The Poetics Project

A Community of Storytellers

[thepoeticsproject]

400 Years After Shakespeare's Death

We study and celebrate Shakespeare's works because they remind us of what it is to be human.

Believed to be one of the only true portraits of William Shakespeare. A lot of the others that depict him old and bald are just artists’ interpretations. On April 23rd, 1616, it is believed that William Shakespeare passed away. While we don’t have records of his death, we do have records of his funeral which occurred two days later on April 25th, 1616. At the age of 52, Shakespeare left behind a…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Poems for National Poetry Month

I want to share poetry with everyone this time of the year and you are not immune.

April is my favorite time of year. Not for the showers (although, rain’s nice), nor for the beginning of spring; rather, April is my favorite time of the year because it’s officially National Poetry Month and that means I get to spam everyone I know on Facebook with poems everyday, and sometimes twice a day, for a whole month. It’s also the month of William Shakespeare’s birth and death, so I…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Politics and Poetry: John Milton

Besides being the author of Paradise Lost, Milton was a revolutionary that overthrew a king.

Is it weird that I really dig John Milton’s hair? I wish mine curled that well without product. I’m just assuming they didn’t have hair products in the 1600s. John Milton lived during the Restoration period (1600-1798), also known as the Age of Enlightenment which occurred just after the Renaissance (1485-1660), in England and was one of the most celebrated poets of the era. It was Milton’s goal…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Literary Paraphernalia: Adult Coloring Books

If you're interested in adult coloring books, you could buy a generic one from a chain-market, or buy an original and awesome one from Etsy.

As soon as adult coloring books became a thing (I really don’t know what defines “a thing” – I just know that everyone I know is talking about them), I wanted to do a post taking a look at the trend. What I was really curious about was what made a coloring book “adult” versus one for kids or one for all ages. The general answer seems to be that adult color books are a heck of a lot harder to…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

The Martian v. The Martian

The book was better, despite Matt Damon being shirtless in the movie, and here's why.

The Martian novel, written by Andy Weir, is a self-publishing success. In 2011, he self-published the book and it got enough attention to garner him a contract with Crown Books. In 2014, The Martian was re-released with the help of Crown and became one of the top selling books on Amazon.Com. And then it became a movie. Is it just me, or does it look like he’s doing a happy dance? I started…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

NaNoWriMoNoShaveNo

Like Moby-Dick, but without all the whale gut descriptions. Instead, you get facial hair. #NaNoWriMoNoShaveNo #NaNoWriMo #NoShaveNovember

Mashups are a popular thing, right? Only if you watch this show. Wait, let me try that again. Has this ever happened to you? You: Hey, I want to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), but I also want to participate in No Shave November for cancer awareness. I can’t do both at once, can I? Me: Wait! You can! You CAN do two things at once. You: Why yes, in this scenario, you are…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Busy? Break Your Writing Projects Into Small Chunks

Finding time can be hard, but most of us can find a half-hour to spare. Here's how to use that time wisely for writing.

I have a confession: this blog has been going strong for 3+ years and lately, because the other editor (Mel) and I have been really, really busy, we haven’t been posting nearly as often as we used to. That’s because writing takes time, and with her new gig as a publisher (everyone say CONGRATULATIONS to her, by the way) and my 5-6 academic jobs (and I’m not exaggerating there!), we’re fairly low…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

The Two Book Rule

"Well, what would I do if I finished the first book and didn't have the second book? Not read?"

My friend is much wiser than me. He, you see, brings at least two books with him every place he goes. I sometimes bring a book, or my kindle, but sometimes I forget and I’ll just leave the house with myself, my keys, my wallet, and my cellphone. Sometimes I get really, really bored. He, on the other hand, always has two books with him to read, so he’s generally always got something to do if…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

WWII: Not an Original Setting Anymore

"Let's be honest here, reader: Nazis are super easy targets. They are inherently wrong and bad."

I’m part of a book club at work. We enjoy getting together and discussing a book every two weeks over lunch. But, for some reason, more than half the books we read are set in WWII. All of the villains are, generally, Nazis. This is the current book I’m working on for book club. It’s not bad, but I’m tired of WWII. Maybe if I hadn’t of read 6 other WWII related books for book club before, I’d be…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Throwback Thursday: 10 Male Authors who Bring Sexy to the Paperback

Throwback Thursday: 10 Male Authors who Bring Sexy to the Paperback

Authors are known for a lot of things–being eccentric, loving cats, even, well, being dicks–but being sexy isn’t usually one of them. For that reason, we at The Poetics Project have decided to shed a little light on all of the sexy male writers out there.   1. Rupert Brooke (Credit: Public Domain)   Rupert Brooke was born in 1887. Brooke wrote for most his life; he was known for being quite…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

From Amora to Zatanna: Convention Round-Up #1

Spider-Man and Dragon Age and BDSM! Oh my!

Guess what comic junkies? I was fortunate enough to attend the San Diego Comicon for a couple of days (thanks Neo!) and, man, was that an experience! I was in the same vicinity as some of my favorite entertainers and creators… and spent entirely too much money. But hey! My bad money-spending habit is your reward; here are some titles I picked up while walking the ever seductive floor of vendors:…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Story Shots: Equality

"What I wore was not limiting; what was limiting was the way I was talked down to and ignored by men who felt I was in need of rescue."

Thanks to the Supreme Court, we now have one form of equality on the books: marriage equality. But the battle for equality doesn’t stop there. While marriage is a great start, there are many battles left to fight such as racial equality, income equality, and, of course, gender equality. With that in mind, we present our creative nonfiction stories around the theme of equality. “Amanda! You aren’t…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Throwback Thursday: Bringing Readers Inside the Bedroom

"For most of us, sex doesn't equate to feeling like a superhero diving through atomic nuclei and causing statisticians to rejoice."

Writing about sex is hard (no pun intended). While there are plenty of writers who have found their niche writing romance novels filled to the brim with sensual scenes, the majority of us do anything to avoid a sex scene. As my book editing professor has mentioned on more than one occasion, readers don’t need to be taken into the bedroom. In other words, describe your lovers ripping each other’s…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Throwback Thursday: Three Tips to Beat Writer's Block

"Kill your story or poem or whatever it is you are working on. End it right where it is at."

It happens to us all – we’re in the middle of a piece of work and it is just inspired. Everything flows. The words fit perfectly. The idea is seamless and flows like the Nile forming an oasis in a desert of blank pages. And then the phone rights. Or you get an email alert that snaps you out of the zone. Maybe someone knocks on the door. Whatever happens and then the zone is gone. Writing all of a…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

From Amora to Zatanna: Ant-Man Defense

Now here is where I might lose some of you comic junkies, but hear me out! With the release of Ant-Man in theaters earlier this month, I felt it appropriate to talk about this controversial character and shed some light on why some comic fans, particularly female comic readers, have a bone to pick with him. Namely, I want to talk about the original Ant-Man: Hank Pym. Warning: This post contains…

View On WordPress

[thepoeticsproject]

Throwback Thursday: Harper Lee's advise on introductions. This summer I decidedly drove to Northern California to spend some time with my family and simultaneously tutor my younger sister.

[thepoeticsproject]

To Read or Not To Read: Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman

Yet another controversy has been thrown into the pile of controversies around Harper Lee's "Go Set a Watchman." Should you read it?

Back when Harper Lee announced her new book, Go Set a Watchman, this blog talked about the controversies around the release of the book and the common fears (and failures) that came with sequels released so long from the original work. What we mainly focused on was how this shouldn’t be the case for Go Set a Watchman because, according to Harper Lee, Go Set a Watchman was actually the original…

View On WordPress