J. Gabriel Scala's Blog, page 2
March 28, 2017
P&W Prompt: Portrait Poem
I bet you thought I’d disappeared, eh? Nah. I just went on the-world’s-most-sucktastic-spring-break (hint: it snowed and I was laid up with a sinus infection) and got busy grading midterm papers (there’s only like a hundred of them….). But have no fear! I’m back on the mission of trying to get caught up with Poets & Writers Magazine’s weekly poetry prompts. Here’s the ekphrastic exercise from the last prompt in February:
Artist B. A. Van Sise’s photo series Children of Grass—featured in...
March 9, 2017
P&W Prompt: 10 Things I Hate About You
Well. This looks like it could be fun. Here, from Poets & Writers Magazine, is the next in the series of prompts known as The Time is Now:
Writing an unsentimental love poem can be one of the more difficult endeavors a poet can take on, whether the subject of that poem is a lover, a family member, or friend. Taking inspiration from the popular film 10 Things I Hate About You, a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, write an ode to the aspects of a loved one that downrig...
March 8, 2017
Happy International Women’s Day!
from Raw Meditations on Money: 1. She Speaks: A School Teacher from South India
Portions of a mango tree the storm cut down, a green blaze bent into mud and they come to me, at dawn
three girls from Kanpur, far to the north admittedly (we know this from national geography class, the borders of states, the major cities).
They hung themselves from fans. In the hot air they hung themselves so that their father would not be forced to tender gold
he did not...
March 7, 2017
P&W Prompt: Love Through the Ages
Alright, well, despite my best efforts, I’ve gotten even more behind than I already was! I have a good reason, trust me, but for now: it’s top secret. Until I can tell you more, I’ll be moving right along with these poetry prompts. Here’s the Valentine’s Day prompt from Poets & Writers Magazine:
“The Love Song for Shu-Sin”—written around 2000 BCE in ancient Mesopotamia—is considered the oldest love poem that exists in text form, but also functioned as a song performed during a sacred marri...
February 21, 2017
P&W Prompt: The Bop
Whew. This has been a RUN! But I am at the finish line, I can see the moment that will have me officially caught up and in synch with the weekly poetry prompts published by Poets & Writers Magazine in their installment titled, “The Time is Now.” Maybe then I’ll be able to post something other than a writing exercise every now and then 
