National Poetry Month: A poem by Samantha

My daughter agreed to help me celebrate National Poetry Month by posting one of her poems. I think it is the perfect picture of our little poodle.

Robbie

I am cute

fluffy

small.

You might even say

underweight

bony

skinny.

But I am still a cute dog.

So cute, in fact, that when I

run around in little circles

or jump on the people things,

they pick me up and kiss me on the head.

By Samantha Gomez

why my son makes me smile

A few days ago I read some of my own poems to my son at bedtime. During a pause, he turned and said to me: "I like all of your books, but those publishers are so picky!"

How has your child made you smile recently?

National Poetry Month: I See a Poem

I See a Poem

I see a poem

in scattering leaves

and snuggling close

on cold, snowy eves.

I see a poem

in lightning-streaked sky,

in waves rolling in,

and geese soaring by.

I see a poem

in glistening dew

and, once in a while,

in me and in you.

© Rebecca J. Gomez

Blue Angel: A poem for National Poetry Month

Another poem from my poetry journal. Guess where I went the day I wrote this!

Blue Angel

Blue bird

with steel wings,

zooming, booming

over the crowd,

drowning out the

oohs and ahs

as you wisk by,

a streak in the sky!

Tuesday Tip: Mapping

If you are writing a novel with a real world setting, you probably use some kind of map as a reference in order to make your world as real as possible, and to keep your characters from accidentally making a wrong turn.

When you are creating your own world, it's no different. You need a map. Chances are, you already have a map of your little world in your head. But it will be very easy for your characters to get "lost" or accidentally head east instead of west if you don't have a map to refer to. So, I suggest drawing one.

You don't have to be an artist in order to do this, because this is primarily a reference tool for you to use as you're writing. Here are some links to help get you started:

How to Draw Original Fantasy Maps

How to draw original fantasy maps for your fiction (video)

http://hollylisle.com/fm/Workshops/maps-workshop.html

Have fun mapping!

Welcoming National Poetry Month

As promised, I'll kick off National Poetry Month with a poem from my poetry journal. This is an acrostic about a Hippopotamus. I don't write acrostics very often, but this one was fun to write.

Huge, grey beast

In the African river,

Pretending to be a

Polite, gentle giant

On his lumbering feet, but

Please take care

Oh, hippo watcher!

That big fella can get

AWFULLY

MAD, when

Unwanted visitors

Show up!