Sol Magazine
January 2000 Edition

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Sol Magazine © 2000
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CONTENTS


Twice a month, Sol Magazine sponsors poetry contests, and from the results, produces an electronic poetry magazine, published on the last day of each month.  The winners are posted to our website at:
http://pages.prodigy.com/sol_magazine

Our topics are on a variety of subjects about nature and the nature of humanity.  Our purpose: to foster the reading and writing of short poetry, and the education of poets.
 
 

DEDICATION: 
To the spirit of shared dreams, we lift our pens.
Welcome:  Susan Barnhurst, Lynn Bradley, John Brooks, Jill Davis, Peggy Zuleika Lynch, Spirit Cloud, and Kate Stickland.
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THIS MONTH'S SPONSORS: Martha Capo, Lois Lay Castiglioni, Jim Lay.
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THIS MONTH'S JUDGES:  Craig Tigerman and Betty Ann Whitney.


MILLENNIUM BLUES
an editorial by Mary Margaret Carlisle, Managing Editor

Woe is me, the millennium is still to come!  According to the best experts in the field, the 20th Century and the second millennium will not be over until the last day of the year 2000.  The 21st century will begin on January 1, 2001.  How can this be?  It can be because the first decade of the common era started with the year 1.  There was no year zero.  Guess we don't know how to count to 100, because most folks we know have already celebrated the start of the millennium.
 

Look at it this way:  those of us who refused to panic last November and didn't buy the stores empty can still do it this coming November.  All millennium silliness aside, we hope to see some monumental poetry from all our Sol poets in this, the last year of the 20th Century!
 


CONTEST ONE
FORM:  BOUTS-RIMES
TOPIC:  SHUI CHI (WATER ENERGY)

SPONSOR:  Martha Capo.  In her words, "Thanks to Sol Magazine for making me (and other poets) work!!!"
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BGC from B&N = Book gift card from Barnes & Noble.
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BOUTS-RIMES:  French for "rhymed ends," a Bouts-Rimes poem is created by one person creating a list of rhymed words and giving it to another person, who in turn writes lines that end with those rhymes, in the same order in which they were given.  The list of words given this month:  storm, ring, form, sing, center, mends, enter, ends.
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Waterfall
 

Powerful, descending like a storm
water spills over, circling like a ring.
Falls cascading about rocks, frothy in form.
Loud and thunderous its melody forever will sing.
Below a whirlpool traps water in its center
beyond the river slows, its peaceful spirit mends
its caressing, soothing soul does enter.
Tapering off in silence the river ends.
 

Susan Barnhurst, Sherman, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Peaceful, powerful, water is well-described in a few of its many moods.
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SECOND PLACE - winner of a $10.00 BGC from B&N
Healing Waters
 

Through the never ending storm
The waters shape a ring ­
Swirling pulsing frothing form
That with the winds will sing.
And in the very center
A broken heart mends.
The water begs you enter
And then your pain ends.
 

Judy Calheiros, Alagoas, Brazil
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Excellent rhythm.  Much said in few lines.  Placing the healing power of water the the mended heart midway creates a whole new aspect to this poem.
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THIRD PLACE - winner of a $5.00 BGC from B&N
Seven
 

Upon a fieldstone wall, enfolded by a storm,
I close my eyes and listen to the droplets ring
In contrapuntal timpani to form
A lyric streamlet that will sing
Me to the center
Of my seeing.  An elemental canon mends
Me, blends me, and transcends me as I enter
Me again.  How many kinds of rain must fall before I reach my ends?
 

Martha Kirby Capo, Houston TX
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Personal, intimate.  Wonderful phrasings and internal rhymes.
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Fickle Salvation
 

It may start with clouds that tremble earth in storm.
Its hard wind, coming quickly to the horizon it will ring,
Around us simmering mist or boiling torrent, any form.
No need, and more comes too quickly, bone dry, its praise we sing,
It falls in tiny drops until it surrounds all but the grounds high center
Taking all we own or giving salvation that mends.
Giving or taking life, ask only how it will enter,
Curious message ignored, then done, the storm ends.
 

