The Unspoken Tales - Round 1 RESULTS

Hi everyone! Thanks for waiting.....here are the results from round 1. I would like to thank everyone for trying this out and for the amazing judges who put in the work....the second round will be up in a few and only six poets will be moving ahead to it....
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POEM #1 [Her Unspoken Story]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
Oh my...this piece was something else. A good something else. I found complete sadness and desperation in this poem. I like the punctuation here. The exclamation marks always add so much energy to a poem. The reader can really feel the pain this author describes while losing her loved one and living life without him. I quite enjoyed your take on this picture, and how you got this kind of story out of it..Very detailed in emotion and sometimes poems that lack visual detail, yet carry so much emotion, make the best poems. Here we feel all sorts of feelings, sadness, loss, rejection, loneliness, sympathy....I really enjoyed this write. Great job with this first round.

Votes= 8.5/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
I found this poem to read as more as a narrative play than anything else...maybe because the author speaks throughout the entire poem as though he/she is talking to someone who isn't there, but without really adding emotion and depth to the written words (At least, it didn't really make me feel anything.) other than the opening verse where it was stated they hadn't found themselves since. That line did touch me emotionally, as I think that anyone who has lost a loved one would be able to relate that no matter how much time had passed since the death occurred. The closing line confuses me...you're waiting to be noticed again by someone who has passed? You're hoping he will notice you even though he remarried? I wasn't fond on the "turning numb" as I think it's something often overused in poetry-we become numb when the pain becomes too much to handle and I find when authors write about being numb it often ends up written as a cliche. I did like the "You loved me...didn't you?" line, I think that's something everyone will ask at some point in their lifetime. I just don't think the author put as much into this as they could have done.

Votes= 5.5/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
This piece was a heart grabber for sure, to lose a love in war, with a twist at the end to hear tragic news of a love living another life without you, is beyond tragic. I was touched by the message, and the author captured the picture in detail. As for technical merit, I needed to deduct points. For a few typo errors, grammar issues, and break in flow. With a touch of editing this piece will shine- It's truly an emotional poem, filled with touching moments within the stanzas.. The ending captured a visual in my mind of a lady in mourning- for a love lost, unanswered questions... a lovely piece all in all...

Votes= 6/10

TOTAL POINTS = 20/30

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POEM #2: [Uncovered]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
I absolutely loved this poem!! Not only did you do an amazing job incorporating your picture, but you focused on more than one aspect of it. You described the literal image one sees as we look at this pic, then you described a more deeper meaning behind what we see...I loved that you took your poem that far. It kind of helps those of us who are not of the ethnicity to see a little deeper into how these women feel having to dress that way. (Not that all feel this way), but I'm sure some do, and it set an amazing tone for this poem...one of sadness, silence, suffocation...you nailed it. Well done. This was beautiful.

Votes= 9.5/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
This was one of my favourites of the entries, as I found it to hold so much meaning, and that the author stayed well within the theme of both prompts, the picture and the quote. I like how tradition is mentioned early on and yet the poem finishes with quite the opposite-that she is becoming uncovered-I took this to mean she is going to start her own tradition, that she is going to step out and be brave, be different than how culture/society dictates she should be and how she should act. "that will hide my secrets forever" Also really liked this line, so simple and yet packed with so much intensity and hidden thoughts and really ties into the picture. I think there should be a "to" between try and gasp, fifth line, it flows better that way in my opinion, or maybe change gasp to gasping. My favourite thing about this poem is that the author took their own personal thoughts from the prompts instead of simply writing about what is well known within the media, along with the fact he/she managed to write about something that so often causes so much debate and anger (depending on personal opinions, of course) without falling into that trap also.Beautiful work.

Votes= 8/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
I really enjoyed the detailed description of the veil. I visualized the fabric, before I viewed the photo. Mixing the message within the veil was a nice touch. Very lovely piece here. I wasn't too fond of the punctuation, it kind of broke up the piece a bit here and there. Overall a powerful poem. The ending tied in the message with grace and inspiration.

Votes= 8/10

TOTAL POINTS = 25.5/30

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POEM #3: [The Truth Gazing Back]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
My suggestion for this poem would be the rhyme scheme. It was difficult to read when the rhymes were not followed like the first stanza...I wish this poem had went a little more in depth and drew in a little more detail about this picture. It seemed a little bit simple for this challenge, but I understand where you were going with it...Trying to get your point across.

