Prickly [15 words or less]

Photo: Laura Salas

Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)!

15WOLs

Here are some Velcro?balls we’re throwing at targets all this week at a Young Authors Conference. I’m sharing the poetry activity here next week, so if you’re curious, stay tuned. Meanwhile, here are three things this picture reminds of:

1) pinball
2) kids who are rude and prickly to protect themselves
3) tennis lessons when I was a kid

And here’s my?first draft. Hmmm… I like the IDEA of a list poem of rhyming words. But I don’t care for the reality of how this came out…

Tennis Lessons

Sport.
Court.
Heat.
Feet.
Swing.
String.
Net.
Sweat.
Slam.
Wham.

–Laura Purdie Salas, all rights reserved

Now it’s your turn! Have fun and stick to 15 WORDS OR LESS!??(Title doesn’t count toward word count:>)?

[Note: I’m teaching Young Authors Conferences all week, so I won’t be commenting on poems. Boy. I am overwhelmed with deadlines and projects and revisions right now. So much going on! Hopefully things will settle down soon.]

82 Responses

  1. Red
    The color
    Of love
    Blue a sky
    Of sadness
    Prickled words
    Spell out life

    1. I like that you used the colors, and the prickly words from Velcro. Funny how I didn’t notice the colors at all.

  2. Red
    The color
    Of love
    Blue a sky
    Of sadness
    Prickled words
    Spell out life

    1. I like that you used the colors, and the prickly words from Velcro. Funny how I didn’t notice the colors at all.

  3. Prickity skin
    Mimics my emotions
    Warning :Back off
    And give me space.
    Non-verbal communication.

  4. Prickity skin
    Mimics my emotions
    Warning :Back off
    And give me space.
    Non-verbal communication.

    1. Again, that ‘prickly’, and I also like “Hit me, Catch me”. Like little kids chasing who they like on the playground.

    1. Again, that ‘prickly’, and I also like “Hit me, Catch me”. Like little kids chasing who they like on the playground.

  5. Planet Anxiety

    Blue Earth
    Red Mars
    band together
    among the stars;
    prickly tethers
    separate forever.

    Laura, enjoy your week. Busy brings production and continued inspiration. The colors in today’s 15 WOL are outstanding.

      1. Thank you Linda, and I like the “self-preservation” mode in your verse.

    1. I love how you talked about space your poem makes me think of space models kids make in school you could use the poem and model in the same project

      1. Thanks Jessica. Yes, I can visualize a mobile representation of the planets used as a model for a science project. Interesting thought.

        1. As a project the balls could have the words of the kids poem panted on them or in letter stickers

  6. Planet Anxiety

    Blue Earth
    Red Mars
    band together
    among the stars;
    prickly tethers
    separate forever.

    Laura, enjoy your week. Busy brings production and continued inspiration. The colors in today’s 15 WOL are outstanding.

      1. Thank you Linda, and I like the “self-preservation” mode in your verse.

    1. I love how you talked about space your poem makes me think of space models kids make in school you could use the poem and model in the same project

      1. Thanks Jessica. Yes, I can visualize a mobile representation of the planets used as a model for a science project. Interesting thought.

        1. As a project the balls could have the words of the kids poem panted on them or in letter stickers

  7. PERFECT MATCH

    Red
    Blue
    Me
    You

    Black
    Strapped
    Both
    Wrapped

    Step
    Chance
    Love
    Dance

    Andria W. Rosenbaum/all rights reserved

  8. PERFECT MATCH

    Red
    Blue
    Me
    You

    Black
    Strapped
    Both
    Wrapped

    Step
    Chance
    Love
    Dance

    Andria W. Rosenbaum/all rights reserved

  9. Woodsy Warfare

    Wrapped in
    its spiny armor
    a horse-chestnut
    has a fighting
    chance…barely
    …to survive.

    Diane Mayr, all rights reserved It really needs “the squirrel” as the final line, alas, too many words.

  10. Woodsy Warfare

    Wrapped in
    its spiny armor
    a horse-chestnut
    has a fighting
    chance…barely
    …to survive.

    Diane Mayr, all rights reserved It really needs “the squirrel” as the final line, alas, too many words.

  11. The list in your poem is true, though, Laura. I like it. Hope your own to-do list shrinks!

    Balls ? no bounce or roll
    stuck to walls was all
    their plight,
    to stick tight.
    Linda Baie ?All Right Reserved

    1. I like the first and last lines
      I’m not going put this poem on the blog
      But I had another thought the pic short
      Reminds me of cactus flowers

  12. The list in your poem is true, though, Laura. I like it. Hope your own to-do list shrinks!

    Balls ? no bounce or roll
    stuck to walls was all
    their plight,
    to stick tight.
    Linda Baie ?All Right Reserved

    1. I like the first and last lines
      I’m not going put this poem on the blog
      But I had another thought the pic short
      Reminds me of cactus flowers

  13. Laura, I like your idea. And congrats on being so busy. Sign of success.
    When I looked at this, I thought of all the other kinds of balls.

    Sport Needs

    Play ping-pong with paddle,
    baseball with bat,
    tennis with racket.
    When sunny, wear your hat.

    1. Pat, add a few more kinds of balls and you will have a great children’s poem with rhyme and rhythm — golf, football, croquet, soccer, polo, etc.

      1. Thanks, Martha.
        I meant to write “when golfing, wear a hat.” I made a list
        of a whole bunch of balls, but limited by time and only 15 words,
        I threw this together. It’s a rough, rough draft! Ha!
        I like your planet idea. Appropriate for that picture. Clever.

  14. Laura, I like your idea. And congrats on being so busy. Sign of success.
    When I looked at this, I thought of all the other kinds of balls.

    Sport Needs

    Play ping-pong with paddle,
    baseball with bat,
    tennis with racket.
    When sunny, wear your hat.

    1. Pat, add a few more kinds of balls and you will have a great children’s poem with rhyme and rhythm — golf, football, croquet, soccer, polo, etc.

      1. Thanks, Martha.
        I meant to write “when golfing, wear a hat.” I made a list
        of a whole bunch of balls, but limited by time and only 15 words,
        I threw this together. It’s a rough, rough draft! Ha!
        I like your planet idea. Appropriate for that picture. Clever.

  15. When the weather begs to go outside…

    Wish Velcro
    could help me
    stick to
    the task at hand.

  16. When the weather begs to go outside…

    Wish Velcro
    could help me
    stick to
    the task at hand.

  17. Pitch for Assistance: I Just Can’t Seem to Get the Ball Rolling Again

    Gave it my best shot.
    Where’d I land?
    Stuck!
    I need a helping hand…

    -Mary McKenna Siddals, all rights reserved

  18. Pitch for Assistance: I Just Can’t Seem to Get the Ball Rolling Again

    Gave it my best shot.
    Where’d I land?
    Stuck!
    I need a helping hand…

    -Mary McKenna Siddals, all rights reserved

  19. Black suspenders
    reach around,
    keep Grandpa’s bluejeans
    off the ground.

  20. Black suspenders
    reach around,
    keep Grandpa’s bluejeans
    off the ground.

  21. Fiery red sun
    Blue sky turning night
    Stars
    Green prickly branches
    Flowers unfold
    Wings swishing ecki ecki

    By Jessica Bigi

  22. Fiery red sun
    Blue sky turning night
    Stars
    Green prickly branches
    Flowers unfold
    Wings swishing ecki ecki

    By Jessica Bigi

  23. It’s 18 words but I don’t care. I like the poem. 🙂

    ENTRANCE
    Perspiration:
    I?ll be fine,
    I whisper
    ?This is mine.?
    Courage fastens
    To my heart,
    Curtain opens ?
    Play my part.

    © Charles Waters 2014 all rights reserved.

  24. It’s 18 words but I don’t care. I like the poem. 🙂

    ENTRANCE
    Perspiration:
    I?ll be fine,
    I whisper
    ?This is mine.?
    Courage fastens
    To my heart,
    Curtain opens ?
    Play my part.

    © Charles Waters 2014 all rights reserved.

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