Allyson Whipple

Category: writing

  • May Poetry Events

    Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

    I’m excited for the four poetry events I have in place for May. (There might be a fifth, but details are still in the works, so it’s too early to post about.) Scroll down to find out about my two workshop offerings, as well as two opportunities for collaborative poetry writing. As we are still dealing with COVID-19, all May events will take place on Zoom.

    May Workshops

    Hawks Don’t Circle: Accuracy and Expansiveness in Nature Poetry
    May 26th, June 2nd, June 9th, and June 16th
    7:00-8:30 pm Central time
    Tuition: $233 early bird until Sunday, May 16th 2021; $333 standard rate
    Register at the course page.
    Description: This workshop is designed to help poets both create more accurate, precise images in nature poetry. In the first two sessions, we will study the ways in which errors in naturalistic descriptions can compromise a poem, and also look at ways in which to employ skillful depictions of nature. We will also draft our own poems in relation to course topics. In the latter two sessions, we will study poems that go beyond images of nature to make broader cultural, social, or political statements. We will take time to research and refine our drafts from class, workshop with peers, and experiment with expanding our depictions of nature into a wider context. There are weekly reading assignments and exploratory exercises between class sessions.

    Haiku Beyond 5-7-5
    May 29th, 2021
    1:00-5:00 pm Central time
    Tuition: $100
    Register at the Year of Forms page
    Description: Spend an afternoon studying and developing kireji (cutting word) and kigo (seasonal reference) in your haiku. Upon registration, you will receive two craft essays, one focused on kireji and one focused on kigo, to read before our workshop. You will also receive a series of haiku to read in advance. In addition to discussing the readings, we will have a workshop in which we practice improving our use of kireji, as well as incorporating kigo in an authentic way.

    Collaborative Poetry Parties

    Renga Happy Hour
    Thursday, May 20th
    5:30-6:30 pm Central Time
    Free Event
    Register at Eventbrite for Zoom link
    Description: Renga is a form of poetry that originated in Japan. It’s meant to be written collaboratively. Let’s socialize on Zoom and write renga together! The hour will start with a brief introduction to the conventions of the form, and then we’ll have plenty of time to write. All levels of poetry experience welcome.

    Exquisite Corpse Lunch Break
    Tuesday, May 25th
    12:15-12:45 pm Central Time
    Free Event
    Register at Eventbrite for Zoom link
    Description: The exquisite corpse is a poetry form in which every person contributes a line. Let’s take some time in the early afternoon to stretch our creative muscles and write a collaborative poem! This is a great way to connect with other poets even at a distance. All levels of poetry experience welcome.

  • April Poetry Contest Winner

    Another month, another surprising entry in my monthly poetry contest! In April, the winner of the contest is not an individual, but a SurvivalWolves, a creative collective.

    Pieces from the SurvivalWolf Instagram account

    The collective asked that the $25 donation be made directly to Kaze Shadow, the leader of their team. You can read their poem below.

    It is my time

    For the ones who are unaware, it is my time
    I have come from a position that is a far
    In my forgotten spirit, I’ll become greatly divine

    For the words within the book of me will evolve from its line 
    Ignite more flames of passion than the bright stars
    For the ones who are unaware, it is my time

    I was lost, so lost that all I could find 
    Pushing me forward was my hatred and scars
    In my forgotten spirit, I’ll become greatly divine

    I soon found more within me, more within life
    Something beyond the smoke and blinding bars
    For the ones who are unaware, it is my time

    Now I move quick, quicker than a piercing knife
    Empujando obstáculos, con fuego para ganar
    In my forgotten spirit, I’ll become greatly divine

    For the people who believed that I wouldn’t strive
    Now beyond the clouds, I fly on heaven’s radar
    For the ones who are unaware, it is my time
    In my forgotten spirit, I’ll become greatly divine

  • April Poetry Contest: Villanelle

    Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels.com

    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 by 11:59 pm on April 20th. The winner will receive a gift certificate to the independent bookstore of their choice, or I will make a donation in their honor to a nonprofit.

