Sunday, April 30, 2023

NaPo23 Day 30 Inspo

One last piece! Today’s challenge is to write a Lipogram inspired by a piece of music.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
An image of two earbud earphones splayed out on a white page. Between them in dot matrix art is a rainbow spectrum that either looks like music soundwaves or a cityscape reflected in water.
Image source: Inc. article: “Want to Boost Your Productivity? Science Says Listen to Music With These 6 Rules In Mind (A productivity hack that's a pleasure to implement.)”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: An image of two earbud earphones splayed out on a white page. Between them in dot matrix art is a rainbow spectrum that either looks like music soundwaves or a cityscape reflected in water. End image description.]

Saturday, April 29, 2023

NaPo23 Day 29 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Sonnet inspired by the sea.

A dramatically curving wave in bright sunshine of the type much enamoured by surfers
Image source: Country Living gallery of “25 Inspiring Ocean Quotes”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A dramatically curving wave in bright sunshine of the type much enamoured by surfers. End image description.]

Friday, April 28, 2023

NaPo23 Day 28 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Liwuli inspired by your choice of subject.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 28 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black.
Image source: Lovingly hand-crafted in CorelDraw

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 28 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black. End image description.]

Thursday, April 27, 2023

NaPo23 Day 27 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by a random passage from a book.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
Against a dark background, a hardback book is open to let random, glowing letters spill upwards from its blank, white pages.
Image source: Page Turner Awards 2020: City Fiction Prize

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: Against a dark background, a hardback book is open to let random, glowing letters spill upwards from its blank, white pages. End image description.]

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

NaPo23 Day 26 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by love.

An image that resembles a series of simple cartoon loveheart outlines as if cut out of successive layers receding backwards, pale pink on the top layer and shading through to the deep red of the central shape. Vaguely resembles the opening of the old-fashioned Warner Bros. cartoons.
Image source: Guardian article: “What is love – and is it all in the mind?”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: An image that resembles a series of simple cartoon loveheart outlines as if cut out of successive layers receding backwards, pale pink on the top layer and shading through to the deep red of the central shape. Vaguely resembles the opening of the old-fashioned Warner Bros. cartoons. End image description.]

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

NaPo23 Day 25 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Glosa inspired by today's weather.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A dramatic, night-time photo of two large, jagged lightning bolts connecting the earth and dense cloud, which is brightly underlit by the lightning. There are multiple tendrils of subtly different colours arcing off the main bolts. A sheeting effect beyond the lightning seems to imply that it is raining very heavily. At the very bottom of the image is a town or city, showing tiny, mostly orange lights.
Image source: National Geographic resource library about weather

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A dramatic, night-time photo of two large, jagged lightning bolts connecting the earth and dense cloud, which is brightly underlit by the lightning. There are multiple tendrils of subtly different colours arcing off the main bolts. A sheeting effect beyond the lightning seems to imply that it is raining very heavily. At the very bottom of the image is a town or city, showing tiny, mostly orange lights. End image description.]

Monday, April 24, 2023

NaPo23 Day 24 Inspo

With only a week to go, today’s challenge is to write a Mothra inspired by the random word generator.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

12 yellow dice with black capital letters printed on them. Each has a smaller numeral to the bottom right of the letter. They are facing in a variety of directions and spell no recognisable word in English unless you're really reaching for one in the higgledy-piggledy combinations.
Image source: Wikicommons media file for letter dice

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: 12 yellow dice with black capital letters printed on them. Each has a smaller numeral to the bottom right of the letter. They are facing in a variety of directions and spell no recognisable word in English unless you're really reaching for one in the higgledy-piggledy combinations. End image description.]

Sunday, April 23, 2023

NaPo23 Day 23 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by shoes.

A pile of miscellaneous children's shoes and slippers, many grubby, worn, or torn, in a big, jumbled pile.
Image source: Guardian article: “Expandable shoes for children aim to cut landfill waste”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A pile of miscellaneous children's shoes and slippers, many grubby, worn, or torn, in a big, jumbled pile. End image description.]

Saturday, April 22, 2023

NaPo23 Day 22 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by a disastrous meal.

