In 1978, Carolyn Forché published her poem “The Colonel.” Debates ensued about whether this piece of writing is truly a poem or whether it is prose. At first glance it looks like a poem, a thick, narrative poem. On closer inspection, critics decided it is actually prose with full sentences connected by a storyline. So which is it? And was this the moment when the prose poem was born? With a different arrangement on the page, “The Colonel” comfortably rests inside the structure of a prose poem. Here’s the thing. “The Colonel” brings into relief the truth about Art. Yes, there are genres. But there are no electric fences between them. There is, however, electricity that connects them. A poem like “the Colonel” can be shaped as a ‘traditional’ poem or it can be shaped to be a prose poem, justified both left and right, or it can be shaped again with paragraphing and separated dialogue to become flash fiction. The Poetry Foundation defines prose poems as “A prose composition, that, while not broken into verse lines, demonstrates other traits such as symbols, metaphors, and other figures of speech common to poetry.” But these elements are not unique to poetry. Amy Lowell’s “Bath” is a fine example, where we recognize vivid imagery, internal rhymes, and a decided rhythm. Flash fiction is a close cousin to prose poetry, because it is a compressed narrative, relying on poetic elements to deliver a complete story in anywhere from 100 to 1000 words, depending on the publication. Franz Kafka’s “Give It Up!” is a 128-word display of how flash fiction works. These formatting choices are discretionary and cross back and forth among these genres. The question then is what suits the intention of the writer best? What form conveys the energy and the meaning best? What form affects the reader the way the writer wants the reader to be effected? A poem should contain poetic elements. Prose should have a narrative. Prose easily embodies poetic moments, and poetry can hold a story. We writers can experiment with form until we’re satisfied that the shape of our work fits the content. We get to choose.
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Release Date: May 6, 2021: Maud & Addie, a middle-grade novel. In 1910, sisters, Addie and Maud Campbell are swept out to sea off the coast of Nova Scotia. With a half-filled picnic hamper, a carriage blanket and their wits, they survive the North Atlantic and landfall on a deserted island. As castaways, they draw on resilience, courage, and inventiveness they rely on each other’s strengths and become their individual selves.
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