mood swings

good writers of movies, books, poetry, music.... writers of anything { even television advertising jingles } set a mood for their piece through conscious effort.

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i think that the "mood" of a piece is established at its most basic through the use of adjectives. it has been waaaaaay too many years since English class, so please bear with me for a little refresher ~

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an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object.
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an adverb is a part of speech that changes the meaning of verbs or any part of speech other than nouns. Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives (including numbers), clauses, sentences, and other adverbs.

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i found excellent examples for establishing a mood when writing, in an article by Kay Reynolds on Yahoo, of all places. {smile} the basics are ~

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"creating a mood can be done by much more than just using adjectives. the entire point of the mood is to prepare your reader. you have a certain liability to your readers to not mislead them in your writing, which will happen if you fail to set the correct mood."

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"the mood of a short story or poem may be established through detailed descriptions of the settings, people, and atmosphere of a story. if you are writing a scary story about a haunted house, the mood will be dark and foreboding. the setting should be dark - muted colors and shadowy corners ~ and the characters should be feeling a mixture of excitement and delicious fear. if you are writing about Jessica's Great Adventures, the mood should be charged with energy and bright in feel ~ sunny skies, green grass, excitement in the air."

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read the entire article HERE.
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Mary Mansfield, another author of prompts here at Poetry Jam, kindly agreed to allow me to use a recent poem from her blog   Write Wing Conspiracy   titled   "In the Dark Forest" as an example of poetry where she created a mood splendidly!  it started with the title which immediately set the tone for me.
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In the Dark Forest
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Mary Mansfield of   Write Wing Conspiracy
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An ancient evil
Lurks here,
Wandering amongst
Gnarled oak and cypress,
Waiting,
Circling,
Hunting
For a lost traveler,
A weary soul
To serve as easy prey.
Darkness masks its steps,
A moonless night
Perfect camouflage.
Relentless,
Pervasive,
Enveloping all
In its unyielding grasp,
A caterwauling demon
Whose cries
Induce terror
In the bravest heart.
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to me as a reader, a dangerous mood was set by the title; by overt phrases such as 'ancient evil lurks' and 'to serve as easy prey' and 'a caterwauling demon'; but also describing the traveler as lost and weary; setting the action on a dark, moonless night; every word seems carefully chosen to infuse the poem with danger.

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photograph  "Secret Woods"  courtesy of  Ainsley Allmark
all rights reserved©

[ the photograph above has light streaming down on the forest with darkness in the background ~ if   i were using it as a prompt,  my words could influence you to see it as welcoming or frightening. ]

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the mood can be dark and foreboding; outright terrifying; romantic; sensual; mysterious; vengeful or angry; light and uplifting; optimistic or pessimistic; tender or sorrowful; silly and funny; etc.

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i don't have a formal education in creative writing, but as a reader i know that something does not work for me if the mood isn't clearly established. in most poetry, there is very little time to "set the mood" before the poem is finished.

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the prompt this week is to write a poem utilizing a distinct mood ~
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if you write a poem in the style of a certain mood, it can be whatever strikes your fancy, but it should come across clearly.
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translate the mood of a painting or photograph into a poem.
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translate the mood of a musical piece into a poem.
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you could also write about a famous poet known for setting a certain mood, like Edgar Allan Poe, or write in his style.
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you could redo a poem by another poet using the opposite mood ~ if it was sad, make it happy;  if it was funny, make it frightening, etc.
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you could write a poem about a specific mood ~ such as always being depressed.
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just use your imagination to write something new related to "moods".
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i hope you pull something you are interested in from this week's prompt.
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don’t forget to invite the other Jammers to read your contribution by signing up with Mr. Linky. please mention Poetry Jam in your post {linking back is nice, too.} and be sure to visit with as many of the other poets who participate in this prompt as you can and help us celebrate poetry!

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it may take me several days to visit everyone, but i'm really looking forward to seeing what you come up with. {smile} thank you for jamming with us!

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♥

dani

my heart's love songs

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