Votes= 5/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
I'm really divided on this poem. I like the underlying meaning behind the words, but I'm not a fan of the rhyme scheme throughout. I tend to dislike most rhyming forms as I find most of them turn out to end up cliche most of the time, and I found the same here-that alot of the rhyming was just that, cliche rhyme-leap, keep, not, rot etc. I was also thrown that there was a set rhyme scheme to begin with which just suddenly disappeared midway through the poem as it completely threw off the flow for me when reading, as did the amount of filler words such as "you, and, " etc. As I stated, I did enjoy the meaning behind the written words, and I can see how the author managed to keep within the themes of both prompts. I just think that they could have done so much more with this had they worked on it a little more.

Votes = 5/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
I found this piece to have some grammar issues, however that is all that kept me from scoring this piece higher, because the message does go into detail with the photo. Typo at the beginning with the first word, "burried = should be Buried " . I don't mean to be such a stickler, but it's very important to try and proof read before submission, and trust me I'm guilty of doing the same thing, I just like it when fellow poets let me know the errors. The word "eyes" was used, which was against the challenge rules. The message is inspirational. A creative angle with a soft touch of elegance.

Votes= 5/10

TOTAL POINTS = 15/30

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POEM #4: [Gothic Ladies]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
Oh this poem is so sad. It's so interesting to see what you have done with this picture. Here we see a lonely girl, and then the story you tell in this poem just gives us so much more insight into this picture...where usually its the opposite, the picture gives us more insight into what the poem says.....I love the story here though...I love the detail about the tile, laying down, uninterested, knowing this girl thinks shes doing what she has to, to get by, but she really hates it and wants so much more out of her life...I can't really go any further in commenting because I was just over all impressed with what you did here by adding more effect to such a simple picture. Well done.

Votes= 8/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
This is so sad! This poem really made me think on how we so often do things that are unsavoury, whether it's for financial issues or self esteem issues etc. I'm sure everyone can relate to this, as I find most people will do something at some point in their life that they are not that proud of. I like the question at the end-so often we tell ourselves that particular things are only temporary and yet deep down we may know that they are not, that being said it's rare for someone to think what is going to happen in the long term. I really enjoyed what the author took from the prompts with this poem, and I love that it is so relateable for so many people. My only nitpick here is that there seemed to be more thoughts/emotions than actual imagery. of course it's good that the author can make me feel what she/he is describing, but I would have liked to see more visuals too.

Votes= 7/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
This piece was another one of my favorites in this round. The picture was a brave one to choose, and I feel you captured the scene in great detail. I actually feel you could have taken it a few steps or stanzas further in my opinion. I like how you captured the "need for sleep" and the message of prostitution clearly does form in this photo. There are many angles you can go with this photo.. The ending left me a bit disappointed; just feel It could have been a bit more powerful, with the message portrayed. Truly a powerful piece.

Votes= 9/10

TOTAL POINTS = 24/30

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POEM #5: [Burnt Ash]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
The first half of this piece was beautifully written. I believe I have a hunch as to whose poem this is. I love proper punctuation here, comma's add so much to a poem and I was pleased to see many added here, helps with reading and slows down the tone, giving the reader a chance to catch the seriousness of this piece.

Is this a mirage of what's to become in fly bitten hours
and where does it lie when we're enshrouded by dust?

^^ This right here is SUCH a POWERFUL question, so creatively written, kudo's to you for your wording! Fly bitten hours, amazing way to describe a dead body at rest. That was just so unique to me and I could visualize for a split moment a corpse surrounded by flies.

Stick to simplicity, for delving into what's not meant
to be understood, just leaves us questioning too much,

^ Love this bit here..How true is that?!? People do that so often, question things that should just be left alone then they drive themselves crazy with the questioning.

I am very pleased with this piece. Love the incorporation of this picture, and how you added the touch of nature to your poem to relate to it. Well done!

