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A Birthday Poetry Giveaway
I admit, this time last year, I figured we’d have this pandemic issue all sorted out, and I’d be able to have a big dinner party with all of my friends. Turns out that prediction was incorrect! This year is still better than last year, because I do get to have a small gathering with…
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The Best of It: National Poetry Month Part 3 Edition
“Love Poem for a Non-Believer” by Sandra Cisneros “Mambo Cadillac” by Barbara Hamby “Good Bones” by Maggie Smith “Wild Turkeys: The Dignity of the Damned” by Brigit Pegeen Kelly “If We Were Honest” by Albert Goldbarth
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The Best of It: National Poetry Month Part 2 Edition
“My Heart” by Frank O’Hara “With Lorenzo at the Center of the Universe, El Zocalo, Mexico City” by Sandra Cisneros “Grace” by Jake Adam York “Say Thank You Say I’m Sorry” by Jericho Brown “There Are Two Magics” by Rachel Zucker
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The Best of It: National Poetry Month Edition
“The Truth the Dead Know” by Anne Sexton “Wild Geese” by Mary Oliver “The Best of It” by Kay Ryan (scroll about halfway down the page) “This is Just to Say” by William Carlos Williams “Steps” by Frank O’Hara
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April Poetry Contest: Villanelle
April is my birthday month! And the villanelle is my favorite form. So this month, the contest prompt is to write a villanelle incorporating at least one of the following: Glitter Peonies Oolong tea The beach A word in a language other than English Spaghetti carbonara Craftsman furniture Cedar Point Email your poem to allyson@allysonwhipple.com…
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Let’s Spend a Year Studying Form
While I mostly write in free verse, most of my poet friends know that I love form. In fact, even in my free verse, I usually incorporate some formal aspect… Something that my MFA thesis advisor and I butted heads about on a regular basis! Even though I don’t regularly write with rhyme and meter,…
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The Best of It: Spring Has Sprung Edition
Getting to go to Sea Rim State Park for spring break Beach camping The fact that we got to go camping at all for the first time in over a year I’ve gotten both of my COVID shots I’ve been enjoying participating in the March Matness Pilates challenge
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March Poetry Contest Winner
I received a record number of entries this month! I think that the theme of equanimity resonated with a number of readers. This month, I am excited to announce that we have our first international winner! Ojo Taiye is a Nigerian poet whose work appears in the Rumpus, Glass Poetry Journal, and a number of…
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The Best of It: Even Though Texas is Terrible Edition
I got my first COVID vaccine! My Letterkenny-themed welcome mat. That many businesses in Austin are still requiring masks. Free Girl Scout cookies. Finally having the time and space to cook something from Flavors of Aloha tonight.
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March Poetry Contest: Equanimity
March is the month of the spring equinox. My favorite equinox memory is when my 9th grade geography teacher brought Double-Stuff Oreos for all of her students, because they had equal parts light and dark. (Apparently the true balance of this particular cookie has been debunked, but it remains a wonderful memory nonetheless.) For the…