15 Words or Less Poems: How It Works

  

New to 15 Words or Less Poems? 

Writers are constantly dropping by to give 15 Words or Less Poems a try, which I love! Some recent comments/questions reminded me that it would be good to update the guidelines. Here are the basics:

*     Every Thursday morning, I post a photo (sometimes by me, sometimes not) to serve as a poem starter.

*     You look at the picture, see what pops into your mind, and write a quick poem of 15 words or less (not counting the title). The poem does not have to describe the picture. It does not have to rhyme or follow any poetic form. And, most importantly, it does not have to be “good.” Don’t put pressure or expectations on yourself. This is a creative exercise, hopefully a fun one!

*     This can be a poem for kids or adults, but please keep it clean. Since I’m a children’s writer, teachers and students visit my blog. Thanks.

*     Leave your poem, with your name after it, as a comment. DON’T DO THIS HERE! Nobody will see your poem. Go back to the post with the actual picture in it. Thanks:>)

*     As time permits, read other people’s poems and leave comments for them if you like. Be kind. Tell what you like about the poem. Ask a question if there’s a part you wondered about. We mostly try to encourage each other here…we have people ranging from those who don’t consider themselves poets at all to kids to recreational poets to people who have published poetry books to writers with a wonderful (but sometimes intimidating), scholarly knowledge of poetry. Some participants are used to feedback, some aren’t. So, I ask that you keep the feedback 90% positive!

*     Sometime Thursday or Friday, I read through all the poems and leave brief comments about what my favorite part of each poem is or respond positively in some way. Again, my goal is to encourage y’all to keep writing poems, playing with words, visiting on Thursdays.

So,  jump in and give it a try! You can be moody, funny, serious, observant, whatever you want!   How hard can it be?  I spend 5 minutes or less each week on my poem. And if I can overcome my fear of sharing horrible, clumsy, pedantic pictures and poems, you can, too!  If we share enough of them, it will be exhilarating instead of embarrassing!

If you have any questions, please leave a comment for me! Thanks.