No Off Switch

Summary

The website content is a prose poem prompt by J.D. Harms, dated October 3, 2020, inviting writers to create a poetic prose piece centered around an image, drawing inspiration from authors like Michael Ondaatje and Ann Michaels, and tag him in their submissions.

Abstract

The "No Off Switch" webpage presents a literary challenge to writers on Medium, encouraging them to craft a prose poem of approximately 300 words. This prompt, issued by J.D. Harms, is part of a Saturday Poetry Prompt series and aims to inspire poetic imagery within prose, similar to the style of renowned authors such as Michael Ondaatje and Ann Michaels. The prompt suggests taking an image and transforming it into a prose piece that reads like a poem, urging participants to explore the fluid boundary between poetry and prose. Harms also acknowledges Medium writers like Michael Stang and Paroma Sen for their skill in blending poetic elements into prose. Writers are instructed to tag Harms in their responses to allow their work to be discovered and appreciated by a wider audience.

Opinions

J.D. Harms expresses admiration for authors who skillfully integrate poetic imagery into prose.
The prompt suggests that there is an art to crafting prose that feels poetic, which is a valued skill in literature.
The inclusion of a word count goal (around 300 words) indicates a preference for conciseness while still allowing for depth and complexity in the writing.
By instructing writers to tag him, Harms shows an interest in fostering a community of writers and creating a platform for shared work.
The mention of specific Medium writers suggests that Harms values the work of his peers and sees them as exemplars of the craft.
The prompt implies that the act of writing, particularly in this format, is an ongoing process without a clear endpoint, as suggested by the title "No Off Switch."

03 October 2020 Saturday Poetry Prompt: the Prose Poem Prompt

It should be over by now. Denise was getting bored of this movie, all its missing and broken parts. Splashed across a screen like some devil was caring about how the visuals matched up with her senses.

Stark blue eyes. Hiding holes, and then some of the filling that used to be inside of her. Scattered to the winds! Oh, that had been an alright day, a cruising through the good stuff. Well…at least not the objectionable stuff.

Naked, Denise just stretched out wet on the bed, a flimsy bit of cloth, a handkerchief, that could cover various parts of her. Mirror stimulation. And the creases of thoughts kind of caressed the sides of her skull. She wondered what about the top. Or the back? Fuck, couldn’t she get just a little cup of a hand to pull her upright? To see out the window.

Instead of being obliterated by the sight of the closet door mirror thing that kept on ramping up her anxiety. Then switching her on. “Hello, sweetest…”

Denise foetaled. She became a period, a stain on the bed.

Spread, then because every kind of wind, warm or cold, stings the flesh when there’s still some water covering it. And what could she do about it? Get dressed?

Ha. That was laughable. This was agonizing and then there were still so many moments where the mirror became something else, someone. Maybe. Crystallizing the sight of her, showing her what she wanted everyone to see. “To go to a — colony?” But what kind of stress came with moving?

She was getting good, here, at fleshing out punctuation marks. This could be an exclamation, tiny hands masquerading as fists. One upside down explanation point…Wait…explanation…?

Prompt:

Today, I am prompting you differently (yes, again…). I absolutely adore authors like Michael Ondaatje and Ann Michaels who manage to weave incredible poetic images into their prose. We’ve got some writers on Medium who do similarly incredibly beautiful things in their prose, like Michael Stang or Paroma Sen. To play along with this one, take an image (ah, how original J.D.) and formulate a prose piece that reads like a poem. Aim for around 300 words. Tag me in it (J.D. Harms), and let the beauty fly!

The Scrittura Team