Pride Month: Time to Shine | A June Writing Prompt
“...and you say ‘fine I am fine’ like you’ve learned to
but you mean you’re overwhelmed
with a place where you can come as you are
and have strangers show love to you
and you never knew that such goodness existed...”
June is Pride Month. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of Dubin Pride and to celebrate its golden year, the theme is ‘Shine’. And for June’s writing prompt, we’re shining a light on some of Ireland’s most talented LGBTQ+ poets.
The word 'pride' comes from the Old English and has been in use as a verb since the 13th century. Originally, it carried the biblical connotation of pride as an inflated sense of importance or ego - one of the Seven Deadly Sins. But by the 14th century, its meaning had already begun to morph into the more modern understanding of self-respect.
Its association with the LGBTQ+ community is tied to the uprising at the Stonewall Inn in New York's Greenwich Village on June 28th 1969, when 400+ people protested and retaliated against brutal police raids at the venue, targeting the gay and trans patrons. The following year, Stonewall commemoration marches took place in New York and Los Angeles, and contemporary journals began to use the term 'Gay Pride' to describe these events and the recognition of LGBTQ+ rights and liberation, drawing on the earlier use of 'Black Pride' by Martin Luther King Jnr in the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.
For this month's prompt, read the poem extracts below and try taking a word, a line, an idea, or an image from one of the pieces and use it as a jumping off point for a new poem. Which words or images spark your imagination? What mood or atmosphere do they conjour? What memories do they stir? Is there a moment of recognition? What senses do they call upon? All poems are hosted online, just click on the extract image below to dive a little deeper into their worlds.
Alternatively, explore the word and associations of the 2024 theme ‘Shine’ – the sun, light, brightness, talent, radiance, the dispelling of darkness.
Inspiration
Musical Interlude
The Poetry & Writing Submissions List
The June 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.
If you find the monthly submissions list useful, and would like to show your appreciation to keep it as an open resource for writers in 2024, please click one of the buttons below and make a small contribution - a €12 donation is suggested but any and all contributions are greatly appreciated.
DONATE OR SUBSCRIBE VIA PAYPAL
DONATE VIA STRIPE (CREDIT CARD)
If you have the means, please consider making a monthly contribution by selecting that box on the Paypal link.
What I’m Reading:
The Butterfly House by Kathryn Bevis
Bread and Circus by Airea D. Matthews
Letters to My Weird Sisters by Joanne Limburg
