July 2015 Challenge: The Imitation Game

[Magnetron]

LMAO, thank you for fixing it, you don't have to take the sig off just break it up so it's not a continuous line with no breaks between links

Just promise to trade in that Commodore 64 for something a bit newer, kay?

 

[Tzara]

Just promise to trade in that Commodore 64 for something a bit newer, kay?

Who would ever want more than 40 columns of text? What would they possibly do with it?

After my father died, I had a vintage C64, C64 disk drive, C64 tape drive, C64 monitor, a bunch of cassette based games, a C64 joystick, and a bunch of other C64 stuff.

Got rid of it on Craigslist in, like, 47 seconds.

Some people still seemed to care.

 

[Tzara]

I hope you do. I always read your stuff.

Just wait until I imitate you.

That's not a threat, just a warning.

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

Could we have a list of participants or would that make it too easy? I'm hopeless at these guessing games as it is.

 

[Tzara]

Could we have a list of participants or would that make it too easy? I'm hopeless at these guessing games as it is.

I can do that, of course, but I am reluctant to do it. I think the focus should be on the poems. There are a lot of really interesting poems that have been posted in response to this thread, and I would like us to focus on the words rather than on who wrote what.

Easy for me to say, of course, as I know who wrote what. But I'm kind of thinking I like the anonymity not so much as allowing people to guess who wrote what as maybe making people confront each poem as a poem, without the baggage of who wrote it.

Perhaps I'm wrong about that. I'm open to debate on the subject.

 

[UnderYourSpell]

I'm with Tess , pleeeeeeeeeease!

 

[Tzara]

I'm with Tess , pleeeeeeeeeease!

Why?

I can understand you want to know who wrote what, but why does that matter? Doesn't it make you more likely to like poems written by friends and not be as fond of poems written by others?

Why do you want to know? What difference does it make to how good the poem is?

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

Why?

I can understand you want to know who wrote what, but why does that matter? Doesn't it make you more likely to like poems written by friends and not be as fond of poems written by others?

Why do you want to know? What difference does it make to how good the poem is?

I thought the idea - besides admiring the excellence of the poems - was to work out who wrote what. My mistake.

 

[Angeline]

I just read through the response thread and I must second butters: there is astonishing writing there. Great stuff poets!

I'll start with the Whitman derivative poem. Song of Myself is a lonnnnng poem (and I haven't read the whole thing in years and only skimmed it now, so my comparison may be iffy). follows on borrows elements from Song and then goes in its own direction. It's really musical and captures the oratory quality of the original. It does that whole sorta list on steroids thing really well--goes from specifics and widens and widens to universals.

Also whoever wrote this loves playing with sound and is really good at it. I mean read this tiny excerpt:

that dying things expel their gusty last before
their gasp of lusty first again

So who wrote it?

I'm guessing either Tzara (because if I really like a poem I usually think he wrote it lol) or Trix because she has a really natural and fluid voice in her poetry. I could see her writing this.

Feel free to correct me.

 

[greenmountaineer]

I just read through the response thread and I must second butters: there is astonishing writing there. Great stuff poets!

I'll start with the Whitman derivative poem. Song of Myself is a lonnnnng poem (and I haven't read the whole thing in years and only skimmed it now, so my comparison may be iffy). follows on borrows elements from Song and then goes in its own direction. It's really musical and captures the oratory quality of the original. It does that whole sorta list on steroids thing really well--goes from specifics and widens and widens to universals.

Also whoever wrote this loves playing with sound and is really good at it. I mean read this tiny excerpt:

that dying things expel their gusty last before
their gasp of lusty first again

So who wrote it?

I'm guessing either Tzara (because if I really like a poem I usually think he wrote it lol) or Trix because she has a really natural and fluid voice in her poetry. I could see her writing this.

Feel free to correct me.

butters

I agree the response poem is wonderfully written, pretty flawless IMO, with, as you already mentioned, some terrific lines. A lot of poems can have great lines, but these seemed so well woven with each other.

Most of us remember enough of "Leaves of Grass" in school to see how the Lit poet built from that without having to re-read Whitman. By just linking the source poem, it made me think more about the response poem perhaps than I would have otherwise. I wish I had thought of that.

 

[todski28]

butters

Agreed

 

[greenmountaineer]

Response poem #11 really struck a chord with me:

http://forum.literotica.com/showpost.php?p=68975047&postcount=12

In fact, I liked it more than the Larkin poem, and I'm a fan of Larkin. We all have a little bit of a child archetype in us, but I thought the Lit poet reached for something deeper.

While I may be giving credit for something unintended, the title made me think of Ginsberg's signature poem, "Howl," which would be even a starker contrast than the Larkin poem. I think that's a neat trick. The allusion, with no more than the suggestion of its title, gave even greater emphasis to "Howling." At least it did for me.

 

[Trixareforkids]

I wholeheartedly agree that there are some excellent pieces here, none of them are mine btw.

I'm finding myself somewhat intimidated by this challenge. I pick a favorite then try to respond in kind and so far it's all come up crap or feeling like parody. I'll keep at it but I don't know if I'll have anything worthwhile before the deadline.

 

[UnderYourSpell]

Why?

I can understand you want to know who wrote what, but why does that matter? Doesn't it make you more likely to like poems written by friends and not be as fond of poems written by others?

Why do you want to know? What difference does it make to how good the poem is?

Oh come on do you really think I'm that shallow to only like the poems of friends? I only want to know who has submitted, not who wrote what. I'm presuming that will come out in the long run.