On a polished wooden table is an enormous plate piled high with what looks like roast potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, carrots that still have their green tops, and some kind of pale roast meat with dark, crispy bits. face-down in the plate is a person with light, tan skin, short, dark brown hair, and a red sweater over a white collared shirt, wearing a sky blue paper crown. Their features are invisible and they're clutching a sharp knife in the hand nearest the viewer. There are condiments and shiny Christmas crackers on the table, along with folded white napkins.
Image source: Manchester Evening News article: “Christmas dinner disasters: Burnt the pigs in blankets? Dropped the turkey? Don't worry you're not alone”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: On a polished wooden table is an enormous plate piled high with what looks like roast potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, carrots that still have their green tops, and some kind of pale roast meat with dark, crispy bits. face-down in the plate is a person with light, tan skin, short, dark brown hair, and a red sweater over a white collared shirt, wearing a sky blue paper crown. Their features are invisible and they're clutching a sharp knife in the hand nearest the viewer. There are condiments and shiny Christmas crackers on the table, along with folded white napkins. End image description.]

Friday, April 21, 2023

NaPo23 Day 21 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write an Acrostic inspired by joy.

A slightly blobby smiley face (two eyes and a mouth, no other outline) drawn in black on a patchy yellow background with jagged shapes in various bright colours haunting either side of the image.
Image source: GQ Magazine article: “The Happiness Project: Finding Joy in Tough Times” Illustration by Keir Novesky

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A slightly blobby smiley face (two eyes and a mouth, no other outline) drawn in black on a patchy yellow background with jagged shapes in various bright colours haunting either side of the image. End image description.]

Thursday, April 20, 2023

NaPo23 Day 20 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Limerick inspired by your choice of subject.

A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 20 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black.
Image source: Lovingly hand-crafted in CorelDraw

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 20 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black. End image description.]

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

NaPo23 Day 19 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write an Elegy inspired by heroism.

A simple, rounded, cartoon humanoid figure that has one arm raised and the opposite foot raised, a shape like a cloak trailing behind against a plain, black background. Within the thick, white lines of the figure is a word cloud of words in shades of teal and aquamarine. they say things like Curious, Observant, Calm, Peaceful, Grounded, Friendly, Grateful, Accepting, Encouraging, Empathetic, Caring, Understanding, Inviting, Appreciative, Patient, Delighted, Attentive, Allowing, etc. The words are repeated in a variety of sizes.
Image source: The Good Men Project Article: “Heroism is a Mindset, Not a Moment”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A simple, rounded, cartoon humanoid figure that has one arm raised and the opposite foot raised, a shape like a cloak trailing behind against a plain, black background. Within the thick, white lines of the figure is a word cloud of words in shades of teal and aquamarine. they say things like Curious, Observant, Calm, Peaceful, Grounded, Friendly, Grateful, Accepting, Encouraging, Empathetic, Caring, Understanding, Inviting, Appreciative, Patient, Delighted, Attentive, Allowing, etc. The words are repeated in a variety of sizes. End image description.]

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

NaPo23 Day 18 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write an Ode inspired by a constellation.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
A series of patterns mapped out in bright stars in a night sky with a faint nebula beyond. The constellations are connection with yellow lines and, left-to-right, top-to-bottom, are as follows: Aquila, scutum, Ophiuchus, Serpens, Capricorn, Libra, Sagittarius, Scorpius, and Lupus. In the middle is a bright, pinkish star with green crosshairs around it, labelled SRB 1806-20. I'm not going to try to describe the shapes because we'll be here all day and they probably won't make any sense anyway!
Image source: Entry in the NASA “Picture Dictionary” defining constellations and giving links to other resources.

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A series of patterns mapped out in bright stars in a night sky with a faint nebula beyond. The constellations are connection with yellow lines and, left-to-right, top-to-bottom, are as follows: Aquila, scutum, Ophiuchus, Serpens, Capricorn, Libra, Sagittarius, Scorpius, and Lupus. In the middle is a bright, pinkish star with green crosshairs around it, labelled SRB 1806-20. I'm not going to try to describe the shapes because we'll be here all day and they probably won't make any sense anyway! End image description.]

Monday, April 17, 2023

NaPo23 Day 17 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Pantoum inspired by a piece of art.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
On a weathered, white wall, a piece of street art - a black silhouette of a short-haired person wearing a battered top hat and too-short trousers appears to be carrying off a cartoonish rainbow with all the colours dripping into each other. Little black birds attend him - perching on the poster frame embedded in the wall with an illegible poster in it, flying after the rainbow carrier, or perched on its uppermost colour arc. The black of the man's clothes and the small bird is bleeding into the rainbow, making them both look somehow more 3D, as though they cast a shadow on the spectrum. A fuzzy blur of rainbow colours dogs the man's heels.
Image source: Street Art Utopia page: “Rainbow Carrier – By Kenny Random”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: On a weathered, white wall, a piece of street art - a black silhouette of a short-haired person wearing a battered top hat and too-short trousers appears to be carrying off a cartoonish rainbow with all the colours dripping into each other. Little black birds attend him - perching on the poster frame embedded in the wall with an illegible poster in it, flying after the rainbow carrier, or perched on its uppermost colour arc. The black of the man's clothes and the small bird is bleeding into the rainbow, making them both look somehow more 3D, as though they cast a shadow on the spectrum. A fuzzy blur of rainbow colours dogs the man's heels. End image description.]

