Creative writing prompts for teens: Japanese wabi-sabi and nature poems

You may have  noticed that the past posts have deviated from the original intention of this blog which was to showcase my poetry and creative writing and to offer tips for aspiring writers. So, in an effort to make money from writing, I shared articles I'd written. Because poetry doesn't always pay the bills like NF.

So with that said, I'm planning to turn my focus back to the fine arts. I'm still poor and still need to make money so feel free to send large amounts. I jest. But I do promise not to cheapen the craft with the trade-writing. Sorry, to wax verbose but the moon is full and I felt a disclaimer was needed. So here's are helps for teen writers on Japanese poems using the art of wabi-sabi, just in time for April.

Why April? It's National Poetry Month. Some writers celebrate NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writer Month (an online poetry slam lollapalooza) . And what better month to celebrate poems than April with spring awakening, nature busting out all over and Earth Day nestled in? Want to join the poem-penning but don't know where to begin? Here are poetry writing prompts, story starters and word games I invented, to call forth your inner bard! Perfect for homeschooler parents, English and creative writing teachers.

Verse-adventure: Hands-down, there's no better poetry muse than mama
nature. Get outside and start your poem quest. Pack a bag with pen, paper, thesaurus and blanket. You could write on laptop or phone, but old school pen and paper are more conducive to getting poetry juices flowing. Quill and parchment would be best) Station yourself in a garden. Walk in the woods. Sit on the beach. Observe the elements: wind, sun, water. Notice the flora and fauna: trees, flowers, animals, land formations. Jot down sensory details--colors, sounds, smells, shapes. Check your thesaurus for new, fresh words to express ideas.

Japanese still life poem: In Japan, artists look for wabi-sabi or beauty in simplicity and imperfection. Artists focus on simple subjects: bonsai tree, a vase with a single flower, cherry blossom sprig or pussy willow frond. The artist uses pen or brush strokes to evoke the essence of the subject. Japanese poetry is similarly simple--haiku has 17 syllables in lines of 5, 7 and 5. Create a Japanese still life display. Explore all aspects. Using a few words, describe the item. Write a wabi-sabi haiku, tanka or cinquain. Here are printable directions from St. Jean Elementary). Or create a formless verse in your own style.

For more writing prompts, story starters and poetry templates, visit my blog www.freeprintablelessonplans.com. 

Animals Don't Like My Son, Except Armadillos

Do you need to write a funny vignette or narrative type 2? Here's an example I wrote. 

Our oldest son has a bad track record with animals. Or should I say they  have a bad record with him, either way, the son-animal relationship is complicated. 

He was gored by a Vietnamese potbelly pig at a petting zoo when he (son, not pig) was three. Fortunately his tusks had been trimmed (pig's not son's). 

A goat ate his leaf at 5 (age, not time, son, not goat). "His" is dubious, given son had taken said leaf from a tree in said goat's cage in the first place. Boy did he caterwaul (said son, not goat. It just quietly ate said leaf). Monkeys screeched, zebras stampeded. People ducked and covered. We thought something had eaten son's arm off and was working it's way up the torso. Apparently by the sound it hadn't reached his mouth. 

Then son was pursued (with malicious intent) by a flock of geese at Deer Forest's Storybook Lane. He was six, not that it matters.  Anyone who knows fowl, knows hell hath no fury like an enraged goose. Poor sonny-son, we'd not briefed him on goose protocol. We found him eyes glazed, mud-covered and cowering Peter Peter Pumpkin-Eater's big stucco pumpkin. 

But he was able to bond with one species: the armadillo. He was age 26, which might be important. Or it might not be. We encountered them at a nature preserve in St. Martinville, Louisiana. Being Michiganders, we'd never even seen one. Both sons were intrigued. Younger son Jake is animal-y and tried to pet one. We all howled with laughter as he shrieked (literally said eeek!) and ran when the armadillo only turned to look at him. I've read they're timid (armadillos, not sons). 

I guess we're more citfied than we realize. 

