NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 30

noiselessly I slip inside
less substantial than a shadow
and take up residence in your soul

feeding on your doubts
gorging on your insecurities
choking on your hope
smothering your every dream
slowly bleeding you dry

everything you fear I am
unavoidable as the night

I am decay, I am Death
I am Time
     and I am coming for you

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 29

the words mean nothing
the promises even less

the look tells all
the touch even more

your furtive glance
your trembling lips
your hestitant touch
     say everything you can't


© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 28

my head aches with the effort
of keeping my thoughts in check

my jaw aches with the effort
of keeping the anger inside

my fist aches with the effort
of keeping it from lashing out

my body aches with the effort
of not murdering you

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 27

creeping shadows dwell
     night street
          in darkness muted

lamplight
     safety glows

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 25

black
blackness                    sightless
dark
darkness                     fearful

black
blackness
                                   I am sightless.

dark
darkness
                                  I am fearful.

blood
bloody
                                  I am bleeding.

dead
deadly
                                  I am Death.

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 24

full to bursting with things
     I cannot express

barely contained, barely contrained
    full to bursting

emotions and desires, thoughts and feelings
     barely contained

I struggle to keep them under control
     emotions and desires

warring within, fighting for dominance
     I struggle

I cannot express the helplessness
     lost inside myself

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 23

today.

there is nothing
     but today.

there is no yesterday.
     (nothing but today.)

there is no tomorrow.
     (nothing but today.)

today.
    there is no...

          no...

there is nothing.

today.

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 22

Fighting
     This endless battle
          With myself
          Against myself

Never winning
     Always losing
         Against myself
         To myself

©  Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 21

Trapped
Forever
Screaming
     Inside my mind

Locked
Forever
Screaming
     Out in frustration

Bound
Forever
Crying
     Out for help

Caged
Forever
Crying
     Inside my mind

© Wondra Vanian

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 20

crouched
beneath your bed
     in the shadows hidden
          lurking beast of nightmares
will feed upon your terror

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 19

darkness
 like a curtain falls
     across the land
          all the creatures
tremble in its wake

© Wondra Vanian 2012

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 18

When I broke my arm
I thought physical pain
was the worst pain there was.

When I broke my heart
I thought emotional pain
was the worst pain there was.

When my mind was broken
I learned feeling nothing
is the worst pain there is.

© Wondra Vanian 2012

My Favourite Poems: Langston Hughes, Harlem Dance Hall

I came across this poem recently in Reading and Studying Literature and I fell in love with it.

"Harlem Dance Hall" by Langston Hughes

It had no dignity before.
But when the band began to play,
Suddenly the earth was there,
     And flowers,
     Trees,
     And air,
And like a wave the floor - 
That had no dignity before!

That's music for you. Well... for me, anyway.

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 17

Breathe.
     In.
          And out.

Just keep breathing.
     In.
          And out.

It's okay -
     In.
          And out.

if all you can do-
     In.
          And out.

today-
     In.
          And out.

is just keep breathing.
     In.
          And out.

Just keep breathing.
     In.
          And out.

Tomorrow you can try to smile.

© Wondra Vanian 2012

Ways to Celebrate: Enter a poetry competition.

There's always a poetry competition happening somewhere - so why not enter?

Like everyone else who has written poetry for years but, until recently, has kept them hidden away in a folder under their bed, I've never had the courage to enter a poetry competition. I always thought that those competitions were for "real" poets - you know, hardcore types who go to dark bars in black clothes, smoking clove cigarettes.

Recently I came to realize that I am a "real" poet. I consistently write and read poetry. If that doesn't make me a "real" poet, what does? (I actually did use to smoke clove cigarettes - but that was college, I was a literature major and, you know... everyone was doing it!)

So this year, I'm taking the plunge! I've selected two of my favourite poems and I'm entering them into a few competitions. Maybe I'm not as good as the people who will win, maybe the judges will find my metaphor lacking, maybe I'll come dead last - but at least I'll have tried.

