Poetaster!

Well, the other day, I was looking at the Webster’s Encyclopedia of Dictionaries. In the word dictionary I was looking up the word rhyme. If you remember my previous post about rhymers, you’ll remember I was trying to distinguish the difference between some one who can write good rhymes, and a poet. Under Rhyme there is the word “Rhymster.” The definition is: rhymester n. one who makes rhymes; a minor poet; a poetaster. So ah ha! There is such a thing; I just had the wrong word. Ignorance is no excuse, but now I know. Now, what is a poetaster? Using the same dictionary: poetaster (po` it as ter) n. a would be poet; a petty rhymster. I sure love the dictionary. In fact, this Encyclopedia of Dictionaries consist of: a dictionary, crossword puzzle dictionary, book of familiar quotes, scientific terms, synonyms, antonyms and homonyms, a music dictionary, a rhyming dictionary, a legal dictionary, a medical dictionary, an outline of US History, and a Atlas and Gazetteer. Plus the beginning of the book has the US flags, and a 15 color page introduction to space and space travel. Now, don’t get me wrong, this thing is old. The first copyright is 1953, and the last copyright is 1979. But wait till I tell you what I paid for it; $0.10. It was at a library sale. Just the rhyming dictionary alone is worth a couple of dollars! If you hit those library sales at the right time, you can really find some treasures!

A Man Named Bob

I won this months poetry competition at my local poetry club. The theme was limerick. As you may or may not know, the limerick was named after a small town in either Ireland or Scotland (I can’t recall, but I’ll need to know for the book I am writing right now. I’ll get back to you, unless you know already). Before I became a Christian and person who loves God, I had a number of limericks memorized. But now, I dare not repeat them. But this is the limerick I won with:

There once was a man named Bob,
Who always ate like a slob,
He said with a grin,
While wiping his chin,
“Now all I need is a job!”

Well, I didn’t think that I would get FIRST! The tradition is that everybody who enters reads theirs after the Judging has taken place. The last four people in opposite order is the Honorable Mention, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st. So I was last to read. I think one reason I may have won is because my Iambic meter was spot on for a limerick, and many of the other entrants were far from goal. Occasionally one might go one or two “feet” over, but many of these were barely in form. It may also have been the humor in it, but I doubt it because the second place winner's got out loud laughter (including me), and mine just got a couple of chuckles.

Well, it still felt good to get a high grade among your peers. Actually, most of the club are women in their golden years, all of whom are talented and most of whom are published many times over.

Quandary!

Quandary. I have a ready to publish poetry manuscript. It contains all of my poetry (some selection was required. Some of my poetry is sheer crap!) from the years 2001 to 2004. It is about 84 pages, and it is already formatted in 5 ½ by 8 ½ inch book format. It’s ready to go. Well, I have about 30 poems (I know, I should have at least 100 by this time, but I just don’t work like that, yet!) that I have written thus far this year, and I really like some of them. We have a “homecoming” event this year that I was planning to set up a table at. You know, free bookmarks, selling my little chapbook. I still have a week to change things, and I was thinking about taking the best 30 or 40 poems from my whole collection and making a small little chapbook just for this fair. You know, select poems and so forth. But it would take many hours for me to put this other chapbook together, and with my health issues, I don’t know if that is possible. As is, we would still need to assemble my current manuscript. My wife says that she can get a binder with supplies very cheap from her old work, and use the laser printer at her current work. That would work real well. It’s just that I am thinking about putting my current manuscript in some contest this fall, and they require an unpublished manuscript. That being said, most times, a manuscript under 50 copies is really not considered “published” by most of these small publishing houses running these contest. As you can see, I am kind of back and forth. I think that I should run a limited edition of a selected verse manuscript just for the fair. That means I have to get back to work. TTFN.

Well, it just turns out that the Hexaduad sponsored by the writing group I mentioned was for the State competition, and not the local. But I still wanted to share my Hexaduad, so here ‘tis:

Wake up
A Hexaduad

Wake up
Me child
I look at me as child
Filled am I with much fear
Holding blanket over his face
Tremble at every small soft sound
Lay awake at
Night not to sleep
Tremble not small child
For I love you greatly
We will face our
Fears together.

Hexaduads?

There are “poets” that I know that I would more likely classify as a “Rhymer”. What is a Rhymer you ask? It is somebody that writes metered or un-metered rhymes. For example, rap is rhyming. It even tells a story sometimes. Although technically telling a story to rhyme and rhythm can be considered poetry, I still maintain that there is a difference. To me, poetry is capturing an emotion for all eternity. Whitman talks about poetry written for now, and poetry written for all of time. Of course he advocates poetry written that will last for a thousand years. Why not? Leaves of Grass is genius! Whitman is genius! And his argument in the beginning of Leaves of Grass is what I am referring to. But anyway, rhyming is a skill, and some people can get very good at it. They can talk about a pot of flowers, or a season, or a state, person, etc. But my POV is that you can write a rhyming poem about a pot of flowers, if you are conveying what they stir inside of you. Where does that pot of flowers take you? Perhaps a fond memory of when you and your mother used to plant flowers every spring, and you miss her very much and wish to have that magic again, and your heart longs for the comfort and security in which those times with your mom brought you? That’s a poem. But if it starts “Roses are red…” then it’s a good sign that it is a Rhymer.