    View complete contest rules and past winners here.

  • March Poetry Contest: Equanimity

    Equal parts cookie and cream

    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 March contest, create a poem that incorporates the theme of equanimity. You can do this any number of ways:

    • Write a poem in which the content is concerned with equanimity;
    • Write a concrete poem representing equanimity;
    • Use, bend, or break the rules of a poetic form to create a sense of equanimity.

    I am so excited to see what you come up with!

    Email your poem to allyson@allysonwhipple.com by 11:59 pm on March 20th. The winner will receive a gift certificate to the independent bookstore of their choice, or I will make a donation in their honor to a nonprofit.

    View past contest winners here.

  • February Poetry Contest: Golden Shovel

    Photo by Scott R on Pexels.com

    I can’t wait to see what y’all write for this month’s poetry contest! There are two prize options: 1) A $25 gift certificate to the independent bookstore of your choice, or 2) A $25 donation to the literacy nonprofit, aid organization, or public library of your choice. Please see the Monthly Contest Page for complete rules (there aren’t many) and past winners. This month’s deadline is Friday, February 20th.

    Prompt
    The golden shovel is a form invented by poet Terrance Hayes. He created it in homage to Gwendolyn Brooks. In honor of Black history month, the February contest is to write a golden shovel related to environmental or climate issues. Feel free to be creative with the source text. My friend E. Kristin Anderson has a series of golden shovels based on Ke$ha songs.

    If you’re unfamiliar with this form, read the poem “Golden Shovel” by Terrance Hayes as a reference point. Notice how the line endings in both parts are made up from Brooks’ “We Real Cool.” Notice how Hayes uses the words in a more straightforward way in the first section, and focuses more on sound in the section section. (Note: you do not need to write a multi-section poem; go with what works for you.)

    Email your golden shovel to allyson@allysonwhipple.com by 11:59 pm on February 20th. Please also send me the title and author of the poem or song you used as your source text. (Include a link if possible.) The winner will receive a gift certificate to the independent bookstore of their choice, or I will make a donation in their honor to a nonprofit.

  • January Poetry Contest Winner

    After much delay, I’m finally excited to announce the winner of the January poetry contest! I received a record number of entries this month, and on top of that, I had to move unexpectedly after my landlord sold my house! It’s a relief to be getting settled in my new place and back into a routine.

    Lisa Janice Cohen wrote the winning haiku. For the prize, she chose a $25 donation to the Central Texas Food Bank.

    Frost flowers
    A log’s jeweled heart 
    Fused in glass

    Thank you, Lisa! And thanks to everyone else who participated. I was especially heartened to see several entries from people who don’t consider themselves poets or writers.

  • January Poetry Contest

    First snow. Not impressed.

    It’s time for another poetry contest! I can’t wait to see what y’all send me this month. There are two prize options: 1) A $25 gift certificate to the independent bookstore of your choice, or 2) A $25 donation to the literacy nonprofit or public library of your choice. Please see the Monthly Contest Page for complete rules (there aren’t many) and past winners. This month’s deadline is Wednesday, January 20th at 11:59 pm.

    Prompt
    Write a haiku with the following theme: inside/outside. You do not have to include the theme words in your poem; explore different ways of embodying the theme through language and image. Haiku can range from 1-3 lines. 5-7-5 syllable structure is not required. Please keep haiku to approximately 17 total syllables for the entire poem.

    Email your haiku to allyson@allysonwhipple.com by 11:59 pm on January 20th. Given the brevity of the form, poems pasted into the body of the email are preferred. If you have unique formatting that requires submitting as and attachment, that’s fine.

  • December Contest Winner

    The source text for Christa Pandey’s poem

    I received a number of delightful holidays poems this month. In a year where I’ve felt out of touch with the holiday spirit (I didn’t even put up the tree), it was lovely to open my inbox and find poems from both good friends and distant acquaintances.

