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Masq
PunkamoarHey everyone. I've decided to host another blogging/poetry competition, similar to the 6 Word Challenge started around half a year ago.
The Couplet Challenge
The theme of this competition is the "couplet"; an under-appreciated yet overused device in poetry. You will be given 5 topic ideas that you will need to transform into a couplet. You can tackle as many of the topics as you would like, but only one entry per topic please! The couplets do not have to rhyme, but you may find that it helps to represent the message or mood you are trying to portray, and will get you extra marks.
A few examples of couplets that have inspired this challenge:
Just a few rules:
- Entries must match their theme; and only one entry may be submitted for each of the 5 themes.
- You do not have to enter all 5 times: you can pick and choose which themes you'd like to interpret.
- Your entry must be 2 lines long. Rhyming is not a necessity, though will gain you extra marks.
- Post entries as a reply to this thread: these are far too small to be posted as blogs!
- This goes without saying: nothing inappropriate!
- You have until October 20th to submit your entry. Judging will then commence and the results will hopefully be published in the preceding week.
Judging:
I am envisaging the judging will have this basic layout:
Originality (out of 10) - this includes how unique your entry is and how it is presented.
Language(out of 10) - this includes how you have used vocabulary and punctuation.
Effect (out of 10) - this is how effective your entry has been.
Rhyme (out of 5) - marks will be awarded for how successful the rhyme was, if you do not rhyme your lines, you will miss out on these marks.
So overall the scores will be out of 35.
Prizes:
1st, 2nd and 3rd will all receive pixel trophies, and a feature on my profile.
They will also be able to help organise the next one of these community challenges with me, and help judge.
Perhaps a Steam game. Perhaps.
I think that's it for now, so here are your themes:
Themes
"Utopianism", "Fire", "Depth", "Teardrop", "Nostalgia"
(please make some sort of indication as to what theme matches your couplet. A format of
"Theme - Title: couplet" would suffice)
Good luck, and have fun!
The Couplet Challenge
The theme of this competition is the "couplet"; an under-appreciated yet overused device in poetry. You will be given 5 topic ideas that you will need to transform into a couplet. You can tackle as many of the topics as you would like, but only one entry per topic please! The couplets do not have to rhyme, but you may find that it helps to represent the message or mood you are trying to portray, and will get you extra marks.
A few examples of couplets that have inspired this challenge:
Examples
"Blessed are you whose worthiness gives scope.
Being had, to triumph; being lacked, to hope."
~Shakespeare Sonnet 52
"I hate and I love. Perhaps you ask why I do this?
I do not know, but I feel it happen and I am torn apart."
~Catullus Poem 85
"The game never ended, just endlessly repeated:
Iridescently savage, the mission never completed."
Something I was playing around with
Being had, to triumph; being lacked, to hope."
~Shakespeare Sonnet 52
"I hate and I love. Perhaps you ask why I do this?
I do not know, but I feel it happen and I am torn apart."
~Catullus Poem 85
"The game never ended, just endlessly repeated:
Iridescently savage, the mission never completed."
Something I was playing around with
Just a few rules:
- Entries must match their theme; and only one entry may be submitted for each of the 5 themes.
- You do not have to enter all 5 times: you can pick and choose which themes you'd like to interpret.
- Your entry must be 2 lines long. Rhyming is not a necessity, though will gain you extra marks.
- Post entries as a reply to this thread: these are far too small to be posted as blogs!
- This goes without saying: nothing inappropriate!
- You have until October 20th to submit your entry. Judging will then commence and the results will hopefully be published in the preceding week.
Judging:
I am envisaging the judging will have this basic layout:
Originality (out of 10) - this includes how unique your entry is and how it is presented.
Language(out of 10) - this includes how you have used vocabulary and punctuation.
Effect (out of 10) - this is how effective your entry has been.
Rhyme (out of 5) - marks will be awarded for how successful the rhyme was, if you do not rhyme your lines, you will miss out on these marks.
So overall the scores will be out of 35.
Prizes:
1st, 2nd and 3rd will all receive pixel trophies, and a feature on my profile.
They will also be able to help organise the next one of these community challenges with me, and help judge.
Perhaps a Steam game. Perhaps.
I think that's it for now, so here are your themes:
Themes
"Utopianism", "Fire", "Depth", "Teardrop", "Nostalgia"
(please make some sort of indication as to what theme matches your couplet. A format of
"Theme - Title: couplet" would suffice)
Good luck, and have fun!
Create an account or sign in to comment.
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Third? I'll take it
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Congratulations to the winners!
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Congratulations everyone!
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Congratulations to the winners and everyone who participated.
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I - I came in second?
YES!!!!
I never thought my couplet that couldn't rhyme would actually make it ;')
Congratz Candlebor and Pikamoar!