Steve Carr, Houston, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  "Simmering mist or boiling torrent" makes an interesting comparison in one brief line.  Shows how rain can be both friend and enemy.
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Broken Drought
 

There is a reason, rain and storm.
Raindrops splashing make a ring.
Lakes and rivers soon will form.
Drought is broken. Birds will sing.
Windmills turning in the center.
Water flows and nature mends.
Summer is past.  Let winter enter.
Water flows and never ends.
 

Spirit Cloud, Ft. Worth, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Driving rhythm in short pounding sentences bring this simply elegant poem to a flowing end.
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Awesome Water
 

Powering snow-avalanche, flood, deluging storm,
water’s also contemplative, tossed pebble’s widening ring.
It’s also frost, flake, fog, and even one more form,
(what locomotive’s chug, why happy teapots sing.)
Water’s what we mostly are, from surface to our center,
and raging thirst and dehydration are what it always mends.
There’s nothing it won’t wear away or fill or deeply enter.
Water means "survive" to us, cause need for it never ends.
 

Warner D. Conarton, Zephyrhills, FL
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  The trivia question midway is a unique feature, emphasizing the unique creativity of this poem.
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Flood Force
 

Millers look wary of this monster storm
Too much water to push the mill ring
Streams overflow and dams need to form
Prayers for rain congregations did sing
Water wheels flood past the center
Broken paddlewheels mean making mends
On the grain floor flood waters now enter
Lots of damage when storm finally ends
 

Shelley Crabtree, Enid, OK
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Interesting look at a bygone era's reliance on water power.
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FIRST PLACE - winner of a $20.00 BGC from B&N

Fun in the Tub
 

Furious storms
a bath tub ring
a naked form
who likes to sing
a bathing center
which fixes and mends
all that will enter,
clean bellies and ends.
 

Diane M. Davis, Chelmsford, MA

JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Clever use of the topic in an entertaining way.  Humorous.  Excellent use of pun.
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Sea Goddess
 

The black waves crash upon the sea’s furious storm,
while the creature screams like a tower bell in full ring.
Swirling through the frenzy, desperately clinging to her form,
she saves me with her breath and begins to gently sing.
The sun drops into the ocean’s center,
the moon drapes the sea with mends.
As I brace myself to enter,
another wave erupts then ends.
 

Jill Davis, Beaverton, OR
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Powerful portrait painted in sound and sense.
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HONORABLE MENTION
River Riddle
 

Raging river of winter's storm
Oh, where will your truth ring?
Will you fall in everlasting form
Or fill your swells to sing?
Dimpled whirlpools in the center
Dance away, yet never mends
The floodgates from where you enter
Or the crest of sea tossing ends.
 

Roz Garay, Whittier, CA
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Successfully meets the challenge, fits into the Bouts-Rimes form with a natural rhythm and clear images.
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Storm Water
 

Along the weeping edges of the storm,
The deluge paints a blackened, sombre ring,
And underneath its darkening, swirling form,
The black night birds of apocynthian sing,
Storm river of this never ending center,
My broken links of rain-washed dream now mends,
And as the vortex bids my soul to enter,
I join the downpouring that never ends.
 

Janet Hilton, Staffordshire, England.
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Strongly written, excellent word choice.  Each pounding word adds to the whole.
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Spiritual Rebirth
 

Like a stranded ship tossed in the storm,
Deaf to the urgent bells of the coast guard’s frantic ring,
There’s a powerful force inside of me slowly shaping form,
Drowning out the plaintive cries as herons mournfully sing.
Intoxicating waves draw attention front and center.
Oceanic fascination, my broken spirit mends.
Roaring surf, I’m hypnotized, no more doubts can enter.
My mind is clearly focused, my negativity ends.
 

Kathy Kehrli, Factoryville, PA
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Skillful use of simile with the comparison of a stranded ship to human traits.
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Driving Crazy
 

It's a rage, a storm,
Strong enough so my ears ring,
It's force with a defined form,
I can hear it make the wind sing,
I'm caught in its center,
Its powerful soul mends,
As I move towards the "Do Not Enter,"
The pouring rain ends.
 

