Poetry Fishbowl Open!
Jun. 6th, 2017 11:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThe Poetry Fishbowl is now CLOSED. Thank you all for your time and attention. Please keep an eye on this page as I'm still writing.
Starting now, the Poetry Fishbowl is open! Today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I will be checking this page periodically throughout the day. When people make suggestions, I'll pick some and weave them together into a poem ... and then another ... and so on. I'm hoping to get a lot of ideas and a lot of poems.
Click to read the linkback poem "We Will Fade into You" (11 verses, standalone).
What Is a Poetry Fishbowl?
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
In this online version of a Poetry Fishbowl, I begin by setting a theme; today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I invite people to suggest characters, settings, and other things relating to that theme. Then I use those prompts as inspiration for writing poems.
Cyberfunded Creativity
I'm practicing cyberfunded creativity. If you enjoy what I'm doing and want to see more of it, please feed the Bard. The following options are currently available:
1) Sponsor the Fishbowl -- Here is a PayPal button for donations. There is no specific requirement, but $1 is the minimum recommended size for PayPal transactions since they take a cut from every one. You can also donate via check or money order sent by postal mail. If you make a donation and tell me about it, I promise to use one of your prompts. Anonymous donations are perfectly welcome, just won't get that perk. General donations will be tallied, and at the end of the fishbowl I’ll post a list of eligible poems based on the total funding; then the audience can vote on which they want to see posted.
2) Swim, Fishie, Swim! -- A feature in conjunction with fishbowl sponsorship is this progress meter showing the amount donated. There are multiple perks, the top one being a half-price poetry sale on one series when donations reach $300.
3) Buy It Now! -- Gakked from various e-auction sites, this feature allows you to sponsor a specific poem. If you don't want to wait for some editor to buy and publish my poem so you can read it, well, now you don't have to. Sponsoring a poem means that I will immediately post it on my blog for everyone to see, with the name of the sponsor (or another dedicate) if you wish; plus you get a nonexclusive publication right, so you can post it on your own blog or elsewhere as long as you keep the credits intact. You'll need to tell me the title of the poem you want to sponsor. I'm basing the prices on length, and they're comparable to what I typically make selling poetry to magazines (semi-pro rates according to Duotrope's Digest).
0-10 lines: $5
11-25 lines: $10
26-40 lines: $15
41-60 lines: $20
Poems over 60 lines, or with very intricate structure, fall into custom pricing.
4) Commission a scrapbook page. I can render a chosen poem in hardcopy format, on colorful paper, using archival materials for background and any embellishments. This will be suitable for framing or for adding to a scrapbook. Commission details are here. See latest photos of sample scrapbooked poems: "Sample Scrapbooked Poems 1-24-11"
5) Spread the word. Echo or link to this post on your LiveJournal, other blog, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Digg, StumbleUpon, or any other social network. Useful Twitter hashtags include #poetryfishbowl and #promptcall. Encourage people to come here and participate in the fishbowl. If you have room for it, including your own prompt will give your readers an idea of what the prompts should look like; ideally, update later to include the thumbnail of the poem I write, and a link to the poem if it gets published. If there is at least one new prompter or donor, I will post an extra freebie poem.
Linkback perk: I have a spare series poem available, and each linkback will reveal a verse of the poem. One person can do multiple links if they're on different services, like Dreamwidth or Twitter, rather than all on LiveJournal. Comment with a link to where you posted. "We Will Fade into You" has 11 verses and is a standalone.
Additional Notes
1) I customarily post replies to prompt posts telling people which of their prompts I'm using, with a brief description of the resulting poem(s). If you want to know what's available, watch for those "thumbnails."
2) You don't have to pay me to see a poem based on a prompt that you gave me. I try to send copies of poems to people, mostly using the LJ message function. (Anonymous prompters will miss this perk unless you give me your eddress.) These are for-your-eyes-only, though, not for sharing.
3) Sponsors of the Poetry Fishbowl in general, or of specific poems, will gain access to an extra post in appreciation of their generosity. While you're on the Donors list, you can view all of the custom-locked posts in that category. Click the "donors" tag to read the archive of those. I've also posted a list of other donor perks there. I customarily leave donor names on the list for two months, so you'll get to see the perk-post from this month and next.
4) After the Poetry Fishbowl concludes, I will post a list of unsold poems and their prices, to make it easier for folks to see what they might want to sponsor.