YES!!!!
I never thought my couplet that couldn't rhyme would actually make it ;')
Congratz Candlebor and Pikamoar!
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The time has come for me to reveal the results. Thankyou to all participants; there were some truly fantastic entries. Due to there being a fair few entries, I have decided to only reveal 3rd, 2nd and 1st place and write a little about why I loved their entry and how it hit the brief. Feel free to PM if you are curious as to how your score breaks down, or as to what your score was if you didn't land a place in the top 10!
3rd Place - Pikamoar's Nostalgia:
To live accursed, apart, with apparitions of past
If nothing else, to remind you, that life goes by fast
I love the effect that a simple couplet can create, and this one is no exception - it serves an interesting morale, and personally reminds me that though we may have these memories of our past, we must not forget to live in the moment.
2nd Place - Orangiepie46's Utopianism:
We wish for a land of dreams,
thus we make it a land of hell.
Who would have thought that a non-rhyming couplet would do so well in this competition? Personally, I tend to prefer the poems that use the absence of rhyme to heighten the sense of tension, or drama and strengthen the underlying mood. In this case, I feel like the juxtaposition of these two statements allow for us to break, and reflect on the inconsequentiality of human wishes when all we do is mess the world up for ourselves.
1st Place - Candlebor's Utopianism
A world without pain, a world without struggle,
A world without meaning, a world with no puzzle.
Candlebor really captured a pertinent thought in this couplet: we would usually associate some utopian fantasy as a happy, carefree place. However we receive indication that this world without struggle, and pain could be left a boring one? It raises the interesting idea that whilst there are flaws within the world, or goals and ambitions that we as a race are trying to achieve - when these are gone, what will there be to strive for?
(Don't think I advocate these struggles, and pains however. My thoughts are with everyone at risk, or facing a struggle due to recent, tragic events <3)
Thanks again to all who entered, and I really hope you enjoyed this different idea of a contest. Trophies and such will be PM'd to winners in due course.
3rd Place - Pikamoar's Nostalgia:
To live accursed, apart, with apparitions of past
If nothing else, to remind you, that life goes by fast
I love the effect that a simple couplet can create, and this one is no exception - it serves an interesting morale, and personally reminds me that though we may have these memories of our past, we must not forget to live in the moment.
2nd Place - Orangiepie46's Utopianism:
We wish for a land of dreams,
thus we make it a land of hell.
Who would have thought that a non-rhyming couplet would do so well in this competition? Personally, I tend to prefer the poems that use the absence of rhyme to heighten the sense of tension, or drama and strengthen the underlying mood. In this case, I feel like the juxtaposition of these two statements allow for us to break, and reflect on the inconsequentiality of human wishes when all we do is mess the world up for ourselves.
1st Place - Candlebor's Utopianism
A world without pain, a world without struggle,
A world without meaning, a world with no puzzle.
Candlebor really captured a pertinent thought in this couplet: we would usually associate some utopian fantasy as a happy, carefree place. However we receive indication that this world without struggle, and pain could be left a boring one? It raises the interesting idea that whilst there are flaws within the world, or goals and ambitions that we as a race are trying to achieve - when these are gone, what will there be to strive for?
(Don't think I advocate these struggles, and pains however. My thoughts are with everyone at risk, or facing a struggle due to recent, tragic events <3)
Thanks again to all who entered, and I really hope you enjoyed this different idea of a contest. Trophies and such will be PM'd to winners in due course.
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PikamoarEnderDurantI'm excited to see the winners!
^ I can't wait .o.
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EnderDurantI'm excited to see the winners!
^ I can't wait .o.
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yaaay for having a complete lack of inspiration/motivation, this is literally my specialty and I didn't even enter
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XD
I'm excited to see the winners!
I'm excited to see the winners!
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Expect the results tomorrow; a huge thank you to everyone who entered.
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I wasn't very creative and I couldn't think of anything at the moment, so that is why they aren't very good XD
Fire:
We fear the fire that may destroy our land,
yet it fuels the machinery that helps our hands.
Nostalgia:
We look to the past, not sure of how we shall leave it,
but we remember that the future tells us that we shall weave it
Teardrop:
The teardrop fuels our sadness,
and it builds our future with less madness.
Depth:
As you fall down the deep hole,
the depth of life will fall with you and steal your soul.
Utopianism:
We wish for a land of dreams,
thus we make it a land of hell.
Fire:
We fear the fire that may destroy our land,
yet it fuels the machinery that helps our hands.
Nostalgia:
We look to the past, not sure of how we shall leave it,
but we remember that the future tells us that we shall weave it
Teardrop:
The teardrop fuels our sadness,
and it builds our future with less madness.
Depth:
As you fall down the deep hole,
the depth of life will fall with you and steal your soul.
