There's always a first for an aspiring poet. As all of you amateur poets out there know, tomorrow is the beginning of National Poetry Writing Month, otherwise known as NaPoWriMo. The way it works is pretty much explained in the name. Basically you write (or attempt to write) a poem a day for the entire month of April. It has been said that one must be foolhardy to attempt such a mammoth task, and with this in mind I consider myself more than prepared for it.
I am currently in the process of returning to Frynwys, but once I'm there this will be the focus of my writing and of this blog. If all goes well, poems should start appearing here daily starting from tomorrow. It'll continue through to 30th April, and if I stick to it, this blog should be filled with thirty new poems. Some of these poems will inevitably be terrible, but hopefully out of the squalid mountain of rock a few gems should shine through. That there was an attempt at poetic metaphor, and if I end up putting metaphors like that into my poems, I'm not holding out much hope for the rest of the month.
Still, the whole point of NaPoWriMo isn't to prepare. You can't afford to think too much about how to structure or edit a poem when you need to write one every day. What matters is meeting the deadline with thirty poems to show for it. I've already got a fair idea of what I'll be writing about. There will be a few tiger poems thrown in for good measure, but there will be some poems about other subjects as well.
In case you've been inspired by this post to get involved in NaPoWrMo, I'll post the link to the site at the bottom. I'm already looking forward to beginning the challenge tomorrow, and I'm sure all the other poets out there are preparing their pens and keyboards in earnest. Who knows, even if we don't reach the goal, it's bound to be fun.
Hope you're all having a good week. See you at the first post.
Link to the NaPoWriMo site: NaPoWriMo
Tuesday 31 March 2015
Sunday 22 March 2015
'Ghosts of Sariska' and Poetry Updates
Hi everyone. Just a quick post to let you know that my new poem 'Ghosts of Sariska' has just been uploaded. I will only post the text of the poem on this blog if there is a big enough demand for it. It deals with the extinction of tigers from Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan in 2005. It can be viewed here at this link: (https://youtu.be/V6fhzutVnSI)
In other news, there will be another Silent Animal Poetry episode coming out very soon, and my First World War announcement is now scheduled for this Friday. Also, I'm considering attempting National Poetry Writing Month which is coming up in the next week or two. I'm in two minds on the subject at the moment, but I will make a decision in the next few days.
Hope you're all having a great weekend.
In other news, there will be another Silent Animal Poetry episode coming out very soon, and my First World War announcement is now scheduled for this Friday. Also, I'm considering attempting National Poetry Writing Month which is coming up in the next week or two. I'm in two minds on the subject at the moment, but I will make a decision in the next few days.
Hope you're all having a great weekend.
Friday 20 March 2015
The Tiger Poet vs. Solar Eclipse 2015
Hello, welcome to Tiger Verse. It's a sunny morning where I am, but it was quite dark earlier. I suppose that's what a solar eclipse is in essence. I didn't catch most of it, but I did catch a glimpse of it earlier and it looked fantastic.
Apparently the eclipse will not be seen from America, but most of Europe, Northern Africa and the Arctic will be able to see it. What effect this will have on poetry remains to be seen. Maybe a new form of verse will have its beginnings on this morning. Perhaps pens and computers will become sentient and start writing poems on their own. Who knows.
My viewing experience of this rare cosmological event was great, but how was it for you? Did you catch the moon blocking the sun, or did you see the end of it as I did. Let me know.
Hope you all have a great day.
Apparently the eclipse will not be seen from America, but most of Europe, Northern Africa and the Arctic will be able to see it. What effect this will have on poetry remains to be seen. Maybe a new form of verse will have its beginnings on this morning. Perhaps pens and computers will become sentient and start writing poems on their own. Who knows.
My viewing experience of this rare cosmological event was great, but how was it for you? Did you catch the moon blocking the sun, or did you see the end of it as I did. Let me know.
Hope you all have a great day.
Thursday 19 March 2015
Feathers and Scales
In the early morning at Bhimpur village,
a peacock sits resplendent and glittering
in the red sun on a dry stone wall.
His emerald feathers sleep in his tail.
He snaps his head sideways
at a shape in the gloom under
the wall of a silent mud hut.
The cobra twists
over pots and baskets after
the scent of careless rats.
The cobra did not think
that she might be slithering
towards the shadow
of a far from ornamental bird.
The snake was unaware that she might meet
the god of war's chariot drawer
next to a stone hut,
for on the back of the cobra's hood
is the mark of her own divinity.
Perhaps the vicious bird missed it.
A sharp flicker in the peacock's blazing eyes,
a flutter of royal blue feathers
and the reptile murderer strikes
too soon for the cobra to sprout her hood.