Jennifer Camille Manganello, Boca Raton, FL
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Strong writing, excellent use of energetic words.
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HONORABLE MENTION
Drought-Breaker
 

They have ceased, the torrents of the storm
A breeze blows now, again the wind chimes ring
Crouched branches regain their regal form
Washed skies glow while happy swallows sing.
Squirrels and robins feast at the garden center
Creviced ground has swollen as it mends
Revived plant life allows moisture to enter
As a drought-struck rancher's fear of the desert ends.
 

Lena S. Norman, Saginaw, TX
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Vivid word pictures.
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Rainmaker
 

Face raised to the rising storm,
he traces intricate steps within the ring
of stones.  Blurred by rain to an amorphous form,
he sings the songs he knew to sing
while he dances at the center
of The People's world.  A smoothing, soothing swirl mends
dry wounds and closes crusty cracks.  Seeds sprout.  Roots enter
the softened soil.  A leaf tastes electric air as the song ends.
 

John E. Rice, Houston, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Wonderful ending line.
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Concentric Swirls
 

Torrential energetic storm,
Swirling in tornado ring,
Funnels in warm watery form
Whistling rhythmic droplets sing,
Surrounds the wetted eye of center.
Flowing on parched earth, it mends,
Alluvial warmth of splendors enter,
Calmed now, its gentle water ends.
 

Corrine Schlessel, Woodbridge, CT
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Wonderful whirlwind ride, exuberantly explained.
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Indoor Storm
 

It resembles a circular storm
Leaving a light ring
It looses its oval form
It howls...it can sing
There is no perfect center
My skin, it quickly mends
It mysteriously can enter
the small hole-and then my bathtime ends.
 

Kate Strickland, Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth Country Day School
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Good description used humorously.  Parallels indoor/outdoor storms, holding the comparison until the end.
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Kate is a high school student.  We find her poetry refreshing.
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Perpetual Motion
 

Sheets of rain and thunder roll the storm.
Trees standing in a ring
Repel liquid assault, trails of water form
Cascading, race downhill, as they sing
Spill in torrents to the straw parched center
Seep deep into the earth, the moisture mends.
It slips through sandy soil at last to enter
An ocean wide, now conjoined in swells, the journey never ends.
 

Patricia A. Tabella, Providence, RI
JUDGES' COMMENTS:  Well stated end-to-end survey of water's cycle.
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#1 Disaster
 

Dark clouds announce the storm
Full moon encircled by a ring
Low hanging clouds ominously form
Wild winds through trees sing
Men working quickly at dam center
Stones filling deep crack mends
Rains from black sky into lake enter
Dam gives way small town ends
 

Bill Truax, Cedar Hill, TX
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  The last line says it all:  "Dam gives way, small town ends."
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Song Of Synergy
 

I watch choppy waters of the Bay with the close, approaching storm,
It's lightning which causes earth to shake, tremble and ring.
See the Cumulus roil in their ever changing form,
A conductor who points a strobed baton and makes the chorus sing!
I am lost within the magnetic personality of its center
What it may take away, I know it leaves even more that mends
Adding nutrients to and quenching the ground that it must enter
I sit amid the wild winded swirls of rain and hope it never ends.
 

Claiborne Schley Walsh, Montrose, AL
EDITOR'S COMMENTS:  Lovely phrase, "wild winded swirls of rain."



 
POETRY WORKS
"Make your Poetry Stand Out," 
an editorial by Craig Tigerman

If you ask a Sol Magazine editor what criteria is used to choose one "Stand Out" poem among many, you may get the following questions as your answer:
 

