Hello, Poetry Friend
You already know I love writing poems about books. To celebrate the 1st birthday of my illustrated and annotated edition of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, I am writing poems about the other ghosts in the story — not about Marley and the Big Three we all know and love, but about the others we hurry past.
The final ghost is not a ghost, per se, but definitely a shrouded character: Mr. Charles Dickens himself. When Scrooge first sees the Ghost of Christmas Past, the ghost stands “as close to it as I am now to you, and I am standing in the spirit at your elbow.” From that position Dickens narrates the entire eerie night’s proceedings, dropping many asides to the reader. This is why The Muppet Christmas Carol’s casting of Gonzo, the earnest blue monster as Dickens himself (in period clothing, no less) is brilliant.
Which begs the question: Where does a writer go after he or she has written?
Do they stand at our elbow, perch on our shoulder, peer back at us from our screens, while we read?
And as an author, I must turn the question back on myself: Do I stalk my readers incognito? The part of me naked on the page — does she have an independent spirit, peering over people’s elbows? Where is she now, while you read this post?
Welcome dearest, Reader
Where would you like me to stand? (I don't want to crowd you.) Or I could sit, if you
prefer. Still close enough to read behind your eyes. Too close? Fine. Binoculars, please.
That's better.
I won't say a word. My words are all there. I've said too much already.
Am I breathing too heavily?
Poetically yours in spirit, evermore
– Megan Willome
Poetry Journal
If one of your favorite authors could haunt you, who would you want it to be?
If you are an author, is there one person you would like to stand invisibly over while they read your work?
Imagine Dickens at your elbow as you read A Christmas Carol. (You are going to read it, yes? You have time. It is not yet Christmas morning.) What is he wearing? What is he drinking? How is his breath?
Write your own poem about a hovering author. If you like, email me what you write.
Happy poeming!
Megan
"I won't say a word. My words are all there."
YES.