Tag: Writing

Reblogs – Shanyu & Reena Saxena

Published on by Susi Bocks7 Comments
Annie Spratt – Unsplash

Let the words fall out…

I am a poem by Shanyu

I came looking for a place to write upon your skin,
But it was far too gentle.
To hold the weight of my words.

I bought a sheet instead.

I went hunting for words in your precious smile,
But it hid pain far too vicious.
For me to even tame.

I bought a dictionary instead.

When I finally came looking for poetry in those lucid eyes,
Even the calm of your hazel dreams.
Jolted wide awake.

I could not buy a poem,
So I became one instead…

Escape from Oblivion by Reena Saxena

unspoken words
floating in steam
on coffee cups
trapped in prisons

eager to break
cages in air
and fly away
captured by keys

oblivion
-a richer space
with all that’s lost
in deep silence

thoughts thank the keys
on man-made boards
for shapes given
in expression

On Poetry

Published on by Susi Bocks31 Comments
Okalinichenko

Inspired by Eugenia’s Weekly Prompt – Surreal & Reena’s Exploration Challenge #225

my muse leads me down a magical path
into a land of the surreal
yet laced within reality

thoughts of wisdom emerge
intertwined in the insanity
a balance of this and that

finding meaning in words
gives us precious guidance
poetry is insight given and paths taken

Hello Again, WordPress Friends and Community!

Published on by Susi Bocks65 Comments

I’M BACK!!

The month of August was wonderful! Not only did I celebrate my 59th birthday but I enjoyed a lovely vacation with my husband in Mexico. Taking a step back from blogging gave me the much needed rest I was hoping for.

Not to say there weren’t some ups and downs. We enjoyed some excitement in Cancun due to Hurricane Grace! Thankfully, it was only a Category 1 but we experienced heavy winds! Oh, and our room ended up with lots of water. You can see how beautiful the beach was afterwards. The rest of the vacation was lovely and it was so hard to say goodbye.

Thanks everyone for the lovely comments on my Peace Out post, I hope I didn’t miss responding to anyone. If I did, please let me know! Also, since I didn’t read any blogs in August, please do share any links you think I should check out.

One of the reasons I wanted to take off August was to get back what felt had been missing in my writing. After much thought and reflection, I think it came down to me feeling pressured to provide content and specifically not the content I want to put out. So, I’ve decided that I will continue to do my reblogs three times a week, the challenges I’ve always participated in, and create new poetry the rest of the time. And I will only post once per day. Of course, this will change slightly when I post the featured The Short of It writer every Friday starting in January 2022.

I will no longer do stories because that just isn’t what turns me on the most about writing. My initial intent with IWH was to speak the truth about myself including occasional opionating and pontificating, sharing my thoughts and being philosophical, dredging up the past on worked through issues and sharing the writing of others’ precious work. I want to get back to my roots, so to speak. Stories, especially the ones from 5 Day Tales/Kindle Vella or anything more than 100 word stories requires a different kind of creativity that isn’t really the direction I want my writing to take.

Following this new schedule will allow me more time to submit my creations elsewhere but more importantly, by limiting daily posts, I will have more time for creativity. And hopefully, meet a need for those readers who read my contributions every day.

Speaking of Kindle Vella – please don’t forget you can read those stories uploaded for free if you use the FREE tokens they gave to the new readers! Every story that is read does pay a divident to the author, so please, go read them!! Thank you!

For your convenience, here are all the stories on Amazon!

The Little Red Suitcase

The Boss

Dipped in Yellow

Falling from the Tree

The Dark Park

An American Conflict

C

The Shifting Sands

Led Astray

3025

The Passageway

Bridge to the Stars

Secrets Between Lovers

News on The Short of It Submissions – it started off with a lot of interest and I’ve been in contact with many who have already been accepted and are scheduled to be featured in January – April! For those who sent in their submissions while I was off, I promise to be getting to you soon! 🙂 I’m so grateful for your support. And if you haven’t sent anything in yet, there is still time. Submissions will be accepted until December 31st.

That’s all for now! See you again tomorrow. ❤

Peace Out

Published on by Susi Bocks74 Comments
green palm plant during daytime
Jeremy Bishop – Unsplash

This is a message to all my readers, whether you’ve been here since the beginning a little over three and a half years ago or just started following me. While I have appreciated all the support, the interaction, the comments and the love, it’s time for me to take a rest and step back.

I’ve felt a gnawing in my brain that is taking bites out of my creativity. This has left me feeling empty while producing daily contributions to the blog. While I’m not lacking for inspiration, I do not feel as inspired and for this reason, I need to take some time to figure out where I need to head next. I’m sure it will be writing, always, but I need to understand if it means continuing such structured blogging as before or not.

I know many of those people who’ve been following the stories were expecting my next one to arrive on Kindle Vella in August but my brain, in its current state, has not found “the story” yet. Because I’ve been struggling to create it these last few weeks, with still nothing more than a few concepts and no material, this is what prompted me to decide to take the time off. I didn’t want to continue to feel so pressured to deliver when it seems I’m just not able to.

