I have been bitten by Marissa’s meme (even if I have just now had time to copy):
Give me the title of a poem I’ve never written, and feedback telling me what you liked best about it, and I will tell you any of: the first line, the last line, the thing that made me want to write it, the biggest problem I had while writing it, why it almost never got offered to magazines, the scene that hit the cutting room floor but that I wish I’d been able to salvage, or something else that I want readers to know.
Also, like Marissa, I ask that you don’t comment with stuff you wouldn’t want me to run with. Because I will run.
Ready? Set?
I really loved your take on Maggie Trudeau in your poem “Pierre Trudeau Ate My Face.”
I’ve always thought the rhythm of “Spell for Clear Skies” is wonderful.
I don’t know if I’ve ever read a children’s poem of yours before–certainly it’s not what I associate with your work–but “The Lay of Arrrghulous” worked beautifully for both me and my godson. I liked the unusual meter. He liked the bit with the lava.
“Anne Donne’s Husband” – clever play on “frog,” m’dear.
(FWIW, I was originally going to compliment you on a mashup of Philomela + Lavinia Andronicus, only to realize that’s a poem _I’m_ about to write. *sheepish*)
Joanne, even a cursory web search or snippets from her books might lead you to think that everything to say has been said about her, but I was so struck by the contrast between her traditional mother role and what courage it must have taken to convince Kennedy to fulfill her needs that I couldn’t stop working at it until I had a poem.
Denis, I’ve always loved dactylic dimeter and this was a great excuse to try it out.
Peg, you have no idea how hard it is too not repeat myself when it comes to frog-related poems! But I did have some inspiration here. (And now I need to go find some, since this is completely egging me on.)
Marissa: it’s wonderful to hear that both you and your godson liked my only attempt at a children’s poem! It’s something that I never thought I could pull off well (and probably will never tempt fate with again). There’s a permanent crease in the spine of my rhyming dictionary at ous/us now and I’m pretty impressed with myself that I managed to almost half of the 27 words listed.