Spelling & w-a-t-e-r: a poem and prompt by Rob Carney

Rob Carney shares a story of learning to spell and homesickness in his December blog post for his series Old Roads, New Stories: A Blog Series on Terrain.org. The blog posts are short and full of writing inspiration. This post provides inspiration for how to describe emotion using imagery.

"I miss camels," he said. "Here, there are only cows."

Screw idioms. He'd hit on a far better way to say "I'm homesick." And right now, sitting in my house, I'm homesick too. Not for camels, for water.

And don’t miss Carney’s poem “Just Once I'd Like to Sneak Up on the Wind--” included in this post.

Try your hand at a similar poem by using imagery and concrete descriptions as a metaphor for homesickness or a place you miss. Maybe it’s a place you’ve been on vacation; maybe it’s your childhood home. Then share a link to your own blog post in the comments below.

Rob Carney's fourth book 88 Maps was just released by Lost Horse Press (distribution by University of Washington Press). Read the detailed review by Julie Marie Wade on The Rumpus here.

Other books and chapbooks include Story Problems and Weather Report, from Somondoco Press. You can also read his poetry in Terrain.org: 4th Annual Contest Winner and Issue 30. And listen to a new radio interview with Rob Carney.

If you like this post, please share with your writerly friends and/or follow my blog or like my Facebook page.