VERBRAIDIDS SEAN SMITH VERBRAIDIDS SEAN SMITH thankhankank’h yious . . . Sherrin Frances, Elin Hellström-Almered, Ego Grimoire, Volodymyr Bilyk, Kenyatta JP García, Anne Steves, Lamia Kosovic, mIEKAL aND, Beverly Nelson, Strates Fabbros, Ariel Riveros, James Harris, Geof Huth, Stephen Nelson, Amy Ireland, Andrew Murphie, David Cecchetto & Xio Martin. February 2018 Toronto, ON braidraidaid’id weaveeaveave’ve scrawlcrawlrawlawl’wl loudcloudoud’ud herethereere’re antifranticantictictictic’it clamorlamoramormororor’am’our amscreamcreamream’em iisglisteninglisteningistening’is’ten’ing cravenravenaverave’n scarescarcarecarare’re randandbrandband’ranranran’nd soiloililli’ll phpharmharmarmhahaha’rm’acy refuseefusefuseuseus’e swarmwarmarm’r marrowarrowarowarowowowow’www sharpharparp’rp againgainaininaninan’in virusirisrusis’us heartearthearartear’rt heatwheatheateatheatathe’ate remoteemotemoteote’te sþrayprayrayay’s preachreacheachach’e efluxrefluxluxfluxux’x platelateate’te garagearageagrrgrrrageararaage’ge attuneatonetunetoneuneonene’ne trainintrainaintrainraintrainstrain’n’n’n nonagononagonnagonagongonon’n splitplitplilitlip’t balloonbabaloonballallooon’aba’loon’n sie’veie’vee’veieivi’ve omtomtomatomnatomanatom’y squashquashuashash’shhh creditredditeditditditditititit’t ecosystemcosystemcostemosemom’eco’eco’eco plasticitylasticitylastcitylastcitlastitlasti’st’s somethingsothingmethingomthing o’thinghinging’ing symmetryymmetrymmetrymetrytrymerymey’ me’y’em ’yemyremyrtyrtemyrtemmyrtemmyyrtemmys statustatusatustusat’us cycloneyclonecloneclonlonecloonelo’ne messageessagessagesageage’ge imagesmagesagesges’es passageassagessagesageage’ge everythingverythinerythiryth’yt closinglosingosingsings’ing topologyopologypologyologylogyo’gy gaussianaussianussianssiansianian’an exexhexhaexhauexhausexhaustexhaustiexhaustio exhaustioexhaustioexhaust’io variegatedariegatedariegateriegateriegatiegatiegaegaeg’ge noxiousoxiousoxoxoxious’ious’us fakingakingakinaki’ng severeseverevereve’ve severseveeversevverseer’sr hemamathematicthematic’cit flowerlowerowerwe’re’rr craftraftaftaf’ft twittertwittewittertwittwittetwitwit’it thwarthwartwartart’rt goddesswitchborg’dess’ess cyborgoddessitch’org’rg switchyborgddess’tch’ch analognalogaloglog’og digitaluantumalog’ital’tal quantumuantumnaloggitalantumntum’tum analogigitalantum’log’og digitaligitalgitalital’tal divisionivisionvisionisionsionion’on circleirclerclecle’le squarequareuareare’re urreturneturnturnurn’rn snownowow’ow’ow waterproofwateratertererr’proofroof ’oof parallelarallelrallelallelllellelel’ll semiosisemiosismeiosisosissisis’s bloobloodlood’ood’ld asthmasthmathmahmama’am technoechnoechoechochnohno’no shimmerhimmerimmermmermer’er presidentresidentesidentidissidentidentdent’ent scriptcriptriptiptripip’t touchouchuch’tch vegetableegetablegetableeatabletableable’ble’le trashashrashthrashs’hhh amRAMprogramrogramogramgram’m i’m’ire’rimgrimgrimoirerimoireimoiremoir’é iffriffarifftariff’if’if fortuneortunertunetuneune’ne mortgage’momor’mortmortmort’age animalanimanimai’ma’mal archiverchivechivehiveive’ve ummuseumsmuseuseus’s isdisplayisplaysplayplaylayal’day wearableearablearablerabbleableble’le intimatentimatetimateimatemateate’te secretesecretsecresecrsec’t simplyimplymplyply’ly nuclearuclearclearLearear’are pleaseleaseeasease’se benignbeginbeingbebebe’nignginingignin’ng intersecttersectrsectterseinsectnsecttsect’etc memenamenclinamenlinameninamen’en oxymoronXYmoronymoronmoronoronorofforon’r’on forestorestrestrestrest’est’st repairairepairairair’ir watershedatershedtaershedaershedearshe’d thishisis’s www’e destroyestroytroystoryordestorytorytoyroy’oy polyrhythmolyrhythmlyrhythmyrhythmrhythmh ythmythmthm’hmm’mmm syncopationyncopationcopaticopatpatpat’ico’pat individualndividualdividualividualvidualidualdual’u’all tamperamperepere’ere flightlightightlighght’ht endtroducing . . . This microcollection emerges from work written during my second year of participation in #InterNaPwoWriMo—a month-long festival of one-word pwoermds poems, hosted by Geof Huth. Verbraidids suggests a form of writing in which the undulation or vibration of letters and words— particularly within the movement of the scrolling feed or the swiped screen—allows for new meanings to emerge or be generated in collaboration with the text. These woven, wavy pwoermds challenge easy categorizations distinguishing between spoken, written or visual poetic forms: often all three work together to more fully ‘read’ any one particular braid. In this sense we may perhaps think of the verbraidid in gestural terms—particularly as concerns the vibration mentioned above. acknowledgements . . . Portions of this work have previously appeared in Brave New Word magazine and the Sexxxpo pwoermds anthology; thank you to Volodymyr Bilyk and Stephen Nelson, respectively. I am also grateful to have shared early work-in-progress with friends and peers on Facebook and Twitter social media networks; thank you for valuable feedback and encouragement. translator’s note . . . Over the course of the past year Twitter attempted to auto-translate the one-word poems in this collection to English from, at one time or another: French, Portuguese, Indonesian, Estonian, Romanian, Turkish, Czech, Danish, Hindi, Dutch, Norwegian, Finnish, German, Polish, Spanish, Hungarian and Italian. print edition of 200 this text was drafted with various sans-serif fonts on multiple interfaces, and appears here typeset in Georgia. #aquarara #aquariumchannel205 2017-2018