5) If donations total $100 by Friday evening then you get a free $15 poem; $150 gets you a free $20 poem; and $200 gets you a free epic, posted after the Poetry Fishbowl. These will usually be series poems if I have them; otherwise I may offer non-series poems or series poems in a different size. If donations reach $250, you get one step toward a bonus fishbowl; three of these activates the perk, and they don't have to be three months in a row. Everyone will get to vote on which series, and give prompts during the extra fishbowl, although it may be a half-day rather than a whole day. If donations reach $300, there will be a half-price sale.
Feed the Fish!
Now's your chance to participate in the creative process by posting ideas for me to write about. Today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I'll be soliciting ideas for bigots, victims, upstanders, ordinary people, the women that men don't see, QUILTBAG folks, people of color, the misunderstood, outcasts, nemeses, bullies, abusers, oppressors, slavers, psycho bosses, troubled relationships, supervillains, superheroes, activists, poking a bigot in the eye, fleeing in terror, picking on people, resisting oppression, speaking truth to power, upsetting applecarts, facing your demons, feeding the right wolf, punching up, protesting, lunch counters, bars, reservations, slums, schools, playgrounds, counseling offices, government buildings, the Oval Office, dark alleys, oceans, liminal zones, mad science labs, The Tower, battlegrounds, graveyards, other places of power, internalized oppression, bigotry, racism, other isms that should be wasms, manifestos, identity literature, picket signs, disruptions, unusual vulnerabilities, minority languages, history written by the losers, radical transformation, the unspeakable, the inescapable, the indestructible, the nature of humanity (or lack thereof), hubris, and poetic forms in particular. But anything is welcome, really. If you manage to recommend a form that I don't recognize, I will probably pounce on it and ask you for its rules. I do have The New Book of Forms by Lewis Turco which covers most common and many obscure forms.
I'll post at least one of the fishbowl poems here so you-all can enjoy it. (Remember, you get an extra freebie poem if someone new posts a prompt or makes a donation, and additional perks at $100-$300 in donations. Linkbacks reveal verses of "We Will Fade into You." The rest of the poems will go into my archive for magazine submission.
Starting now, the Poetry Fishbowl is open! Today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I will be checking this page periodically throughout the day. When people make suggestions, I'll pick some and weave them together into a poem ... and then another ... and so on. I'm hoping to get a lot of ideas and a lot of poems.
Click to read the linkback poem "We Will Fade into You" (11 verses, standalone).
What Is a Poetry Fishbowl?
Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.
In this online version of a Poetry Fishbowl, I begin by setting a theme; today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I invite people to suggest characters, settings, and other things relating to that theme. Then I use those prompts as inspiration for writing poems.
Cyberfunded Creativity
I'm practicing cyberfunded creativity. If you enjoy what I'm doing and want to see more of it, please feed the Bard. The following options are currently available:
1) Sponsor the Fishbowl -- Here is a PayPal button for donations. There is no specific requirement, but $1 is the minimum recommended size for PayPal transactions since they take a cut from every one. You can also donate via check or money order sent by postal mail. If you make a donation and tell me about it, I promise to use one of your prompts. Anonymous donations are perfectly welcome, just won't get that perk. General donations will be tallied, and at the end of the fishbowl I’ll post a list of eligible poems based on the total funding; then the audience can vote on which they want to see posted.
2) Swim, Fishie, Swim! -- A feature in conjunction with fishbowl sponsorship is this progress meter showing the amount donated. There are multiple perks, the top one being a half-price poetry sale on one series when donations reach $300.
3) Buy It Now! -- Gakked from various e-auction sites, this feature allows you to sponsor a specific poem. If you don't want to wait for some editor to buy and publish my poem so you can read it, well, now you don't have to. Sponsoring a poem means that I will immediately post it on my blog for everyone to see, with the name of the sponsor (or another dedicate) if you wish; plus you get a nonexclusive publication right, so you can post it on your own blog or elsewhere as long as you keep the credits intact. You'll need to tell me the title of the poem you want to sponsor. I'm basing the prices on length, and they're comparable to what I typically make selling poetry to magazines (semi-pro rates according to Duotrope's Digest).
0-10 lines: $5
11-25 lines: $10
26-40 lines: $15
41-60 lines: $20
Poems over 60 lines, or with very intricate structure, fall into custom pricing.
