Poetry Prompt 2 — Who is speaking?
A poem doesn’t have to be true and it doesn’t have to be about you.
It is refreshing to see the world through another person’s eyes and tell their story.
Write a poem in the voice of an ancestor, a friend, an imagined character or someone famous.
Pay attention to the dialect and speech patterns of this person. This prompt can be combined with Poetry Prompt 1- being aware of the audience. Who is he or she speaking to specifically? These poetic monologues can be dynamic and surprising. My favourite collection of poetic monologues is Spoon River Anthology, by Edgar Lee Masters. He gives voice to all the characters from a small town— speaking from the grave about their lives.
I wrote the following after leading a guided meditation to one of my writing classes. We imagined
a stranger with a story to tell and this character, Leonora, popped up with quite an attitude.
Leonora’s Revenge
I giving you the evil eye
you be cursed now
little rooster man
just try and strut
with one withered leg
and two withered nuts
you run around on me
you gonna pay
ain’t no accident
your car slide
down the bank
last man did that to me
his house burnt to ash
I knows what you is up to
don’t go telling no lies
I can sniff you out
in any drinking hole
gambling my money
and when you go to touch
your wallet
it strikes
like a rattlesnake
and you a quivering on the floor
like you in a fit or somethin’
ain’t no sorry’s gonna save
you now, rooster man,
your hen done flew the coop.
Laura Jan Shore from Breathworks
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