Spooky Season Creative Challenges

It's time for the spooky season to rise from creative minds thanks to

Jone Rush MacCulloch and her Spooky Spectacular Found Poems

 original digital art by CVarsalona

Early this month, Jone sent an invitation to her found poem spectacular palooza, spooky version. Those interested needed to choose a favorite horror or scary book, poem, or story to read. I found a very weird short story, Ashes, by C. M. Eddy, Jr. with HP Lovecraft to get me in the mood to write. I also read a short newspaper clip about the strange Halloween storm that devastated Long Island, NY's beach areas and nearby inland towns. Perhaps you have heard of Superstorm Sandy and its after-effects. My family spent 14 days without hot water, heat, or electricity. Schools :were closed. Food was scarce. Old, huge trees crashed through homes and houses near the water were destroyed. It was a monster of a storm that led to the name "Frankenstorm".

Media Article

In the days leading up to Oct. 29, 2012, Long Islanders were warned of “a once-in-a-lifetime storm” hurtling toward the Northeast. It was called “Frankenstorm” for both its timing right before Halloween and the mash up of weather elements expected to worsen its impact. People were urged to prepare for punishing rain and high winds as well as flooding made worse by the full moon.

Sandy made landfall in New Jersey around 8 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 29. That morning, Long Islanders awoke to states of emergency already declared in most Long Island towns, 100 people already in Red Cross shelters, and 400 members of the National Guard activated...

   Bewildered Befuddled!  

By Frankenstorm

    Truth Be Told  

 Warning, 

 Horror wrought! 

Frackenstorm strikes.  

  Full moon effects unfold. 

 Halloween mashup of 

 Howling winds and 

 Unprecedented, punishing rains 

 Haunt the region in a 

  Path of destruction. 

 Beware! 

 ©CVarsalona, 2023

Listen to the lyrics of  Nature's Way  by Spirit.

I'm returning back to a list of words that piqued my interest for the macabre from the short story, Ashes. The Poetry Princesses have a new challenge, Bouts-rimes, which in French means "rhymed ends".  I am modifying the poetry challenge to work solo rather than with a partner. I chose a set of  words from the short story and added 7 rhyming words to attempt to write a poem around the gruesome tale. The words chosen are: chill, devilish, will, wish, frantic, ashes, panic, rashes, horror, tortured, disorder, cornered, terror. I infused the Poetry Sisters' 2023 theme of Transformation into my digital  to illustrate what happens when my inner Halloween love turns me from a human into a gothic character. Now, I am debating what I shall wear to the Halloween costume party.

 

👀

Before I create a new costume for the Halloween party, I am joining the Poetry Friday community for more poetic fun. Carol Labuzzetta is our host this week at The Apples In My Orchard. As an enviromental educational specialist she is sharing information on bats. Did you know that "We need bats! They are important to us for insect control and pollination of several popular like bananas. Carol also offers a final invitation to join her Ekphrastic Nature Poetry Anthology filled with poetry goodness. It is going to be frantastic.