“Imagism” in Tube Socks
Victoria C. Slotto, hosting dVerse Poets Pub’s “Meet the Bar” today urges participants to try to write poems in the style of “imagism,” that is, in the spare concrete and imagistic mode of William Carlos Williams, H.D., or Pound. (Victoria has a wonderful article much more fully describing the movement.)
This is a difficult challenge for very wordy me.
Here’s my attempt:
Tube Socks
How, in near night
grass, do
white cotton
socks
pulse light?
Right
(left right)
at our feet.
P.S. I have not been much involved in the bookselling busiess lately due to all the turmoil in my life, but please please please check out NOSE DIVE, a very silly comic novel written by me and illustrated by Jonathan Segal. At 99 cents (on Kindle) it’s an incredible bargain. Also available on paperback for a bit more. Thanks much!
Explore posts in the same categories: poetry, UncategorizedTags: "tube socks", Imagism attempt, manicddaily, ManicDDaily poetry, poem about socks
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ManicDDaily 
January 19, 2012 at 10:02 pm
Just bought the Kindle edition of Nosedive. Hoping I can get my 11 yr old reluctant reader to try it. I’m sure my 12 yr old will love it; she’s her younger sister’s polar opposite.
January 19, 2012 at 10:06 pm
Jennifer, thanks so much! If they like musicals, they will especially like it as it uses a lot of lyrics from favorite musicals–the ones I liked, of course, but I think, based on my kids, that they are still very popular with lyrics widely known. Hope so anyway. K.
January 19, 2012 at 10:16 pm
right left right at our feet…ha..love the word play in that…nicely done…i cant do minimalism…55 words is the best i got…just cant do it…you done well…smiles.
January 19, 2012 at 10:21 pm
Yes, I know what you mean!
January 19, 2012 at 10:37 pm
Tube socks… I love it! Interesting how this prompt has forced us to go out of the box.
January 19, 2012 at 11:18 pm
They do, too. (glow like that) This prompt has laid me low, but you did it quite neatly and made it look easy.
January 20, 2012 at 12:11 am
Ha! Thanks. Hard thing is reining in, giving up on profundity. (Lost cause anyway!) K.
January 19, 2012 at 11:32 pm
Love it–both the play on words —
“Right
(left right)
at our feet”
and that you could take such a thing as “tube socks” and make them poetic! Excellent!
January 20, 2012 at 12:17 am
ha nice…i think you done well… i only wear black socks but think i should try white one day just to experience the cotton socks light..nice
January 20, 2012 at 12:41 am
Well, it takes a certain kind of (somewhat dorky) person to carry off the white cotton socks. They may be out of place with an alto sax! k.
January 20, 2012 at 4:25 am
I thought it a difficult challenge, full stop. You rose above it magnificently. A poem I shall take away with me.
January 20, 2012 at 7:58 am
Ha. Thanks so much, David.
January 20, 2012 at 6:20 am
Ha! nice fun poem.. I am sure must have been difficult to write in few words .. very musical .
January 20, 2012 at 6:46 am
Love the poem, and bought the Kindle copy of your book. It isn’t really my thing (musicals – GACK!) but I love to read, and the first few pages were very good, so I will read it! (My wife will probably love it.) Best of luck to you with it! I hope it goes crazy and sells a bunch!
January 20, 2012 at 7:51 am
Thanks so much, Charles! Well, it kind of makes fun of musicals, so maybe you’ll like that part. Thanks again. And I hope your wife does like it. K.
January 20, 2012 at 9:46 am
I don’t think I have ever seen these kind of socks, perhaps I never really noticed. 😀 I love the playfulness, looking down at them, wiggling them and these wondering thoughts.
January 20, 2012 at 3:39 pm
I think your poem is a great example of imagism. You made it look so easy!
January 20, 2012 at 4:34 pm
Ha! Thanks.
January 20, 2012 at 5:10 pm
Sweet – love the socks. 🙂 Shows how poetry can be fun as well as satisfying; doesn’t have to be serious or rock the world. Good imagery!
January 20, 2012 at 5:24 pm
Perfect take on the prompt, Karin.
I spent an absolutely delightful afternoon with “Nose Dive” and give it ***** When I’ve finished visiting these poems, I will do a review on Amazon. It may be for kids, but this 60-something enjoyed it immensely.
January 20, 2012 at 8:51 pm
Victoria, you are too kind and put me to shame. I’ve been so busy and in a kind of tumultuous way as you can imagine, due to the death of my dad, and then all the catch up at work (among other things!) but I have my kindle powering up and am ready to roll with yours. I am looking forward to it.
Re “Nose Dive”–I think perhaps it may be more appealing to the young at heart than the truly young. So glad that you enjoyed it. K.
January 20, 2012 at 5:53 pm
I like the last three lines…that’s clever.
January 20, 2012 at 6:20 pm
Clever!
January 20, 2012 at 8:09 pm
This really feels like it might actually fit into the imagism category. Short, simple, clear. I like it.