Claws, which yesterday danced for a mate
tear at scales.
For all the peacock's cold savagery,
the cobra's scales serve it well.
The snake darts back to the hole.
The surprised bird takes off
as his enemy disappears underground,
and the ringing cry of the incensed bird
echoes through the sleeping forest.
(This poem is set in a small village in Kanha National Park, and features a phrase which caused chaos when it was first read by my peers. See if you can guess which phrase it is.)
a peacock sits resplendent and glittering
in the red sun on a dry stone wall.
His emerald feathers sleep in his tail.
He snaps his head sideways
at a shape in the gloom under
the wall of a silent mud hut.
The cobra twists
over pots and baskets after
the scent of careless rats.
The cobra did not think
that she might be slithering
towards the shadow
of a far from ornamental bird.
The snake was unaware that she might meet
the god of war's chariot drawer
next to a stone hut,
for on the back of the cobra's hood
is the mark of her own divinity.
Perhaps the vicious bird missed it.
A sharp flicker in the peacock's blazing eyes,
a flutter of royal blue feathers
and the reptile murderer strikes
too soon for the cobra to sprout her hood.
Claws, which yesterday danced for a mate
tear at scales.
For all the peacock's cold savagery,
the cobra's scales serve it well.
The snake darts back to the hole.
The surprised bird takes off
as his enemy disappears underground,
and the ringing cry of the incensed bird
echoes through the sleeping forest.
(This poem is set in a small village in Kanha National Park, and features a phrase which caused chaos when it was first read by my peers. See if you can guess which phrase it is.)
Thursday 12 March 2015
'The Tiger's Realm' and Other Updates
Hi guys. Just a short pose to let you know that a new poem, 'The Tiger's Realm', has been uploaded in video form. Unlike most of the other poems I post on this blog, this one is exclusive to video form. It can be viewed at this link: https://youtu.be/eDztVIT64Zc.
In other news, the latest episode of Silent Animal Poetry will be arriving very soon, along with an official announcement about the First World War Project. Also, I have new articles arriving very soon about Ted Hughes and Cowboy Bebop.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy 'The Tiger's Realm' and I'll see you all soon.
In other news, the latest episode of Silent Animal Poetry will be arriving very soon, along with an official announcement about the First World War Project. Also, I have new articles arriving very soon about Ted Hughes and Cowboy Bebop.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy 'The Tiger's Realm' and I'll see you all soon.
Sunday 8 March 2015
Flying Hare
Waking up in the meadows,
I want to see what the fuss is.
Think I'll go to the riverbank
and see what's jamming.
The rabbits are by the water,
chilling with the ducks
and moorhens on the riverbank.
That's when I arrive.
I cross the bridge and join
the rabbits by the bushes.
It's a good place to relax
while the ducks do their thing.
I meet a few friends of mine:
Roving Otter, Father Vole,
Smoking Goose. We
kick back in the summer sun.
J. B. Mink cruises by, staring,
which petrifies poor Vole.
Mink swims away downstream.
Makes my ears twitch.
Somewhere on the meadows
the swallows and the skylarks
are singing a groovy symphony.
We go over to check it out.
(The video version of this poem is up on the YouTube channel at this link: http://youtu.be/54xxP1NK7os)
I want to see what the fuss is.
Think I'll go to the riverbank
and see what's jamming.
The rabbits are by the water,
chilling with the ducks
and moorhens on the riverbank.
That's when I arrive.
I cross the bridge and join
the rabbits by the bushes.
It's a good place to relax
while the ducks do their thing.
I meet a few friends of mine:
Roving Otter, Father Vole,
Smoking Goose. We
kick back in the summer sun.
J. B. Mink cruises by, staring,
which petrifies poor Vole.
Mink swims away downstream.
Makes my ears twitch.
Somewhere on the meadows
the swallows and the skylarks
are singing a groovy symphony.
We go over to check it out.
(The video version of this poem is up on the YouTube channel at this link: http://youtu.be/54xxP1NK7os)
Thursday 5 March 2015
The Tiger Poet vs. Spoken Word
So far this year, I've seen more spoken word than ever before. I've spent the last couple of months going to a few spoken word nights while at university. Some of the results were surprising to say the least, but it also got me thinking about the practice of spoken word in general. I found myself wondering about what the ideal tone of a spoken word night should be, and why I have not attempted performing spoken word myself.
The spoken word nights I've been to so far have displayed varying degrees of seriousness and comedy. Quite often they start with a performance poet reciting purely comedic poems, only to undercut that when the next poet performs a poem containing social commentary. The acts which follow tend to be somewhere in the middle, performing serious poems about important issues with a tinge of comedy thrown in for effect. I noticed this last year when I saw Kevin P. Gilday at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, but having seen more spoken word since then, it seems that the blending of comedy and seriousness is a common trend.
