Poetry Thursday 51 - Life Chart

 A villanelle-style map for your life. A poem consisting of five tercets and one quatrain with repeated refrains. 

Life Chart

 

Considering all that has gone beforehand,

from the simplest beginnings to the complexity of life,

not knowing where one’s balance centres stand.

 

The early influences in retrospect seem bland,

when young changes are without real strife,

considering all that has gone beforehand,

 

Not long before the storm of scale grand,

where every crisis cuts like a knife,

not knowing where one’s balance centres stand.

 

Then when clarity seems almost at hand,

when existence is with less strife,

considering all that has gone beforehand,

 

A single occurrence shakes that self-brand,

as would an affair upset the wife,

not knowing where one’s balance centres stand.

 

That is the pattern on your personal headband,

that will take you into the afterlife,

considering all that has gone beforehand,

not knowing where one’s balance centres stand.

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

God Bless 

Writing - Who are you talking to?

I read an interesting description of two characters in a book having a conversation. In short, it's the author talking to him/herself through two personalities. Does this infer that all authors have multi- personality disorders? 

 

There are rules for creating dialogue. 

How to write a dialogue

1. Determine the reason for the dialogue. ...
2. Decide which characters are speaking. ...
3. Use quotation marks to start and end spoken dialogue. ...
4. Create a new paragraph for each speaker. ...
5. Write the dialogue. ...
6. Start with the action. ...
7. Use dialogue tags to show who's speaking. ...
8. Include action beats. 

An example.

Bilbo and Gollum 

"What have I got in my pocket?" he said aloud. He was talking to himself, but Gollum thought it was a riddle, and he was frightfully upset. 

     "Not fair! not fair!" he hissed. "It isn't fair, my precious, is it, to ask us what it's got in its nassty little pocketses?"

     Bilbo seeing what had happened and having nothing better to ask stuck to his question. "What have I got in my pocket?" he said louder. "S-s-s-s-s," hissed Gollum. "It must give us three guesseses, my precious, three guesseses."

     "Very well! Guess away!" said Bilbo.

     "Handses!" said Gollum.

     "Wrong," said Bilbo, who had luckily just taken his hand out again. "Guess again!"

     "S-s-s-s-s," said Gollum, more upset than ever. 

Have a go yourself.

God Bless 

Poetry Thursday 50 - Which horse?

 I felt that the US President standing down from the election in November deserved comment. The style I have employed is terza rima, which is more of practice for me and inspired by Stephen Fry.

Which horse?

 

Most powerful country in the world,

in hands of a tangerine Heffalump,

dubious scorched earth policies unfurled.

the implied dangers make lazy hearts pump,

scary warnings to the world in advance,

the risk of electing caravan Drumpf.

 

Parading in an electoral trance,

to the greatest risk for democracy,

the peel of oranges named his VP – Vance,

then claimed the great hand of the deity,

shielded him from an assassin’s bullet,

to support the republican theory.

 

If the shooter had been more accurate,

then a week’s a long time in politics,

would things be better for the democrat,

or is the time almost up for Biden,

who will be the next victim or Harris,

which old nag will your money ride on?

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

And on a more seasonal note. 

Summertime

 

The weather has finally improved - at last,

temperatures have soared up to normal,

time to moan about the evening heat blast,

the chances of a good night abysmal,

hovering above the sweat knotted sheets,

yearning a cold shower acceptable.

 

Children playing in the blistering streets,

worried mothers exhorting put on cream,

time out called in shadow for ice cold treats,

beaches and parks full of loud youths in teams,

noises increased by sun’s intensity,

cool sandy beaches dominate our dreams.

 

Don’t fret it will end momentarily,

seasons in this land are thankfully short,

nor do they last long in the memory.

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

God Bless 

Writing - Descriptive passages

In writing, we are attempting to entertain and we have many strategies available to us to use. I have already related how much reading means to me and has done for many years. An early positive reading experience for me was reading the early part of Great Expectations by Dickens. His description of the misty marsh, the prison ship and Abel Magwitch, was magnificent. I have read many other such stories with great descriptive passages and one such section in 250 - 300 pages can influence your whole feeling about a story. So when you are describing something, a little extra thought may help. 

I am currently reading Stephen Fry's book The Hippopotamus. In the story, I've just come across a passage where he describes the difficulties of being a poet. I have included that passage below.

The poet, though. Oh, yes, the poor poet: pity the poor bloody poet. The poet has no reserved materials, no unique modes. He has noth- ing but words, the same tools that the whole cursed world uses to ask the way to the nearest lavatory, or with which they patter out excuses for the clumsy betrayals and shiftless evasions of their ordinary lives; the poet has nothing but the same, self-same, words that daily in a million shapes and phrases curse, pray, abuse, flatter and mislead. The poor bloody poet can no longer say 'ope' for 'open', or 'swain' for 'youth', he is expected to construct new poems out of the plastic and Styrofoam garbage that litters the twentieth-century linguistic floor, to make fresh art from the used verbal condoms of social inter- course. 

As always a forthright opinion well expressed by Stephen Fry but to illustrate the importance of description the essence of the feeling expressed sticks with the reader. 

God Bless

Poetry Thursday 49 - Creative Edge

 The source of creativity is often wondered about and I have pondered the same for myself. As whatever creative moments I have tend to occur in the latter part of the day and in fact during the night, here is a poem with part explanation. 

Creative Edge

 

Approaching the delicious, gentle, oblivion of sleep,

accompanied with the events of the day,

in their turn sliding into the beckoning deep,

released with a burst of a creativity way.

 

Half consciously repeating some actions,

with half remembered and new details,

applying personal interpretations,

creating unique travails.