Read on.   Son Does Not Get on With Animals, Except Armadillos

They Put a Black Rose on My Door

I don't talk about this much but today just seemed right to share my motherache. We lost our 5th and 6th children, both girls, to separate in utero trauma. Both little ladies were ironically the same gestational age when they passed away. But their causes of death were different. And we never found out what exactly happened with either. Here's more on that and a poem I wrote for Mary Therese. 

I got an infection, I think Strep B, no one ever said, with my Mary Therese. My water broke. She was alive and kicking right up to the end as my fluid leaked out and there wasn't a thing I could do to stop it. The doctor didn't catch it in time and it was mostly gone when he did. 

I almost voluntarily checked myself out of life that day. I had a loving husband and darling children. But the pain burned so bad I thought it would devour me. Then Our Lady sent St. Teresa of Avila to talk sense into me. 

I know, it sounds insane. But I saw them both, plain as day. Maybe it was the delirium of the fever. Or the pain. It wasn't the drugs because I couldn't keep anything down. They would have let me have it because she was going to die anyway, they said. That could have been more tactfully said but I was past caring. 

And she did pass, but only after patiently keeping her mama company all that long, horrible night. The whole family was there, all night to say goodbye to baby sister. Big Sister Molly stayed awake the entire time and only fell asleep when Mary Therese left us to go to heaven. 

Maybe I just want to believe that heaven cares, that this is not the end, that I will hold my children again. You're darn right I do. Not much point in anything otherwise. 

They put a black rose on my door, in the maternity ward. 

Here's a poem I originally wrote for Associated Content for my little Mar. I wasn't ever going to name a baby after me, but somehow that name just seemed to fit her. Daddy wanted her to take part of Mama to heaven. Mary Therese's birthday and death day were January 5, 2001.

Waterlily Rose Maid

her eyes, green-gray, still waters, do not cry

not mirror nor window of soul-dark spaces

guardians hold prisoner, secrets shy

in soft tranquil deep and twilight traces

her skin, like dogwood blossoms translucent 

rose petal fair and water-lily pale 

heaven-bound as nimbus, storm-cloud spent 

fresh as a lamb, nested quiet in vale

no tears descend this tender, pallid cheek 

no sorrow escapes this unworldly maid 

no companion shares nor solace does seek 

perfect in slumber, unmoving and staid

Silent in her grave, somber and death-cold 

Never to feel pain, nor warmth of mother's arms enfold.

I wrote this a few years ago, in a darker place. Now I know that you will feel our arms, baby. I think in some way you already do. 

Love always, mama. 

How to Write Japanese Haiku Poems

Haiku poems are more than just 17 syllables in three lines of 5-7-5 syllabication. Many styles of Japanese poetry rely on syllable count to establish poem structure, similar to the Greek iambic or "feet" (or meter) poems. Notable are the iambic pentameter poems, composed of five lines with ten syllables each. Haiku and senryu are structured on "mora" or "on" which are similar to syllables, but not an exact correlation. "On" in Haiku and Senryu is similar to iambic feet, which are patterns of stressed and unstressed syllables. Thus haiku are cadence (rhythm) poems vs. rhyme poems, but the similarity of western poetry ends there. Use this guide to teach haiku writing or to write your own. 

Haiku are essentially nature poems and rather aesthetic. Haiku contain kireji (cutting word) and kigo (seasonal word). A true haiku contains a mood or tone shift and the kireji is the cut-off between moods. Kireji words shift the tone. As haiku is a Japanese form of poetry, the words don't translate absolutely, nor even sometimes partially to other languages. In haiku written in English for example to cutting word will depend upon the original thought expressed in the poem. Kigo would be any word referring to season or nature, often a specific plant or animal.

In Miyoshi's haiku

In storm-tossed grassland,

one leaf, one praying mantis,

tremble together.'

we see and feel the shift. Normally leaf is eaten by praying mantis. In a storm they are united against the wind, one clinging to the other for support, no longer predator and prey. Without a knowledge of Japanese, I can only guess at the kireji, but I'm thinking that it would be 'together'. The kigo are the leaf, mantis and possibly even storm. The tone doesn't come full circle and it may not be a diametric opposite, as with the praying mantis and leaf, but there is a shift in focus. Here's another well-known Haiku

Red dragonfly on

my shoulder calls me his friend.

