Tag: Writing

Liebster Award #3

Published on by Susi Bocks17 Comments

Thank you, Nathan Cocker – Poetry 365 for this nomination. While I appreciate being nominated and answering the questions you asked of me, I won’t be selecting any blogs. I think most, if not all, writers I subscribe to deserve a nomination. Please take a little time to get to know me a little better. Thanks again for the opportunity to share my world, Nathan! I hope everyone takes a moment to read your work!

Nathan’s Questions For Me

  • Are you a cat, dog, mouse, or fish person? (Explain why…)

I love all animals so I won’t choose one. If I was of the frame of mind to have a pet, it would probably be a miniature pig.

  • What was your first music album / CD? (What was your last? Damn you, Spotify!!)

No idea as it was over 40 years ago now. I can tell you my first concert was Styx – the Babe, I love you Tour. I was sixteen at the time.

  • Which is your favourite Beatle and why?

Ringo Starr because I love drummers.

  • If you could be any character from fiction or movie, who and why?

I would want to be any noble character who is always willing to stand on the right side of history.

  • What was your most disastrous date night? Tell all the gory details!

I can’t say that I ever really had one.

  • No regrets. But, what is your biggest regret? (No politics)

Marrying my first love. Although, I would never have had my first son. He was worth going through the ending of it.

  • What was your scariest weather moment?

Tornado that the funnel was starting to rotate above our home in 2001. It did touch down but when it did, it was about 1/2 mile away from us.

  • What is your favourite city? Explain why?

Boston, Massachusetts will forever be my favorite city. There is such a rich history there and the city is beautiful architecturally. The people are wonderful too!

  • What did you want to be when you were growing up?

A singer, then I wanted to be in the Air Force, not married and never having children. I never became a singer or get into the Armed Forces but I did get married (2X) and had two children.

  • If you could make a mixtape (OK! or, a spotify playlist), which are the first 5 tracks?

LP – Lost on You
Pink – Raise your Glass
AC/DC – Back in Black
One Republic – Counting Stars
Shawn Mendes – There’s Nothing Holding Me Back

  • You have the luxury of writing your own epitaph. Please tell us all? (and make us cry…)

I won’t be writing an epitaph as I’m not getting buried. My body and my brain are getting donated to science. But I will tell you that I’ve asked my children to make sure the Obiturary starts like this…

Fucking Dead as of (whatever that date may be) 🙂

… It’s A Comin’!

Published on by Susi Bocks14 Comments

The decision to start the 5 Day Tales series came about because I needed to stretch my writing skills. It has been fun, and I’ve enjoyed feeling way more creative. However, I ended up feeling like I was stretching myself too thin with the amount of time it was taking to present a fresh new story every week. It became too much.

My main goal is to still be able to commit to writing poetry, submit to competitions, run The Short of It, do some paid type work and possibly get a third book out of me. Still juggling everything has to fit into my schedule.

Having the weekend to mull it all over, I decided I will proceed with the 5 Day Tales. For those of you who took the time to comment and tell me your thoughts – I thank you kindly! You helped me decide what was best for me and my schedule. I took everything you said to heart. Hopefully, you’ll be okay with how I’ve decided to proceed.

So, here’s what’s going to happen…

The next story will be published 8/10/20 and run that Monday thru Thursday, with the voting still on the 4th part. Fridays, I will post the reader’s ending selection. The only change will be that it will become a monthly feature rather than a weekly one. You can anticipate each story published on the first Monday of every month starting this September and run until I don’t have anymore ideas or the desire.

*SPOILER ALERT – the next 5 Days Tale will be a space/sci-fi story.

Image Credit – pxhere.com

Readers! I need your input!

Published on by Susi Bocks25 Comments

I wanted to let everyone know that I will take a break from the 5 Day Tales this upcoming Monday as I have another project which will require my attention next week. But this might be a good time to ask you for some valuable feedback about the stories.

Please let me know the following in the comments section:

Do you find the stories interesting enough to keep your attention?

Am I giving you a wide variety of story lines to keep you invested?

We only have a few people who consistently vote on the story ending, I’m wondering if you would prefer that I just have the ending in mind or would you like to continue with picking the ending?

I realize that so many of my readers also ingest a lot of other writing, do you think it would be better to do this every other week? *I’m selfishly asking because I may have change to every other week due to my own reading habits! 😉

That’s all for now! I’ll be back with another story August 10th. 🙂

Submit to The Short Of It!

Published on by Susi Bocks9 Comments

Just a reminder for all those micro-poets (structured and un-structured), prose poets and short story writers, I am accepting submissions for The Short of It all year round! Please keep them coming! 🙂

Feel free to share this with your friends who might fit the bill of what I am looking for.

