As poets we spend so much time thinking about those ideas we wish to write about. As the saying goes, anything can be the focus of a poem. Well, pretty much everything... This week I completely flipped my thinking and began to consider those matters for which I hold absolutely no interest. This is quite clearly  a personal preference I'm exercising here and someone else's list may look decidedly different. That's as it should be. My poem is quite obviously a list poem and has a rhyming introduction. You could decribe it as an anti poem.  I Fail To See These Poems In Me I doubt that you will ever see These poems upon a page -by me Just forget it Don’t regret it They’re locked outside the gate Unneeded They shall remain forever unheeded  Topics I just fail to rate: My love for green trousers Admiration for influencers Garters Hot dog eating contests The thinness of Donald’s orange skin Wordle game result posters The history of lint Onions as gifts Recalling lost lemm...

 Sometimes an idea for a poem emerges when you are not necessarily in that focused zone, it rises up like a wisp of smoke and you feel compelled to explore the possibilities... Only this week I met some young writers who were exploring different physical settings for their writing, and several of them informed me that poetry revealed itself to them and they felt compelled to write in response to that call. A similar thing happened as I was compiling a list of the places I have lived throughout my life. It all began as a list making exercise. I was hoping to find new writing ideas hidden in the extensive list of places I have lived throughout my life; my personal home history. As I looked at my list, an idea for a poem emerged, and so I followed its siren song... Clearly, it's a list poem, but it's also uniquely personal. It reminds me of an iceberg, where a portion is revealed, but so much more lies beneath the surface. A bit intriguing and worthy of more excavation.  My Marve...

  We have all experienced a host of things 'just once' across our various lives. The poem presented below grew from a list I compiled in my writer's notebook concerning things I have only experienced once.  My initial quest was to create a list of things and then see what emerged. I did not know, at that time, a poem would rise up and out of my list.  Lists are important to writers/ poets. They stimulate thinking and ideas, and each listed item holds potential as a future writing topic or focus. Our 'Once' lists are not only fun to create, they can reveal hidden treasure... Once upon my time Once, Just once, In a lifetime -My lifetime to be exact I bought a small red car, -because it was all I could afford I had my haircut in Mooloolaba, -a somewhat spontaneous act Owned a cat named, Alice -who suffered strange fits Bought a goat herder’s hat on the recommendation of George Harrison well, through an advertisement to be accurate. Visited Halifax Nova Scotia and met a...

As a poet I freely admit, I love an opportunity to indulge in a bit of wordplay... Wordplay is an essential  life-source for poetry. For me, it adds instant appeal.  This poem uses a list structure and relies on a host of names to add a dash of intentional humour. Hope you hear it as the roll is called.   Roll call In primary school when my teacher called the roll each morning to mark our attendance our names were called and we had to reply PRESENT! Once someone said, PRESIDENT -and everyone laughed   I can still recall many of those names those faces I remember them well, our teacher calling on each of them to reply as the roll was  marked. They return once more…   Ben Downe –a flexible fellow Phillip Yagob – always hungry Al Batross- a bird lover Robin Banks- collected coins Rick O’Shea – always bouncing off walls Peter Houtt- lacked energy Ken Tuckey- loved fried chicken Con Ickle– had a pointy head ...

In  this post I am sharing a poem that focuses on the sense of sound. For the last few days I have wandered into different rooms of our house, at different times of the day. I consciously sat still and listened to the sounds around me. I recorded them in my notebook. In writing my poem I took those notes and shuffled, shaved, chopped and polished them in order to achieve my desired line order.  You might consider finding an alternative quiet place for yourself-a park, a garden or green space, a riverbank, a  valley, a shoreline and sit undisturbed for a while and listen...   It is often said ideas surround us and if we sit still for a while they will reveal themselves. My poem is quite obviously a list poem but it is also an exercise of observance. Poets need to invoke the senses, either individually, or in concert. It sharpens your observational skills. Hope you enjoy the 'sound' of my poem... Heard Around The House Sit still, Listen, Can you hear them? The sharp sl...

New words and terms enter our language all the time. In 2019 very few people knew the term, Covid-19. It is now spoken and written about, all around the world. Some words only stay in use for a short time and then gradually disappear from use, while others become part of everyday language. Words come and go continually. Like everyone else, I hope Covid-19 fades from our lips as quickly as possible... In recent years another term - 'fake news' has emerged and been regularly used in the print and visual media, by politicians (and one particular person, whose name I shall not mention here) and social commentators and influencers. Sometimes people use the term merely to stop others from reaching the truth. For this reason it has become a term that has been a source of a lot of argument and disagreement. It seems one person's fake news is seen as truth by another. It has become quite difficult to find the truth we all seek. It is easy to become confused regarding th...

I have just lifted this poem from my notebook and revised it further before presenting it here. It was a poem that gradually developed over a couple weeks. I just kept adding to it as names came to mind. It is what one might call a work of 'faction.' A mix of fact and fiction. Anyway, here it is! A list poem for Poetry Friday with a strong element of deliberate wordplay.  I laughed inwardly as I was composing it. Poetry as invention. Hope it makes you smile. CALL THE ROLL In primary school When my teacher marked the attendance roll each morning She would call out our names And we had to reply PRESENT! Once, someone replied, PRESIDENT! -and everyone rolled about laughing Our teacher even smiled a little bit, -but not much I can still recall many of those names Those faces of long ago Personalities of the past Our teacher calling on them to reply As the roll was marked They return to me once more Ghosts from those classroom days Ben Down...

I have been fortunate enough to publish two anthologies of poems. The poems I wrote were randomly included with no conscious connection to one another -apart from the fact that they were all a joy to write.  Sometimes though poets create anthologies where the poems are connected by a common theme. The anthology is created quite deliberately to explore these related ideas. Douglas Florian, an American poet, is very accomplished at establishing connections in this way. So many of his anthologies explore themes. A Douglas Florian List Poem about Winter that also uses rhyming couplets Below are some examples of these books. You will notice how Douglas brings his poems together around common themes -trees, marine creatures insects, the solar system. These books are part of my ever expanding poetry collection. Douglas Florian is not just a prolific and accomplished poet, he is always a great illustrator and painter. He remains a particularly fine exponent of list poe...

I invited my alter-ego, Alvin j Riot to share his view of the world and what he most valued, as we embark upon a brand new year. It's amazing how similar his view of worldly matters is to mine... The Manifesto of Alvin j Riot Be prepared to explore the outer limits of your own potential Discard your socks if your toe pokes through Always wear comfortable underwear Go fishing just to be alone with your thoughts -If you catch a fish consider it an added bonus Chip away at your ignorance -read If the sign says fast food think about it slowly Never meditate in the middle of the road Embrace simple pleasures Take time to listen to music every day Stop feeling guilty if your favourite ice cream flavor is vanilla Hold hands Wherever you are- be there! Try to find a job that brings you satisfaction Make certain the person you marry is your best friend Avoid conservatives. They are the beige people. Don’t throw bricks straight up Sleep in a comfortable bed Appr...