CELEBRATING NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Poemorama: Part III
Onto the last part of the month-long prompt, ‘Tribute.’
‘Amazed’ — is one word to describe our reaction to the incredible responses we have received for the month-long Poemorama celebration of National Poetry Month!
How wonderful it is to read and be mesmerized by the words, ranging in all styles of poetry and prose, from bite-sized expressions to the diversity of myriad themes! We are delighted, honored, and spellbound still by the beautiful lyrics and tunes of the poems!
Thank you!
And, the home page is just VIVID and VIBRANT with your tones and magical words!
What’s Poemorama?
As mentioned in previous announcements, Poemorama is a month-long event to celebrate the US National Poetry Month.
We divided the prompts into three parts of 10 prompts each — 30 prompts for a 30-day celebration. The announcements came as follows:
👉 Part I: Friday, April 1 (Poetry styles/forms)
👉 Part II: Sunday, April 10(One-word theme)
👉 Part III: Wednesday, April 20— see below for prompt details
Part I submissions will be accepted for the entire 30 days, while Part II prompt submissions are open from April 10–30, and Part III prompts from April 20–30.
There are no limits to the number of submissions during this period, so spread your wings and mesmerize us with your beautiful chirps!
Poemorama: Part III
For this part, we thought to make it a tribute prompt to explore and showcase a selection of incredible poems from notable poets across the world and for us to utter our feelings in words for the selected pieces and their creators.
The way the prompt will work is as follows:
- We are mentioning the poets and one of their poems. We ask that you read 🔍 the poem and write ✍️ a poem/prose in response or as a tribute.
- The poem you write can: a) illustrate a feeling that you’ve felt after reading the poem; b) be related to the poem's title or c) something more profound on one or more of the themes in the poem.🎭
- Please include the names of the poet and the poem and a link to the poem somewhere in your story so that the readers can explore further. 👀
💐 Tribute Poets and Poems
✒ Federico García Lorca
Country: Spain ▪ ️Language: Spanish
“In the branches of the laurel tree I saw two dark doves One was the sun and one the moon Little neighbors I said…”
Poem: Of the Dark Doves (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Charles Baudelaire
Country: France ▪️ Language: French
“The sheer luminous gown The fountain wears Where Phoebe’s very own Color appears Falls like a summer rain Or shawl of tears.”
Poem: The Fountain (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Fernando Pessoa (fɨɾˈnɐ̃du pɨˈsoɐ)
Country: Portugal ▪️ Language: Portuguese
“And those who read what once he wrote Feel clearly, in the pain they read, Neither of the pains he felt, Only a pain they cannot sense…”
Poem: Autopsychography (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Li Bai (太白)
Country: China ▪️ Language: Chinese
“And I let down the crystal curtain And watch the moon through the clear autumn.” Poem: The Jewel Stairs’ Grievance (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Kahlil Gibran (جبران خليل جبران)
Country: Lebanon ▪️ Language: Arabic
“In the ancient days, when the first quiver of speech came to my lips, I ascended the holy mountain and spoke unto God, saying, “Master, I am thy slave. Thy hidden will is my law and I shall obey thee for ever more.” But God made no answer, and like a mighty tempest passed away.”
Poem: God (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Friedrich Hölderlin
Country: Germany ▪️ Language: German
“We know how high the sun is now As long as the roof of the steeple glows, The roof that’s covered with sheets of tin…”
Poem: from In Lovely Blue (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
✒ Kazi Nazrul Islam (কাজী নজরুল ইসলাম)
Country: Bangladesh ▪️ Language: Bangla (Bengali)
“I’m unruly and lawless. I crush under my feet all the bonds, rules, and disciplines! I don’t obey any laws. I sink cargo-laden boats I’m the torpedo, I’m the dreadful floating mine.”
Poem: Rebel (Poem link, courtesy of International Centre of Nazrul)
✒ Dorothea Mackellar
Country: Australia ▪️ Language: English
“I love a sunburnt country, A land of sweeping plains, Of ragged mountain ranges, Of droughts and flooding rains. I love her far horizons, I love her jewel-sea, Her beauty and her terror – The wide brown land for me!”
Poem: My Country (Poem link, courtesy of dorotheamackellar.com)
✒ Taras Shevchenko (Тара́с Григо́рович Шевче́нко)
Country: Ukraine ▪️ Language: Ukrainian
“When I am dead, bury me In my beloved Ukraine, My tomb upon a grave mound high Amid the spreading plain, So that the fields, the boundless steppes, The Dnieper’s plunging shore My eyes could see, my ears could hear The mighty river roar.”
Poem: My Testament (Poem link, courtesy of shevchenko.ca)
✒ Kabir
Country: India ▪️ Language: Hindi
“I won’t come I won’t go I won’t live I won’t die
I’ll keep uttering The name And lose myself In it…”
Poem: I won’t come (Poem link, courtesy of Poetry Foundation)
Most of the poems are translated, so the emotions and the depictions are close but may not be exactly the same as written in the original language.
Relevant other notes on the prompt
Your prompt poem can be of any style or form. The minimum word limit is ten words, to a maximum of 200 words.
Please comply with the standard conventions for specific forms of poetry, i.e., if you're writing a sonnet or a haiku, please follow the stylistic formats for those forms.
Tags: Please use ‘Poemorama’ as one of the tags and another tag for the theme, i.e., if your writing is based on the poem ‘Rebel,’ then use ‘Rebel’ as a tag.
Kicker: Please use ‘Poemorama at Paper Poetry’ as the kicker.
Title: your choice (should relate to the specific theme).
Subtitle: It must contain, ‘A Tribute to the poem, … (poem name) by … (poet’s name)’.
Image: one image only Your image must incorporate a handwritten/handcrafted element in either paper or digital format following Paper Poetry’s submission guidelines.
Promotional link: please add this announcement link to your story.
Tags & shoutouts (optional): please feel free to @ handle tag up to five other poets (use your discretion). Also, please feel free to promote up to three other poets’ Poemorama submissions, including one of your own.
A Few Notes from the Editors
① Because of the month-long Poemorama prompt, we will not be running a Poetry Series or a Sparked Ink Writer promotion.
② New writers are most welcome to participate. If you want to be added as a writer, please include your Medium @ handle in the comments; or email at [email protected].
③ To make sure you receive announcements about our special events & weekly poetry prompts, we encourage you to subscribe to our newsletter, Paper Poetry Sparks. Please find the sign-up form at the end of this post.
Let’s go!