Good golly I sound like a literary snob! There is a writing group from a different part of this region that sponsors a category in my local poetry societies (poetry club) annual contest. Their category is technically perfect Hexaduad’s. Hexaduad’s? What in this world is a Hexaduad? Well not only is it extremely complicated, and although I had it explained to me, I still don’t understand them. But seriously, technically perfect Hexaduad’s? Let me go over them briefly:

Think in a series of blocks extending from a vertical line, horizontally. Like a graph. Starting from block A, each syllable is a block. So across the top you can put Block A, B, C, D and so on till you have eight blocks, which is the letter H. Now, moving down vertically you want to number the amount of blocks you can use. The first two lines are two blocks. The second two lines use six blocks. The next two lines across, use four blocks, then two with six again, and two more with four again. So, the first line is two syllables, as is the second line. The third and forth line use six syllables and so on. Each two lines with the same amount of syllables, or blocks, must rhyme. Here is an example:

The main
[Do] [main]
Of cats is any where
[They] [saunter] [in] [to] [dare]
Current long term inhabitants.
Throw a ways with intelligence
[Find] [the] [good] [life]
[With] [good] [less] [rife.]
[Sam] [a] [ri] [tans] [who] [feed]
And care for cats in need
[These] [cats] [en] [thrall]
And do give all.

In some of the lines, I used boxes. I wanted to show you that they are not supposed to show the boxes, but I wanted to show the boxes to make my point. So anyway, that’s a Hexaduad. Well, some of the other area’s of competition in the contest is themes, like sonnet, religious, free verse, Haiku, etc. Of course, since poetry is my Kung Fu, perhaps I should have entered just to see what happened. Tragically, I let other things besides this contest take my time. Well, tomorrow is the post date dead line, so perhaps there is a Hexaduad in me!

But one thing is for sure, Hexaduad is a technical poem, that a Rhymer could do. My goal is to write a Hexaduad with passion. Wow that’d be tough. Well, I have tonight and tomorrow day to work on it. After I enter it, I'll publish it here on this blog, so stay tuned. Oh, and if you want to be a great Rhymer, then go for it! Poet? Then pour on the passion, emotion, and capture the moment!

A new Poem

Here is a poem that I wrote a few years ago. Look at each word carefully. Not one of them is arbitrary or a force rhyme. See if you can tell me what this poem is describing?

Inspiration

Inspiration
Anticipation
Of reconciliation
Is motivation

Hebrew nation
Instigation
Holy Christian
Revelation

Indoctrination
Globalization
Reproduction
Of true conversion

Integration
Of socialization
Spiritualization
In degradation

Utilization
Of expectation
Bring negotiation
Of determination

Modernization
Of canonization
Bring standardization
Of denomination

Revitalization
Of interpretation
Is fertilization
For Inspiration

New Poem!

I wrote this poem for and submitted to the Kentucky State Poetry Society's publication; Pegasus. Thundering Hooves

Thundering hooves trample
Blue grass, each touch of
The steed’s steel shoe
Grinds mercilessly into
Fresh Kentucky soil.

Uncontainable command
Rippling muscle striding
Ready to launch skyward
With noble wings waving
Like the angel mercy.

The fresh blue wind yields
To the noble steed
With the rush of green
Skimming below in
Rapid transition blurs.

About Poe

I was at the bookstore buying my daughter’s birthday present (tomorrow) and of course made my usual stop at the discount table. The best game in town is a small Walden’s in the local mall, but it is sure better than nothing! Rather I open my own bookstore here in Flatwoods, but that is another story. Truthfully, Carla and I talked seriously about it the other day. We just might pursue it! We’ll see.
Well, low and behold (I just love that term) they have the complete works of Edgar Allan Poe in a single volume for just $7.99. Well, how could I refuse? I had on my birthday wish list to have the poetry of Poe, but now I have the complete stories and poems. It doesn’t include any of his essay’s and literary review’s. I read The Raven for the first time since High School (20 years ago) and wow is it the work of a master. Talking about under appreciation, wow seriously, I under appreciated his work. In High School, which most of the time I was drunk, this reading was just another assignment. Now I can savor each and every word. I looked at the amount of poetry he wrote, and my first thought is that it wasn’t a great volume. But reading it, I realized that I was a boob for thinking so. His skill and craftsmanship so far surpasses mine, that I feel humble by my ASS U MEtion.
There is a part of me that pity’s Poe. He died young (I think 42 years or something like that) and he was reportedly pretty miserable life. He suffered from a tragic marriage, upheavals in his education, a strained relationship with his adoptive father, and rampant substance abuse. And ultimately, unless otherwise known, it was highly unlikely that through Jesus Christ he was reconciled to God. If the work we do as writers reflects what we know, then Poe’s mind was obvious.

I know that he is considered the father of the detective novel, inspiring many of his time. He also pretty much defined modern horror, without whom, writers like Stephen King and Peter Straub wouldn’t have a career. Of course there is no way to know that for certain, but it stands to reason.

Regardless, I am just fired up about getting this collected volume! Quiet the thrill. There is nothing like getting a book that you highly desire for a steal.