Utopianism:
We wish for a land of dreams,
thus we make it a land of hell.
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Bump; three days to submit any entries still out there.
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I do apologise for not updating the thread, the judging period has started. Although, in saying that, judging probably won't be finished until Thursday/Friday due to a fairly busy schedule on my part and so if anyone wants to enter that hasn't done so already, or existing entrants wish to change their entries, feel free. I feel it is only fair to be relaxed with the deadline, as I have been fairly terrible in bumping and updating the thread myself.
tl;dr you have until Thursday/Friday to submit any entries you wish and hopefully results will be out by Friday or Saturday - thanks for bearing with me.
tl;dr you have until Thursday/Friday to submit any entries you wish and hopefully results will be out by Friday or Saturday - thanks for bearing with me.
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Yeah, just found this topic. A deadline extension may be a good idea
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Judging will start soon..? Or another deadline extension?
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~bump~
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Totally forgot about this... I'll try to come up with something ASAP.
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Thanks for all of the entries as of yet; due to my inadequacy at bumping, I've decided to extend the deadline until Halloween just in case anyone wanted to enter, but hasn't already.
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"Utopianism"
World of which we wait, patiently
But it will end unfavorably
"Fire"
Pops and leaps and sparks and burns
To be careful we will learn
"Depth"
Deep dark black down below
The brightest light will not stay aglow
"Teardrop"
A small teardrop down her cheek
The cause surrounded by mystique
"Nostalgia"
Looking back on better times
Wishing to to return to primes
I have too much time
World of which we wait, patiently
But it will end unfavorably
"Fire"
Pops and leaps and sparks and burns
To be careful we will learn
"Depth"
Deep dark black down below
The brightest light will not stay aglow
"Teardrop"
A small teardrop down her cheek
The cause surrounded by mystique
"Nostalgia"
Looking back on better times
Wishing to to return to primes
I have too much time
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Fire -
For how long will stand an empire?
Until it succumbs to the licks of fire?
Utopianism -
Utopian worlds seem like a great plan
Until you sallow them with the ideals of man
Depth -
Darkness and doom and despair all linger
Where only the deepest dare lift a finger.
Teardrop -
The waves lash, as the teardrops dry
Upon the shore, after they were cried
Nostalgia -
To live accursed, apart, with apparitions of past
If nothing else, to remind you, that life goes by fast
For how long will stand an empire?
Until it succumbs to the licks of fire?
Utopianism -
Utopian worlds seem like a great plan
Until you sallow them with the ideals of man
Depth -
Darkness and doom and despair all linger
Where only the deepest dare lift a finger.
Teardrop -
The waves lash, as the teardrops dry
Upon the shore, after they were cried
Nostalgia -
To live accursed, apart, with apparitions of past
If nothing else, to remind you, that life goes by fast
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Fire
Screams like flames, rising up from the night,
shouts like sparks, no end in sight.
Teardrop
The icy cold frost rolls down my cheek,
as I look over the beauty of the snow covered peak.
Screams like flames, rising up from the night,
shouts like sparks, no end in sight.
Teardrop
The icy cold frost rolls down my cheek,
as I look over the beauty of the snow covered peak.
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Oops... bump.
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bookmark
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Fire
Glass shattered against the ground,
The flame of revolution began to surround.
Nostalgia
Memories from a time that never was,
From the reminiscent haze, regret gnaws.
Utopianism
A world without pain, a world without struggle,
A world without meaning, a world with no puzzle.
Might do more later. The meaning behind the fire one isn't super obvious, but there is a strong correlation to fire beyond just metaphor. Sorry if these seem pretentious.
Glass shattered against the ground,
The flame of revolution began to surround.
Nostalgia
Memories from a time that never was,
From the reminiscent haze, regret gnaws.
Utopianism
A world without pain, a world without struggle,
A world without meaning, a world with no puzzle.
Might do more later. The meaning behind the fire one isn't super obvious, but there is a strong correlation to fire beyond just metaphor. Sorry if these seem pretentious.
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Bookmarked.
I might write some for the other themes, but for now I've only written for the "teardrop" one.
Teardrop:
"Clock ticks, eyes cloud, words on tainted beryl.
Page darkens, words splay, then the clock is still."
I might write some for the other themes, but for now I've only written for the "teardrop" one.
Teardrop:
"Clock ticks, eyes cloud, words on tainted beryl.
Page darkens, words splay, then the clock is still."
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Glad so many people are bookmarking this; bump!
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Bookmark.
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Might try but I can't guarantee ill have time this weekend
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Might do it, I dunno. I'm busier than I expected to be.
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[Bookmark] This sounds rad! [/Bookmark]
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So fond in my brain it lives,
a vision of times never passed
a vision of times never passed
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Bookmark.
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