Hello, Writers!
All of us would like to compose poems (or short stories, essays, flash fiction) that have an effect on our readers—they appreciate how we have structured our lines or sentences, what we have written resonates and causes them to think more deeply about themselves or an issue, and what we have written continues to stay with them for a time as they ponder our themes, images, details, etc. Not every piece of creative writing we produce will have this sort of impact, but what does it take to create, for instance, a memorable poem?
In her biweekly newsletter, bestselling author and digital marketing pioneer, Ann Handley, shares an experience with a very short story (microfiction) she posted on social media. Handley wrote a very brief account of viewing the solar eclipse that occurred on April 8th. While walking her dog, she serendipitously joined some neighbors who were watching the event. To Handley’s surprise, over 9,000 people “liked” her post, though her social media follo…