Happy Wednesday, readers, writers, and shark fans!
We hope you’re having a wonderful week. We’re so excited today to announce the winners of our July-August Poem of the Month contest!
Submissions for the July and August contests were accepted throughout the months of June and July, and these works gorgeously and unflinchingly looked into themes of identity, nature, and grief, and we were so honored to have a chance to read all of these pieces.
For those of you who would like to submit to one of Lit Shark’s Poem of the Month contests, you still can! Submissions are considered on a rolling basis, and it’s always free to enter. Submit here up to five poems or ten pages of poetry. If you want to be considered for our current contest (December), please submit by Monday, December 2nd! Submissions will still be accepted after that date, but they’ll be considered for the January Poem of the Month Contest instead.
Now, For the Honorable Mentions!
I read so many great poems during this round, and I accepted some for publication in Issue 7 of Lit Shark Magazine: The SHARK WEEK Edition, and Issue 8 of Lit Shark Magazine: The Spooky (TEETH) Edition, both coming in November 2024, but there were three that I HAD to nominate for an Honorable Mention:
Peter Kay – “Rock”
The persona found in Peter’s poem breaks the fourth wall and addresses the reader directly, asking them repeatedly if they have experienced this or that. But as the experiences become more specific in detail, as well as more emotionally and psychologically demanding, the poem takes on an edginess that would be uncomfortable if it weren’t work Peter’s writing style and thoughtful use of imagery. The poem does not flinch, but it balances beautifully between the difficult, the insurmountable, and the gracious.
Ursula McCabe – “Gardening in Astoria”
When I want a poem that is immersive, I mean immersive like Ursula’s “Gardening in Astoria.” This poem drops the reader perfectly into a little seaside town where the sights, the sounds, and the smells cut through the page, whether you want them to or not. Then a moment is caught, quite literally, through the persona taking a photograph! It’s a beautiful delight of a poem, it captures a moment in time and locks us into the setting unquestioningly, and honestly, the poem and its content are just such a perfect fit for Lit Shark!
Michele Rule – “In Deep”
Most of us have swam in a large lake, the sea, or the ocean at some point, and more than likely, we questioned what might be below our feet. Michele’s poem unflinchingly addresses that fear of the unknown, and through serialized examples of creatures of the deep and with a touch of humor, she’s created a poem that is not only lovely and a delight to read but which uniquely addresses something we can all relate to.
And the Winner Is…
Amidst all of the wonderful submissions we received, including our three Honorable Mentions, I am so pleased to announce that the winner of Lit Shark Magazine’s July-August Poem of the Month contest is Carolyn Martin, who writes beautiful, imagistic, and at times heart-wrenching poetry.
Her winning poem, “There Is a Beautiful Creature…,” which launches off from Hafiz’s “There is a beautiful creature living in a hole you have dug,” takes this concept and walks it in another, more realistic direction. Where Hafiz’s poem toys with the idea of the creature literally still living and not wanting to come out, despite the persona’s love for them, Carolyn’s poem follows a persona who comes across the remains of what they later deem a beautiful creature. After looking at their bones, and imagining the shape of their body and how beautiful their body must have looked while in motion, while alive, they cannot help but see the beauty in the late creature and celebrate the life that was once lived. It’s such a gorgeous, thoughtful, and yes heart-wrenching poem, and for those like me who honor The Day of the Dead, All Saints’ Day, or otherwise perform other practices to celebrate life and memories of life, I have no doubt you’ll find a little bit of “home” in this poem just like I did.
About Carolyn Martin:
Carolyn Martin (she/her) is a recovering work addict who’s adopted the Spanish proverb, “It is beautiful to do nothing and rest afterwards” as her daily mantra.
She is blissfully retired––and resting––in Clackamas, Oregon where she delights in gardening, feral cats, backyard birds, poetry, and photography.
Her poems have appeared in more than 200 publications throughout the U.S., the UK, Croatia, and Australia. For more, visit her website: www.carolynmartinpoet.com.
“There Is a Beautiful Creature…” by Carolyn Martin
There Is a Beautiful Creature by Carolyn Martin
There is a beautiful creature living in a hole you have dug.
––Hafiz, “Beautiful Creature”
Put the shovel down
and slide your hands
into dark earth.
With the finesse
of an archeologist,
brush off each deep-down bone
that held the you of you.
Look for secrets
the cranium hid.
Bless the breaths born
in sternum and ribs.
Praise the moving grace
of femurs and tibia.
Check off the list.
Then cradle them all
with gratitude.
Find the creature
they esteemed.
Fall in love.
She grew beautiful.
“There Is a Beautiful Creature” Broadside Created by McKenzie Lynn Tozan
For each contest, the winner will receive a unique digital broadside of their winning poem, and the one I created can be found below. When I read this poem, I thought back to my childhood of finding foxes, raccoons, opossums, and deer, and also reveling in the beauty of the ones that were living and didn’t know I was watching (or more than likely, knew but didn’t mind). I think there’s a beautiful duality between the gruesomeness and grief of death with the beauty of what/who lived first, with memories left behind to grieve. With all of that in mind, I leaned into trying to represent the beauty and memorialization of nature and life passing. I hope you enjoy seeing it as much as I enjoyed creating it.
On the Lookout For the Next Winner!
If you’d like to be considered for our December Poem of the Month, please submit your poems for consideration as soon as possible! The absolute deadline is Monday, December 2nd, 2024. If you want to plan ahead for our January Poem of the Month, too, the deadline for that month’s contest is Friday, January 3rd.
One winner will be selected, and they will receive $20, a unique digital broadside of their winning poem, mentions on our social media and our website, and a feature in our next issue of Lit Shark Magazine.
Honorable Mentions will also be considered, and they will receive a mention on our social media and website, and they will be featured in the next issue of Lit Shark Magazine.
Submitting to the Poem of the Month contest also counts as a general submission, so even if your work isn’t selected as a winner or honorable mention, your work may still be picked up for an upcoming issue! With it being free to enter, what do you have to lose?
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