 

[legerdemer]

I haven't had a chance to read all of the poems submitted to the July challenge, but based on the ones I have read, my reaction has been "Wow; just, wow!" Many are astonishing!

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

I am still going over the poems and am also blown away by the variety and talent there.

 

[butters]

I just read through the response thread and I must second butters: there is astonishing writing there. Great stuff poets!

I'll start with the Whitman derivative poem. Song of Myself is a lonnnnng poem (and I haven't read the whole thing in years and only skimmed it now, so my comparison may be iffy). follows on borrows elements from Song and then goes in its own direction. It's really musical and captures the oratory quality of the original. It does that whole sorta list on steroids thing really well--goes from specifics and widens and widens to universals.

Also whoever wrote this loves playing with sound and is really good at it. I mean read this tiny excerpt:

that dying things expel their gusty last before
their gasp of lusty first again

So who wrote it?

I'm guessing either Tzara (because if I really like a poem I usually think he wrote it lol) or Trix because she has a really natural and fluid voice in her poetry. I could see her writing this.

Feel free to correct me.

*slowly raises hand*



written over 10 years ago, though, when i had time to write bigger pieces.
guess i wasn't exactly attempting imitation of the poem, it was more the overall breadth i read in his work sort of gave me permission to 'go big or go home'. subbed it here just because it felt close to what was being looked for and i may not get anything else written! i'm filled with admiration for those who've written fresh for this challenge.

butters

I agree the response poem is wonderfully written, pretty flawless IMO, with, as you already mentioned, some terrific lines. A lot of poems can have great lines, but these seemed so well woven with each other.

Most of us remember enough of "Leaves of Grass" in school to see how the Lit poet built from that without having to re-read Whitman. By just linking the source poem, it made me think more about the response poem perhaps than I would have otherwise. I wish I had thought of that.

lol

yeah, though i'd not read leaves of grass then, just 'song of myself' which blew me right away! think it was my musing on his breadth as a writer that caused the word 'breath' to crop up and started me thinking....

thanks for the kind words, both of you. made me smile

Agreed

*waves*

right now i'm melting all over again -was 98 here today and i was working; a bath cooled me off but now i'm almost as hot as before! sticky night ahead

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

My guess is that number 15 is Champ, Crozier is my fave but also Canadian, ergo.....anyway, whoever wrote kept L.C's style adding their own nuances.

 

[Angeline]

Yes butters. I suck at guessing you. I believe that was established in the last challenge.

I do love the poem and very much got that you were not so much copying as using the idea of the poem as a springboard. Did you work on it for a while? You must have--it's a big piece of writing.

I think the Onions/Orgasms set (#15) is Tess. She writes really natural sounding erotic poetry. It's a gift. And if someone else wrote it, then they must have that gift as well!


ETA: Shoot.

More ETA: The Larkin poem? Tess? Bueller?

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

Yes butters. I suck at guessing you. I believe that was established in the last challenge.

I do love the poem and very much got that you were not so much copying as using the idea of the poem as a springboard. Did you work on it for a while? You must have--it's a big piece of writing.

I think the Onions/Orgasms set (#15) is Tess. She writes really natural sounding erotic poetry. It's a gift. And if someone else wrote it, then they must have that gift as well!


ETA: Shoot.

I'm leaning towards you as the author of 10. Your compliment to me I humbly offer back, you write wonderful love poems.

And I've pegged Annie, The Queen of rhyme, for number 5 and 12. The hmour is a dead give-away. Clever and funny.

 

[butters]

Yes butters. I suck at guessing you. I believe that was established in the last challenge.

I do love the poem and very much got that you were not so much copying as using the idea of the poem as a springboard. Did you work on it for a while? You must have--it's a big piece of writing.

I think the Onions/Orgasms set (#15) is Tess. She writes really natural sounding erotic poetry. It's a gift. And if someone else wrote it, then they must have that gift as well!


ETA: Shoot.

More ETA: The Larkin poem? Tess? Bueller?

gonna get my guessing head on tomorrow - today i might disappear into the keyboard n my bed's too hot but i have read each one and remain mostly baffled. there's one i thought was yours as i read it, and another seemed like a magnetron creation, but i need to revisit when not in danger of spontaneous combustion!

wrote the piece in a couple of hours,with small revisions over the next day, and struggled with those 'untold creeping creatures, killer whales/sail-winged bats in blind caves' lines for over a week... still not convinced by them as they sound contrived to my ears. it's over 10 years and it still pokes me .. oh, and i removed a 'stuff' before sending it in, so you could say i'm still working on it.

 

[Angeline]

I'm leaning towards you as the author of 10. Your compliment to me I humbly offer back, you write wonderful love poems.

And I've pegged Annie, The Queen of rhyme, for number 5. The hmour is a dead give-away. Clever and funny.

I guessed three of Annie's (we were chatting elsewhere). The humor and form were big giveaways for two of them.

I guessed you partly because I know you love Crozier!

No 10 isn't me. I thought maybe GM.

 

[greenmountaineer]

I guessed three of Annie's (we were chatting elsewhere). The humor and form were big giveaways for two of them.

I guessed you partly because I know you love Crozier!

No 10 isn't me. I thought maybe GM.

Nope. I think you're No. 8, although I would feel more confident if I knew who the other challengers are. My well mannered mid-Western mother always told me to play nice in my friend's house, so I can handle the suspense until the end of the party.

 

[GuiltyPleasure]

More ETA: The Larkin poem? Tess? Bueller?

Bingo! You know me so well.

 

[butters]

Bingo! You know me so well.

oh crap, i was thinking gm for that one.

smart writing, tess!