Teen Writer Achieves Goal of Publication in Poetry Anthology

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Creative Communications publications chose teen writer Renee Ordoobadi’s poem “Amalgamation” to be featured in the premier section of their poetry anthology.

“Renee’s poem was selected from thousands of entries as one of the ten best in her grade division. The top writers in each division are receiving special recognition in the poetry anthology “A Celebration of Poets,’” wrote a P.R. representative for Creative Communications.

Ordoobadi, who lives in Bristow, said having her poem selected was especially meaningful.

“In ninth grade, I liked writing, so I transferred to (Woodbridge Senior High School for the Center for the Fine and Performing Arts for their creative writing program), but I felt discouraged because so many of my classmates were so talented,” Ordoobadi said.

Ordoobadi said she was disappointed not to have been selected by Creative Communications for general publication her freshman year. However, rather than giving up, she set a goal to be published the next year: a goal, which she achieved.

“I keep on setting goals for myself for my writing,” Renee said.

For her junior year, she set a more ambitious goal: to have her poem chosen among the top ten in her grade level from states along the eastern seaboard, a goal which she also achieved.

Ordoobadi’s creative writing teacher, Catherine Hailey, recognized the effort Renee dedicated toward improve her writing.

“Renee has been determined to get published since she entered the creative writing program, but instead of just wishing it to happen, she set out to improve her poetry by working with other classmates whose work she admired,” said Hailey. “Now, she is the first in her class to make the top ten.”

Hailey has been instrumental in encouraging her students to submit their writing to various contests and publications, and Ordoobadi took her advice to heart. Besides being published by Creative Communications, she also won a Silver Key Award from Scholastic.

“A lot of my classmates got some type of recognition from Scholastic, and the few people who didn’t submit said they wished that they had,” said Ordoobadi, who recommends young writers submit their work for publication.

However, Ordoobadi also believes she received opportunities to publish only after her poetry had evolved to become more sophisticated.

“I used to write about love and heartbreak all the time, and I started to realize that it was cheesy and wasn’t going to get me anywhere,” Ordoobadi said.

In contrast, “Amalgamation” is a metaphorical poem. Ordoobadi said she noticed many poets writing about everyday issues that were often overlooked and presented them in a unique way. In light of this, she chose to write about a pair of shoes.

“I wondered what shoes would feel like: would they feel abused or neglected? So I wrote about these shoes in suburbia walking around on these dirty streets,” Ordoobadi said.

She also thanked Hailey for providing her class prompts that forced them to think about writing in different ways.

Ordoobadi said her experiences in creative writing and yearbook publications has helped her gain the confidence to write for Bristow Beat and other local publications, an experience she has found to be rewarding.

She further said she likes taking poetry classes with the CFPA.

“I think taking a poetry class is valuable because anyone can just read poetry and try to replicate it and be inspired, but not everyone has someone to consult with. Just sharing your work with other people is really important.”

For more information about Creative Communications visit www.poeticpower.com.

Read Renee Ordoobadi’s poem below:

"Amalgamation"

Shoelaces masquerade

through the strenuous streets of suburbia.

Always in a rush         always in a rush.

Black coffee pumps through our strings,

swimming through the bitter taste.

Staining us         straining us. 

Society is ignorant of the wear and tear.

But it’s ordinary here         ordinary here.

Bending over backwards,

demonstrating versatility, stability.

Don’t replace me         don’t replace me.

Darkness transcends.

Toss me in a dusty box.

“See if I can breathe         I can breathe.”

I taste athlete’s foot.

But the others chatter about their day.

Oblivious         oblivious.

There’s something wrong here.

I don’t belong here.

This is suburbia         this is suburbia. 

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