Giovanni Boccaccio Today I've gone Italian with an Ottava Rima poem. An Ottava Rima is a poetic form made up of eight lines that rhyme. Each line consists of eleven syllables. The Ottava Rima in its current form was first created by the Italian poet, Giovanni Boccaccio .  It is based on a poetic form then used in Sicily, incorporating an alternating rhyming scheme throughout its eight lines. The double rhyme in the last two verses was introduced later on. An Ottava Rima poem is made up of an octave with the rhyme pattern: ab ab ab cc This poem presented an interesting challenge, but then again a challenge is a good thing for a poet. I kept returning to it across a couple of weeks.  Distancing myself from the words allowed me to return with a clearer vision about what my poem needed in order to settle. Sometimes making a poem is akin to working with Lego pieces. When the word arrangement works, you hear everything click into place.  Some tinkering and line ...

I recently presented a poetry workshop for teachers in Hobart. Kate Neasy was one of those who attended. Kate followed up by emailing me one of her poems last week. It was a wow moment... Kate Neasy, a.k.a Kathryn Rae has written a poem that really resonates with me. It deserves sharing. Such a cleverly constructed poem. They say the best books -and poems to read are those that make us think. Well, this poem certainly did that. Kate's poem ponders commonly used idiomatic terms and begins to pose questions regarding their accuracy. Kate has kindly granted me permission to share her words. It gives me pleasure to present them on Poetry Friday. SO NOT Blue whales are not blue New Town is not so new Gold fish are not gold, A cold war is not really cold. A granny flat may be used by teens, A bean counter rarely handles beans, A silverfish does not swim, Happy hour is often rather grim. Daylight robbery can occur overnight, Surveillance may result in an oversight,...

To celebrate International Literacy Day, I decided to share a reading of a poem from my latest book, ' I Bet There's No Broccoli On The Moon.' I trust you enjoy it. Poetry is even more fun when it's read aloud. Click on the link below to hear the read aloud poem. Cisco The Smelly Alley Cat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzGyuRnfkgM

We can all write poems about objects, particularly those we value. You may be in possession of an object you cherish quite deeply, or simply find appealing. You may have an object given to you by a loved one. You may have an object which arouses curiosity or mystery. Something we call a curio. On occasions I have found myself writing odes to seemingly everyday objects. Let's Consider Objects Find an object of interest and place it in front of you. Now look at it closely. Bring all your senses into play and begin to focus on all its details. Check out your selected object from different distances and angles- close up with a magnifying glass, or from a distance. Try speaking to your object. Ask it questions. I suggest you do this when you are on your own, otherwise people may begin to think you are a bit loopy. But do it. Think about what your object might say if it had a voice. What would it tell you? Now, start gathering possible words: Where did you find or receive t...