Poetry Challenge #38-Picture This. . .

Joan of Arc’s was the face that launched a thousand ships:

Google "Joan of Arc" and 6,886 images pop up on one site. This one by an "unspecified" artist: Joan of Arc (Saint Joan c1412-1431) French national heroine during the Hundred Years' War between France and England. Joan entering Orleans in triumph, 1429. Nineteenth century Trade Card Chromolithograph'

Moving on…

In a 1910 promotion selling ads on trolly cars, Fred R Barnard wrote “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

And, in the immortal words of Rod Stewart and Ronnie Woods, “Every picture tells a story, don’t it?Hmmmmm Let’s see . . .

Poetry Challenge #38

Picture This . . .

Find a picture. It can be of anything. Look at the picture. Study it. Notice not just the main subject, but the background, the colors, the feelings.

Now write about the picture. In other words, write an Ekphrastic Poem. It could be thoughts from one of the people or objects in the photo. It could be description. It could be a story.

“Ekphrastic poetry has come to be defined as poems written about works of art; however, in ancient Greece, the term ekphrasis was applied to the skill of describing a thing with vivid detail.”

So what ever else you do, be sure to use vivid details.

If you’re missing the picture, The New York Times has a resource with pictures to use as prompts. Here’s the link to NY Times Picture Prompts.

Set the timer for 7 minutes.

Start writing!

Don’t think about it too much; just do it.

If you enjoyed this prompt, try your pen at Rattle.com Each month the Rattle team post an Ekphrastic Challenge—and they publish the winner (and pay) This is the September image. Here’s the link:

Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge at least 2900 days ago. We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the 7-Minute Poetry Challenge let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole dang poem. Scroll down and click on the comments!

Want the 7-Minute Poetry Challenge sent to your email?  Click on Fishbowl link and sign up to receive email notifications from Kelly's blog (aka The Fishbowl):

All who subscribe, comment or share a poem will be entered in . . .

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