THE MUSIC OF WORDS part FOUR

Okay…you enjoy writing poetry. When the thoughts and words are flowing onto the page you’re having FUN! Then the ideas seem to dry up. No one finds these moments, days, or weeks enjoyable. SO what to do? Over the years I’ve heard multiple responses to this question and have shared many of them in previous blogs. However, I don’t believe I’ve talked about the concept of looking to your monthly calendar page. Now, I know that sounds weird, and I thought it was too when I first heard it. Here is explanation I received.

Whatever month you’re residing in at the time, open a web-search with the words: January (February, March, etc.) holidays and events. The topics you find there will definitely bring laughter into your voice and provide just the inspiration you need to bounce back into writing. Since this is the month of April, here are a few topics to consider—and research.

• National Humor Month: WHO is (or has been) your favorite humorist? I have two—Red Skelton and Robin Williams. Their biographies and viewing YouTube clips of their work will definitely inspire.

• International Guitar Month: Have you ever been to a café-poetry-reading session when the background sounds are beautiful guitar music? This is an environment where the music of words really explodes.

• Keep America Beautiful Month: Most of us have yearly calendars that show us the beauty of our country. There are also amazing websites that offer photographs galore from photographers past and present that display unique “corners” of our beautiful America. Combining visual inspiration with guitar melodies will definitely set the stage for your next poem and/or series of poems.

• April 27th is National Tell A Story Day: Although this tradition started in Scotland and the UK, folks in the U.S. quickly adopted it. Poetry-storytelling is quite popular around the world and it doesn’t matter if it’s a fiction you created, or folklore, or a true story. Libraries celebrate this day by inviting storytellers to come and tell their stories. This is a great way to get your poetry books before the listening public.

• The last Friday in April is National Arbor Day: Celebrated since 1872, it began in the flatlands of Nebraska and is focused on helping our natural environment thrive. Millions of trees are planted on this day—by thousands of outdoor and family groups. Participating and observing these activities can certainly be inspiring. However, what a great environment to bring a cooler of drinks to share and then share some of your poetry (maybe about trees) with these hard working tree planters. Did you know that the Latin word for tree is arbor? There’s another bit of trivia to inspire you.

The poets I know who have used this method to trigger writing ideas have really enjoyed it. I hope you will too. And remember—NEVER STOP WRITING. You have the heart and soul of someone who sees things differently than the average writer. What you give to the world is irreplaceable! So, once you’ve completed a collection of your work, PUBLISH! ⚓︎

ABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.   Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.