 

Nothing escapes the pull of the black vacuum,

except a flash of unique productivity,

from the event horizon showroom,

to the brain’s source of creativity.

 

Enjoy the margin between wake and sleep,

free the mind to possibilities,

revel in the coming of the deep,

and apply the experienced novelties.

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

God Bless 

Writing - The Creative Margin

 I have often referred to the fact that I have many of my creative ideas as I'm falling asleep or in the middle of the night. Similarly, when I was at college, I used to do my best work in the 'wee small hours'. Having considered the facts and also reading about other people who work in the quiet times of the day, it seems that there is a place within the human psyche where creativity lives. 

A black hole is an area of such immense gravity that nothing—not even light—can escape from it. Black holes form at the end of some stars' lives.

The creative margin seems to be rather like the event horizon (crudely the edge) of a black hole. As you are falling asleep your mind naturally runs over the events of the day and also the plans for the following few days. I have quite a visual way of carrying out that process and also tend to project forward possible scenarios for the next set of appointments both stressful and otherwise. It's amazing the lengths to which my imagination goes to scare the living daylights out of me for a trip to the dentist. This is the imagination creating scenarios. 

It is also the point at which ideas flash into mind. So the creative margin or event horizon leads to the events drifting away as you fall asleep. Rather like objects being sucked into a black hole. At this point, I have been known to ask Alexa to remind me of what I've imagined the following morning. 

Alexa is Amazon's AI identity. 

God Bless 

Poetry Thursday 48 - Humanity Rules

So it's all over.  Well, almost there is still the football but the election is done. One message that has come through from post-election speeches is the requirement for the government to serve. 

Humanity Rules

 

So the election is over, Euros nearly over,

what will we do until the next turnover?

It was only politics or a sport,

not life or an end of term report.

 

There seems to be a need to compete,

to prove to everyone else that we are complete

humans who can do what it takes to attain,

that we have an above average functioning brain.

 

And it seems to be accelerating at a rate,

we use to have years to change but now can’t wait.

Coupled with the desire to fiscally feed,

to get more cash to support our accepted greed.

 

One time, one job for one family was sufficient,

one parent to raise the children efficient,

no teachers parenting, when they went to school,

parental responsibility at home was the rule.

 

But now we have a drive to get things,

to fill our spaces with what money brings,

but aren’t the people here more important

and the love they give more significant?

 

A familial mantra - want never gets,

trimmed the desire for acquisition upsets,

focussing on the real human need thereof,

for uncomplicated and unconditional love.

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

God Bless 

Writing - It's Over

 Polling Day was as always an anti-climax. Rather like Christmas Eve when all preparations are complete and all that is left is waiting. Even though the outcome was as expected it has to be announced. The scale of Labour's victory was immense and the damage Tories have done to themselves, was legion. 

When we are writing such 'dead water' is going to turn off the reader and so needs to be avoided. It is in your own hands. 

The pace of your writing is entirely up to you and is rather like a delicate flower. If you over-worry about pace and try to keep it going the end product could be more of the rampant bindweed rather than a delicate flower. 

As with flowers, the elements of your stories can be delicately layered and different even within the same species allowing both large and small events that will boost the pace when required but there is still the continuous need to feed and systematically tend the story. Too little light and it may become etiolated and die, too much drawn and malformed. So you need an overview of what you have produced thus far and where the story needs to go to maintain its quality. 

The bottom line, enjoy your writing for yourself and write for yourself because if you don't derive anything from what is produced nor will the reader. 

God Bless 

Poetry Thursday 47 - Change

 Labour Party's slogan for this general election is 'Change' - I wonder what that means? 

Change

 

Is this what Keir means in the interminable fuss,

of hustings and on the Labour battle bus?

 

In the dawn of July 4th, whispers of change arise,

A dance of seasons, a kaleidoscope of skies.

Leaves unfurl, petals bloom, parties shift their course,

change weaves its magic, an unseen, force.

 

Or is it to do with a move to clarity

after 14 years of dishonesty.

 

From caterpillar to butterfly, a metamorphosis unfolds,

Wings stretch wide, colours emerge, stories yet untold.

Mountains crumble, oceans surge, landscapes rearrange,

Change, the silent architect, shapes our world's range.

 

All very pretty and idealistic,

but with election promises, be realistic.

 

Embrace the flux, the ebb and flow, as blue turns into red,

for change is unknown canvas, where shades meet the dread of light,

in the tapestry of history, threads of truth will emerge,

Labour’s purpose, our existence, must change from dull to bright.

©David L Atkinson July 2024 

God Bless 

Writing - Brainwashing

 One of the principles in George Orwell's 1984 is to keep repeating information even if it's incorrect. Eventually, if people hear it often enough they will believe it is the truth. Seems to me that that is the Conservative Party's mantra for the public after 14 years of deception and dishonesty. This morning I witnessed James Cleverley the Kearns Home Secretary doing that very thing and hoping that people watching him on the news will believe that what he's saying is the truth. The fact of the matter is the Conservative Party is going to lose this election more because of their inability to be honest and straight with people rather than their policies and those policies have been divisive and elitist.

In the 1960s there was a tendency to believe that brainwashing was a thing used by villains and governments and was often used in stories and movies. Probably one of the most famous scenes of the time was The Ipcress File, which had actor Michael Caine put through what seemed to be an attempt to brainwash. 

Brainwashing, also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education, is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by psychological techniques. 

In short behaviour modification. In the film, sensory deprivation and hypnosis were the methods used to bring about behavioural change. 

The above film was released in 1965 but the concept of our precious brains being manipulated is very much a live issue. Nowadays, added to the above, is the incursion of AI into our lives and as with new technologies, the lack of consistent information and knowledge increases speculation and so the opportunity to stretch the imagination. Just do the research. 

God Bless