Progress: After I posted yesterday, I wrote a pantoum in praise of avocados, and the better part of a poem about oranges, so I’m taking tonight off, eating half-price Easter candy and watching bad television.

Progress: The object poem went so well yesterday that I decided to try another today, and I’ve just finished “An Argument Against Brussels Sprouts.” I think I may do a whole series about food. This is fun. Please feel free to suggest foods about which I may have unexpected depths of pathos and/or passion. Next up: avocados! (In case there’s any question, I am pro-avocado.)

Prompt for today: Read Write Poem is doing where you come from.

Mirrored at joannemerriam.com.

Progress: I wrote nothing yesterday, because of Barrister’s Ball (like prom for law school), which was fun. I’ve caught up today, using a prompt from the Speakeasy (“Define yourself“) and another from Writer’s Digest (“Write a poem about an object“). My defining-myself poem is only okay, and not very inspired, but the object poem is pretty good, I think. It’s called “An Argument in Favour of Blueberries,” because I recently found out a friend of mine doesn’t like them, and was all, “WTF is wrong with you, lady? They’re blueberries! How can you not like them?” I had no idea I was so strongly pro-blueberry.

Mirrored at joannemerriam.com.

Progress: Yesterday, a free verse thing, which can be salvaged into something, I think. We’ll see if that optimism survives the month. Today, the shortest poem I’ve ever written, at four words (five, if you include the title), but also possibly the best short poem I’ve ever written. (We’ll see if that optimism survives the month, too.)

Also today, two publications: “The Grave Marker” at Every Day Poets and “Cicadas” in the new print journal 42 Magazine. It’s a DIY culture meets literary high-brow meets the little magazine, sort of thing, and it’s pretty awesome. I especially liked L. J. Geoffrion’s story and Jo L. Gerrard’s poetry. Pick up a copy, and watch for their summer issue, in which I’ll be the feature poet. Sample issues are only $3.

Prompt for today: I’m going to make up one of my own, based on one described in 42 Magazine. Write a poem containing the following five words: pepperleaf; seeds; juice; amusement; woodpecker.

Mirrored at joannemerriam.com.