Impromptu poetry morphs into BESPOKE POETRY or POETRY To-GO– JC Sulzenko writes poems on commission
“I just can’t resist the challenge: writing to a subject not of my choosing, suggested by someone whom I didn’t know beforehand, for the most part, to mark a birthday, an anniversary, a special event or person, or in memoriam,” JC admits. “I’ve now launched “BESPOKE POETRY” to give me the chance to create new poems this way.”
JC began her love affair with poetry written on demand many summers ago at what was then known as “Art in the park,” a showcase for artists, crafts people and assorted others in her neighbourhood.
Wearing a lot of sunscreen and with paper pad and pen, she set up a table and offered to write poems for visitors at $2.50 each, the proceeds of which went to a charitable organization. She cannot remember to which one the modest take went that first year.
She attached certain caveats to the process: payment upfront; she held the copyright to the poem; no one could dispute what she had written; she reserved the right to refuse to write on a subject with which she was not comfortable.
Those who dared to test her skills were interviewed briefly about the subject they had chosen, then sent away to wander among the artisans. When they returned, they picked up the poem in a neat scroll. More often than not, they unravelled the poem and read it on the spot. And commented. Almost all very pleased with the result.
Though not a big fundraiser, JC found the experience exhilarating. “I used a number of the poems written at that festival in “Fat poems Tall poems Long poems Small,” my ekphrastic book of poems for families and children to which Ottawa artists contributed interpretative illustrations.” Several other poems found their way into chapbooks.
For a couple of years, JC returned to the venue, adding a tent and chairs to facilitate the interviews and for the sake of privacy. Each year, the price tag went up by a bit. The final year of her participation, the funds raised were donated to a local hospital.
Then she stopped, overtaken by other writing projects including “Boot Crazy” and later by “What My Grandma Means to Say,” her book and play about Alzheimer’s disease.
Now she has taken up poetry on commission again with enthusiasm. The process begins with agreement on a base price for the poem, which can take the form of free verse or rhyme. The ‘buyer’ pays JC upfront. Then, there’s an interview which can take as little as 10 minutes over the phone or up to an hour face-to-face, where that’s convenient to the parties.
JC considers carefully what she has learned about the subject and writes the poem within the timeframe agreed to in the discussions. The length of the poem can vary depending the subject matter. Once she’s satisfied, she shares the poem and asks for comments as to accuracy only. If there are any factual inaccuracies, she corrects them and then provides a final text.
She asks that the poem not be published without her prior permission and then only with clear acknowledgment as to her authorship.
“I have written about a granddaughter’s graduation from high school on her birthday, the death of a child, a dog who dreams. It’s such an adventure, never knowing where a new poem will begin or to where it will take me.”
A Play for children from JC Sulzenko
What my grandma means to say, JC’s one-act play, gives elementary school-aged children and their families the chance to learn in a gentle way about how Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias can affect a person and what they can do to support someone living such a disease.
The setting provided by the play encourages children to ask questions in a safe-feeling environment, removed from the emotion that attaches when such an illness affects someone close to them.
The play can be performed by students for students or read aloud by a teacher or a volunteer. It kick-starts a discussion, moderated by a teacher or community member, who uses the questions and answers in The Discussion Guide, which was written and designed to complement the play. The Guide also includes the script of the play and sources of further information and suggests activities tied to the curriculum and to family experience to help build awareness and understanding of such diseases. A downloadable pdf. of the updated guide will be available in late spring, 2012.
When schools present the play as a ‘one-time’ event, JC would like to know that it is being performed and requests that the play to be performed as the script is written and her be authorship acknowledged publicly. When organizations such as non-for-profit or charitable organizations wish to use the play in their educational programming, they enter into a simple written agreement with JC that gives them permission to use the material. A modest honorarium seals that agreement. There is no set amount for the honorarium which is related to the organization’s ability to pay and to the project’s budget and scope.
JC is available to present the play to young audiences and to adults to encourage dialogue on a health challenge facing many Canadian families. The Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County , the Alzheimer Society of Prince Edward County and the Alzheimer Society Thunder Bay have built the play into their youth education programming.
A storybook adaptation of the play was published in the Spring of 2011, and a pilot performance of the play is now available on YouTube.
“What My Grandma Means to Say:” Get your copy through this website
JC Sulzenko’s 48-page storybook adaptation of her one-act play about 11 year-old Jake and his grandma, who is living with Alzheimer’s disease, is now available from this website. Just send your request to info@jcsulzenko.com, and you will receive instructions on how and where to place your order. (The book is still available in hard copy and sells for $12.95 plus shipping and handling. The e-book will be re-listed at major sites soon.)
Illustrated in full colour by Gary Frederick, the book lets young readers, ages 8-12, and their families, share Jake’s experience as he watches his grandma change from world traveller, expert birder and best cookie baker to someone who forgets where she lives and cannot remember his name. Once Grandma moves to a long-term care residence, Jake becomes her regular Saturday visitor. He develops a routine and knows what to expect when he is with her, until an extraordinary conversation makes him think she is cured.
The book takes readers down Jake’s path as he learns how Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias affect not only the people living with such dementia but also people in their families, including the children, who can be drawn into the role of caregivers.
With answers to frequently asked questions and a list of key website where more information is available, the book allows families a way to discuss with their children what is happening in their lives and helps each member of the family develop his or her own strengths and strategies for supporting someone dear to them, who is affected by Alzheimer’s or a related dementia.