March 2025 SOLC–Day 7
A huge thank you to Two Writing Teachers for all that they do to create an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write, learn, share and grow.
http://www.twowritingteachers.org
This post serves dual purpose today as it’s also a post for the Poetry Friday Roundup. You might want to check it out. It’s another fabulous writing community.
This month it was my turn to pose a challenge for my writing group, The Inklings. I suggested that we try writing hermit crab poems. These poems are poems that take another structure, like a recipe or a want ad, and create a poem within that structure. As one website put it, “Hermit crabs are known for creating inventive homes in all sorts of surprising spaces and containers. As writers, we can use the containers of other types of writing to form inventive poetry!” People do some really crazy creative things with hermit crab poems and I’d been wanting to try one for some time, so, I inflicted my wish on my writing group. I hope they had fun!
Of course, once you set a challenge, you also have to complete it. Time passed…things got busy…more time passed. Then I sat down this past weekend, determined to create my poem, or at least begin. I hadn’t written anything yet, but I’d already been thinking a lot about it. I knew I wanted to use a seed catalogue format. I also knew I wanted to write something politically pointed. Finally, I was wanting to play with Canva a bit more.
So, I looked up seed catalogues, got some ideas for the basic format, and started writing. I opted to focus on Democracy, something that appears to need some significant nurturing and grassroots support right now. First, I created a list of common categories (light, water, etc.), and then tried to figure out how to adapt them to my topic. I really enjoyed the mental exercise of trying to find the overlap between my topic and seeds within the form I’d chosen.
I wish I’d had more time to play around with a prose poem introduction, but maybe that’s something I come back to. As it is, it doesn’t feel totally poetic, but I had so much fun with the process, that I decided I didn’t really care. (Poetic license not to be poetic, maybe?) Also, sometimes you just have to cross your fingers and put what you have done out there, and trust it will land in fertile soil. So here’s my hermit crab “poem”:
This week’s Poetry Friday Roundup is hosted by fellow Inkling, Margaret Simon. If you want to check out how she handled the challenge visit her website, Reflections on the Teche. You’ll also find links to lots more poetry goodness there. Click the links below to see what the other Inklings did with the hermit crab form:
Linda @A Word Edgewise
Mary Lee @ A(nother) Year of Reading
Margaret @Reflections on the Teche
Heidi @my juicy little universe
Catherine @ Reading to the Core (may be opting out this week)
Nix the comfort zone 
I love this idea, and your poem is so clever!
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Thanks! It’s a fun mental exercise!
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So creative! The graphics and structure are such a great touch! I especially love temperature- “exposure to hot air and bombast can scorch the leaves” and “this variety has been refined and improved since 1776”.
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Thanks! I really enjoyed writing this and definitely want to try more hermit crab poems.
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I love this one Molly! It is so creative from the layout to the writing. If you decide to post anything of FB, this would be a cool one to share.
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Thanks, Patty! Following your suggestion, I did put it on FB.
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I’m going to explore hermit crab poems. Years ago my daughter went on a beach trip with a friend and they came back with pet hermit crabs. The fascination lasted a long time, with the habitats getting more elaborate and “play dates” being arranged!
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That memory sounds like a picture book in the making!
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I attended a vigil on Tuesday night for our democracy. It was so uplifting and inspiring. The seeds of democracy deserve to be tended with care. I love your choice of a seed catalogue. There are so many ways to use this prompt. I had fun creating mine. Thanks for pushing us a little bit out of our comfort zone.
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I’m glad you enjoyed it. I loved your choice of a weather forecast. I’m hoping to revisit this form.
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You inspire me to want to try a hermit crab poem. As one who grew up on two beaches on the east coast, this name of the poem appeals to me!
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It’s a really fun exercise, so I hope you do try it!
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neat idea to use care directions. Worth a try for many topics, who knows what solutions could arise! Thanks for creativity and sharing!
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Thanks!
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[…] has the Poetry Friday roundup this week at Nix the Comfort Zone and this post does double-duty as a Slice of Life […]
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Clever, Molly! The warning made me smile.
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Thanks, Tabatha. I had fun writing it.
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You taught me something new today! I’d never heard about a hermit crab poem, but your description and example were all I needed to understand. And your first attempt was excellent! I loved the wittiness woven throughout, especially the warning. 😉
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Thanks, though it’s unfortunate that my topic was so fertile!
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OMG this is so fantastic! I mean, not what you’d call lyrical, but then this moment seems to require something a little more robust anyway! And the VOCABULARY! “bombast, propaganda, manure, offshoots, naturalizing, justicia”. Love love love it.
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Thanks, Heidi! I’m glad I tried the form and hope to revisit it. Your hermit crab was WOW powerful!
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Knock me over with a feather! Your Democracy grid blew me away! I can see what fun you had with this creative process. I’ve sent it to Hannah and our friend Tree Mercer, Gualala, California who loves your stuff. Again, I believe your insights and playfulness needs a wider audience. You need an agent! One of these commenters must be looking for an additional gig.
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Thanks for sharing it, Dan! It really was an interesting creative process.
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I love the idea of a hermit crab poem – so clever! I have enjoyed every one that I have read today. I might have to give it a go myself. Your seed guide to Democracy care is perfect! Too much shade may indeed be damaging and lead to unwelcome offshoots. Your final warning is priceless!
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Thanks! I hope you do try it. I’d like to check out some other forms and play some more.
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All kinds of brilliant! Am sharing with my like-minded peeps!
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Thanks for sharing!
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I love how your hermit crab poem turned out! I have never heard of this kind of poem before, so loved learning about it, in addition to reading yours. Your word choices and metaphors are so perfect!
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Thanks! There are so many amazing things people do with this form. I hope to play a bit more.
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This is fabulous! Of course, “Fertilizer” is my favorite. Sadly, there’s far too much manure these days! There is NEVER enough time. I look forward to spring break…but it’s a month away for me still. Maybe I’ll carve out some time for another hermit crab poem. This was a super fun exercise. Thank you!
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I’m so glad you thought it was fun rather than onerous! I’d like to try a few more myself!
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So so good. Thank you for teaching me about a new poetic form!
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Oh my gosh, this is the coolest poem! I hope it’s ok if I share it with my son. The Hermit crab poem is an awesome idea, but after reading yours, it will be hard to come up with my own. I like the seed package idea a lot!
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Please do share! There are so many cool structures you can use for a hermit crab poem. I suspect the seed package could lend itself to many different topics.
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Oh, that root rot. It’s happening, but hope the plant will survive. “Flourishes with a multicultural mix.” Amen!
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I’m hoping the plant is hardy!
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The seed catalog format is genius. The cleverness of all these hermit crab poems is bowling me over!
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I’m so glad you’re enjoying the hermit crab poems. Writing one is such an interesting process!
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Your poem is amazing! I really enjoyed it.
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Thanks, Linda!
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So clever, Heidi! Love what you did with this form!
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Thanks! It’s a fun form to play around with.
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