Your Poetry: Reimagined Contest Results

Only four people submitted to this contest ( five if you count the one that dropped out ) so I decided there wouldn't be any 'runner's up' placements as it would seem pretty awkward to be the only one. This means all four contestants are coming away with $10 at the very least just for submitting a piece.

Thank you for taking part! <3

The prompt for my contest was to reimagine one of your least popular poems.

Despite there only being four contestants, I had a very surprising spread of unique entries from a sonnet, to a fibonacci ( which I didn't know was a thing! ) to combining several old poems into one.

So let's dive into these unique poems and my reasons behind giving them their placements!

Apologies for this coming out a day late. Vocal was having issues, so I had to wait for those issues to be resolved!

3rd Place - $10

Mike Singleton's 'Angel in the Snow' was a romantic sonnet with solid rhyming schemes. It achieved some creativity points thanks to the sonnet structure ( which I love! ), and for the fact that the original poem was a villanelle. Translating to a whole different structure while keeping the same feelings was impressive! However, the diction wasn't as creative as other entries, which is why it fell into third place.

I think if bolder word choice was used and more creative metaphors/similes towards the motif of snow, 'Angel in the Snow' would be even stronger!

Nicely done, Mike!

Erraticism - the action or tendency to be erratic; acting in a way that is unusual, inconsistent, or unexpected.

I think the title for Paul Stewart's poem says it all.

Paul decided to combine SEVEN different poems from his catalogue that hadn't gotten love in the past and make it all work together in one single poem. I commend him on the dedication that must have took!

His old poems contained free style, acrostic, and black-out styles, which made it a challenge in itself to find the common threads to this new, re-imagined piece.

But somehow...I think I managed to find a piece of every single poem in 'Life's Natural Erraticism'??

Its flow is, funny enough, a bit erratic, with out of the box diction that makes you pause and think. Upon first read-through, I was doing a little too much thinking and felt at times the poem felt a tad too bloated, but upon more readings it began to come together.

I think if this poem had been trimmed down a bit and made more focused, it would have come out stronger. It feels like a conglomeration of too many ideas.

At the end of the day, this was still a solid poem, and Paul took a very bold approach to the prompt. Good job, Paul!!

2nd Place - $15

I love it when poems teach me something new, and Angie the Archivist's poem 'Jester' did just that!

This was my first time encountering a Fibonacci poem. I was already familiar with the Fibonacci sequence, but had no idea poets had gone ahead and turned the mathematical sequence into a poetry form?? SO COOL.

This poem was very creative, especially given the fact that the original poem was a nonet. I liked that this new structure made the poem feel more theatrical, as if I was reading lines from a play. With touches of joy, whimsy, and humor, this entry became a standout.

The diction was solid, however the flow felt a little choppy. I think the generous use of ellipses hindered the reading experience, as I was pausing a lot when I read this poem out loud.

This was a very fun and creative poem, however. Well done, Angie!!

1st Place - $20

As soon as I finished Diane Foster's 'The Watcher in the Lamplight', I knew I had found my winner.

Taking the original poem ( which was already great! ) from the perspective of a dragon interaction ( epic fantasy ) to a perspective of a pet lizard chilling in his habitat ( modern day )?? I was cackling at how adorably creative it was.

With a combination of narrative drive, expert flow and amazing diction, I was spell-bound from the opening lines to the very end.

Here, in this place of small wonders,

a dragon does not need fire to be mighty—

only the patience to rest,

the wisdom to stay.

I wish I had some feedback to give, but it feels solid and polished. We seriously need more eyes on both these poems and this author! Congrats, Diane, and great job on your re-imagined poem!

Thank you to all the participants!

I really appreciate everyone who entered. I hope this little spotlight encourages you to keep writing and keep putting your work out there!

As for everyone else, go give these amazing pieces some well-deserved love!