PennSound PoemTalk 75: on Will Alexander's "Compound Hibernation" Posted 4/8/2014 Today saw the release of the landmark seventy-fifth episode in the PoemTalk Podcast series — an exploration of Will Alexander's poem, "Complete Hibernation," which was first published in Zen Monster before appearing in the 2011 collection, Compression & Purity. For this program, host Al Filreis was joined by panelists Tracie Morris, Kristen Gallagher, and Michael Magee. Here's how Filreis starts his write-up of this episode on the PoemTalk blog: "The group began by discussing the poem's relationship to the Ellisonian strategy (or condition) of invisibility, in which one 'ingest[s] ... a blackened pre-existence' through a glaring, nine-sun-sized brightness while maintaining the feeling that 'Those who glance about me / ... cannot know me.' PoemTalk is a co-production of PennSound, the Kelly Writers House, Jacket2 and the Poetry Foundation. John Richetti: 102 Favorite Poems, Good for Memorizing Posted 4/7/2014
Intro to Playwriting So, you're going to write a stage play. First, what is a play? Basically, it's a blueprint for a stage production. It's performed by actors and directed, designed, and perhaps choreographed by others. You've probably seen a play before, if not on stage then one that's been adapted for TV or film. If you've ever glanced at the text of a play you'll see that it's pretty much all dialogue. Since a play is intended for performance, it adheres to some "unities" because of length limitations and the confines of the stage. Characters - You're going to want some, or else those actors will be very confused when they arrive for auditions. Setting - Where and when will your play take place? Stage Direction - This can be very confusing for both novices and professionals. An important thing to know is that stage directions are not narration. Do Include: Do Not Include: Stage directions never go into the interior life of the characters or objects on the stage. Ignore this...it'll just confuse you.
Teachers Archives Shelley Breivogel + Kimber Scarlett For our first Educator Spotlight of the year, we had the pleasure of chatting with two lovely ladies from Evansville, Indiana. Kimber Scarlett and Shelley Breivogel are second grade teachers at Scott Elementary School. They discovered Symbaloo early last year and are using it in several different ways with teachers, students and parents. For example, they collaborate with a few other teachers at their school and together they use SymbalooEDU as apart of their curriculum mapping each month. Kimber and Shelley explain the details of their curriculum mapping and other ways they’ve been using SymbalooEDU in the video below. ………………………………………….
Lord Alfred Tennyson Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892), English poet often regarded as the chief representative of the Victorian age in poetry. Tennyson succeeded Wordsworth as Poet Laureate in 1850. Alfred, Lord Tennyson was born on August 5, 1809 in Somersby, Lincolnshire. His father, George Clayton Tennyson, a clergyman and rector, suffered from depression and was notoriously absentminded. Alfred began to write poetry at an early age in the style of Lord Byron. His next book, Poems (1833), received unfavorable reviews, and Tennyson ceased to publish for nearly ten years. After marrying Emily Sellwood, whom he had already met in 1836, the couple settled in Farringford, a house in Freshwater on the Isle of Wight in 1853. Among Tennyson's major poetic achievements is the elegy mourning the death of his friend Arthur Hallam, "In Memoriam" (1850). In the 1870s Tennyson wrote several plays, among them the poetic dramas Queen Mary (1875) and Harold (1876). The above biography is copyrighted.
UbuWeb 12 Exercises for Improving Dialog Dialogue is one of the most difficult aspects of writing to master. There are many pitfalls to avoid. Stilted Language This is dialogue that does not sound like natural speech. Filler Dialogue This is dialogue that does not advance the scene or your understanding of the characters. Expository Dialogue This is dialogue in which the character explains the plot. Naming This occurs when one character uses another character’s name to establish identity. Overuse of Modifiers This is the overuse dialogue modifiers such as shouted, exclaimed, cried, whispered, stammered, opined, insinuated, or hedged. Exercises Write down the things you say over the course of the day. Articles about Writing Dialogue
Poetry and Literature Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry Tracy K. Smith was appointed by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden to serve as the 22nd Poet Laureate on June 14, 2017. Smith is the author of three books of poetry, including Life on Mars (2011), winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. Smith took up her duties in September 2017, opening the Library’s annual literary season with a reading of her work in the Coolidge Auditorium. Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction Denis Johnson was posthumously awarded the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden on July 11, 2017. From the Catbird Seat – Poetry and Literature Center Blog Read the latest blog post: Read more blog posts | Subscribe via Email or RSS Upcoming Events MARCH 28, 7:00 PM STORIES FROM A FALLEN WORLD: A TRIBUTE TO DENIS JOHNSON. APRIL 11, 7:00 PM THE LIFE OF A POET. APRIL 12, 7:30 PM PLANETARY POEMS. 22nd U.S. APRIL 19, 7:00 PM STAYING HUMAN: POETRY IN THE AGE OF TECHNOLOGY. 22nd U.S.
Tips: Growing your audience - Thomas Rogers (courtesy of Robyn Gallagher.) One of our goals at Open Salon has been to help bloggers find the audiences they deserve. As the site continues to grow, we've been thrilled to see many of you do just that. Browsing through the most-viewed tabs on the cover, many of your recent posts have attracted thousands -- and tens of thousands -- of readers from around the world. But if you're a blogger still wondering how to grow your audience – or a blogger who simply wants more, more, more! -- here are a few easy steps you can take to help bring readers to your blog: Make your blog more SEO-friendly Much of the traffic to Open Salon comes from search engines like Google or Yahoo, when your posts appear in search results. The easiest way to rank higher in search results is to include in your blog post “keywords," or popular search terms. Give your post a title that tells readers exactly what you're writing about. • Get linked: