The Fissured Tongue Series
Tentative Titles for Poems About Former Roomates
Kate Polak
"Niagara Falls, New York. Elaine Colgan's bureau in Mrs. Hannegan's boardinghouse. In the mirror she can be seen reading a letter from home to her roommate, Alice. Girls live two and three in a room; pay eight dollars a week board. Receiving and writing letters is their favorite pastime" by Marjory Collins; photograph; 3 1/4 x 4 1/4; May 1943; open source from the Library of Congress
Early to Rise, Early to the Grave
I’m Going to Pound on This Goddamn Wall Until You Turn That Crap Down
So Not Cleaning Up Your Vomit for You
Where the Fuck is My Favorite Fork?
If You Wanted to Eat, Maybe You Shouldn’t Have Spent All Your Money on Drugs
I’ll Show You Inappropriate
Did You Cut This New Hole Through the Wall?
Who Is That Partly Nude Woman Eating My Yogurt?
Please Stop Watching Me Sleep
If You Forget My Coffee Cup in Your Car, I Will Forget to Not Slash Your Tires
Don’t Take That Tone with Me, Missy
Do You Absolutely Need to Be Naked for This Talk?
As Per Our Agreement
The Louder You Fuck, the Louder I Sing
We Need to Have a Talk About Your Taste in Music
Okay, I Swear This Is Going to Sound Wild, But
Yeah, About What I Said Last Night
I Didn’t Drink All the Wine—You Had a Glass
I Promise I’ll Do the Dishes Tomorrow
Wait, That Was Your White Cheddar Popcorn? My Bad!
Totally Forgot to Tell You: We’re Having a Party Tonight
I’m So Sorry I Nailed a Creepy Clown Painting to the Ceiling Above Your Bed
I’m Going to Pound on This Goddamn Wall Until You Turn That Crap Down
So Not Cleaning Up Your Vomit for You
Where the Fuck is My Favorite Fork?
If You Wanted to Eat, Maybe You Shouldn’t Have Spent All Your Money on Drugs
I’ll Show You Inappropriate
Did You Cut This New Hole Through the Wall?
Who Is That Partly Nude Woman Eating My Yogurt?
Please Stop Watching Me Sleep
If You Forget My Coffee Cup in Your Car, I Will Forget to Not Slash Your Tires
Don’t Take That Tone with Me, Missy
Do You Absolutely Need to Be Naked for This Talk?
As Per Our Agreement
The Louder You Fuck, the Louder I Sing
We Need to Have a Talk About Your Taste in Music
Okay, I Swear This Is Going to Sound Wild, But
Yeah, About What I Said Last Night
I Didn’t Drink All the Wine—You Had a Glass
I Promise I’ll Do the Dishes Tomorrow
Wait, That Was Your White Cheddar Popcorn? My Bad!
Totally Forgot to Tell You: We’re Having a Party Tonight
I’m So Sorry I Nailed a Creepy Clown Painting to the Ceiling Above Your Bed
About the Author
Kate Polak is an artist, writer, and teacher. Her work has recently appeared in Plainsongs, McSweeney’s, So to Speak, Barzakh, The Closed Eye Open and elsewhere. She lives in south Florida and aspires to a swamp hermitage.
About the Work
"This poem is based on entirely true stories, including those in which I am the villain."
About the Author's Process
"This piece I initially envisioned as a series of interlinked roommate poems, but as I compiled partial drafts, I slowly realized that the titles themselves were more than sufficient for the narrative arc I was seeking. Some of the poems came together, some of them haven't (yet?), but the titles all told the story I wanted. I finally decided that while the concept was great, I wasn't actually producing great poetry about it, but I *was* producing great titles.
Beyond this, my writing process is rooted in the everyday. I spend time taking notes, seeing how things align, writing in many different modalities (lists, notes, journal, poems, comics, etc.), but the question is how one method can slide into another. And that usually takes some reflection where the pen is not in my hand and the keys are not under my fingers, and I have left my phone inside and I go outside and let it all sort of swim together."
Kate Polak is an artist, writer, and teacher. Her work has recently appeared in Plainsongs, McSweeney’s, So to Speak, Barzakh, The Closed Eye Open and elsewhere. She lives in south Florida and aspires to a swamp hermitage.
About the Work
"This poem is based on entirely true stories, including those in which I am the villain."
About the Author's Process
"This piece I initially envisioned as a series of interlinked roommate poems, but as I compiled partial drafts, I slowly realized that the titles themselves were more than sufficient for the narrative arc I was seeking. Some of the poems came together, some of them haven't (yet?), but the titles all told the story I wanted. I finally decided that while the concept was great, I wasn't actually producing great poetry about it, but I *was* producing great titles.
Beyond this, my writing process is rooted in the everyday. I spend time taking notes, seeing how things align, writing in many different modalities (lists, notes, journal, poems, comics, etc.), but the question is how one method can slide into another. And that usually takes some reflection where the pen is not in my hand and the keys are not under my fingers, and I have left my phone inside and I go outside and let it all sort of swim together."