4) Commission a scrapbook page. I can render a chosen poem in hardcopy format, on colorful paper, using archival materials for background and any embellishments. This will be suitable for framing or for adding to a scrapbook. Commission details are here. See latest photos of sample scrapbooked poems: "Sample Scrapbooked Poems 1-24-11"
5) Spread the word. Echo or link to this post on your LiveJournal, other blog, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Digg, StumbleUpon, or any other social network. Useful Twitter hashtags include #poetryfishbowl and #promptcall. Encourage people to come here and participate in the fishbowl. If you have room for it, including your own prompt will give your readers an idea of what the prompts should look like; ideally, update later to include the thumbnail of the poem I write, and a link to the poem if it gets published. If there is at least one new prompter or donor, I will post an extra freebie poem.
Linkback perk: I have a spare series poem available, and each linkback will reveal a verse of the poem. One person can do multiple links if they're on different services, like Dreamwidth or Twitter, rather than all on LiveJournal. Comment with a link to where you posted. "We Will Fade into You" has 11 verses and is a standalone.
Additional Notes
1) I customarily post replies to prompt posts telling people which of their prompts I'm using, with a brief description of the resulting poem(s). If you want to know what's available, watch for those "thumbnails."
2) You don't have to pay me to see a poem based on a prompt that you gave me. I try to send copies of poems to people, mostly using the LJ message function. (Anonymous prompters will miss this perk unless you give me your eddress.) These are for-your-eyes-only, though, not for sharing.
3) Sponsors of the Poetry Fishbowl in general, or of specific poems, will gain access to an extra post in appreciation of their generosity. While you're on the Donors list, you can view all of the custom-locked posts in that category. Click the "donors" tag to read the archive of those. I've also posted a list of other donor perks there. I customarily leave donor names on the list for two months, so you'll get to see the perk-post from this month and next.
4) After the Poetry Fishbowl concludes, I will post a list of unsold poems and their prices, to make it easier for folks to see what they might want to sponsor.
5) If donations total $100 by Friday evening then you get a free $15 poem; $150 gets you a free $20 poem; and $200 gets you a free epic, posted after the Poetry Fishbowl. These will usually be series poems if I have them; otherwise I may offer non-series poems or series poems in a different size. If donations reach $250, you get one step toward a bonus fishbowl; three of these activates the perk, and they don't have to be three months in a row. Everyone will get to vote on which series, and give prompts during the extra fishbowl, although it may be a half-day rather than a whole day. If donations reach $300, there will be a half-price sale.
Feed the Fish!
Now's your chance to participate in the creative process by posting ideas for me to write about. Today's theme is "Poke ALL the bigots in the eye." I'll be soliciting ideas for bigots, victims, upstanders, ordinary people, the women that men don't see, QUILTBAG folks, people of color, the misunderstood, outcasts, nemeses, bullies, abusers, oppressors, slavers, psycho bosses, troubled relationships, supervillains, superheroes, activists, poking a bigot in the eye, fleeing in terror, picking on people, resisting oppression, speaking truth to power, upsetting applecarts, facing your demons, feeding the right wolf, punching up, protesting, lunch counters, bars, reservations, slums, schools, playgrounds, counseling offices, government buildings, the Oval Office, dark alleys, oceans, liminal zones, mad science labs, The Tower, battlegrounds, graveyards, other places of power, internalized oppression, bigotry, racism, other isms that should be wasms, manifestos, identity literature, picket signs, disruptions, unusual vulnerabilities, minority languages, history written by the losers, radical transformation, the unspeakable, the inescapable, the indestructible, the nature of humanity (or lack thereof), hubris, and poetic forms in particular. But anything is welcome, really. If you manage to recommend a form that I don't recognize, I will probably pounce on it and ask you for its rules. I do have The New Book of Forms by Lewis Turco which covers most common and many obscure forms.
I'll post at least one of the fishbowl poems here so you-all can enjoy it. (Remember, you get an extra freebie poem if someone new posts a prompt or makes a donation, and additional perks at $100-$300 in donations. Linkbacks reveal verses of "We Will Fade into You." The rest of the poems will go into my archive for magazine submission.
Re: Yes...
Date: 2017-06-07 03:52 am (UTC)Woohoo!
>> THey still a lot o'biggotry an' sit in my place, though, <<
Every little bit helps, though.