1.  Is the poem true-to-topic?
2.  Does the concept touch the reader's spirit in some way?
3.  Does the poem have a creative visual layout to help it stand out from others?
4.  Does the opening line invite others into the poem?
5.  Does the closing line provide a unique completion of the idea of the poem?
6.  Is the writing sincere and true?  Is some unexpected insight   revealed?
7.  Does the poem move the reader?  The poet convey depth of feeling?  The poem "sing"?
8.  Is there a natural flow and rhythm in the lines?
9.  Is the writing succinct and in modern language?
10. Is internal rhyme mingled with external rhyme so the rhyme scheme
seems effortless rather than forced?
11. Is the diction deftly handled with imaginative phrasings?
12. Does the writer use the "less-is-more" approach with conjunctions, articles and other connecting words?
13. Does the writer avoid flowery language?
14. Does the writer use ordinary language in an extraordinary way? Does the writer use artistic, vivid word-pictures?
15. Is the poem titled with something that suggests, rather than gives away the contents of the poem?  Is the title a "grabber," or something expected because of a "set" topic?
 

These are only a few criteria our editors may use when seeking a "Stand Out" poem.  Whether you have served as a judge or not, we invite you to send us any other tips you may have for writing a winning poem.
 

Want to see more from Craig Tigerman?  Visit his website:
http://sol-magazine-projects.org/prodigy/craig_tigerman


ALPHA POETS
SPONSORS:  Lois Lay Castiglioni and Jim Lay.

Our poets had the task of including birds, water and January in one poem.  We chose two winners.  The first was picked because of its extraordinary development, in so very few words, of a clear snapshot of a particular place.  The second was included because of the way the writer vividly brushed words onto the canvas of poetry.  Wonderful writing by our poets.
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FIRST PLACE - Winner of a signed copy of "Feeding the Crow," edited by Susan Bright, and featuring, among others, the excellent poetry of Austin poet Carlyn Reding.

Olympic Peninsula
 

January dawn.  Great blue herons--
exclamation points punctuating
unmarked surface of an estuary
before two river otters slip in to fish
dissolving stillness with triangular wakes.
 

SuzAnne C. Cole, Houston, TX

Comments from the staff:  Strong poetical language using echoing sounds and vivid images.  Excellent writing!
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SECOND PLACE - Winner of a $5.00 BGC from B&N
Blue Jays
 

In January's bright winter plumage,
Their raucous voices taking umbrage,
These birds of daring aerial deeds
Stop by for water and seeds;
Blue jays of brilliant visage.
 

Milton S. Earnest, Smyrna, GA

Comments from the staff:  sharp images, and good use of rhythm and rhyme.
 

Are you an Alpha Poet?  Send us Alpha contest topics for February.  You may win a $5.00 BGC from B&N.


SPOTLIGHT - AWAKENING MIND
Sol Magazine's 
Poet of the month, Diane Davis

I have been writing children's stories for a few years, but am not yet published.  Recently, I joined an email group and met several poets who encouraged others to write. Last summer,  I started experimenting, and found my poetry getting published in e-zines, even when my writing was not.

Sol Magazine was listed by the group.  I found it very useful in teaching me about poems.  I find themed poetry easier to write.  Being given a specific form to write in, and an example, helps as well. I have begun to learn more about poetry, or at least the sounds of it. I am presently beginning my first poetry course on the Internet. Now I am discovering the names of things I have been attempting to do.  I use poetry as a way to wake up my mind for prose writing. I find it fun, and though I sometimes spend a lot of time on it, the time goes by very quickly and it is a challenge rather than a chore.

My other writing consists of working on children's historical fiction and fantasy novels, and short fiction. Since I began submitting work to e-zines last summer, I have had several dozen things published. My first print poem, "Waiting," will be published next summer in SpellBound, a fantasy magazine for children.

Three poems from Diane Davis:
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SCULPTED PERFECTION
 

Like Calder's mobiles,
the spiders balance
on their web.
Orbicular torsos
in baskets of symmetry,
their hinged appendages
dwindle
to precision points
of strength.
 

ICICLES
 

Frozen lollipops of winter
selected according to size and shape
rather than flavor.
December's confectionery.
 

HOLLYHOCK
 

Naked stalks thrust their necks higher
to sneak a peek in the dining room windows.
Where have all the blossoms gone?
They dance among the branches of the Christmas tree.