 Autumn has arrived'

The shift here is from summer to fall. And haiku like so many aspects of Japanese life, focuses on the simple contemplation of one idea. Japanese art, floral arrangement, gardens, architecture and food reflect simplicity and purity. Haiku distill a multitude of words and thoughts into one essential verse.

When writing haiku, focus on nature and especially seasonal topics. Work that shift into the poem. To explore senryu, please see my article, Haiku vs. Senryu: Nature vs. Nurture. 

Ice Cream Dreams and Michigan Memories

Here's an example of personal memoirs writing. Use this for an example of nostalgia or local history writing.

Ice cream has spelled summer since the Chinese invented it 3,000 years ago. It was primarily for nobility and the upper class until 1776, when the first public ice cream parlor opened in New York City. Ice cream went portable when edible coronets, or cones, made from waffles were introduced at the St. Louis World's Fair. My grandmother remembered buying ice cream squares wrapped in paper, from street vendors in Grand Rapids, Mich. When I was a kid, the Good Humor man still sold frozen novelties, accompanied by a cheerful tune. 

I grew up in Grand Rapids and Muskegon, Mich., in 1960s and 1970s. Dairy Queen, Tastee-Freez and other seasonal, walk-up ice cream stands ruled the street. My dad was the Rootbeer Float King; few summer evenings went by without a trip to the ice cream stand for this seasonal favorite.

Back in the day, ice cream was a quarter a scoop. Miss Lisa's near the U.S.31 on-ramp in Ferrysburg, Mich., has new ownership. Gone are the days of that $.25 ice cream cone of Hudsonville Ice Cream, the best in the world. Hudsonville invented Mackinaw Island Fudge and Moose Tracks flavors. I miss sitting on the swing sharing an ice cream and watching the children play on the climber. This was Tao of summer 

 

Two chain ice cream establishments, were Michigan favorites. House of Flavors featured the Pig's Dinner (five kinds of ice cream) and gave out yellow and blue "I Made a Pig of Myself at House of Flavors" buttons if you ate it all. Baskin-Robbins featured the famous 31 Flavors. Of the many House of Flavors locations, only two still exist in Ludington and Manistee, Mich. I just found out last summer that the Manistee location was torn down. 

In the early-1970s Michigan tried recreating the Gay Nineties ice-cream parlors. In Muskegon, there was the High Wheeler. In Grand Rapids, folks loved Farrell's Ice Cream, with its Dixieland feel. The Farrell's brass band, with bass drum and Barbershop Quartet, would play and sing "Happy Birthday" to guests.

Soda fountains were also popular. The soda fountain was a counter, set up in drug stores. If I was good while shopping Grandma got me an ice cream from Dean's (later Strayer's) Pharmacy on Broadway in Muskegon. A block away from my house in Grand Haven, was Pfaff's Pharmacy. Their 1950s style fountain still had spinning red-topped stools and uses the old stainless steel ice cream mixers, freezers and utensils. These were made a few blocks away at the long-defunct Bastian-Blessing.

For the longest time,  Pfaff still served phosphates, sundaes, triple-scoop cones, floats, malteds, sodas and Lime and Cherry Cokes (not the canned kind, these are made from fruit syrup). A chocolate malt from Pfaff's was ambrosia of the gods. My kids would blow their paper route money on penny candy from the Pfaff's candy counter. Then it closed and now it's something else. 

You can't get ice cream cone for under $4 anymore. But times change and prices with it. The newspaper the kids carried is pretty much done. The kids moved on and have families of their own. But we all still enjoy a walk on the boardwalk and an ice cream of a summer evening. I hope that never goes away. 

Sample Commentary for Current Events Essay Writing

Looking for guidance on essay writing? In an essay, the writer takes a stand on an issue and backs it up with fact. The essay should employ literary devices and some elements of creativity--it shouldn't just be dry fact. It's similar to creative non-fiction in that fact is written about creatively.

