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Poetry Prompt: In the Wild Secret Place

By L.L. Barkat Leave a Comment

japanese garden purple-where the wild things are poetry prompt

Going to Where the Wild Things Are

One of my favorite children’s books is Where the Wild Things Are. Have you read it?

A “wild” little boy is sent to his room without supper and rather than acquiesce he goes deeper into his wildness either by dream or imagination. The room becomes a forest…

…until his ceiling hung with vines
and the walls became the world all around
and an ocean tumbled by with a private boat for Max
and he sailed off through night and day
and in and out of weeks
and almost over a year to where the wild things are.

Max is made king of the wild things, engages in more wild rumpus, finds ways to create boundaries with the monsters, and eventually returns home where his supper is waiting for him (and it is still hot).

What I love about this story is that Max explored. Also that he did so in secret. Sometimes we just need to sail away to our wild places, without interference, so we can see how we feel about things (and maybe have some fun on the way).

Try it today?

Poetry Prompt: In the Wild Secret Place

Using Where the Wild Things Are as inspiration, create your own “secret place” poem. Some things you might want to include in your poem:

• Where you begin (Max was sent to his room, and was trapped there. Are you trapped somewhere? Start there.)

• Where you go and how you get there

• What you’re wearing

• The time of day

• What the secret place looks like

• Things that happen while you are there

• Any boundaries you set (or not)

• How you return (if you don’t return, what happens to you?)

If you’re in the mood to rather write a vignette, feel free! It’s your wild, secret place, after all.

Photo by Cosmic Timetraveler, Creative Commons, via Unsplash.

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L.L. Barkat
L.L. Barkat
L.L. Barkat is the Managing Editor of Tweetspeak Poetry and the author of six books for grown-ups and four for children, including the popular 'Rumors of Water: Thoughts on Creativity & Writing.' Her poetry has appeared on the BBC and at NPR, VQR, and The Best American Poetry.
L.L. Barkat
Latest posts by L.L. Barkat (see all)
  • Poetry Prompt: In the Wild Secret Place - January 6, 2025
  • Journeys: What We Hold in Common - November 4, 2024
  • Poetry Prompt: My Poem is an Oasis - August 26, 2024

Filed Under: article, Blog, poetry prompt, writing prompt, writing prompts

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About L.L. Barkat

L.L. Barkat is the Managing Editor of Tweetspeak Poetry and the author of six books for grown-ups and four for children, including the popular 'Rumors of Water: Thoughts on Creativity & Writing.' Her poetry has appeared on the BBC and at NPR, VQR, and The Best American Poetry.

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