I have a confession to make. The Black Out Poem has captured my imagination. I find it interesting to take a page filled with writing and turn it into something often contrary to the original meaning. It’s like playing with someone else’s words and making them become my own. Free verse is the best way to work with this form of poetry. There are many pages of Rebecca Hunt’s Mr. Chartwell left. I’m going by the old cliché “waste not, want not.” I plan to use this book until it runs out of words to create Black Out verses. The poem this black out poem I called The Right Thing to do
About Black Out Poetry and The Right Thing to do
Poet takes a black marker and redacts words until a poem is formed. It is important to note the text and redacted words form a visual poem.
Method to use
1. Identify source text. The source can be a newspaper, a page from a book, or any written text.
2. Draw a box around keywords or phrases.
3. Make Connections between boxes. (This is optional.)
4. Color the rest in with a marker. You can use any color. The most common color used is black.
I found this style of creating a poem unique from anything I’ve ever tried before. The words are already provided, and the challenge is to make something poetic out of the text. I decided to use Mr. Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt to create these poems.
The Right Thing to do “Could you stop? I really hate it.” A form of punishment Enough Enough tedious wavering. “This wasn’t a decision.” Sitting there Display of magnificent disappointment. Frequencies and recorded “Make the choice.” Secretly enjoying the message. She imagined Her arms around his neck Intuitive memory Shimmering strength “I can’t seem to make a decision. I don’t know, The right thing to do.”
Who is Molly Shea?
Molly Shea is an accomplished fictional short story writer from Indiana who writes short stories and novels about a fictional town called Tecumseh. To read more of her short stories and adventures, click here.
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This is wonderful.
Thank you.