Amber Smith ‘15 | Staff Writer |

Roses are red, violets are blue, two snaps for poetry club speaking their truth. “Untitled,” a simple yet cool name created collectively by the members of the club, but what does the word really mean?

“Untitled” actually stands for the club being non-monolithic because it allows for different types of expressions and stories; leaving it without a title is to make sure that each individual can bring something different to the table.

Initiated last year by former student and president of the club Kosi Dunn ’13, who saw the different direction revisioned for the club. “He came to me and said he wanted to separate the spoken word part of poetry club from the Inkwell part of it, so I agreed,” said Mr. Darrell Holloman who has been the moderator for two years now and was a member when he attended McNamara in 1997-2000. Holloman also sees a big change in the direction that the club is going from when he last was a part of it himself.

The format of a typical club meeting is as follows: Tuesdays are writing workshops and Thursdays are open mic. On Tuesdays the writing workshops are a time when the individual can work on a writing exercise or free write. Then they share to the club and get feedback. On Thursdays members or non members are allowed to come and share their poetry. The club is always open to anyone, no formal membership is required to attend. The poetry club doesn’t just have talented students, but ones who are truly dedicated. In 2012, the current club went all the way to the semi-finals in the annual D.C. Metropolitan Poetry Youth competition “Louder than a Bomb,” also known as LTAB, finishing fourth place overall against more than 20 schools  in the D.C. Metropolitan area.

Eric Powell ’15, one of the club’s rising stars says “Don’t be afraid of whatever standards someone puts on poetry. Poetry is power and you can always refine it later.” Powell exclaims that anyone who sits in on one of the meetings will receive helpful tips and advice on how to write a good poem.

Other good tips on writing a poem with emotion and feeling are start with how you feel or maybe an idea that you had and work from there. Give yourself a prompt, the prompt can give you a sense of direction, states Mr. Darrell Holloman. Roses are red, violets are blue, “Untitled” welcomes you.