Our March creative writing workshop was dedicated to blackout and found poetry.
Blackout poetry is the poetic form of taking an existing text and blacking out words and lines to leave a new poem… The act of redacting or recomposing the original text by presenting the remaining non-blackened text as a new work. The poem is usually presented or read as is; the words that remain on the page as well as the blackouts are part of the poem.
Found poetry–at least as I’ve presented to the teens–are more often rearranged. Found poetry is the process of taking existing texts–this can be anything from a page of a book, news article, or even a computer manual–and selecting phrases or words, then refashioning, slicing, and reordering the selected text to present a new poem. According to poets.org, it is the “literary equivalent of a collage.”
The teen writers tried both of these forms as well as an altered form of blackout poetry using highlighters. They also wrote in pairs. Although every work is still an expression of the writer, this process felt less exposing since the original text was written by someone else. For those that normally struggle with poetry–as many of the teens in the workshop have admitted–this exercise makes writing poems less intimidating.
Check out what they’ve come up with!
Selected from the Teen Creative Writing Workshop, March 8, 2014, Pasadena Central Library:
The typed text below, particularly the line breaks, was interpreted from what was presented to me.
Blackout poetry by Johanna H., age 16
Original text from Under the Never Sky
Every breath felt
closed
while, he could only cough and pace until the pain
leaving a streak of
blood rested
against the wall
His
gut told him that
he wasn’t sure
her temper showed every
small emotion
this was the only way
warm blood decaying
scent.
He inhaled again, curious, but her mind was deep in the unconscious
He thought about
behind him
the crumbling dark
forcing him to crawl over broken cement and warped metal, pushing
luck in his world
Alarms broke
the silence
around him, so loud he felt the sound thrum in his chest
He led his head fall again
smoke
It smelled like
chemicals that burned hotter than fire
but it was nothing compared to
sin
It was bad enough
alone
he’d killed at least one of them
Found poetry by Kenny W., age 14
Original text from Publisher’s Weekly
Jane
returns to the Hollows
with a new name
and appearance
where no one knows
father, death, Luke
discovered her secrets
and threatens to expose her
Luke
disappears after the
two of them argue
Found poetry by Evan H., age 13
Original text from The Fall of the House of Usher
A dark autumn passing alone
through a view of
the House with a gloom spirit
with insufferable feeling of
a sentiment mind scenes of
images desolate
upon the mere house
upon vacant eye-like windows
upon a few rank bleak walls,
with an utter depression I can compare to
no earthly sensation
no goading of the imagination
I paused to think
Found poetry by Danielle J., age 16
Original text from Publisher’s Weekly
Two friendships and relationships are tested
when she and her young son
are caught in the crossfire of
stickup gone bad
their friendship
form by heart breaking
Feuding murder case begins with
The fact of unresolved love anguish
Draws people together and collectively
Pushes them apart. Realistic war
overshadowed by many flaws is
Bruising.
Found poetry
(by Jane Gov, librarian)
Original text from Steampunk Frankenstein
the creature whom
I feared
remain a cold
spectre
flesh tingle pulse beat
freed from its hideous
fortune
To view a listing of our upcoming programs, visit: http://cityofpasadena.net/library/teens/events_and_programs/