I am not too fond of serious poetry. Although I recognise its significance and why such poetry is a valuable part of literature, I hardly ever write it. I suppose I have never been too serious. As I result, when I listen to poetry at spoken word nights dealing with subjects such as problems in the Middle East or the complications of human relationships, I tend to count the minutes until the next comedic poet comes on. It's not that I don't see merit in serious poetry; it's just that I find it hard to take serious poetry all that seriously.
That said, most of the spoken word artists I've seen are great. They certainly have a way with words, and they also have a way of delivering poems in interesting ways. Watching them perform onstage has gotten me thinking about why I've never attempting performing spoken word myself. The main reason is that I used to hardly venture out of the independent house I live in at university, although I've been making efforts to be more outgoing in recent months. The other reason is that I don't feel the poetry I write is suited to the environment of spoken word.
Anyone who's been reading this blog on a regular basis (not suggesting there are many), will know that I write poems in the hope that they will be read. There is a difference between writing poems for a reading audience and writing poems for a live audience. Spoken word is as much about the performance of the artist as it is about the words they're reading. They have to engage the audience with their poetry while adopting a stage persona. With written poetry you can concentrate on the more technical things such as stanza length, line breaks and (especially in my case), narrative structure. You tend to be more concerned about what an individual reader will take from it, rather than engaging a live audience.
As it stands, I've been invited to two spoken word nights happening in the next week. If I was in charge of deciding the tone of these events, I would probably try to inject more fun into them. As I've already said, that's not to the detriment of the serious performance poets, but if spoken word nights were as fun as they are enlightening, I would definitely enjoy them more. Some performance poets handle both fun and seriousness with impeccable skill, and it would be great if spoken word nights had more of this, and if the artists and the audience had more fun in the process. It could be that these next two events will exceed my expectations, and I look forward to them.
In the meantime, the latest episode of Silent Animal Poetry is online and available for your viewing pleasure at this link: http://youtu.be/8foYQc4QdwY. Some new poetry will be released with in the coming week, along with an announcement about that First World War project I've been mentioning a lot. See you all soon.
The spoken word nights I've been to so far have displayed varying degrees of seriousness and comedy. Quite often they start with a performance poet reciting purely comedic poems, only to undercut that when the next poet performs a poem containing social commentary. The acts which follow tend to be somewhere in the middle, performing serious poems about important issues with a tinge of comedy thrown in for effect. I noticed this last year when I saw Kevin P. Gilday at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, but having seen more spoken word since then, it seems that the blending of comedy and seriousness is a common trend.
I am not too fond of serious poetry. Although I recognise its significance and why such poetry is a valuable part of literature, I hardly ever write it. I suppose I have never been too serious. As I result, when I listen to poetry at spoken word nights dealing with subjects such as problems in the Middle East or the complications of human relationships, I tend to count the minutes until the next comedic poet comes on. It's not that I don't see merit in serious poetry; it's just that I find it hard to take serious poetry all that seriously.
That said, most of the spoken word artists I've seen are great. They certainly have a way with words, and they also have a way of delivering poems in interesting ways. Watching them perform onstage has gotten me thinking about why I've never attempting performing spoken word myself. The main reason is that I used to hardly venture out of the independent house I live in at university, although I've been making efforts to be more outgoing in recent months. The other reason is that I don't feel the poetry I write is suited to the environment of spoken word.
Anyone who's been reading this blog on a regular basis (not suggesting there are many), will know that I write poems in the hope that they will be read. There is a difference between writing poems for a reading audience and writing poems for a live audience. Spoken word is as much about the performance of the artist as it is about the words they're reading. They have to engage the audience with their poetry while adopting a stage persona. With written poetry you can concentrate on the more technical things such as stanza length, line breaks and (especially in my case), narrative structure. You tend to be more concerned about what an individual reader will take from it, rather than engaging a live audience.
As it stands, I've been invited to two spoken word nights happening in the next week. If I was in charge of deciding the tone of these events, I would probably try to inject more fun into them. As I've already said, that's not to the detriment of the serious performance poets, but if spoken word nights were as fun as they are enlightening, I would definitely enjoy them more. Some performance poets handle both fun and seriousness with impeccable skill, and it would be great if spoken word nights had more of this, and if the artists and the audience had more fun in the process. It could be that these next two events will exceed my expectations, and I look forward to them.
In the meantime, the latest episode of Silent Animal Poetry is online and available for your viewing pleasure at this link: http://youtu.be/8foYQc4QdwY. Some new poetry will be released with in the coming week, along with an announcement about that First World War project I've been mentioning a lot. See you all soon.
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