Poems as Prompts: Things to do Around ___ and The Coming of Light

This week, we flip the script and read poems before writing, using them as prompts and as organizational templates. Imitating a poem's format or the poem's suggested topic is an informative technique to adapt into your writing practice.  Give it a go!

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Things to do Around Seattle
by Gary Snyder

POEM PROMPT:

Write a poem titled :
“Things to do around ------------”
​(Things to do around a place you choose.  Things to do at a certain time of day or year or point in life. Things to do in a metaphorical situation.) Write this poem for  10 minutes.

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The Coming of Light 
By Mark Strand

FREE WRITE PROMPT

Tell me about something that came, even though it was almost too late.  OR Make a list of all things that bring light; tell me about a few of them.  Write for 10 minutes.

SOMETHING EXTRA

Things to do Around a Ship at Sea
by Gary Snyder

"Things to do Around a Ship at Sea" is such a beautiful poem about the mundane/the quotidian, the sublime and even the primal.  The focus starts on the external landscape and funnels down and into the speaker's internal landscape. And what of the speaker?  Not one person but seems an amalgam of multiple young men aboard a ship at sea--what they do to pass the time, to better themselves, to observe the world, to plan for the future, while fulfilling a duty at hand.

The "things to do around-----" poem prompt is informed by the accessibility of Snyder's poem. Listing, describing, using full sentences and phrases, arranging details in subject groups are all techniques observed in Snyder's poem and gives writers a format to kick off their own poem.  Imitating writers you like, or poems you like is a great way to learn poetic technique, word choice, and the effect of form in writing poetry. 

"Things to do Around -----."   How did you fill in the blank?

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