I rose to the challenge last year. It was crazy and fun, and I did get 50,000+ words into book file (where it still languishes). Two of the buddies who cheered me on fared better. Ann Voskamp's One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are (not a novel) is due out from Zondervan in January 2011, and Sara Davison's project from last November, The Child-Snatchers, was shortlisted in the 2010 Word Alive contest, while another book, The Watchers, won the prize of publication.
This November I'm not doing NaNoWriMo. Even so, November will not be challenge-less for me. I've promised myself to write a poem a day (as one does in April — national poetry month). Robert Brewer of the Poetic Asides blog has issued a Poem-a-day Chapbook Challenge. He posts daily poetry prompts in November to help poets with this. There's even a published chapbook as a prize at the end, if you decide to see the challenge through and your collection gets picked.
I'm not planning to compete for that. I'm just wanting a little help with daily production. However pushing myself to write a poem every day means that I don't have the luxury of waiting for a special kind of inspiration to arrive before I write. Like the photographer who snaps a lot of pictures knows they won't all be great, I realize there will be a lot of duds among those thirty poems. Here's hoping when all the dust settles, maybe four or five will be a little bit good.
Anyone want to join me?
Writing
Beside the path that winds
through my waking and sleeping
grow like wildflowers
scenes insights connections
Some days I am too rushed
or distracted to see
On others I am wiser
live with the perception
that gathers a bouquet
chooses one or two to press
between the covers
of a book
© 2004 by Violet Nesdoly
Website: www.violetnesdoly.comPersonal blog promptings
Kids' daily devotions Bible Drive-Thru
Daily Devotions for adults: Other Food: daily devo's
A poem portfolio
3 comments:
Violet, I find your enthusiasm and gung-ho have-a-go approach an inspiration!
Even so, I don't plan to have a go and get on board with your invitation to join you in the poem per day scheme, but do wish you well in it. :)
I enjoyed today's poem ... nicely woven together.
Thanks Peter! I've kept up with the challenge so far :)
So, Violet. You shouldhave 11 poems completed right now. Good for you. I am thinking that I need to do that, too - challenge myself and get motivated to pour my heart on the page a little more often. My biggest problem is the dreaded 'urgent' that always seems to pop up in my days. Thanks for being an example and for making me think. I am hoping to 'press more words between the covers' beginning in the new year! We will see what God has planned. Blessings. :)
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