How to write a Fibonacci poem

I sowed approximately eleventy billion flower seeds in autumn and now it’s spring at last and approximately … fifty … plants have emerged to flower their heads off. To be fair, I was mostly using up the ends of expired seed packets in autumn. But fifty successes means I can cut small posies from my own garden every day and I’m out there doing just that, every day. Perth is especially good at the pink and white everlastings and they are looking spectacular. More of those next year, for sure!

It’s the King’s Birthday public holiday in Perth. I’m spring cleaning the room I write in. I’m drawing flowers in my sketchbook. I’m looking ahead to the end of the year and calculating which of my writing projects I can actually get over the line by the end of the year if I knuckle down now. Top of the list is finishing the first draft of my middle grade novel, one or two new poems for children, and some flash fiction (that last one is motivated by competition deadlines). Starting a new job has tipped me out of my routines but, hey! I’m superpowered by spring now! So I’m sure I can complete these eleventy billion writing projects by Christmas.

I have some instructions for writing a Fibonacci poem over at the Fremantle Press website. You can download the printable for free if you or your budding writers are looking for a school holiday/Term 4 poetry project. Fibonacci poems are a fun syllable puzzle and I like that they give a bit of structure to hang creativity on if I’m staring at a blank page.

There are stacks of events happening as part of the Totally Lit Festival in Fremantle at the moment. My short (very short!) story ‘Fish’ is included in Writ Large – a collaboration between Night Parrot Press and Fremantle Ports – where microfiction is being projected onto the Fremantle Ports building at night. If you head down to Victoria Quay after dark, Writ Large will continue until 10 October and you can read a selection of excellent short pieces there, including mine (for a limited time).

I’m celebrating World Postcard Day on 1 October by posting out poetry postcards. If you have an Australian postal address and you’d like a postcard with my magic-themed poem ‘Potion Problems’ posted to you, email me or send me a message via social media by 1 October. (I have two postcards still to be claimed.)

Until next week!

Rebecca