Sarah Potter Writes

Pursued by the Muses of prose, poetry, and music.

Archive for the tag “Tanka”

20 Jun 2017
13 Comments

#Tanka 33 — Light and Shadow (plus some scintillating “shades of”)

In June meadow land,
she meets her silly shadow
and it makes her laugh.
Winter’s black dog locked in cage;
birds, bees, butterflies abound.

<><><>

I dedicate this tanka poem to my shadow, which needs locking up in a cage permanently, if it can’t behave itself.

Last week, I reached the conclusion that I was flogging a dead horse with the juvenile fiction market; I just don’t write the type of novel that appeals to contemporary children or young adults. Okay, full stop and amen to that.

Fast forward to this week, by which time my shadow had convinced me that I should give up novel-writing altogether.

On Monday morning, I went to check the results of the First Three Pages of a Novel Competition in The University of Winchester Writers’ Festival. As I scrolled down the page in search of them, my shadow said, “You’re deluded if you expect to find your name there, considering you’re probably up against brilliant writers, including MA creative writing students.” Then I read this…

Highly Commended: ‘Counting Magpies’ – Sarah Potter

To my utter amazement, I had reached the top six with the opening pages and synopsis of my adult speculative fiction novel. But it gets better, because in the reviewer feedback, amid some wonderfully encouraging comments, it said the magic words

…shades of Margaret Atwood and Naomi Alderman.

Well, those are some “shades” I can deal with; the sun has definitely got his hat on and is coming out to play.

Posted in Poetry, Writing and tagged , , , ,
03 May 2017
12 Comments

#Tanka 32 — Storm

Charcoal clouds from north…
garden locked in somnolence
awaits first raindrops.
Storm hits, its broadside attack
an act of demolition.

Posted in Nature, Photography, Poetry and tagged , , ,
30 Mar 2017
43 Comments

Friday Fictioneers — Adrift Alone

Genre: Haibun (Japanese-style poetic prose)
Word count: 100

~~ADRIFT ALONE~~

She sits at the end of the jetty penning a tanka poem to her lost love. Earlier attempts bob about on the seawater inside screwed up balls of paper; they slowly unravel into sodden single sheets with the words sucked out of them.

He sails away,
the figurehead of his boat,
captain of nothing.
In deeps, beyond redemption,
sink the wrecks of human dreams.

He floats becalmed in a rubber dinghy amidst flotsam. The sun beats down on him and cooks his brain, as he composes his epitaph.

Here lies a shark that ate a fool who died alone.

<><><>

Photo Prompt: copyright © Fatima Fakier Deria
Friday Fictioneers: 100 word stories

Posted in Flash Fiction, Poetry, Writing and tagged , , , , , ,
08 Feb 2017
17 Comments

My Tanka Poetry Response to Cybele Moon’s Magical Photo Prompts

As you can see from the pictures below, my friend The Dune Mouse (Cybele Moon), who blogs at The Runes of the Gatekeeper’s Daughter, is a super-talented photographer. In fact she’s the queen of magical images, as well as the weaver of wondrous mythological tales.

To my delight, she agreed to select three of her creations for me to respond to with Japanese-style 31-syllable tanka poems. This is a great honour, so I hope to have done the pictures justice; it’s very much my interpretation, and they might mean something completely different to Cybele.

<><><>

hill-of-tara

Storm clouds muddy dawn;
make an omelette of sunrise.
A hilltop tombstone…
Full of life, the girl races
to read her own epitaph.

<><><>

morning-prayer-in-the-kalifs-garden

 Peacock perched in shade,
mere hint of iridescence
in his silhouette.
He belongs to a proud earl,
who nicks feathers for his hat.

<><><>

path-small

In the dark forest,
fraught birds exchange alarm calls…
human invaders.
A perfect day for walking;
how beautiful the birdsong.

<><><>

Related reading:

To read more poems in this style, enter the word “Tanka” into Search on my blog’s sidebar
https://sarahpotterwrites.com/2017/01/25/an-interview-with-poet-sarah-potter/ (all about Japanese poetic forms)
https://cybeleshineblog.wordpress.com/
https://sarahpotterwrites.com/2014/05/03/mays-guest-storyteller-cybele-moon/

Posted in Blog challenge, Photography, Poetry and tagged ,
25 Jan 2017
11 Comments

An Interview With Poet Sarah Potter

For those of you who want to know more about Japanese poetic forms, do read my guest post on Bill Holland’s wonderful blog. Whilst there, perhaps you might like to have a go penning a Japanese-style poem of your own in “comments”.