    This month’s winning poem is “Christmas Cento” by Christa Pandey. She used the hymnal One Faith/Una Voz (2005) as her source text. In the poem, you’ll see numbers next to each line; these denote the page in the hymnal where the line originally occurred.

    Christmas music is my favorite aspect of the winter season, and I have a special fondness for classical carols even though I’m not religious. I enjoyed seeing the ways in which Christa made something new out of traditional music.

    As her prize, Christa chose a donation to Conspirare.

    Christmas Cento 

    397 It came upon a midnight clear,
    400 the darkness everywhere,
    376 the silent stars go by, 
    397 o’er all the weary world 
    374 they traveled on together
    400 amid the cold of winter. 

    397 Beneath life’s crushing load
    397 the days are hastening on,
    390 let nothing you dismay 
    379 nor thorns infest the ground,
    383 wing your flight o’er all the earth
    397 above this sad and lowly plain. 

    376 No ear may hear his coming,
    380 silent night, holy night, 
    382 say what may the tidings be?
    380 All is calm, all is bright,
    390 all you within this place 
    380 sleep in heavenly peace. 

    374 Lo, when they had heard it
    387 joyful all ye nations rise 
    383 ever more your voices raising,
    392 the stars in the sky 
    382 and the mountains in reply
    390 each other now embrace. 

    379 Let us our songs employ,
    382 echo back their joyous strains,
    379 let every heart prepare him room,
    400 dispel in glorious splendor
    376 the hopes and fears of all the years
    390 when we were gone astray. 

    374 There shone a holy light,
    383 brighter visions beam afar,
    387 join the triumph of the skies,
    383 sages leave your contemplation,
    390 with true love and charity
    404 the king of kings salvation brings.

    378 O come let us adore him, 
    378 joyful and triumphant, 
    382 come adore on bended knee, 
    404 bring him incense, gold and myrrh. 
    387 Christ is born in Bethlehem, 
    379 he rules the world with truth and grace.

  • December Poetry Contest

    It’s time for another poetry contest! I can’t wait to see what y’all send me this month. I’m now offering two options for prizes: 1) A $25 gift certificate to the independent bookstore of your choice, or 2) A $25 donation to the literacy nonprofit or public library of your choice. Please see the Monthly Contest Page for complete rules (there aren’t many) and past winners. This month’s deadline is Tuesday, December 15th at 11:59 pm.

    Prompt
    I love the cento form. It’s a kind of collage poem, where you build a piece out of found text, usually other people’s poems. You can find out more about the cento here: https://poets.org/glossary/cento.

    Create a holiday cento. It can be any holiday from any tradition; you don’t have to limit yourself to the impending winter festivities. You can draw from poems, but also feel free to explore other types of text. Try creating cento out of liturgical passages or prayers. Dig into that pile of greeting cards you’ve saved from Easter, Valentine’s Day, or Christmas past. Create a cento out of advertising copy for holiday sales. Email your poem to allyson@allysonwhipple.com by 11:59 pm on December 15th. The winner will receive a gift certificate to the independent bookstore of their choice, or I will make a donation in their honor to a literacy nonprofit.

  • November Poetry Contest Winner

    Thanks to those who participated in the November poetry challenge! One of the fun things has been seeing who enters. I received poems from people that I had no idea were interested in writing!

    Image Credit: Paul McGuire

    This month’s winner is my friend, Colleen Miller. In lieu of a gift certificate, Colleen opted for a donation in her honor to Room to Read, an organization that promotes literacy and girls’ education. Here’s the winning poem!

    G’mornink

    The feathered chonk plomps on my shoulder. “Bonjourno! My funny, gray angster.

    She laughs and explains the situation.
    “Good girl!”

    Only two words, but I catch her meaning. She has indeed been well behaved today and deserves a reward.

    I hold a slice of Lite-Brite pink grapefruit out on my palm.

    Dancing excitedly, my ersatz child digs her black beak into the acidic flesh.

    In an instant, her reward becomes my regret as it squirts to land in my eye.

    Life. It would be nothing without these bad surprises from good decisions.