In-Depth Night 2020

Hello everyone!

Thank you for visiting my blog tonight.

This year I have worked with my amazing and talented mentor, Aaron Hunter, on slam poetry.

Below you will find two short one-minute poems (feel free to watch one or both of them).

If you have any questions (or comments) just ask (I don’t byte).

Hope you have a good night! And stay safe.

-Mel

IMPORTANT: If I can have your attention please. My fellow peer, Max, has had his blog deleted earlier. He’s worked really hard, and it’s not listed under the TALONS blogs, so please give it a visit here: http://maxliuyuan.wordpress.com )

 

Poem No. 1

 

Poem No. 2

Thank you for watching!

And remember, if you have any questions please ask!

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66 Replies to “In-Depth Night 2020”

  1. Mel,
    Baie dankie dat jy hierdie diep roerende twee gedigte ook met Oupa en Ouma van Suid Afrika gedeel het. Jou talent is absoluut verstommend en jy is briljant met jou voordrag. Jy is vir ons baie spesiaal.
    Liefde.

  2. Your poems are amazing and you did a great job delivering them as well! You’re so talented and your poems are very touching.

  3. Wow, this is amazing! You’re an incredible speaker and an even better writer! Did you face any challenges such as writers block during this process? Great worK!

    1. Yes, I did in fact experience a kind of “writer’s block” during the In-Depth process. For a couple of months (in quarintine) I had trouble putting anything on paper. But luckily it subsided before In-Depth Night, so I was able to write these poems on time, which was a huge relief!

  4. Damn, this is really good! I really like the emotion that you portrayed with your voice! Nice job!

  5. Hi,

    I was wondering how many times you re-write and change your poems to get them just the way you want them?

    1. This is a really good question! In the beginning, I was naive enough to think I would get everything just the way I liked it the first time around. But that is far from the truth!

      I would say it takes me anywhere between 2-20 edits until I’m happy with my product. While I was recording these two poems, I even tweaked a few things here and there as I was saying them aloud.

  6. Damn Mel, those poems sound awesome! I love the description, the syllable use, the metaphors, and the general tone/vibe of each piece of writing! Incredible In-Depth!

  7. I really loved the flow of your words. Both slam poems seemed quite personal. Was revealing a little bit of how and what you think an intimidating part of the creation? I hope you create more poetry in the future. Beautifully done.

    1. The most intimidating part of writing a slam poem is starting. the moment you sit down and look at your blank piece of paper, and wonder how you should start.

      ending it can sometimes be equally difficult as you don’t always have the motivation or confidence to do so.

      but that’s just for me personally.

      thank you for the question!

  8. Love the vocabulary of your face and your voice…you take your audience on a journey. Well done!

  9. Hi Mel!
    I am amazed with your work, both of your pieces were beautiful and I hope you continue with poetry in your life. You have a beautiful flow when you speak. I would honestly love to hear you and Aaron perform a duet sometime, as you have very similar styles.

    1. wow! thank you Leah!

      I would love to perform a duet with Aaron! and I will defintely continue with some form of writing in the future!

  10. I’m absolutely spellbound by your writing and your delivery Mel! This is so amazing! I can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

  11. These are so beautiful mel! You have such a gift! As someone who writes songs a lot, would you ever try and turn your future poetry into songs?

    1. hmmm, maybe

      I have written a couple of songs, but they are really rough, and I’m not particularly musically inclined.
      but maybe that is somehting that I can work on in the future.
      🙂

  12. Hi Mel!
    Wow – these are so touching! I’m Aaron’s friend, and I know how much she enjoys slam poetry. You two are both very talented and powerful with words. I hope you keep up with this passion.

    Have you ever performed at a slam jam? If not, would you want to in the future?

    Great job! I can hear the emotion in your voice when you speak.
    Kailey

    1. Wow! thank you so much!

      Aaron speaks so highly of you, so what you just said means a lot to me!

      I have never competed, it was going to be one of my goals, but alas, covid-19.
      thank you again!

  13. Wow! Your poems and performance were amazing. When you said, ‘… strains of expectations, inhumane limitations’, the flow really hit me.
    Throughout this project, what do you think you gained, personally, from this experience?
    Did you learn something new about slam poetry that shifted your perspective of it before you began this project?
    Amazing job on your In-Depth! Congratulations on making it to the end!

    1. Wow!

      thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed comment!

      to answer your question(s), I think I gained a lot more awareness for self-expression, a skill I am now very grateful to have developed.

      As for my perspective, I wouldn’t say it changed all too much. I of course learned many new skills and lessons, but while you could say that my perspective on life has changed, slam poetry has stayed the same (in a good way).

      1. It’s awesome to hear that you’ve truly enjoyed your project! Make sure you take time to celebrate its completion :)))

  14. MEL! Your poems are amazing. You make me have emotions that I thought I didn’t have! Please keep it up!

  15. Well done! Poems are very difficult to do & you do an amazing job. What exactly is ‘slam’ poetry? Thanks for sharing.

    1. merci!
      slam poetry (is essentially) a form of spoken word poetry. It can be performed causually, or at a competition. My mentor just finished performing at one of the biggest slam poetry competitons in Canada.

  16. Your poetry was lovely to read, and even more lovely to hear in spoken form. …It’s fascinating how poems can be interpreted differently depending upon if a poem is read or spoken. We hope you keep writing poetry! – Natalie and Brandon

  17. Mel, thanks for sharing something that is so personal to you. What did you enjoy most about this project? Why?

    1. Thank you for the question Ms. Mulder!
      I think the most enjoyable part of my In-Depth was being able to do something that I love. In-Depth means a lot to all the TALONS students and I think this is why.

      I also gained a little more confidence in myself through the process, which is a big bonus!

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