Click here for more information about submission guidelines.

Voici la créativité!

Duane L. Herrmann

Published on by Susi Bocks3 Comments
pxhere.com

Impossible

Zarah heard screams, then pounding – silence.  What happened?  Her hands and feet were tied.  The room was dark but she could see shapes.  They did not move.  

“Zarah?”  A voice called.  

Zarah didn’t know who could know she was here.  What should she do?  Was someone coming to rescue her?  Who else could be looking for her?  Her kidnapper knew she was here.  But, if he sent someone to torture her more, she wanted to stay hidden.

Just then a small critter, which she couldn’t see in the dark, ran over her leg. Automatically, she tried to scream, but the gag stopped her, yet her legs jerked without thought.  Her feet hit something solid.  She heard something above her make a sound, something off-balance.  She couldn’t see what it might be.  Would it fall on her?

CRASH!

Metal fell on the cement floor beside her.  A door opened.

~~

Homeless

My mate and I found the perfect location for our new home.  We built to our specifications to meet our needs.  That’s always an exciting time for me.  I love the anticipation of new views and new life.  When our home was completed, I settled in for the birth of our children.  Before they could be born though, a huge, fearful creature intruded and I had to flee for my life and safety.

“I hope they didn’t leave for good,” the man mused as he saw the two robins fly away from the nest they had just built in the bush right outside his window.  Earlier, he had looked closer and saw one of them sitting on the nest.  Had the eggs been laid yet?  He was excited to watch their progress.  Had they flown for good?  He hoped not.

They never returned.

~~

A Fair Trade

“I’ll trade you all of mine for only a portion of yours, a tiny portion,” the middle-aged man said casually to his friend.

“No way in Hell!”  His friend exclaimed.  “I’m sorry, but that kind of trade would do me no good.”

“Sure it would. You would gain a wider experience. You could see from a new perspective.”

“Nope.  I’ll keep my limited experience and narrow perspective.”

“Well, don’t say I didn’t make the offer.

“You offered,” his friend laughed.  “And, I was smart enough to turn it down.”

“How about five minutes?”

“Nope.”

“Five minutes of Hell can be a real eye-opener.”

“Sorry.”

“Look at it from my point of view. I’ll take just five minutes of a childhood feeling loved and cared for. I have no idea what that might be like.”

“I feel for you, but I can’t.  Sorry.”

They parted, unable to bridge that gap.

~~~

Herrmann was surprised to find himself in 1951 on a farm in Kansas.  Still trying to make sense of it, he’s grown fond of grass waving under wind, trees and moonlight.  His work has been published in print and online, even some of both in languages he can’t read.

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If you’d like to be featured on The Short of It, click here for the submissions guidelines.

#TheShortofIt

Life vs. Us

Published on by Susi Bocks33 Comments
Photo by Yuliya Kosolapova on Pexels.com

life seeks to…

teach us
we learn

change us
we adapt

end us
we fight

writers seek to…

teach us
with expressions

change us
with wisdom

end us
with truths

somewhere in the middle is reality…

Inspired by Reena’s Exploration Challenge #137 – Writer’s Reality

Reblog – Just A Blank White Page – A Poem By Walt Page on Vita Brevis

Published on by Susi BocksLeave a comment

The meaning of being a poet – simply and beautifully expressed, Walt! ❤

Walt's Writings

I am so honored and pleased that my poem, Just A Blank White Page, was published this morning on Vita Brevis Poetry Magazine! Thanks to Brian Geiger, Editor of Vita Brevis, for finding my work worthy of inclusion.

Via Just a Blank White Page – A Poem by Walt Page

~The Tennessee Poet~

©Walt Page 2018 All Rights Reserved

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Keep Your Submissions Coming!

Published on by Susi Bocks12 Comments

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The pipeline is shrinking so get your work submitted! And please continue to share this new project – The Short of It – with people you think would enjoy having their poetry/writing showcased here. Perhaps you are a part of some Facebook or Twitter poetry groups – share this information with them!

Looking forward to reading more “short, sweet and to the point” pieces!

More information about the submission guidelines can be found by clicking this link.

Make The Time For Me

Published on by Susi Bocks10 Comments

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I loved his words.

He loved mine.

A bond since 2018.

people
be they virtual
or in your face

if they are seeking you out
supporting you and your craft
making your efforts known

that’s love, acceptance, respect, and admiration

**This piece was inspired by John – The Mush from the Hill
Sorry, it took me so long, John!! I found my original notes finally! 🙂