Summertime: Surf’s Up! | A July Writing Prompt
“O the gull of the boy coming on the wings of his arms
In the bare hush of the bracken wind, and the glistening
Wave rushing. His board is banter on the bells of curved
Crests.”
Sun, sea, sand and surf – is there anything more quintessentially Summery than a trip to the beach? Whether it’s smooth sands and palm trees in foreign climes, rocky coastlines or damp pebble-strewn shores, we do like to be beside the seaside, beside the sea!
Where’s your favourite seaside spot? Is it a crowded beach on the Costa del Sol or a local cove only a select few know? What’s your earliest memory of the beach or the sea? Are you a beach bunny soaking up the rays or do you hate the grit and grease of it all?
Tell a tale of childhood outings, deckchairs, windbreaks, beach balls, wriggling in or out of swimsuits under towels, suntan oil, donkey-rides, drinks coolers and Tupperware picnics. How has your relationship to the seaside or coast changed in the intervening years? Perhaps you’re bringing children (or grandchildren) of your own?
How often do you go to the beach? A summertime treat or a regular dog-walking spot? Who and what do you bring? How do you get there? What sports or games do you play? Do you swim or sail or surf? How did you learn to swim? Ever gone wild swimming? Are you a bathing belle or a prudent paddler? What do you love (or hate) about being out in and out on the water?
What kind of wildlife have you encountered at the beach? Any close encounters with seaside crustaceans or jellyfish, dolphins or (gulp) sharks? Have you been on a beach at night? Ever gone night-swimming? Do you avoid the beach entirely having developed a pathological fear of the water ever since you saw the movie Jaws?
Draw on coastal jaunts past and present to capture the sights, sounds, tastes and smells of a best or worst day of sea and surf, in your corner of the world.
Inspiration
Today's inspiration comes from Jack Crawford Jr.'s ‘The Surf Rider’ with its use of repetition and gorgeous energy really capturing the grace and skill of the surfer in real-time.
And for a more fractious take on a trip to the beach, try Charles Reznikoff's ‘Leaving the beach on a sunday in a streetcar'. You can really feel the little girl's sense of burning frustration here.
Honestly, there are so many great poems on this theme, I can't resist throwing in another. Here's Melanie Braverman's ‘I came upon the gnawed torso of a seal' - that last line!
Musical Interlude
The Poetry & Writing Submissions List
The July edition of the submissions list is now up on the blog with over 160 opportunities for writers and artists, open of with deadlines this month.
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What I’m Reading:
We Play Here by Dawn Watson
How to Think More Effectively by Alain de Botton (ed.)
Caliban and the Witch by Silvia Federici