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Diane Davis lives in Chelmsford, MA, with her husband and two teenage children.  When not writing, she is teaching middle-school art in Reading, MA.  She writes primarily for children, and is presently working on editing several middle-grade novels.  Her varied background as a professional puppeteer, a hands-on historical museum educator and a teacher have sparked many of the ideas she uses in her creative writing.

Diane has a BFA in art education from University of MA in N. Dartmouth, and a M.Ed from Leslie College in Creative Arts in Learning. She is presently furthering her writing education by taking a course with the Institute of Children's Literature, and an online poetry course through Wordweaving.  Diane - thank you so much for sharing your insights with us!

by Mary Margaret Carlisle, Managing Editor


 
MISSOURI STATE POETRY SOCIETY'S 
CALL FOR ENTRIES

From: "Tom Padgett" tpadgett@sbuniv.edu
 

Members of MSPS and Other Poets:  Missouri State Poetry Society's Winter Contest's deadline is February 15, 2000 postmark.  Enter at least one of the five categories.  Five excellent judges will consider your work.  If you have not yet joined MSPS for the year 2000, send  dues with your entries or enter as a non-member. Tom Padgett, President
 

Missouri State Poetry Society Winter Contests 2000
Deadline: Postmarked February 15, 2000
Format: Submit two copies of each entry, category number and name in
upper left-hand corner of both copies, poet's name and address  in upper right-hand corner of one copy.   If you are a member,  put "Missouri State Poetry Society" below your address.  Put "Non-member" if you are not.
 

Limits: Poems may be 40 or fewer lines.  They may be unpublished or
previously published if the poet retains the rights to the poem.  Poets may enter each category as many times as they wish.  No poems will be returned.
 

Categories:

  1. Rhymed verse or blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter), any subject, serious or humorous
  2. Free verse, any subject, serious or humorous
  3. Humorous verse, any subject
  4. Any form, winter subject, serious or humorous
  5. Poet's choice: any form (including open-field, shaped, or concrete poetry), any subject, serious or humorous


Fees:   Non-members pay $1.00 per poem.  Members pay $1.00 for two
entries in the same category.  Make money order or check payable to MSPS and mail to Tom Padgett, 523 N. Park Place,  Bolivar, MO, 65613.  Include an SASE or your e-mail address on  an index card for a list of the winners.
Prizes: $25, $15, $10, and three honorable mentions in each category.
Membership: If you wish to join Missouri State Poetry Society, pay the
$12 annual membership fee and a member¹s reduced contest fees.
Contact Tom Padgett about these contests!
 


So you want to be judge, guest editor, interviewee?  Tell us.  We may have just the spot for you.  Judges are asked to write a guest editorial on a topic we set before being asked to judge a contest.
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All poetry remains the property of the poet, except Sol Magazine reserves the right to publish all poems (once) at a future date, and/or to post them to a web page.  NONE may be reproduced without permission of Sol Magazine.  Electronic forwarding is permitted as long as no portion of this magazine is changed and all credits are given.
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See our contest website or last contest for current guidelines.  We do not accept entries that make use of graphic language, touch on partisan politics, or support particular religious views.  Yes, we allow poems about God and mythological gods or goddesses.  No, we do not allow mention of figures out of any holy book.  Please do not expect us to publish something that might upset a younger reader.  We'd prefer that everyone be comfortable here.
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19th Century words, such as "Tis," "Til," "Thine," and "Thou," belong in another venue.  Poems using these words will probably not appear in Sol Magazine except in articles or essays.
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We correct grammar and spelling errors and sometimes change punctuation without asking for permission or forgiveness.
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Sponsors in 2000:  Lois Lay Castiglioni, Martha Capo, and James Lay.
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Angels in 2000:  Leo F. Waltz.
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Book donors in 2000:  Sharon Goodwin, and Carlyn Reding.
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New sponsors and angels always welcomed.  Thanks for your support.


Have a comment?  Want to be added to our list?  Want to be taken off our list?

Write to us at:  Sol.Magazine@prodigy.net

Sol Magazine's Website:  http://pages.prodigy.com/sol_magazine


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