Friday, February 17, 2012

Numbers don't lie

I was able to visit about half the blogs during the Origins blogfest and here are the results of my random sampling:

According to the numbers, most of you all knew you were writers early on. The funny thing was that the pivotal age for the majority was 2nd or 3rd grade! I was playing school and with dolls and exploring the woods behind my house at that age. Writing was work to me! One of my favorite writing memories was a sign I made for a pretend beauty parlor, "Tara's Beaty Saloon!"

Don't forget to come back on that special day, Feb 29 to help me celebrate knowing over 300 of you with a blurb about your WIP (or you!) as an entry to win DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth! [PS - Auntie Tara is waiting for your short stories =) ]

I leave you with my first published poem (for Cafe Del Sol ezine). Have a great Presidential weekend!

Spider Woman
by Tara Tyler

There was a young woman that lived in the city.
She had so many bugs, and it was a pity.
When in the morning she turned on the light,
The creepies would scatter and give her a fright!

She opened the cupboard and wished it was bare,
But low and behold there were crawlers in there.
Tiny ants on the counter, giant ants in the hamper,
No matter how much she cleaned, she felt like a camper.

One day she awoke and could take it no more.
“I’ve had it!” she cried and slammed shut the door.

The bugs were so happy, they thought they were free
from that silly young woman that never would be
courageous enough to swat even a fly.
But those bugs were in for quite a surprise.

The door burst open and what did they see?
There she was with a cage and a key.
The buggies had hidden as soon as they saw her,
And wondered what new treat she would offer.

She set the cage gently onto the floor
and used the key to open the door.
“Come on out,” she called to the bugs.
“I’ve got something you’re going to love!”

So the bugs creeped and crawled from their hiding places,
from nooks and crannies and very small spaces.
Was she making friends? Could it be true?
Bugs aren’t very bright, if only they knew.

“GOTCHA!” she screeched and squealed with delight,
as a giant spider leapt into sight.
He was strong he was quick he was almost like lightning.
Those bugs couldn’t escape, they were very frightened.

“Serves you right, you moochers and loafers!
You’ve eaten my food and left gifts in my toaster!
No more will you scare me and make me upset,
It’s your turn to be scared, I’ve got a new pet!”

21 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Congratulations on the cool poem!
I wrote some when I was a teen, but really didn't take it serious or want to do more until an adult. Like you, I was amazed how many began in grade school!

Angela Cothran said...

That poll is super interesting. My favorite part is the jump between YA and Oldie :) I'm somewhere in between.

McKenzie McCann said...

I love that poem. It has such a bouncy and energetic voice!

I've always written poetry, but didn't care for prose much until about 8th grade.

mshatch said...

Fun poem - except for the end and the (ick!)spider!

And yep, I'm one of those who knew early on. I just wish I'd taken it more seriously sooner.

Jessica Salyer said...

Thanks for doing the poll. It was interesting to see the results.

Cherie Reich said...

Very interesting results, although I'm not too surprised from what I hear from writers.

And that poem is awesome! Creepy, but awesome!

Tasha Seegmiller said...

I love graphs and figured, through my own unofficial data, that it was pretty close to this.

Love the poem :)

Christine Rains said...

Awesome poem! I giggled. :) Thanks for collecting that data from the Origins blogfest. It's really interesting.

Misha Gerrick said...

Wow, that's a lot more young starters than I thought there would be. :-)

E. Arroyo said...

That's a great one!

Shallee said...

Ha! Love the poem. :) And what a fascinating analysis of our writerly origins. Thanks for sharing that!

Tyrean Martinson said...

Congratulations on your fun poem!

Empty Nest Insider said...

Great poem that actually made me like spiders from afar! Thanks for going to all of the trouble collecting data. I guess I'm one of the early bloomers who still hasn't completely blossomed yet. Julie

Cat Lavoie said...

I love your poem! Even though I'm afraid of spiders... I'm even more afraid of creepy crawlies in my cupboard! Have a great weekend! :)

Tracy Krauss said...

very interesting stats! I didn't believe myself to be a writer until I was a bout 23 (or there abouts), but I did do a ton of writing in Grade school...

Unknown said...

Cute poem! And I love your blog header, Tara!!

I knew I wanted to be a writer in grade school. I wrote my first poem in the 3rd grade, and coveted my favorite book in grade three as well from my school library. Yup, still have my canvas-covered book, Ribsy. We have a long history together, and it's smell...to die for!!!

Great post!

Unknown said...

Awesome graph! I was also exploring the woods behind my house, I think that helped my writing! Great poem!

Madeleine Begun Kane said...

That poem is delightfully witty. Thanks for the fun verse!

Tara Tyler said...

that was fun! i enjoyed all the origin stories and collecting he data =)
thanks for your supportive words!

Theresa Milstein said...

I would've been an oldie too. : (

Scarlett said...

Frustrated Woman Trades Spider For Bugs! But Does She Believe In Muppets? Inquiring Minds Must Know!

Tara, you've been *tagged* over at my place. Hope you'll play! Just got to know more about the girl who graphs!

PS: I think it's pretty.
Pretty Awesome!

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