>> an' from bein' aroun' people who don't tolerate makin' me have less o'one now-I just kinda learnd to deal wi'it 'cause I didn't thank it wer gunna be any other way. <<
That's the #1 advantage of farmemory: it makes me harder to fool with that nonsense, because I can usually remember somewhere else doing it better. Pisses people off when I poke holes in their reality tunnel, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Ignorance it NOT bliss.
>> Bein' out among others who say it ain't OK make me wonder how much other shit I been toleratin' 'cause I didn't know nothin' else. <<
General rule: if it's hurting someone, it ain't OK.
You can also look for people in other cultures to check what they think of a practice. Some might agree with the nonsense, but usually someone has a clue and can explain why The Thing is a bad and stupid thing not to be done.
Re: Yes...
Date: 2017-06-07 04:21 am (UTC)A-fuckin'greed. But now we dealin' wi'a helluva lotta paranoya 'cause half-breeds an' shifters are 'oh my god' less intelligent/have the traits of their half-nonhuman sicde )half-incubi/half something els )Either human or elf) for instance...an' there be some hospitals we done had to verly nearly shut down 'cause they wouldn't treat shifters wi'techniques for fear they'd go back to animalistic instincts an' forget where they be an' hurt they caregivers )EWhich sometimes happen, but it rare, and don't happen if they got people they trust wi'em, like, oh I dunno they mats an' shit? Or someone they pick, even if ya don't think they themselves is stable enough. Trust the damn shifter'smind-it hardly ever worong. >.<
I be startin' to do that-though for all we talk, ya one of the few multicultural conversant people we done come across. Most of the shit we know come from our own instinctive memory-an' we afraid to say much about it 'cause this shell's been sodamn conditioned that farmemmory's bad that a lot o'us have a hard time usin' it lotsa times. It gettin' better thanks to meditation, paces like this where we can talk it wi'out bein' judged an' shit, but we ain't quite there yet.
-Jay~
Re: Yes...
Date: 2017-06-07 05:09 am (UTC)Yeah, we had the same fool problem with "negro hospitals" here, and people died because black doctors wouldn't treat them. >_< Any time there's a difference, some idjit will get on and ride it like a rented pony. Same arguments every time.
>> Which sometimes happen, but it rare, and don't happen if they got people they trust wi'em, like, oh I dunno they mats an' shit? <<
1) Almost any sentient being will lose their grip and go atavistic when terrified, in severe pain, fevered enough to hallucinate, or otherwise grossly impaired. It is the responsibility of medics to understand when this happens and how to handle it without letting anyone get hurt. But it still happens, every EMT has gotten conked by a flailing patient at some point. A good service just reduces it to a bare minimum.
2) Emotional first aid is crucial, because it does fuckall good to save someone from a heart attack only to give them PTSD that kills them a few months later. Our world largely sucks at this. But hey, that thing is portable, all you need to know is what it is and you can roll it out anywhere. What do shifters find soothing? If their mate, and company is not feasible, try rubbing a clean cloth over smelly body parts. The scent might help. Telling people what's going on is almost always useful too. Bullying people really is not.
>> I be startin' to do that-though for all we talk, ya one of the few multicultural conversant people we done come across. <<
Glad I could help.
>> Most of the shit we know come from our own instinctive memory-an' we afraid to say much about it 'cause this shell's been sodamn conditioned that farmemmory's bad that a lot o'us have a hard time usin' it lotsa times.<<
That happens to any ability that people punish or disrespect. You might try looking for material from cultures that do respect it. Hindu and Buddhist have tons of stuff. Druze all seem to be lama-quality or close to it, but nowhere near as much info, alas.
>> It gettin' better thanks to meditation, paces like this where we can talk it wi'out bein' judged an' shit, but we ain't quite there yet.<<
It's good that you're getting better. Give it time. And remember that facts are the best antidote to gaslighting. If people said your memories were bad or crazy, check the facts. Were those people generally decent and honest? If yes, they are more likely right; if no, their information is probably unreliable. Do you get useful things out of the memories, or problems? If useful, go with that; if problems, you may be better off trying to ignore them.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is one of the best sources I have found for fixing that kind of bad tape. It's got some great logic. You just have to backcheck it because sometimes it slips into the same thing but opposite polarity.
Wrong: "My friend didn't call. She probably hates me." --> "She's probably just busy."
Right: "My friend didn't call. I don't know why. I can ask her, ignore it, or watch to see if a pattern forms."