Poetry and spoken word are all about connection, dear writers: Connecting with readers (and listeners) while capturing and condensing the current moment into verse. There seems no more urgent moment to foster this kind of connection, and you all seem to agree; this was our most popular competition EVER, with hundreds of submissions and peer reviews—leaving our guest judge, Annie Te Whiu, no small task when it came to making final selections.
Below, read her insights, analyses, and appreciations of poets crow_e and lisazhang, spoken word artist hannahthepoet, and peer reviewer suhanee.
Editor’s Note: We would like to say a special thank you to everyone who submitted for this competition. There was such a diverse range of styles and subjects, and so much beautiful writing and spoken word, that it was extremely difficult for us to narrow down to a shortlist. If you are a new writer to Write the World via this competition, welcome. We hope to see much more of your work on the site in the coming months!
Selection of Winner and Runner up (Written Poem)
BEST- WRITTEN POEM
you will always be from alabama by crow_e
Firstly, what a great title—it says so much straight up like a strong title should. Immediately, we understand the context and the impending dilemma.
We understand, inherently, that the ‘you’, is the ‘I’—that the author will always be from Alabama, no matter what. The poet invites us in to wonder if this is a good or a bad thing. We quickly see the double edged-sword that is Alabama for the poet, a place to escape from and possibly also return to for comfort.
I really like the way the poet uses small case ‘you’ and capitalises ‘South’—it gives power to the place over the small-case ‘i’.
I also really like the repetition of “you will”—it lends itself beautifully to being read out loud/performed.
This piece calls us close, asking us to speak the words out loud as we read them, to step inside the shoes, momentarily, of this poet and feel what it might be like to ‘always be from alabama’
I love the placement and warmth and knowing of what home brings with lines like “July glows electric blue, the sun burns white-hot, and you get dizzy if you stay out too long”. We feel the heat.
We taste the “blueberries straight from the bush are juiciest, jalapenos from the back garden are the hottest, and corn grown yards from where you eat is the sweetest”.
Then there is the introduction of the twist—“you have learned there is both good and bad about where you live.”
The poet takes us on a more difficult road, coming to a quick halt with lines like “you have learned that ‘Southern Hospitality’ only goes so far.” The capitalisation of S and H in this sentence implies an unwelcoming.
The line “you will always be your father’s little girl” sends us off on a different direction—the story shifts from being quite known and in a sense, safe, to an implied daunting. We understand that gender is not something that can be addressed and that the poet must silently confront their family regularly with profound lines like “every pronoun will feel like a drop of cold water on your face, there will be so many, you pray you don’t drown”.
This poet is not afraid to stretch thoughts out, to fill pages with words that are dense and personal and very raw. And yet, there is a poised, highly skilled person writing this piece. Someone who knows the power of language and poetry. They are writing about big topics, mainly anchored in gender, identity, place and belonging. They are dancing in daydreams and laughing and escaping, and peeling back, and “bright and hot as that Alabama summer sun” and they are free.
They are a great example of a someone who has chosen to use poetry as a tool to both give and take from the reader. They’re asking us for trust and it feels wonderful as the reader to be let in and trusted with these heartfelt experiences.
RUNNER UP – WRITTEN POEM
Interlude – by lisazhang
The musicality of this piece sings off the page and invites the reader in. This poet is a wonderful storyteller. We are at the piano keys with them. We hear the notes, we know the tunes. We understand the relationship the poet has with their Mother who sees the potential they don’t see as a kid.
I loved the introduction of the in-between-ness as well as the twist in the piece of how they want to return to music. This is a metaphor for so many things in life.
I really like the title and references back to music vocabulary. This poet is writing directly from their experience—they are writing what they know—which bounces off the page with authenticity and generosity. This piece has a cinematic and audio quality to it.
The following lines were highlights for me:
- “Eight years I spent suspended over those eighty-eight keys”
- “Every crescendo and diminuendo felt like another silenced scream amidst a constant flux of white noise.”
- “how the sharps and flats bore into me like crushed gravel on the soles of my feet imprinting them with a pattern of dissatisfaction and misery”
The rejuvenation we feel as a reader at the end of the piece—we exhale and it is a pleasure to reach the end, ready for the next tune. We are invited into the private world of a musician.
