Summer Short And Sweets – Week 3

Hurray!  Hurray!  It’s a Summer Short & Sweet day! 🙂

badge created by Loni Edwards

First off, help yourself to some of these delicious cookies

and a glass of refreshing iced tea

because we can be more creative after a little snack 🙂

Now then, are you ready for today’s Short & Sweet?

I totally wrestled with this one and I hope it’s going to be fun and also work right… I guess we’ll see 🙂

So we have to go on the honor system again – no peeking! 🙂 – and I need you to get a piece of paper and a writing implement of your choice.  Then write down the following things in a list bearing in mind that everything below is supposed to be related so it can hang together:

1.  A noun (you know, a good old person place or thing)
2.  A color that describes that noun or some part of that noun you’d like to highlight (e.g. red, or, lavender, or, cerulean)
3.  A comparison to that color (in the manner of simile or metaphor e.g. summer sunset, or, shadowed snow on a January evening)
4.  Something that belongs to your noun written as adjective, adjective noun (e.g. wide, feathered tail, or, slim, brown limbs, or brass ratcheted gears)
5.  A verb ending in -ing that is something your noun could do (e.g. soaring, or, stretching, or, grappling)
6. Another verb ending in -ing that is something else your noun could do (e.g. sailing, or, reaching, or, frowning)
7. A place written as: preposition [a/an/the] adjective adjective noun (e.g. over [a] broad green valley, or, across [the] shimmering shining stream)
8. A description of something your noun could do in relation to something else, written as:  verb ending in -ing preposition adjective noun (e.g. scouting for silver salmon, or, basking on sun-baked sand, or, digging up acorn jewels) – (yes, I realize “for” is a conjunction, not a preposition, but you can use it if you want.  The reason I didn’t put conjunction is because the others – and, or, nor, but, yet – won’t work.  But use “for” if you want :))
9. Repeat #8 with another description (e.g. plunging toward immovable earth)
10. Repeat #8 with a final description (e.g. hoping for sweet success, or, diving for delicious dinner)
11. A simile for the action in #10 (e.g. like a rocket ship, or, like a bow drawn across singing strings)
12.  Your original noun from #1.

Okay!  Got your list?  What we are accomplishing here is part Madlib, part poetry, and will hopefully result in lots of descriptive poems (haha – like how I tricked you into writing a poem? :)) that will also serve as story sparkers by giving all the devoted readers specific, detailed, poetic descriptions of characters, settings, or objects that they could use in a story!  For those of you who write picture books, there are a lot of similarities between picture books and poetry, so this is good practice 🙂

Wasn’t that totally awesome how I snuck that up on you?

So now, all you have to do is type your poem into the comments using this template and your list:

I am [a/an/the] noun from #1
Color from #2 as [a/an/the] comparison from #3
With [a/an/the] adjective adjective noun from #4
Verb from #5, verb from #6
Prepostition [a/an/the] adjective adjective noun from #7
Description from #8
Description from #9
Description from #10
Like [a/an/the] simile from #11
I am [a/an/the] noun from #1


Here’s my example:

I am a falcon
Gray as a stormy sky
With powerful, peregrine wings
Soaring, sailing
Across the shimmering, shining stream
Scouting for silver salmon
Plummeting toward wavering water
Diving for delicious dinner
Like an arrow sprung from a huntsman’s bow
I am a falcon.

Here’s another one because I think this is fun 🙂

I am a birch
Silver as starlight on snow
With strong, slim limbs
Reaching, stretching
For the faraway, fickle moon
Gazing at kaleidoscope constellations
Soaking in the dewdrop dawn
Standing among my slender sisters
Like a dancer waiting for the music to begin
I am a birch.

And one more:

I am Sarah
Gold and brown like honey on toast
With hidden, heartfelt hopes
Uncurling, unfurling
From their secret silent space
Running with quiet concentration
Leaving behind even the fastest few
Flying on winged feet to finish first
Like fleet Atalanta
I am Sarah.

Ok, I’ll stop now because I’m really not very good at this even though I think it’s tons of fun 🙂

So do you get the idea?  You may of course tweak a bit.  If you need a different verb form or fewer adjectives or an extra word or one less line or two colors, etc. feel free to change it up.  The word prompts and template were just to make the job easier and less intimidating 🙂

I hope you’ll all have fun with this!  I can’t wait to see what you write!  And after my humble examples, I hope everyone will feel very brave about putting theirs up – I know without a doubt you can all do better than I did! 🙂

Have a great weekend, and please join me Monday to welcome Tiffany Haber as she talks about her debut picture book, The Monster Who Lost His Mean (which I just had the pleasure of reading and it is REALLY TERRIFIC and you should all get a copy for the littles in your life, or for yourself as an example of a well-done picture book in verse!!!)