Sunday, April 16, 2023

NaPo23 Day 16 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by a deity.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
A grid of 25 images of deities and prophets. Left to right, top to bottom there are as follows: Pele, a long-haired, slender woman with flowers in her long, red hair, smiling over a handful of flame. Adnoartina, a multi-coloured reptile of some kind. Olorun, a black man in elaborate armour with glowing golden eyes and symbols on his bald head, conjuring a glowing pattern in front of him. Amaterasu, an east Asian woman with immensely long, brown hair wearing an intricate robe and an elaborate crown or halo radiating complex light. Odin, a one-eyed, ancient, bearded, white man wearing Norse armour, including a winged helmet, against a backdrop of snow and ice. Jesus, depicted as a white man with a beard and shoulder-length, light-brown hair, wearing a blue cloak over a pink robe, hand raised over an elaborate heart symbol, glowing on his chest. Nüwa, a tan-skinned woman with long, wild, dark, straight hair, holding something up to the shaft of light breaking through the heavens, wearing a short, white dress against a rocky backdrop. YHWH, a series of four abstract figures of different colours rising out of the earth and sending tendrils of themselves into the sky. Huitzilopochtli, a fierce, blue-skinned, armoured, humanoid, winged figure raising a short, heavy, snake-like crook over his elaborate, feathered headdress against a background of flame. Nzambi a Mpungu, a Central African carving of a bald figure with golden-tanned skin holding one palm to his own cheek. Viracocha, a ruddy-skinned, armoured being with an enormous, elaborate, feathered headdress/ helmet and golden armour. Baron Samedi, a skull-faced figure in a frock coat and top hat adorned with a skull, smoking a cigar against a backdrop of sunset in either a forest or a graveyard. Hera, a pale woman with long, dark hair, looking stern as she holds a golden staff topped with a lily, in a cloak of peacock feather design over a white shift. Gautama Buddha, a golden-skinned figured with dark hair piled atop his head against a jungle backdrop, sitting cross-legged, eyes closed, in an orange shift which leaves one shoulder bare, raising one hand. Agloolik, a fierce-looking, spiny fish-man diving deep into a sea through which sun rays are still penetrating. Ahura Mazda, a yellow-robed, dark-bearded figure holding a disc and a tulip-like flower against a tumultuous backdrop. Enki, a blue-skinned, humanoid figure with a horned, golden headdress, and flowing hair that looks like the sea, with an epaulette like a piranha's face. Isis, a golden-brown-skinned woman with an enormous, eagle-feathered headdress against the backdrop of a full moon while holding something red to her chest. Muhammad, an elaborately carved disc in either bronze or polished wood with Arabic calligraphy at its centre. Ganesha, an elephant-headed person sitting cross-legged, wearing a colourful headdress and flower garland around its neck. Kulkulkan, a spiky, winged serpent curling through the air against a tumultuous sky with sun breaking through heavy cloud. Confucius, a middle-aged, heavyset, Chinese man wearing blue and gold robes, a long, dark brown beard and moustache, and amazing eyebrows. The Morrigan, a very pale woman with black hair and a raven on her far shoulder against a disc which seems to show some kind of moon carving. Jupiter, a scowling, elderly, tan-skinned man with a white beard and hair crowned in a laurel wreath, grasping a bolt of lightning against a blue sky scrawled with white cloud trails. FSM, a creature with snail-like eyestalks which seems to be made out of cooked spaghetti wrapped around two meatballs.
Image source: Sporcle quiz called “Deities And Prophets By Religion” (See if you can beat my score!)

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A grid of 25 images of deities and prophets. Left to right, top to bottom there are as follows: Pele, a long-haired, slender woman with flowers in her long, red hair, smiling over a handful of flame. Adnoartina, a multi-coloured reptile of some kind. Olorun, a black man in elaborate armour with glowing golden eyes and symbols on his bald head, conjuring a glowing pattern in front of him. Amaterasu, an east Asian woman with immensely long, brown hair wearing an intricate robe and an elaborate crown or halo radiating complex light. Odin, a one-eyed, ancient, bearded, white man wearing Norse armour, including a winged helmet, against a backdrop of snow and ice. Jesus, depicted as a white man with a beard and shoulder-length, light-brown hair, wearing a blue cloak over a pink robe, hand raised over an elaborate heart symbol, glowing on his chest. Nüwa, a tan-skinned woman with long, wild, dark, straight hair, holding something up to the shaft of light breaking through the heavens, wearing a short, white dress against a rocky backdrop. YHWH, a series of four abstract figures of different colours rising out of the earth and sending tendrils of themselves into the sky. Huitzilopochtli, a fierce, blue-skinned, armoured, humanoid, winged figure raising a short, heavy, snake-like crook over his elaborate, feathered headdress against a background of flame. Nzambi a Mpungu, a Central African carving of a bald figure with golden-tanned skin holding one palm to his own cheek. Viracocha, a ruddy-skinned, armoured being with an enormous, elaborate, feathered headdress/ helmet and golden armour. Baron Samedi, a skull-faced figure in a frock coat and top hat adorned with a skull, smoking a cigar against a backdrop of sunset in either a forest or a graveyard. Hera, a pale woman with long, dark hair, looking stern as she holds a golden staff topped with a lily, in a cloak of peacock feather design over a white shift. Gautama Buddha, a golden-skinned figured with dark hair piled atop his head against a jungle backdrop, sitting cross-legged, eyes closed, in an orange shift which leaves one shoulder bare, raising one hand. Agloolik, a fierce-looking, spiny fish-man diving deep into a sea through which sun rays are still penetrating. Ahura Mazda, a yellow-robed, dark-bearded figure holding a disc and a tulip-like flower against a tumultuous backdrop. Enki, a blue-skinned, humanoid figure with a horned, golden headdress, and flowing hair that looks like the sea, with an epaulette like a piranha's face. Isis, a golden-brown-skinned woman with an enormous, eagle-feathered headdress against the backdrop of a full moon while holding something red to her chest. Muhammad, an elaborately carved disc in either bronze or polished wood with Arabic calligraphy at its centre. Ganesha, an elephant-headed person sitting cross-legged, wearing a colourful headdress and flower garland around its neck. Kulkulkan, a spiky, winged serpent curling through the air against a tumultuous sky with sun breaking through heavy cloud. Confucius, a middle-aged, heavyset, Chinese man wearing blue and gold robes, a long, dark brown beard and moustache, and amazing eyebrows. The Morrigan, a very pale woman with black hair and a raven on her far shoulder against a disc which seems to show some kind of moon carving. Jupiter, a scowling, elderly, tan-skinned man with a white beard and hair crowned in a laurel wreath, grasping a bolt of lightning against a blue sky scrawled with white cloud trails. FSM, a creature with snail-like eyestalks which seems to be made out of cooked spaghetti wrapped around two meatballs. End image description.]

Saturday, April 15, 2023

NaPo23 Day 15 Inspo

Halfway there and looking strong, today’s challenge is to write a Sestina inspired by a type of mushroom.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.

A late 19th/ early 20th Century illustration consisting of 13 mushrooms with numeric labels and a key below. The caption is "Edible Fungi" and they are as follows, left-to-right, top-to-bottom: 1-Tasty Fungus which looks like an orangey-brown funnel. 2-Morchelle, which looks like a short, squat matchstick with a large head that's similar to honeycomb. B-Yellow Cockscomb, which looks like seaweed fronds but upright. 4-Early Toadstool, which looks like crushed, red velvet stuck to a mannequin head. 5-Cantarelle, which looks a little like the fluted end of a clarinet or trumpet, but a kind of light, russet brown. 6-Truffles, which look like lumps of dense meatloaf. 7-Stubble Fungus, which honestly looks like a pale skin growth tapering onto a narrow stalk. 8-Butterfly Fungus, which looks absolutely nothing like a butterfly but more like a normal field mushroom with a dark, russet-brown cap. 9-Stone-Mushroom, which looks like a fat version of the Butterfly Fungus. 10-Masseron which looks a little like yellowish ears on stalks. 11-Parasol Mushroom which does look like its name - elegant, variegated sun umbrella. 12-Champignon, or Cultivated Mushroom, looks like standard field mushrooms you'd buy in a shop. 13-Hooded Toadstool, which looks very like the Butterfly Fungus, but as if its cap is peeled back a little so you can see the underside, pale gills more easily.
Image source: Wikipedia, found via PBS Food Article: “Magical Mushrooms: The Allure of Edible Fungi”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A late 19th/ early 20th Century illustration consisting of 13 mushrooms with numeric labels and a key below. The caption is "Edible Fungi" and they are as follows, left-to-right, top-to-bottom: 1-Tasty Fungus which looks like an orangey-brown funnel. 2-Morchelle, which looks like a short, squat matchstick with a large head that's similar to honeycomb. B-Yellow Cockscomb, which looks like seaweed fronds but upright. 4-Early Toadstool, which looks like crushed, red velvet stuck to a mannequin head. 5-Cantarelle, which looks a little like the fluted end of a clarinet or trumpet, but a kind of light, russet brown. 6-Truffles, which look like lumps of dense meatloaf. 7-Stubble Fungus, which honestly looks like a pale skin growth tapering onto a narrow stalk. 8-Butterfly Fungus, which looks absolutely nothing like a butterfly but more like a normal field mushroom with a dark, russet-brown cap. 9-Stone-Mushroom, which looks like a fat version of the Butterfly Fungus. 10-Masseron which looks a little like yellowish ears on stalks. 11-Parasol Mushroom which does look like its name - elegant, variegated sun umbrella. 12-Champignon, or Cultivated Mushroom, looks like standard field mushrooms you'd buy in a shop. 13-Hooded Toadstool, which looks very like the Butterfly Fungus, but as if its cap is peeled back a little so you can see the underside, pale gills more easily. End image description.]

Friday, April 14, 2023

NaPo23 Day 14 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Terzanelle inspired by your favourite (or least favourite) time of year.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A colour digital drawing of a tree in a field divided into four quadrants. Top left is titled Winter and show bare branches against a blue-grey sky with stylised snowflakes tumbling down. Top right is titled Summer and shows the crown of the tree dense with dark green leaves; faint clouds are in the blue sky beyond, with a yellow sun in the top-right corner. Bottom left is titled Autumn and shows the lower leave of the tree turning yellow, orange, and brown, falling to leave drifts on the ground. The sky beyond is golden as sunset. Bottom right is titled Spring and shows dense, green grass and dense, pink blossom clustering on and floating off the tree.
Image source: DeviantArt Image by NekoChan2508: “What’s Your Favourite Season?”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A colour digital drawing of a tree in a field divided into four quadrants. Top left is titled Winter and show bare branches against a blue-grey sky with stylised snowflakes tumbling down. Top right is titled Summer and shows the crown of the tree dense with dark green leaves; faint clouds are in the blue sky beyond, with a yellow sun in the top-right corner. Bottom left is titled Autumn and shows the lower leave of the tree turning yellow, orange, and brown, falling to leave drifts on the ground. The sky beyond is golden as sunset. Bottom right is titled Spring and shows dense, green grass and dense, pink blossom clustering on and floating off the tree. End image description.]

Thursday, April 13, 2023

NaPo23 Day 13 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by the meaning of your name (personal name, family name, or both).

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

The words 'Behind the Name' in a simple calligraphic font, black on white. The capital B is in red with a simple, greenish-gold illustration of decorative leaves around it, as though in a Mediaeval manuscript.
Image source: The “Behind the Name” website

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: The words 'Behind the Name' in a simple calligraphic font, black on white. The capital B is in red with a simple, greenish-gold illustration of decorative leaves around it, as though in a Mediaeval manuscript. End image description.]

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

NaPo23 Day 12 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Reverse Poem inspired by a favourite view.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A brightly sunlit view of a large lake with a series of pale, ruddy, jagged rocks in the foreground, and several peaks in the background, reflected almost perfectly in the water. The hills are clothed in a variety of colour, including a bright russet on the left-hand slopes indicating that it's autumn. The sky is a very pale blue, and the atmosphere of the image is one of slightly forbidding tranquillity.
Image source: Ordnance Survey article: “11 of Great Britain's best views’ with this being a view of Wastwater in the Lake District

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A brightly sunlit view of a large lake with a series of pale, ruddy, jagged rocks in the foreground, and several peaks in the background, reflected almost perfectly in the water. The hills are clothed in a variety of colour, including a bright russet on the left-hand slopes indicating that it's autumn. The sky is a very pale blue, and the atmosphere of the image is one of slightly forbidding tranquillity. End image description.]

Tuesday, April 11, 2023

NaPo23 Day 11 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Rondeau Redoublé inspired by your choice of subject.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 11 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black.
Image source: Lovingly hand-crafted in CorelDraw

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 11 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black. End image description.]

Monday, April 10, 2023

NaPo23 Day 10 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Villanelle inspired by your choice of subject.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 10 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black.
Image source: Lovingly hand-crafted in CorelDraw

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 10 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black. End image description.]

Sunday, April 9, 2023

NaPo23 Day 9 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Rant inspired by your hometown.

A very neat, scale drawing of a series of five buildings on a street, seen from ground level on the opposite side of the road, which slants away from the viewer. The buildings are all two storey, with slanted roofs, and all of subtly different, early 20th or late 19th century Northern European styles. They alternate in colour between red, green, and black. There are trees beyond the furthest building and bushes between the viewer and the nearest building which has a banner of
Image source: Irish Architecture Foundation article: “Hometown Architect open call for town centre regeneration projects”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A very neat, scale drawing of a series of five buildings on a street, seen from ground level on the opposite side of the road, which slants away from the viewer. The buildings are all two storey, with slanted roofs, and all of subtly different, early 20th or late 19th century Northern European styles. They alternate in colour between red, green, and black. There are trees beyond the furthest building and bushes between the viewer and the nearest building which has a banner of "Hometown Architect" stretching across the top of the ground floor. End image description.]

Saturday, April 8, 2023

NaPo23 Day 8 Inspo

A whole week done! Well done! Today’s challenge is to write a your choice of poetry form inspired by a patron saint.

If you’re having trouble choosing, this tool may be able to inspire you.
A colour painting done in the Mediaeval style of around 65 human figures in three rows against a gold background. Most of the figures are looking as though they're heading in a series of queues towards the left of the picture. Some appear to be talking to each other, and a couple are looking towards the viewer. All have gold haloes, and they're all standing so close to each other that they overlap. They are dressed in a variety of clothes from different eras in a variety of colours, though blue, black, green, pink, and a kind of light, reddish-orange predominate. Some are dressed as monks, bishops, or nuns, others as kings, some as nobles, and one as something resembling a Roman soldier. They mostly have very pale skin, though a few of them are tan. Many of them appear old or middle-aged, though not all, and the vast majority of the ostensibly female saints are ranged in the bottom of the three rows.
Image source: A CNN gallery of images entitled “Who is your patron saint?”. The painting is called “The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs” by Fra Angelico as part of an altarpiece.

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A colour painting done in the Mediaeval style of around 65 human figures in three rows against a gold background. Most of the figures are looking as though they're heading in a series of queues towards the left of the picture. Some appear to be talking to each other, and a couple are looking towards the viewer. All have gold haloes, and they're all standing so close to each other that they overlap. They are dressed in a variety of clothes from different eras in a variety of colours, though blue, black, green, pink, and a kind of light, reddish-orange predominate. Some are dressed as monks, bishops, or nuns, others as kings, some as nobles, and one as something resembling a Roman soldier. They mostly have very pale skin, though a few of them are tan. Many of them appear old or middle-aged, though not all, and the vast majority of the ostensibly female saints are ranged in the bottom of the three rows. End image description.]

Friday, April 7, 2023

NaPo23 Day 7 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Trimeric inspired by your favourite (or least favourite) food.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A grid of photos of 64 different foodstuffs or drinks, and honestly I recognise only a few of them, so I'm not going to attempt to describe them. Suffice to say that it's a range across a whole bunch of different global cultures, and my mouth is watering just looking at some of the ones I do recognise.
Image source: Tanki online forum “What is your favourite food”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A grid of photos of 64 different foodstuffs or drinks, and honestly I recognise only a few of them, so I'm not going to attempt to describe them. Suffice to say that it's a range across a whole bunch of different global cultures, and my mouth is watering just looking at some of the ones I do recognise. End image description.]

Thursday, April 6, 2023

NaPo23 Day 6 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Nonet inspired by your favourite (or least favourite) song.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A treble clef and a few notes, mostly quavers and semi quavers with one crotchet on a black background with no stave lines. The notes are white, but the clef is in bright red and appears to be dripping. The lower tail is barbed like a fishing lure, or possibly a devil's tail seen side-on.
Image source: Berklee Online article: “How to Write Killer Song Hooks”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A treble clef and a few notes, mostly quavers and semi quavers with one crotchet on a black background with no stave lines. The notes are white, but the clef is in bright red and appears to be dripping. The lower tail is barbed like a fishing lure, or possibly a devil's tail seen side-on. End image description.]

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

NaPo23 Day 5 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Shadorma inspired by duty.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A richly detailed oil painting of three white, high class people in 16th Century European attire, done in a late 19th or early 20th Century style. They are indoors and daylight falls into the crowded room from an almost completely obscured window set deep into the stone of the wall. A man dressed almost entirely in red, with short, dark hair and moustache, sits on a bench near the window. He is wearing heavy, gold jewellery and his red clothes are elaborately slashed and ruffled with a white, high-necked chemise showing at the collar. He is wearing thin, indoor shoes with a strap across them, and looks dejected, holding a large, folded piece of paper with writing on it in his right hand, drooping between his knees. A woman is seated on the bench next to him, closer to the window, in similarly elaborate and rich clothing, predominantly gold, with a white chemise showing through and a pale, soft cap. She is clutching the man, staring into his impassive face from the side with an expression of mingled interrogation, consolation, and distress. On the man's far side is a lute, which he is holding listlessly by the neck in his left hand. Tumbling down the steps leading up to the seating area is an incongruously disassembled suit of old-fashioned armour, leaning back as though its owner had lain down for a rest, then vanished into thin air, leaving the metal behind. A shield high on the wall above the red man's head holds a crest like a black griffin rampant with swords crossed through behind it. In the shadows beyond the seated couple stands a younger, clean-shaven man with short, fair hair. He is dressed in black and grey, less richly than the couple, and holds a long sword in his right hand, and the straps of its scabbard in his left. He seems to be gazing down at the collapsed armour with a complex look on his face.
Image source: Wikipedia article on duty; painting is “Duty” by Edmund Leighton.

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A richly detailed oil painting of three white, high class people in 16th Century European attire, done in a late 19th or early 20th Century style. They are indoors and daylight falls into the crowded room from an almost completely obscured window set deep into the stone of the wall. A man dressed almost entirely in red, with short, dark hair and moustache, sits on a bench near the window. He is wearing heavy, gold jewellery and his red clothes are elaborately slashed and ruffled with a white, high-necked chemise showing at the collar. He is wearing thin, indoor shoes with a strap across them, and looks dejected, holding a large, folded piece of paper with writing on it in his right hand, drooping between his knees. A woman is seated on the bench next to him, closer to the window, in similarly elaborate and rich clothing, predominantly gold, with a white chemise showing through and a pale, soft cap. She is clutching the man, staring into his impassive face from the side with an expression of mingled interrogation, consolation, and distress. On the man's far side is a lute, which he is holding listlessly by the neck in his left hand. Tumbling down the steps leading up to the seating area is an incongruously disassembled suit of old-fashioned armour, leaning back as though its owner had lain down for a rest, then vanished into thin air, leaving the metal behind. A shield high on the wall above the red man's head holds a crest like a black griffin rampant with swords crossed through behind it. In the shadows beyond the seated couple stands a younger, clean-shaven man with short, fair hair. He is dressed in black and grey, less richly than the couple, and holds a long sword in his right hand, and the straps of its scabbard in his left. He seems to be gazing down at the collapsed armour with a complex look on his face. End image description.]

Tuesday, April 4, 2023

NaPo23 Day 4 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Clogyrnach inspired by patriotism.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

Photo of a white, outdoor sculpture of a muscled young man in the Classical Greek style, mounted on a plinth in front of a pillar of granite blocks with a large, overhanging lintel. Everything is weathered and a little stained. The man has large, furled, feathered wings on his back and appears to have a cloak folded behind him, a corner of which drapes over his groin. He is otherwise naked apart from an elaborate laurel crown on his shoulder-length, curled hair. He is clutching a short, slender sword in his right hand and is holding something indistinct to his chest, which may be flames or a clump of vegetation or waving hair. Between his right leg and right wing is a short, knee-high pillar in the same stone, draped in carved leaves and various round, hollow things of various sizes. The title carved on the top of the plinth, just beneath his feet, reads
Image source: Wikipedia article on patriotism; sculpture is “Allegory of Patriotism in the Monument to the Fallen for Spain in Madrid (1840)” by Francisco Pérez del Valle.

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: Photo of a white, outdoor sculpture of a muscled young man in the Classical Greek style, mounted on a plinth in front of a pillar of granite blocks with a large, overhanging lintel. Everything is weathered and a little stained. The man has large, furled, feathered wings on his back and appears to have a cloak folded behind him, a corner of which drapes over his groin. He is otherwise naked apart from an elaborate laurel crown on his shoulder-length, curled hair. He is clutching a short, slender sword in his right hand and is holding something indistinct to his chest, which may be flames or a clump of vegetation or waving hair. Between his right leg and right wing is a short, knee-high pillar in the same stone, draped in carved leaves and various round, hollow things of various sizes. The title carved on the top of the plinth, just beneath his feet, reads "Patriotismo". His extremely smooth, barely rendered expression is of a kind of vacuous sorrow (seriously, his face is the least detailed aspect of the thing!). End image description.]