Votes= 9/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
This was my favourite picture from the picture prompts so I was very interested to see if anyone would use it and what they would come up with. Needless to say I was impressed by this poem. I've fallen in love with the imagery the author conveys throughout the entire poem as it really lets me see what they are describing. My favourite verse would have to be the last as it is incredibly thought provoking and meaningful and it really allows the reader to think on things, and to be left with so many questions. "Where shall truth be painted when all our colours have been broken by our hands" Simply love this line-So often we don't realize we are own worst critic, or that it is ourselves destroying our own potential for happiness. It's been a long time since I have read a poem with a closing that really stayed with me after reading, and this closing verse has done just that as I find it to be so very true. There's so many things in life that are inexplainable or that we just can't seem to understand no matter how much we try...and attempting to only leaves us more confused and with even more questions. I adore this poem.

Votes= 10/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
This piece in my opinion was the highlight poem of this round! The wording, flow and creativity was evident the entire way through. I really enjoyed the nature tones within this piece as well as the visual display this poem granted me. The message of peace, along with strength comes out in each stanza. Bringing the photo to life. Very pretty piece.

Votes= 9.5/10

TOTAL POINTS = 28.5/30

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POEM #6: [Standing Apart]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
I dared to be different
like all the fallen do;

^^ I quite enjoyed the opening of this poem. Strong sentence to pull the reader into this little poem. I also liked what you have done with the pictures. You have picked two very different looking people, whose expressions in these photos could be the same. An ordinary sad person wishing they could somehow change the world....I know you have mentioned sadness in this piece, but I like your ending. You changed the whole tone by stating someday you will. You took sadness and crushed it with confidence. Very interesting write.

Votes= 7/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
I like that the author used two pictures for their prompt here, as it wasn't something I was expecting any entrants to do. What I loved even more is that the two pictures that were used were so completely different and at first glance had no relateability to each other for me (As I checked the pictures before reading poem) until I actually read the poem myself. And I love what the author took from these pictures and what they created with both of them along with the quote. I found this original and imaginative and whilst short I found the whole poem to be very meaningful, and I am really fond of the ending line. It creates inspiration and hope, to me, it shows that only if we keep trying we can change, whether it be ourselves or the world in general. I enjoyed the subtle alliteration and "orbs" as that's not something I have seen/read before when describing emotions. The other part I simply adore is the opening two lines, how the author states that the fallen ones are the different ones, as again this is something I think people can identify with-it's always the people who dare to be different that are picked on or stand out, and I found this was a unique way of stating this. I really enjoyed this.

Votes= 9/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
This was a delightful read. Short but packed a punch in every line. Using words such as orbs
And sandwiched brought this poem to life. The only thing that disappointed me just a tiny bit, was the ending...It could have been left at "one day I will." Or "One day I will, somehow" Very minor in the ending... just a few suggestions..

Votes= 8/10

TOTAL POINTS = 24/30

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POEM #7: [The Seeds of Love]

JUDGE 1
Comment:
I found this poem to be a bit too repetitive and lacked punctuation. There were no comma's, semi coluns, breaks in this piece at all and it ran together which personally, confused the story. Half the stanzas in this piece began with "and." I had to read it a few times to try and make sense of it, yet still had a little bit of a hard time following...I could get the jist of it, and I like what you were trying to do with the metaphor of love growing like a seed, and love is a journey, and love can't grow without proper nourishment, I just think some structure could really help this piece a lot....I like your idea though :)

Votes= 5.5/10
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JUDGE 2
Comment:
I found this entry to read more like a story than a poem...to me, it tells a story instead of reading as poetry. I find this is because of the constant way the author delves into what is happening each moment/what will or is going to happen. That being said, I found I really enjoyed the theme of love within this, it was so beautiful and soothing, almost tranquil. I found I also enjoyed the religious overtone and the whole piece left me with a very peaceful feeling. I am very fond of the seeds metaphor-drowning from the absence of sun, because of course, love can and will die if it isn't nurtured and cared for. And if only more people would realize that, and fight for what they want instead of simply giving up, I believe the world would be a much happier place. I also like how the author ends with "harvest love" as this brings me back to the verse with the seeds, and love growing. Even though this read more as a story to me, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Votes= 7/10
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JUDGE 3
Comment:
This poem is a lovely, romantic and spiritual poem. Very elegant, however I took a view points away for quite a few filler words that quite clearly aren't needed within this piece.. You took the photo and created a heart-warming message. They style was nice to read. A few grammar
errors but all in all, a well-rounded piece.

Votes= 7/10

TOTAL POINTS = 19.5/30

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So, Poem/Poet #3 is eliminated this round....congrats to the rest who are in for the 2nd round! It's now up & posted!