Essays are similar to commentaries (also called editorial or op-ed), in which the writer comments, from his own opinion and experience, on trending news stories. Typically, other stories or facts are employed to back up the author's contention. Writers need to be careful not to write too much fact with essays/commentaries. The piece is then an analysis. Essays should clearly reflect the writer's opinion. Here's an example from a piece I wrote for Yahoo!

--Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to censor. Take the matter of online photo sharing--there's sometimes a fine line between offensive content and freedom of speech (or share). Who's to say what constitutes offensive material. There's no one-size-fits-all model  that works for every situation.

Like a fly, Facebook keeps getting tangled in the censorship web. Time and again, photos are banned that shouldn't be. Case in point are the images from a breast cancer survivor which Facebook deemed obscene. Read more at...Facebook's Odd Photo Bans Highlight Censorship Dilemmas 

Free Poetry Writing Guide: How to Write Free Verse Poetry

 Poetry gives voice to the soul. Writing poetry is like singing;it should flow from the spirit, as a lament, a rhapsody or an aria. Unlike tangible things poetry is not so easy to dissect, critique or explain. There are some devices that poets employ to create poems. Having created some poetry myself and taught courses in poetry in creative writing, I'll try to distill the essence of poetry in this guideline. Poetry Writing Guide: How to Write Free Verse Poetry 

How to Write Truly Frightening Horror Fiction

Anatomy and Psychology of a Horror Movie
Halloween is the ripe for horror movies, but what exactly constitutes a horror movie? Does it need a plot twist? Suspense? Mystery? Zombies? Blood and gore? Satanic influence? A presence of evil? Here is a psychological analysis of horror movies that can be used to write horror fiction as well.

Horror movies and literature must scare viewers and readers: That's a pretty basic requirement of the horror genre.  But what does it take to scare people? Sensations of fear differ from person to person. Phobias (irrational fear) differ from realistic fear. Each person has a different level of credibility also; in other words different people are willing to believe as possible different things. Supernatural, aliens, monsters, zombies, vampires, demon possession, even evil and hell are concepts open to interpretation. And in order for someone to be genuinely frightened, he must believe that something is possible or exists. The viewer must also feel a sense of impending danger or personal threat.

Sensations of fear vs. sensations of being startled: Some movies rely on the element of suspense and surprise rather than attempting to produce sensations of fear. Loud noises, startling or graphic images, even blood and gore often produce a sense of being shocked or startled in viewers, rather than fear. Try watching a horror movie. If you find yourself jumping and your heart pounding, but feel no sensation of threat or danger, you are probably feeling startled, not frightened.

Sensations of disgust vs. sensations of fear: Gruesome movies are extremely bloody and graphic, but not necessarily frightening. There is nothing inherently fearful about seeing a human skeleton, flesh, blood, muscles or organs. Doctors see these things every day. Seeing a zombie dining on human flesh and feeling revulsion or disgust is not the same thing as fear. Again, a sense of threat must be present.

In summary, in order for a movie or book to produce sensations of genuine fear, it must communicate to the viewer a sense of personal danger or threat of danger. A real 'scary' movie must in fact scare the viewer, cause him discomfort, dread or a sense of impending doom. In order to produce that feeling, he must accept that the images shown in the movie are possible and believable.

Using these definitions, the most truly frightening movies are those which show the level of inhumanity and degradation that mankind is capable of wreaking on his fellow man. These horrors are the only the only kind that we can actually prove exist. Personally, I think some of the most frightening movies and books are the true stories of actual events. Helter Skelter, for example, scared me witless reading it at age 12. Because I remember hearing of Charles Manson and the very real atrocities he committed. 

