About half an hour before my performance at the Old Pint Pot open mic night, I was challenged by one of my fellow performers to compose a Hallowe’en-themed poem. My writing process tends to be quite quick, but the turnaround for this poem was the speediest I have ever written.
On All Hallow’s Eve, I thought I would share ‘Don’t have nightmares’. I have published the original effort in full, so you can see the raw version performed on the night. The metre is slightly off, the structure is a bit skew whiff, and it certainly needs refinement – but here it is:
‘Don’t have nightmares’, a poem by Daniel J. McLaughlin
We’re approaching All Hallow’s Eve
Veil to the spirit world growing thinner
Entrance of ghosts, for those who believe
Potential to be a werewolf’s dinner
The ghouls are out tonight
Spectres haunting the world of men
But nothing gives me more of a fright
Than Boris Johnson in Number 10!
Is there anything scarier?
Well, I suppose there’s always witches
Conjuring up their wicked spells
Foul potions and evil wishes
Summoning demons from Hell
Black magic and dark voodoo
Uttering a twisted curse
Incantations aimed at you
Then again, I think Brexit is worse!
On the other hand, a vampire
Could be thirsty for my blood
Dracula stalks me, never tires
Or zombies bursting from the mud
With a lust for my tasty brains
Ready to bite, taking a chunk
Staggering, hungry, no refrain
Actually, no, shudders, there’s Donald Trump!
Other things could give me the heebie-jeebies more, though…
Freddy Krueger could be in my dreams
Or I see Jason appear in my view
I could be Drew Barrymore in Scream
Or chosen as Jigsaw’s select few
A poltergeist, The Exorcist
Starring in creepy horror stories
Forget that, the biggest jump scare is
Another decade of the bloody Tories!
No one can conjure the spookiest frights
Or create creatures causing such strife
As we celebrate Hallowe’en night
Nothing is scarier than real life
Monsters can’t compare to humans
The cruelest monsters ever seen
On this third rock from the sun
Where every day is Hallowe’en
I hope I haven’t given you a scare
Do sleep well, and don’t have nightmares!
The Soapbox of Daniel J. McLaughlin 