One of the things 2020 demanded of all of us was, “Hold your horses!”
For many, the year felt like living inside a pause—waiting. In a season of reimagining, a year of making do with what we have, a year of resourcefulness, the Third Annual Poetry Derby’s challenge centers on revitalizing idioms, those shared turns-of-phrase we use in conversation as a shorthand. The idioms we’ll be playing with are, of course, horse-themed:
THE CONTEST
Rules:
First-, second-, and third-place winning poems will be published on the Commonwealth Center for the Humanities & Society website. Writers of the top 12 poems will be invited to share their work at a public reading. Due to streamlining the competition this year because of pandemic-related limitations, we'll have one all-ages race instead of two. Winners will be announced in early April.
Want some inspiration? Here’s a Charles Bernstein poem that plays with idiomatic language:
If you want to learn more about the horse-themed idioms, check out this article:
There will be three free virtual workshops open to all ages leading up to the submission deadline.
JANUARY 16, 10 AM-12 PM with Kristi Maxwell
FEBRUARY TBD with Kristina Erny
MARCH TBD with Makalani Bandele