Poetry: Creative Process

This is really my favorite part of the whole thing...



Creative Process

An idea sparks
and whirls round and around in my head.
Cool! I wonder if...
Examine it. Poke at it.
Drag out the books and do the research.
Nope, that won't work.
But, maybe if I...
Pull it and stretch it
and read some more
until rough outlines take mind form.
Hmmm...that might do.
Dig for pencil and paper. Sketch.
Fiddle with color,
proportion, swapping out elements
until the image feels solid.
Oh! I see it! Yes.
Now, make calculations
and hammer out details.
Ok. First this, and this, and then I...

Time for the alchemy
of thought stream into matter.
The best of the work
is done, and only the action
remains.


Melissa McCollum
11/05/06