An All Souls Day Essay on Honesty

All Souls Day Stories: An Honest Little Boy
It's All Souls Day, and I'm feeling reminiscent. After homeschooling for years, it seems a little odd not to be wrapped up in holy day and holiday preparations. Here's a little story to warm you for the holy day. It's true.
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Doppelganger's Requiem

"You Know How Strong They Get when They're Crazy..."
Who is crazier--the asylum inmates or those who torture the mentally ill? In this story, the Genius Loci of an abandoned insane asylum looks with favor on the doppelganger granddaughter of a crazy woman and helps her settle some old debts.
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Mystery Writing Prompts, Horror Story Starters for Halloween

Hello my friends and readers. I've begun to create some story starters and writing prompts to supplement my own creative writing. I love reading and writing mystery and suspense stories. I enjoy trying to solve the puzzles and stretching my imagination. And if I'm honest, the eerie atmosphere of a good mystery/suspense story is a place I love to dwell! Here's a list of mystery story starters and horror fiction writing prompts you can use to get started with your own creative writing hobby. I've linked to the full article on my blog Free Printable Lesson Plans. 

Mystery story starters and suspense and horror fiction writing prompts 

Japanese Poetry- Haiku vs. Senryu

Haiku and Senryu are Japanese poems, both of which have 17 syllables, of three lines with 5-7-5 syllabication, but the similarity ends there. Haiku are aesthetic nature poems. Haiku require a kigo or nature word (theme). Haiku have a kireji or cutting word that shifts the focus of the haiku. In 17 syllables, the haiku shifts focus. The core difference between haiku and senryu lie in the poems' differing theme or purpose. Senryu (poems written by the Japanese poet of that name) are usually cynical or darkly humorous. Senryu poke fun at the human condition. Senryu can be spoof, parody or satire poems. Senryu have no specific kireji or kigo, but as dark humor, they do often have a shift or perhaps a twist would be a better word. Senryu generally have a 'sting' in the tail. I think it behooves the would-be writer of haiku to understand how haiku and senryu differ.

  In my haiku, Popsicle Purple (which isn't the best example of nature, but perhaps season), see if you can find my shift in tone:

  Popsicle purple

  drips sticky sweet on new dress

  yahoo for summer

 Yahoo is my cutting word, cutting across the negative tone of soiled clothing and shifting to a positive view that this means summer has arrived. This poem has a bit of senryu styling as it does poke gentle fun at parents for giving a child a popsicle when she is wearing new clothes. And it pokes fun at a child's predisposition to spill, especially on new clothes. Lastly, Popsicle Purple juxtaposes a child's delight in summer, signaled by the arrival of popsicles.

  Here are other senryu.

  migrating fowl find  

  crashing on ice-covered pond  

  winter remains still

and another 

 he scales a tree to 

commune with nature

disturbing a nest of eggs

(I both can identify with and feel sorry for the poor person described here, as well as the nest of eggs. it would be like me to do something completely wrong for the right reasons.  The commentary is that when you would "commune with nature" best to check to make sure you are not endangering it in so doing._ 

The best way to describe the difference between haiku and senryu is that they represent nature vs. nurture. Nature in the Haiku is merely reflective whereas in senryu there is a bit of commentary. 

Using Onomatopoeia: Make Your Writing Sing and Dance

Onomatopoeia: Words that Name Sounds
Onomatopoeia (ah-nuh-mah-tuh-pee-uh) is as much fun to say as it is to write. Onomatopoeia comes from the Greek words meaning 'name' and 'I make'. Onomatopoeia is a long word that means 'sound words'; words named for the sounds they make.
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Creative Writing Tips: Antonyms and Synonyms

Creative Writing and Language Arts Activities: Synonyms and Antonyms
Synonyms are words that have the same meaning. Antonyms have the opposite meanings. Remember them this ways 'synonym' = 'same'; 'antonyms'='anti-', 'opposite.' There are synonyms for nouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives.
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Free Verse Poetry Writing Guide

Poetry Wrting Guide: How to Write Free Verse Poetry
Poetry gives voice to the soul. Writing poetry is like singing; it should flow from the spirit. Unlike tangible things, poetry is not so easy to dissect, critique or explain. There are some devices that poets employ to create poems.
Read More

25 Reasons to Make Online Article Writing Your Career

25+ Reasons to Making Online Article Writing Your Career
Writing articles online can be a lucrative, satisfying home business. If you enjoy composing articles, have proficient grammar, possess a computer, have reasonable typing skills and enjoy writing, here are 50+ reasons write online articles.
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