In April I will take you through the alphabet to connect with lesser known (and aqually admirable) women writers & poets & word artists.
Adelaide Crapsey: Poet, Teacher, Inventor of Poetry Forms 1878–1914
How is it possible to contain the passion I feel for these women in 300 words or less?
How is it possible to combine the passion and the information in a way that ignites your fire and entice you to dig deeper, to read more, to become even a fraction of the love I have….oh, how I long for you to become just slightly enamored.
I first came across her name: Adelaide’s, when I was seeking short form poetry to use in my writing practice. I was immediately pleased to discover a short form called Cinquain (pronounced Sin CANE) and even more delighted to come to know this form was developed by a woman.
I am a long time lover of haiku: I will probably be writing haiku until I leave this planet and even so, I wanted to try out some other forms. During this adventuring I came across Ms. Crapsey, a woman with a very unfortunate name who, also unfortunately, never reached the height of fame she might have reached if her circumstances were different.
Like me, Adelaide has a strong love for words and sound. Metrics became a particularly adored topic of hers. First, her one published book of poetry during her lifetime was Verse, published in 1915. A critic from the Independent wrote "To her genuine poetic ability Miss Crapsey writes clear cut ideas sharply focused, single impressions etched in a few significant lines.” From the Boston Transcript “The poems are marvelously chiseled gems." Adelaide’s favorite part of the creativity was in experimenting with metrics. It was in practicing and working to get her metrics written write her most popular verses were written.
When my Grandmother was a six-year-old girl in Buena Vista, Colorado, Adelaide Crapsey was teaching young women at Smith College, walking in the same spaces and buildings as my daughter, Katherine, now walks.
What is your connection to this writer, long passed and almost overlooked?
To entice your fascination, you may want to visit some of these links:
Carl Sandburg wrote a poem about her titled Adelaide Crapsey.
“Discovering Adelaide Crapsey: Confessions of a Convert” by Karen Alkaylay-Gut
Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She teaches a teleclass/ecourse "Discover the Power of Writing & Telling Engaging, Enlightening Stories" which begins again April 12, 2012. Find details by clicking this link.
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