At Long Last, a Second Batch of Paul’s Poetry Playground Photo Poetry Prompts…

~ Paul Szlosek

Dear Readers,

Please forgive me! In November of last year, I posted on this blog what I announced would be the first in a planned series of monthly photo prompts to help inspire you to write new poetry, flash fiction, or whatever you like to write. Now we are in the second week of March 2025, and I suddenly realize that I have yet to post another one. So after an inexcusibly long time, here is a second batch of six photos (all of them come from my color photography blog “Paul’s Wonderful World of Color” @ https://thewonderfulworldofcolor77109243.wordpress.com which I hope you will check out). Hopefully at least one of these photos might inspire you to start writing some brand-new work based upon it. What you decide to do with the finished piece, of course, is totally up to you although we’d love for you to share it with us on your own blogs. If you do decide to post it online or submit it to be published in a literary journal, you have my permission to include the photo as well as long as you agree to give me credit as the photographer:

Photo by Paul Szlosek
Photo by Paul Szlosek
Photo by Paul Szlosek
Photo by Paul Szlosek
Photo by Paul Szlosek
Photo by Paul Szlosek

Good luck, my friends! Hope these photos will help trigger your own poetic and literary muses, and you will be blessed with a bounty of new writing ( I also promise to try my best to get the next batch of pics up on this blog on time). Thank you so much for reading! Please take care, and keep writing, and living the literary life!

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Published by Paul Szlosek

Paul Szlosek was born in Southbridge, Massachusetts, but currently resides in the nearby metropolis of Worcester. He was co-founder and host of the long-running Poet’s Parlor poetry reading in Southbridge and Sturbridge, as well as a past recipient of the Jacob Knight Award for Poetry. His poems have appeared in various local publications including the Worcester Review, Worcester Magazine, Sahara, Concrete Wolf, and Diner. He’s probably best known in the Worcester poetry community for his fanatical obsession with obscure poetry forms, and has invented his own including the ziggurat, the streetbeatina, and (most recently) the hodgenelle.

20 thoughts on “At Long Last, a Second Batch of Paul’s Poetry Playground Photo Poetry Prompts…”

  5. Pingback: “At Long Last…”/Paul’s Poetry Playground | By the Mighty Mumford

  7. PAUL—I JUST SAW YOU LAST NIGHT AT THE MILL RESTAURANT IN W. BOYLSTON AND DIDN’T GET THE CHANCE TO INTRODUCE MYSELF. I CAME WITH CHRIS REAILLEY—MY NEW FRIEND THROUGH THE FRIENDSHIP PROJECT. I HAD A COUPLE BY THE MIGHTY MUMFORD LIMERICKS IN MY POCKET—IF I’D HAD ANY PRESENCE OF MIND I WOULD HAVE ASKED JOE TO LET ME HAVE A SHOT AT OPEN MIKE. IT WAS MY FIRST POETRY READING EVER! GOOD TO SEE ANDE HEAR YOU LIVE!

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    1. Hey, Jonathan! I thought you looked familiar! I know Chris fairly well, first through the Worcester County Poetry Association, and then seeing him read at various poetry venues in the area (I even had him feature at the Poetorium a couple of times)..Oh, I really wish that you did, I would have loved to hear you read your limericks out loud. That is so cool that is was your first poetry reading last night. I hope you enjoyed it and that you attend more (if you do, I probably will see you around because I tend to go to a lot). I have to say last night was one of the best readings I ever been to. All the poets in the open mic and the two features were incredible!

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      1. I totally agree! Yes—I don’t drive, but Chris has promised more readings to come. The preacher’s kid and the casino bartender—but we so ,far have hit it off well. I even figured out how to post his BLOG-SPOT stuff link on my blog here! Was an honor to see and hear you sir! YES—I hope to get in on the next open mike…and the next one…and the next one…!

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      2. Actually I don’t drive either, Jonathan! I either walk, take the bus, or get a ride to get to all these poetry readings. Definitely hope to see you at another one soon. and that you will read some of your limericks in the open mic. It would certainly be an honor to hear you read as well!

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      3. I EVEN JUST WROTEB SOME “ADULT CONTENT” I DO HAVE TO BE CAREFUL—-MY BLOGS ARE CHRISTIAN-ORIENTED AND IT’S AUTOMATICALLY SHARED ON “NEXT DOOR”, A LOCAL NEIGHBORHOOD PLATFORM!

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    1. Thank you so much! I really like the frozen dripping water one as well. It was taken in an alley in downtown Worcester. What I really like about it is how it shows that two different photographers can photograph the same thing, yet coming up with images that are totally different from each other. Another local photographer, Josh Wingell, photographed the exact same site, but at night instead of day, and his photo was absolutely stunning, with the brilliant colors of surrounding neon lights reflected in the ice. I really wish you could have that seen that photo as well. I don’t think you could tell that the subject of my and his pictures were the same…

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      1. John Wingell’s photo does sound really interesting with the night color reflections – etc – and must have been amazing to compare your photo and his….
        thanks for sharing about that

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