In addition, from taking a break from writing and reading blogs on WordPress, I will also leave Social Media behind for the most part. I do think this desire to detach is coming from feeling burned out. And this comes from many things – Covid, politics mostly – with a bit of aging and the new problems that come with it. I need a break!

For those of you who have submitted to The Short of It, rest assured that I will be still fully engaged in the reading of all your work and will communicate with you via email about the status of your contributions.

So, this is my last post for this month and I will be back in September. I will read your comments today, but after today, I’ll be off of WP until next month. Hopefully, by then I will have figured out a way forward. I appreciate your patience and understanding! I love you all!

Thank You on wooden blocks
Courtney Hedger – Unsplash

The Rhythms Of The Day

Published on by Susi Bocks27 Comments
Mike Von – Unsplash

i arise beginning the morning routine
brushing and showering away
bacterial colonies having sprung up during the night

greasing down the cracks and ashy skin
donning either pajamas or street clothes
it depends – maybe stepping out but probably staying in

slipping on worn out house shoes
shuffling across the floorboards
a short trip to the kitchen

a steaming morning cocktail needs preparing
i await its consumption, promising zest
to awaken this still sleep-filled mind

a push of the button on the blender
containing protein, vegetables and fruits
loudly swirls its nutrient-dense meal

the dishes in the sink beg for attention
my computer is more insistent
you’ll just have to wait

read, read, read – hundreds of emails needing attention
clack, clackity, clack – creativity is unleashed
write, send, await a response

project one – putting on additional deails
project two – just begun
project three – nah, let’s wait till tomorrow

i’m coming dishes and exercises
and other things i don’t want to do
what shall dinner be today

couch time, tv time, hubs time
catching up with gossip, whining and lovin’
getting satiated on food and drink

the hours always seem to pass too quickly
if only i had 24 times 2 hours in a day
then i see all that i’ve accomplished

… and i wonder why i’m tired at the end of the day

Reblog – My Box of Words by Penny Wilson

Published on by Susi BocksLeave a comment

Delicious words!! 🙂

Penny Wilson Writes

My box of words 
is hoarded 
selfishly. 

Choosing and stockpiling 
each one 
carefully. 

I take inventory. 

I tuck them away 
in my little treasure box 
lined with memories 
tears 
and laughter. 

Yesterday's words 
are tinged 
aging and gnarled 
the edges curling. 

Today's words 
fat 
filled with promise. 

Choosing the right ones 
is a challenging 
feat 
not always accomplished 
with elegance. 

Copyright (C) Penny Wilson

View original post

Words

Published on by Susi Bocks18 Comments
Karly Santiago – Unsplash

Recently, my dear friend, Chuck, posted about The Magic Power of Words, which prompted me to comment…

“It took me years to become a writer. I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up until I was in my late 40s but what finally pushed me in that direction was finally understanding what I loved so much – words – how they sounded, their definitions, how I enjoyed forming sentences or thoughts and what made music and reading so special to me. I had been in love with words all my life. It was time to honor them.”

… and he later asked me to expound on those thoughts. Interestingly, I had already created a draft to do precisely that! I will happily double down on the view that words are special and wonderful and every positive adjective out there – in other words, they are indeed magic to me! But I will also compliment my friend on putting into words for himself how divine words are—then capping off his last sentence with the title and intention of his blog – sublime!

Furthermore, I felt it was important to delve deeper into the subject on a more emotionally-evoking aspect of it for me, and purely because words are that exciting. I see many new blogs on WordPress, where it feels like the commitment to writing and using those precious words well is lacking in the presentation of their work. I’m not just talking about me being a Grammar Nazi (which, at heart, I am) but just taking words and placing them willy-nilly without any forethought to whether they rightly belong in that order or in that thought process. It feels like massive disrespect to those words I hold so dearly. Add to that, they sadly also don’t care enough to spell them correctly, in the right context, or even in a flow that makes sense. It diminishes the glow I feel that words deserve to be bathed in.

Now, I’m fully prepared to be called out that reading is subjective, and maybe the things I’ve mentioned here, another writer could feel about my pieces – I’m not perfect, I do make mistakes in my writing, and gotten called out about it to which I happily thank them. What I’m referring to primarily is a gross misunderstanding of how to write a coherent thought. Words are meant to deliver information about the subject matter, concept, or story idea – not take away from the purpose of what those definitions are relating. Sadly, I’ve read many who, as I said, don’t seem to be that committed to pulling off a sound thought. That makes me sad because I revere words. I hope that we all remember how unique and magical words are, letting this opinion and concern of mine be recognized the next time a post begins to percolate in a writer’s brain.

Thanks for reading! Comments and/or slap downs encouraged. 😉

Think It Through

Published on by Susi Bocks17 Comments
Yayan Sopian – Unsplash

one doesn’t come across it often
this feat of lyrical astuteness
witnessed in written puzzles

i applaud these cerebral metaphors
enlightening us in phrases
challenging us with humor

to all the creators
with intelligence and sharp wit
a well-deserved hat tip

Inspired by Reena’s Exploration Challenge #162