If you too feel like taking the plunge into the world of poetry competitions, here are a few to start with:

Poetry on the Lake XIII Int'l Poetry Competition Closing Date: 22 April, 2013
The Fifth Annual Red Shed Poetry Competition Closing Date: 26 April, 2013
Poetic Republic Poetry Prize Closing Date: 30 April, 2013 
Southport Writer's Circle Int'l Poetry Competition Closing Date: 30 April, 2013
Ver Poets Open Competition Closing Date: 30 April, 2013 
The Poetry London Competition Closing Date: 1 May, 2013
The Poetry Box Int'l Dark Poetry Silver Cup Trophy Award Closing Date: 1 May, 2013 
Alsager Summer Festival Poetry Competition Closing Date: 10 May, 2013
The Melita Hume Poetry Prize Closing Date: 13 May, 2013
Mary Charman-Smith May Poetry Competition Closing Date: 15 May, 2013
Human Rights Consortium Poetry Anthology Closing Date: 15 May, 2013
Mslexia Women's Poetry Competition Closing Date: 17 June, 2013

(These are UK based but many accept entrants from all over the world.)

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 16

spinning, swirling, spiralling
          out of control
          out of time

          out of my fucking mind!

delusioin, disgust, disease
          sick of life
          sick of death

          sick of being so damned sick!

© Wondra Vanian 2012

Types of Poems

There are many different types of poems - from haiku to acrostic, from ballad to ode. If you're going to read, study, or write poetry, it's good to be able to tell the difference between them. Hopefully this will help.

Acrostic

An acrostic poem is one where the letters (first or last) spell out a word or a phrase.

Ballad

A poem that tells a story.

Blank Verse

A poem in iambic pentameter (lines of 5 feet when each foot is two syllables long: one stressed, one unstressed).

Cinquain

A cinquain is made up of 5 lines that do not rhyme. It looks like this:
Line 1: 2 syllables
Line 2: 4 Syllables
Line 3: 6 Syllables
Line 4: 8 syllables
Line 5: 2 Syllables

Epic

An epic is a long poem that tells a story that usually has to do with heroes and heroic deeds.

Epigram

A short, satirical poem that is witty and usually has a funny ending.

Free Verse

Free verse can be rhymed or unrhymed but doesn't have any set meter.

Haiku

A haiku is a short, unrhymed poem that originated in Japan. It looks like this:
Line 1: 5 syllables
Line 2: 7 syllables
Line 3: 5 syllables

Limerick

A limerick is a funny, light hearted poem and can be nonsensical. It is made up of five lines that rhyme. The rhyme scheme is aabba (Lines 1,2, and 5 rhyme and lines 3 and 4 rhyme).

Lyric

Lyric poems express the feelings and emotions of the writer.

Ode

An ode is written to be sung in honour of a particular thing.

Sonnet

A sonnet is made up of 14 lines. Each line is 10 syllables long. The rhyme scheme is ab ab, cdcd, efef, gg.

There are lots of other types and subcategories, of course, but this list should give you a basic understanding of the different types of poems. (And maybe give you an idea if you're stuck?) Check out poets.org for more info on any of the poems listed here and for the ones I didn't mention.

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 15

lost in the swirling void
of self-doubt, self-hate
     and self-harm
spinning further down - and down
with nothing to hold on to
     and no one to catch me
all alone in a battle against myself
in this constant inward struggle
     i cannot hope to win

© Wondra Vanian 2012

Ways to Celebrate: Write a poem!

I think a lot of people avoid poetry because they have this idea that it's too complicated or too high-brow or too stuffy for them. They're wrong.

Poetry doesn't belong exclusively to the tragically dissatisfied children of the elite ruling class. It belongs to every one of us.

Write some.

If you're not sure how to get started, here's a tip: cut your heart open and let it bleed out on the paper. (That's a metaphor, by the way. Wondra's World does not condone self harm. It does condone the Metaphor Drinking Game, however, so you know what to do.)

It's as easy as that. Don't torture yourself over convention or pretense or what other people might think.

Write for yourself.

Take all those emotions you keep bottled up and get them down on paper. It doesn't have to be pretty. Hell, it doesn't even have to be good. It just needs to get written.

So do it.

NPM 30 Day Challenge: Day 14

alone, apart, outside

last to be picked
     lonely

on the outside
     alone

no one to love
     loved by no one

ever alone, apart, outside

© Wondra Vanian 2012