Artistry With Words

003I ALWAYS FEEL BAD

Well, I always feel bad for the poets out there, because I feel like you get the short end of the stick on my blog.  Truth is I know next to nothing about poetry, so I figure it’s better that I just stay quiet about it rather than embarrass myself.

But today you poets are in for a surprise.  I have an expert in the figurative house, and her name is Sarah Potter, and she has agreed to discuss Japanese Poetic Forms with you today.

Let it never be said that I don’t care about all of you.

And now, here’s Sarah!

Sarah Potter “Waning” Lyrical About Japanese Poetic Forms

Thank you so much, Bill, for inviting me as a guest on your wonderful blog. I’m both excited and a bit daunted, as this is the first time a fellow blogger has asked me to write…

View original post 1,081 more words

Posted in Poetry, Reblogs and tagged , , , , , ,
31 May 2016
16 Comments

#Tanka 31 — The Island

Yaverland Beach (V&M)

Wind and waves carve rock,
reshaping island coastline.
~Years become aeons~
Shadows, reflections, echoes
call to lovers across time.

Posted in Nature, Photography, Poetry and tagged , , ,
01 Oct 2015
20 Comments

#Tanka 30 — Currents

Fish rock

September tide leaps,
seawater swirls in sunlight,
rocks turn into fish.
Boy eats fish and chips on beach,
dive-bombed by swirling seagulls.

Posted in Nature, Photography, Poetry and tagged , , ,
07 Aug 2015
21 Comments

#Tanka 29 — Summer Moods

Garden bowl

Petals float in bowl
Portal to another world
~pink tranquility~
Children rush around playground
Crimson exhilaration

Posted in Photography, Poetry and tagged , , ,
17 Mar 2015
18 Comments

Tell 5 Secrets Blog Hop — Snapshots from Early Childhood

Many thanks to my dear friend, Sherri, who has tagged me for Tell 5 Secrets Blog Hop. Those of you who haven’t yet stumbled upon Sherri’s blog, do check out A View From My Summerhouse after your visit here, as it is a veritable treasure trove.

For the challenge, I decided to take five snippets from my early childhood and compose a 31-syllable Tanka poem for each of them.

Clipped copper beech hedge
divides half-acre garden.
~neat lawn, wild woods~
Small girl stands before curtain
watching midnight fairies flit.

Boy likes to show off,
“Insectivorous mammal”
his latest two words.
High-pitched squeaks ~ferocious beast?~
Shrew breaks out of cardboard box.

Never mind Dad’s lungs.
Cigarette cards stored in tins
*star collectibles*
bound to impress boy next door.
Bee stings boy’s bum. Bad timing.

Parental oddness
Off to hairdresser with Mum
~latest auburn tint~
Girl swivels around in chair,
awaiting the rising sun.

Girl climbs up high tree,
determined to outdo boy.
On ground, far below,
cracked cases of horse chestnuts
remind her of broken skulls.

 

#

And now who’s the lucky person I’m going to tag for the Tell 5 Secrets Blog Hop? No less than the indomitable Blondeusk at Blondewritemore, who blogs every day and manages to make me smile often, with her wonderful turns of phrase and her ability to laugh at herself.

Posted in Poetry and tagged , , , ,
10 Jan 2015
25 Comments

#Tanka 28 & 5 — Positive Pink

Early this morning, a force eight gale chucked drizzle about, slammed gates, broke fences, snapped branches off trees, and threw refuse bins about. To counteract the melancholy that threatened me at sight and sound of the mayhem, I donned my favourite bright pink raincoat and took my dog on an energising walk.

Immediately we returned home, the wind dropped, the sun came out, and it seemed I’d even managed to cheer up the weather with my dazzling gear! This led me to wonder if people call bright pink “shocking pink” because it shocks them out of their gloom.

Seeing how this colour has had such a positive effect upon me up today, I’ve decided to share two tanka poems: one new and one old (both related to pink), as well as some random photos of pink flowers.

HydrangeaNightReflection

~Artificial light~
Reflection of hydrangeas
in dark window glass.
After midnight, party girls
stagger home, petals faded.

Winter Rhododendrons

Metallic winter
enhanced by rhododendrons
— rejuvenation –
an old woman with grey hair
wearing neon pink lipstick.

Fuchsia in Rain

peonies

Pink Rose

Cherry Blossom  OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Posted in Nature, Photography, Poetry and tagged , , , , ,

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
%d bloggers like this: