First, I will post the overall rules, and then I will post the specifics about this week.
Original rules, as stated by Ubertuna:
It must fit the week's theme. It must be submitted by the deadline. It cannot have inappropriate language in it. It cannot be stolen (if you plagiarize, we will find you).
Also:
The poem must be created for this contest A user cannot win two weeks in a row (though everyone is welcome to submit every week!) Only one submission per user will be accepted
As we all know, the winner will recieve a merit, and their poem will be featured on the _Poetry_ page.
OK, on to this week's topic...Again, we are having a style instead of a theme. Also, this week we are having TWO WEEKS to do it, instead of the usual one. Why? Because this will be an EPIC poem. Or, rather, a parody of an epic poem. Generally, epic poetry is very long, and tells the serious story of a heroic figure. Well, this week, the epic figure is YOU! Write a long poem (I'll leave the definition of 'long' up to you, but give it a good go) about the heroic story of you! It can be silly, serious, whatever... just have fun with it. You have two weeks, so have a great time!
Yielee: I'm sorry, but you can only submit one Tanka to the contest. If you can't fit your idea into one tanka, then something's wrong, because the point of the style is minimalism and conciseness.
LOL, entries? I think not. I was just pointing out that some of the authors won't win the contest because they can't count. If you scroll up through the recent Tanka-wannabe's you'll spy the words "girl, boil, orange, crumbling, and while" which mess up the author's chances, because they destroy the Tanka pattern! Since you didn't notice this before, Parsat, I'll have to assume that you are having trouble counting, too! Yes, judging from your armatar's 4 fingers, I'd guess that's right! Good thing for you school's starting again, you can get in some more practice counting!
I have not looked into the poems closely yet because I have not closed judging yet. Come judging I will check for errors and disqualify those that did not follow the proper format.
I approached your tankas in good faith because I believed they were multiple entries into the contest, but I don't appreciate the reply you gave to me, because it reads to me as highly condescending. If you wish to submit into the contest, you may still do so, but be sure you clearly designate your submission.
Seriously, all joking aside, are you THAT lazy? You don't need to look closely, just a quick scan for pattern agreement on recent entries.
Don't try the, "it's their responsibility to follow the rules" idea, because you just excuse your own responsibility to make certain that people who spend time on your contest are rewarded. You want to keep solid entries to have better contests. I mean, like, who wants to be a suck judge of a suck contest? You have participants who spend a lot of work creating entries.
There's choazmachine above, who did some research. Instead of letting them know, "hey, you gotta fix this line", you choose to remain silent. Do you know what will happen come judging time?? High-quality entries such as the poem by choazmachine and others, will be disqualified without their knowing why. Next contest, they won't be so enthusiastic to enter, if they bother entering at all.
That's a whole lotta SUCK
I don't usually pay attention to flamers, however, let me get this straight, because I will only say this once ... Parsat does NOT have to justify his actions to you. If you want to point out something to a fellow poster, post it directly to them and make a kind remark. If you saw mistakes, kindly point it out to the "mistakee" . There is no harm in doing that. Parsat does NOT have to do anything until judging day. Remember, his job is a voluntary and mostly non-thankful job. In addition, when you flame the judge, it doesn't do yourself, nor anyone else any favors. YOU and people like you are the reason I stopped judging this contest. I'd like to thank you for reminding me of that.
Okay, entries are officially closed. However, some of you did not follow the proper format. I will alert those of you who didn't do the form right on your comments. To ensure correctness, I have checked each trouble spot in the dictionary.
Those of you who used words like "while" or "boil," I will let you off, because my dictionaries are clear that the long I sound does not constitute a second vowel, despite popular pronunciation into two syllables.
Those of you whom I contact, please submit your revisions here or to my comments page ASAP so that the judging may fully commence. If after three days I do not receive a reply in this contest page or on my comments (which is after the 15th), your entry will be disqualified.
For those of you who did it right, I commend you. Through a cursory read I can see your distinctive styles, and I shall be honored to continue to judge. I will ask for your patience while I receive the other entries.
Apologies for my lateness. It is uncharacteristic of me, but I have not been spending much time in AG as of late. Still, I've taken time to read each carefully and ponder their meanings.
As I read, I considered a few things. First off, let it be known that the strict syllabic form of the tanka is not merely to make it sound good or for any real additional effect, the basis by which Western poetry is based. It's not meant to be literal, but at the same time not meant to be cliche.
The art of the haiku and the tanka is like dropping a stone in a pond: You read, and the waters of your mind are disturbed, only to return to clarity when you realize their meaning. The art of the tanka and the haiku is that the smallest pebble is used to create ripples, just ripples, no splash. It is not what is said that is important, it is what is implied that is important. This is a common theme in all Eastern poetry and prose, and makes for very interesting reading.
I have, of course, chosen a merit prize winner. Let us first, though, disturb the waters with several runner-ups, arranged in no particular order. Know that I hold each of these equal and thought-provoking. To each of the winners, I have written my thoughts and responses in the form of a reply tanka.
wistress--Begotten Fairy wings full flight Chasing fireflies at night Her eyes impart love And she, I am in awe of Begetting warm emotion
Where does love come from? The wind rustling through the leaves: Blowing, twirling fast, Carrying the fairy wings, Soft and new like the newborn.
choazmachine--Fury The oceans turn black The skies boil into blood red Bodies lay silent While flames swallow the lost books And with everything they took
Struggles of power: Murderous as struggling life. Prey or predator Reincarnated again. The shoots grow, awkward in ash.
nichodemus--Sighs The moon waxes round As I toss and turn by night. The cavorting rays, Simultaneous torment, Hopes that live and hopes that die.
JereN--Eternal Your day of joy comes That day you really are free Your friends no joy see Priest speaks same old words all know From earth to earth, dust to dust
Barren, dusty cracks In which green life takes its root. An aching question: Born from dust, like leafy kin, Is the flower part of me?
Merit Prize Winner: Maverick4--Transience Shrouded sea of pine Orange-robed monks meditate Nettles drifting down Raking through a rock garden Crumbling-lichen covered wall
Flowing, patterned rocks Will be gusted and scattered. The hollow men burst. Even life will not survive; Only the eternal way.
It's been a popular suggestion for me to introduce a dark, tragic theme. I pondered loss, loneliness, angst, but they are all so hollow: We grieve and move on, the lonely cease to be lonely by friends or death, and angst does not endure. None of them are even as horrific or as permanent as the quality I give to you as this week's theme: Numbness. Submissions will be closed on September 26, 2009.
