzling monochrome thoughts – rather meek;
Drowning in boundless, brownish worlds; to seek
Vision in pearls, among chaos so black,
With stunning ruby words stabbing the back,
I curl up in this sapphire dream of peace
Emerald promises, speech so lilac,
And pastel hopes this blinding noise will cease.