This is an accidental love-letter to the poet’s parents for encouraging and in a way disciplining them through the practice of music / piano.
BEST SPOKEN WORD
If the World Was a Movie, Hannahthepoet (Canada)
View performance here!
As I mentioned earlier in my Q&A, I thought the winner of the Spoken Word would be undeniable. This is the way I felt after having experienced this brilliant piece titled “If the World Was a Movie.” What a pleasure it was to listen and watch this piece of art by a poet whose eye and ear for humanity, their ability to capture this very moment in our time—this work is a wonderful document for right now. It is like a portal to this COVID time, and will hold true in years to come. I specifically firstly only listened to the poet’s voice—to their rhythm, their language, their expression when I pressed play on their video. I was captivated by the tonality of the voice—the pauses, the rhythm, the fact that they were taking their time, allowing us to fill our imagination with images they spoke of.
I was particularly drawn to lines like:
- “Claustrophobia ensues as we quarantine ourselves with our own fear
Thursday March 12, 2020 was the first day that I felt trapped in my own hand washing
Turning the Happy Birthday song into a timer
Dehydrating my sense of hope and my skin all at the same time
While some of us are basking in our privilege
Of stockpiling things
Not out of need, but our own fear” - “Or maybe it’s a silent film
In a world where you see colour but everything feels black and white” - “If the world was a movie
I’d kaleidoscope the technicolor stories that we hold behind our eyes
How we build bridges, write books and try not to hold grudges
The heart of a cosmopolitan among the cosmos
We are nothing short of stars”
This artist has the skills, the equipment and the passion to create art that utilizes both spoken word and technology, and they’re not afraid to use it. I respect that the artist is the videographer/photographer, director, producer, set designer, sound designer and writer for this piece. Having worked in the arts industry for the past twenty years, sustainability in the industry is dependent on this kind of flexibility, resilience and willingness to wear many hats. This artist has the vision to see the big picture as well as take care of small details. They should be really proud of this excellent piece of spoken word performance art.
BEST PEER REVIEW
Suhanee’s review of “The Tree”
The poet of this pieces writes a note to the reader, that they would appreciate “constructive criticism” and would like to be able to “expand vocabulary and use of symbolism”. I believe Suhanee’s review most considered these comments in their review, which was thoughtful, generous and certainly helpful to the poet in terms of giving them impetus to take their poem further.
Suhanee’s review offers wonderful advice to the poet such as “I think using a metaphor to describe that the tree is dead, rather than simply stating it, would also improve your writing.” This nods to one of the elemental rules of poetry which which is to show, not tell.
Suhanee writes with a warmth and genuine care for the piece, as is seen with insightful comments like “My favorite line is “I rocked about/Like an anchorless boat…”. I think that it shows how sometimes it’s hard to figure out what to do when everything around you seems to be changing, and I think that the concept of uncertainty in life is very relatable for many individuals, especially during this time.”
What is clear with Suhanee’s review is that they are a keen reader and for many poets, this is a part of the literary equation that is often forgotten. Many poets focus on writing rather than reading. For me, the best poets are the broadest readers and for me, that’s what Suhanee’s review reflects.
Highly Commended:
Poetry:
“Ballad in three parts,” Kate Gardner (US)
“Your name, in my dying language,” Vanilla (India)
“My Parents Consider What They’ll Do to Their Remains,” Ottavia2112 (Canada)
“The Definition of the Word ‘Bet,’” JOLT (US)
“The Armoury,” Amalia (UK)
“The Life of a Tree,” Alex Gray (US)
“Walking Home From the Playground at Dusk,” Emily Chang (US)
“Change,” Lyat Melese (US)
Spoken Word
“To Be Girl,” Zara Rahman (Canada)
“Let that (sync) in: heartbeat of the city,” Michelle Mo (Canada)
“Garden of Gethsemane,” Hailey Lewis (Canada)
“Vaguely Political, Vaguely Philosophical Rant of a Discontent and Powerless Teenager,” Memmiwrites (United Kingdom)