Monday, April 3, 2023

NaPo23 Day 3 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Triolet inspired by your choice of subject.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 3 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black.
Image source: Lovingly hand-crafted in CorelDraw

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image Description: A rainbow-coloured elaborate numeral 3 with the words 'Your choice' underneath in black. End image description.]

Sunday, April 2, 2023

NaPo23 Day 2 Inspo

Today’s challenge is to write a Tetractys inspired by your favourite place to sit.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

A sepia-toned engraving of an elderly gentleman with a large, pale moustache in European outdoor clothing for a fine day in the late 19th Century, wearing a military style cap, sitting on a sunny set of stairs, smoking a pipe longer than his torso, free hand on one thigh, gazing across a dusty looking courtyard by a white house with many steps, trellises, and pillars, with various vegetation twining up it. Behind him, on the top of the step, is a dark dog with a pale muzzle, head down on the step as if snoozing in the sun. The caption reads 'Prince Bismarck's Favourite Seat at Varzin' with 'From a sketch made in 1882' written below it. There is also a watermark in the top-left-hand corner of a large, lowercase b and what appears to say something like Bridgeman Images Art History.
Image source: Download site for Bridgeman Images

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: A sepia-toned engraving of an elderly gentleman with a large, pale moustache in European outdoor clothing for a fine day in the late 19th Century, wearing a military style cap, sitting on a sunny set of stairs, smoking a pipe longer than his torso, free hand on one thigh, gazing across a dusty looking courtyard by a white house with many steps, trellises, and pillars, with various vegetation twining up it. Behind him, on the top of the step, is a dark dog with a pale muzzle, head down on the step as if snoozing in the sun. The caption reads 'Prince Bismarck's Favourite Seat at Varzin' with 'From a sketch made in 1882' written below it. There is also a watermark in the top-left-hand corner of a large, lowercase b and what appears to say something like Bridgeman Images Art History. End image description.]

Saturday, April 1, 2023

NaPo23 Day 1 Inspo

Let’s go! With a whole month ahead of you, today’s challenge is to write an Abracadabra inspired by work.

If you need any further support with the form, the “Repeating & Concrete Forms” spreadsheet tool is here to help you.

An animated gif of five cartoons of people, who look like they've been cut out of fabric. On the left, looking left, are two femme-presenting people, one with brown skin and black hair, and a purple dress, who's offering a white teacup on a tray. Next to her is a health worker of some kind with white hair pulled up in a bun, in a white coat with a stethoscope draped over her shoulders holding a clipboard which she shifts slightly. She is wearing a blue surgical face mask. Facing the viewer is a short, androgynous, masc-presenting person with light, yellowish skin tone wearing yellow dungarees over a black teeshirt, yellow gumboots, and a brown sunhat. They're leaning on a spade and cocking their head to the side repeatedly. Next to them and facing right is a tall, brown-skinned, femme-presenting person with black-rimmed glasses, brown hair in a bun at the back of her head, and a teal trouser suit with matching briefcase. She doesn't seem to be moving at all. Next to her and facing right is a masc-presenting white person in a purple teeshirt and trousers with a white baseball cap, proffering a brown box and perpetually adjusting their cap. Behind the group of figures is what looks like a yellow backdrop made of something fragile that has shattered to reveal blackness beyond.
Image source: Vox Highlight article: “Work is broken. Can we fix it?”

Alternatively, you can seek inspiration in the Wikipedia “On This Day” article.

[Image description: An animated gif of five cartoons of people, who look like they've been cut out of fabric. On the left, looking left, are two femme-presenting people, one with brown skin and black hair, and a purple dress, who's offering a white teacup on a tray. Next to her is a health worker of some kind with white hair pulled up in a bun, in a white coat with a stethoscope draped over her shoulders holding a clipboard which she shifts slightly. She is wearing a blue surgical face mask. Facing the viewer is a short, androgynous, masc-presenting person with light, yellowish skin tone wearing yellow dungarees over a black teeshirt, yellow gumboots, and a brown sunhat. They're leaning on a spade and cocking their head to the side repeatedly. Next to them and facing right is a tall, brown-skinned, femme-presenting person with black-rimmed glasses, brown hair in a bun at the back of her head, and a teal trouser suit with matching briefcase. She doesn't seem to be moving at all. Next to her and facing right is a masc-presenting white person in a purple teeshirt and trousers with a white baseball cap, proffering a brown box and perpetually adjusting their cap. Behind the group of figures is what looks like a yellow backdrop made of something fragile that has shattered to reveal blackness beyond.]

NaPo23 Day 30 Inspo

One last piece! Today’s challenge is to write a Lipogram inspired by a piece of music. If you need any further support with the form, the “...