Lauren McBride
By Lauren McBride
The inspiration to write my debut chapbook, Aliens, Magic, and Monsters, was based on an observation. There seem to be a great number of how-to books on writing poetry for adults, but far fewer for young adults. Yet tomorrow's poets are today's youth.
With that in mind, I set about writing a poetry book that is, as the back cover states, fun to read and fun to write. With my target audience being middle school and high school students, I was delighted to see that reviewers thought the poems were suitable for adults as well. One even suggested that my chapbook could be used in poetry workshops.
The difficulty for the poet, as I see it, is how to get a thought onto a page as a poem. To facilitate this fundamental step, my book contains over 20 poetic forms and an appendix on how to write each one. If free verse seems intimidating with its lack of rules, the structure of a form might help a poet get started. Take the hai(na)ku [or sci(na)ku] for example. At only six words, the poem is complete. While short, six words can tell a story - like Hemmingway's baby shoes. My personal favorite follows:
potato chip bag
expiration date
unnecessary
While my chapbook begins with science fiction, it also has a section on fantasy, and who doesn't love a fairy tale? Within each section, the poems are arranged for younger readers first. For this reason, I tried to choose poems that were uncomplicated and clearly written. Reviewers seemed to find the entire collection accessible and enjoyable.
Below are some selected poems from my chapbook. I hope you enjoy them and perhaps find one to share with an up-and-coming poet.
Spoiler Alert
They must be literate -
the milk spoilers
inside each bottle
reading the expiration
date on the outside
to time their mating ritual:
(despite sour dispositions)
multiplying rapidly
in the dark.
Stand close after
the fridge light goes out
and you might hear
milk-curdling screams
from behind
the closed door.
Searching My Ticket Collection
Fly a one-way trip
to the Moon or Mars.
Hop a rocketship
to the farthest stars!
Of all my tickets -
which one would work best
to avoid next week's
pre-algebra test?
*
Bad Idea
The old magician
promised his potion
would spice up
my cooking
so I traded him
my lunch, but
(just ask my sister)
mud pies still
taste like mud.
All From God
First contact - new alien species:
peaceful, friendly, intelligent -
quick to learn our language, yet
grotesque looking with a
vile smell. Must keep
in mind - the same
molecules
make us
all.
*
Now and Then
Relaxing beside
Moon Dome pool
I try to imagine
my great, great grandfather
helmeted in a white suit
collecting samples
leaving booted footprints
outside in the dust.
*
Directions
Dad
and
Mom are
lost again
so I suggested
they stop at Alpha Centauri
for directions, but then Dad suggested I get out
and push, and Mom started to cry.
So I will sit quietly back
here - Jimmy’s spacesuit
touching mine.
Guess it
will
be
a few
more light years
till we reach Grandma's.
Come Embrace Space
Hurry,
astronaut wannabes,
vacationers in zero-g!
Book
your out-of-this-world
experience and getaway
today
by calling
"Affordable Space Vacations."
Weightless
while still
safely on Earth.
Free trial included
with package deals.
***
Publication Credits:
Songs of Eretz Poetry Review
"potato chip bag" (February 2015)
Aliens, Magic, and Monsters, Hiraeth Publishing (September 2023).
"Bad Idea"; and the following poems with first publication credits:
FrostFire Worlds
"Searching My Ticket Collection" (May 2015)
Star*Line
"Spoiler Alert" (Spring 2019)
Scifaikuest
"All From God" (print, August 2010)
Eye to the Telescope
"Now and Then" (July 2016)
Spaceports &Spidersilk
"Directions" (March 2011)
Star*Line
"Come Embrace Space" (Spring 2018)
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