One More Day

I have been immersed in working on some pretty intense poems this week, which is both incredibly gratifying and exhausting.  I finally finished and sent them out and now I can breathe for a bit.  I am going to return to writing some new posts next week, but for today, I Just wanted to thank everyone who has supported me with votes for my shortlisted Ink Sweat and Tears poem.

If you want to, but haven’t  had the chance to, vote for my poem, “Letches” for the March Pick of the Month, you can do so here, until tomorrow April 15. And, please feel free to share the link with friends!

Ink Sweat and Tears is publishing some incredible contemporary poetry and they are worth checking out, even if you don’t vote.  I have personally discovered some incredible poets in the virtual pages of IS&T and will be sharing some of their work throughout the month.

Thank you for all of the love and support.  I am feeling so incredibly grateful!

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Angela’s Heart Breathings

During my time in this amazing virtual community, I have had the pleasure of reading some extraordinary poetry, from poets all over the globe.  There is no way I could honor all of them in just a month, but I want to dedicate some of National Poetry Month to the poets whose work I found through the blogging world.

Angela has a story somewhat similar to my own.  She wrote when she was younger, and then life happened and she stepped away from the page, but has now returned.  I am so glad she has.  She tells it better than I do:

“About four years ago, I began the process of unbecoming, of shedding the layers of expectation. Of getting lost so I could be found, of asking the right questions so I could find comfort in the being lost. Of just being me.”

My Poem”Letches” Shortlisted for IS&T Pick of the Month

I just got an email that shot me over the moon and under the sea and back into the heart of the stars!  In March, my poem, “Letches” was published in Ink Sweat & Tears; it was a huge honor and now, the poem has been shortlisted for the Ink Sweat and Tears pick of the month.  I am in a state of disbelief and elation!

The pick of the month is decided by votes and I would be incredibly grateful for yours.  You can follow this link and vote for my poem, “Letches”, until April 15.

Thank you for your encouragement and support!!!!

I am doing a shake rattle and roll kind of happy dance right now!!!!!!!

Sidlak Poetry – Take II

A while ago, I put out a post about Sidlak Poetry.  I learned of it from a blog I read and was incredibly excited to give it a try.  In usual form, I didn’t follow the rules, or understand them.  So, this is my second attempt at Sidlak Poetry. Hopefully, I have a better grasp this time!

Sidlak poetry (sid/lak) is a structured poetry consisting of 5 lines with 3-5-7-9syllables AND A COLOR. The last line must be a COLOR that describes the whole poem or the feelings of the writer.

“I Shut My Eyes and All the World Drops Dead”

I think I knew I was a writer from about the age of 6, but it wasn’t until I was 13 that I fell in love with Poetry.  I will never forget it.  I had just finished reading “The Bell Jar” and there in the notes, at the end, was a poem by Sylvia Plath called , “Mad Girls Love Song”.  It changed  my life.  It shaped my love of language and taught me the power poetry can have over your heart and mind and all of the senses.  It was magic woven by words and it would determine the kind of writer I would become.

Sylvia Plath can sometimes get a bad wrap these days.  She is often associated with angsty teenagers and the horrible manner of her death, but before all that, there was the poetry.  Brilliant and haunting poetry written with the kind of talent I could only ever dream of.  Sylvia Plath wrote “Mad Girls Love Song” when she was just 19.

Sink Into Your Bones

One of the best things about being a poet is finding other contemporary poets whose work inspires and electrifies you; work that makes you want to be a better writer.  It is why I began Poetry Month by introducing one of my favorite poets, Brandewijn (Wulf)!

As the month continues, I want to continue to introduce poets who I feel are igniting the world of poetry.  Poets who are masters of language, emotion and imagery.

Today, that poet is Natalie Crick.  Natalie is not new to the world of poetry, but I just discovered her last year.  I had the honor of having one of my poems in a magazine with one of her’s, and I fell in love with her work.  Her poems get under your skin and sink into your bones.  Her power over language is astounding.

This morning, I was lucky to read three of her poems in the journal ISACOUSTIC* .  Please check them out. They are extraordinary!

Happy National Poetry Month

I am undeniably excited that it is April and National Poetry Month.  I am looking forward to an array of poetry challenges this month, including the two I always post about; Visual Verse and Rattle Ekphrastic.  I am hoping that anyone who reads or visits my blog will feel free to share their own poetry or poetry they love.  I am going to start it off with a poet whose work I love and who I have come to admire and care for deeply.  His current series of poems are some of the most beautiful Haiku I have read.  Here are links to the first three, Arrival (Part I of New Life),  Meeting (Part II of New Life) and Beckoning (Part III of New Life).   These poems possess a delicate beauty and a divine richness.  A perfect way to start the month.

Happy National Poetry Month!!!

Rattle

I have read some extraordinary poems lately.  Poems by people I have grown to know and care about, poems by people I am just getting to know and poems by people I will only ever know through their poetry.

Many of the poems I am talking about were written by people who hadn’t considered themselves poets, or those who are poets but haven’t ever submitted their work for publication.  I know that submission and publication isn’t for everyone, but I recently found out about a  submission call from a poetry journal I love, called Rattle.  This call is for poems from writers who have never had a poem published.

Here is the link.  Something to consider.

I am so incredibly inspired by so much of what I have been reading lately and it all makes me want to write more, to become more involved in the writing world and continue to encourage all of the amazing writers who encourage and inspire me every day.

From Waves

I love a writing challenge.  This post is in response to a very special challenge born from an extraordinary poem written by Brooke. The challenge was then passed to Tom, who rose brilliantly to the occasion.  Tom passed the cup to Wulf who wove a piece of magic, and then invited me to participate. I am a bit intimidated to be in the wake of some truly extraordinary writing, but more than that I am honored to be a part of something that has been so inspiring and illuminating.