Birthday Week 2023: 19-Word Poem Contest

That's right! It's a poetry contest to celebrate our wonderful, wonderful YWS! The catch? Because YWS is turning 19, your poem has to have only 19 words: no more, no less! A loose prompt to get you going is the theme of celebration, but your poem can be about whatever you want, so long as you meet the word count!

The 2nd and 3rd place winners will get a special badge commemorating their magnificent achievement, and the 1st place winner will get a badge and a personalized 19-word poem! To enter, simply post your entries in this thread! (Any questions can be asked in the thread as well.) All entries are due by November 19.

Can't wait to see all your remarkable entries!

This is so fun!

My submission:
The confetti rains around me
I fake a smile
a feign of surprise
Nobody sees the pain
Still smiling

Writer's Bliss

Pot of ink
A writer’s pleasure
With words of art

But a cake
And fine quest
Warms the heart

@Rose contractions are one word!

@OrabellaAvenue it’s just like LuminescentAnt said— they’re due the 19th, which I totally forgot to put in the intro post. Fixing that now!

then i remember i am
the sun & it is beautiful out --
everything
i feel i try to contain

This sounds so much fun

Tiny Tears of Triumph

Victory so small, yet profound,

Celebrated in silence, joy unbound,

Tears of triumph, quietly shed,

In solitude, emotions thread.

<3

this sounds fun!

My submission: A day to remember.

words weave a web of celebration

All of us congratulating a nineteenth-year

A day to remember.

Young Writers Uniting.

Thanks for your answer, @Plume and @LuminescentAnt!

My poem:
"Hollow Laughter"

Light dwindles.
Laughter behind the wall.
Tear-stained pillow
Drowns it all.

I brought them together.
They left me.

Bit of a last minute entry from me, but here we go!

Title: Park, in the afternoon


Now at summer’s end –
ducks venture across the road:
two brown-feathered,
one with green
that flares with the sun.

My last-minute submission:

Unattained Celebration

Buttery, chromatic confections,
Joy like morning sun,
Hilarious memories;
Can't help but think,
Do I deserve any of it?

So sorry for the delay! Not pointing any fingers, but someone whose name rhymes with "fume" and "loom" forgot that they hosted this and therefore need to decide winners >_> but nevertheless I am back A Whole Month Later™ with the results!

First and foremost, thank you ALL who participated! I enjoyed reading your poetry so so much, and each and every one of your 19 words made this year's birthday celebration all the more special!

Quick tag for all of our participants:

@LuminescentAnt @Liminality @OrabellaAvenue @teatiime @AilahEvelynMae @envy @alliyah @Rose @Quillfeather

Now, without any further ado, here are our winners!

Third Place: @envy

With marvelous use of enjambment, this poem evokes a powerful emotion for such a short piece!

Second Place: @AilahEvelynMae

A very well thought-out rhyme scheme, which is super impressive for just nineteen words!

First Place: @teatiime

This poem has some of my favorite things in a poem: repetition, alliteration, assonance--- not to mention lovely visuals and themes pertinent for a YWS Birthday Celebration!

To our winners: your prizes should be delivered soon! Thanks for sharing your amazing poems with us!

With that, thank you all once more for submitting your poems; if you want to check out the winning poems (and the rest as well -- highly recommend!!) simply scroll up in this thread! Endlessly grateful for all of your participation <3