Happy weekend 🙂

149 thoughts on “Summer Short And Sweets – Week 3”

  3. Lori Degman says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Susanna, I love this week's SS&S!! Here's mine:

    I am Tucker
    Black and white as a double-six domino
    With a loud, big mouth
    Howling, barking
    In my peaceful, relaxing backyard
    Barking at innocent passersby
    Howling at phantom winds
    Wagging my furry white tail
    Like a windshield wiper in a hurricane
    I am Tucker

  4. Lori Degman says:
    Reply
    Unknown's avatar

    Susanna, I love this week's SS&S!! Here's mine:

    I am Tucker
    Black and white as a double-six domino
    With a loud, big mouth
    Howling, barking
    In my peaceful, relaxing backyard
    Barking at innocent passersby
    Howling at phantom winds
    Wagging my furry white tail
    Like a windshield wiper in a hurricane
    I am Tucker

  12. Patricia Nozell says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    A great exercise, Susanna. Bruce Smith, author of Devotions, his latest book of poetry, & professor in the MFA program at Syracuse, shared a similar prompt in our poetry workshop at the Colgate Writers Conference. I've been adapting it to help with character development for my stories, and have been finding it extremely helpful.

    The Pup

    I am a Pup
    Orange as a clementine
    With a white-tipped tail
    Swimming, fetching
    Through the frigid, azure water
    Searching for an enormous frog,
    Diving for a slithering snake,
    Hoping not to find it
    Like a twisted rope wound round my paw,
    I am a Pup.

  13. Susanna Leonard Hill says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    It's always a little hard to guess what will appeal to folks – I was worried this one might be too complicated because of all the parts of speech and the way the template was write (hence my many examples!) but it's turned out to be SO MUCH FUN! – maybe my favorite so far! I'm really enjoying reading everyone's poems – all so different and creative and amazing! Thanks for joining in, Lori 🙂

  14. Susanna Leonard Hill says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    What a great one, Patricia! Of course I'm immediately envisioning your two orange pups 🙂 I think it would be better to find a frog than a snake in the water!!! Thanks for joining in the fun! 🙂

  15. Lori Degman says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Sorry, I thought the first comment didn't go through so I submitted it again! I think I've done that before here – duh!

    I think you did an excellent job of walking us through the process and all the lines fit seamlessly into the format – well done!

  18. Jennifer Rumberger says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Okay, here goes! 🙂

    I am tree
    Green as a field of grass
    With a brown sturdy trunk
    Swaying, stretching
    Along the sunny, friendly street
    Covering on warm days
    Standing against heavy winds
    Harboring for mother squirrels
    Like a port in a storm
    I am a tree.

  19. Diane Tulloch says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Not sure if I am doing this right, but here goes…..

    I am a rose,
    deep, dark red of bood.
    Perfumed rich, alluring.
    Standing tall, slender, elegance in movement.
    Tilting my head in the early evening,
    anticipating love is in the air.
    Weaving magic in the closing darkness,
    shimmering, dancing with flickering candles,
    oozing romance from satin petals.
    I am a rose.

  20. Susanna Leonard Hill says:
    Reply
    Unknown's avatar

    Why, thank you! 🙂

    Lori Degman wrote, in response to Susanna Leonard Hill:

    Sorry, I thought the first comment didn't go through so I submitted it again! I think I've done that before here – duh!
    I think you did an excellent job of walking us through the process and all the lines fit seamlessly into the format – well done!

    Link to comment
    IP address: 76.245.198.181

  24. This Kid Reviews Bks says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Thank you Ms. Hill! Sadly, we haven't gotten another dog since our yellow lab Bart died. Plus, we just moved. BUT if I have any say in a type of dog that we are getting next, it will be a pug (so, so, so cute dogs!)!

  26. Susanna Leonard Hill says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    They ARE cute! and snuffly with their little squashed up noses 🙂 My neighbor has a pekinese and he is all sass! (The Peke, not the neighbor :))

    This Kid Reviews Bks wrote, in response to Susanna Leonard Hill:

    Thank you Ms. Hill! Sadly, we haven't gotten another dog since our yellow lab Bart died. Plus, we just moved. BUT if I have any say in a type of dog that we are getting next, it will be a pug (so, so, so cute dogs!)!

    User's website
    Link to comment
    IP address: 173.86.25.33

  28. Traxelr says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    I've been following your summer short and sweets but have been a little shy about sharing. But here is goes.

    I am a butterfly
    Purple as a grape
    With paper wings
    Floating, resting
    On a lily pad
    Tasting the air
    Breathing in rhythm
    Enjoying the moment
    Like the still water below me
    I am a butterfly

  32. Tina Cho says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    Romelle, This reminds me of the big slug I found on my stalk of celery that I pulled out from the fridge, store-bought! The kids got an instant pet. Yikes!

  34. Tracy Campbell says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    I'm at the bottom of the pile. Better late than never. Here's goes:

    I am a gymnast

    Brighter than a twinkling, yellow star

    With muscular, lean limbs

    Leaping, lunging

    Before cheering, crazed fans

    Striving for the elusive, glimmering gold medal

    Tumbling toward the Olympic dream

    Nailing tough, bare soles

    Like a hammer driving in a stake

    I am a gymnast

    I'm glad I didn't read the above outstanding entries, I'd never have entered.

    Amazing stuff!

  50. Heather Newman says:
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    Unknown's avatar

    I love your poems, Susanna! This is another excellent writing exercise. I shared it with my family and even my husband was intrigued. 🙂 I can see many variations of this happening on the next rainy, quiet day here. (When the sun is out, so are the boys!) Thank you!

    I am a tree
    Sepia as the river mud
    With broad-leaved, rustling, stretching branches
    In the dark, wild woods
    Sheltering the vulnerable animals
    Holding the tiny eggs
    Waiting for the cool rain
    As a baby bird waits for it's dinner
    I am a tree.

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