Whether it’s been feeling less productive, connected, inspired, entertained, or a myriad of other in-betweens, a lot of us have had quite the year and we’re coming down to the end of it. The closer I get, the more I realize that at least for me, a lot of what I’ve been doing has been just to get the job done without remembering why I’m doing it in the first place. As I always remind people to take care of themselves, taking breaks to hit the refresh button and step back from the burnout is one way to do so.
Writing
Bookworms– A Song of Wraiths and Ruins
For young adult readers, I think this book is a good one to pick up— especially for young black readers who have been missing representation for far too long. As a fantasy novel, I think this was a solid debut for Brown and though I had some qualms with it, I’ve been reading a bit like a writer and a reader so of course, I get picky. She set the scene and really found her rhythm with steady writing for the most part; I think this book has a place on a lot of people’s shelves as a set up for a solid duology and I’m interested to see where this next book goes.
Poetry Place– Black Body And Free Tianna
My poem today exemplifies that there is a different kind of weight that comes with how we each live our lives and as a Black woman who fights for those around me, I understand that there are burdens to the way I care for others. People of color so commonly have to build the spaces we want to be a part of because they almost never exist the way we need them to until we put in the work to create them; right now, Tianna is being penalized before those spaces in SLO and beyond can truly begin to exist.
Poetry Place–Xiao Yue Shan
I chose these two pieces of her work simply because of how much it tells you about the author's style and sound. She finds a way to talk about politics, an awareness of space around her, and even just the idea of ambiguity in what one person sees versus another, all in one chapbook.
A Life Obliged–An Original Poem
So, I promised you something today. It’s National Poetry Month and this poem holds a whole lot of meaning for me.
The Little Victories
So I don’t know if I told you all, but I got back into writing lately—fiction writing that is.
What the Living Do–Poetry
To take a break from my own work and show you something, a form, you probably haven’t seen in a while, here’s the poem I’ve got for you today.
Setting Fire– Poetry Place
Happy Poetry Place day!! So this one is a little different today, it's actually a short story made up of haikus. I wanted to return to haikus for a little bit since they are surprisingly versatile and I also wanted to try to tell a story... Plus, California is on fire so that's partially what…Read more Setting Fire– Poetry Place
Challenge Accepted– NaNoWriMo
Another week has come and gone and a very busy one at that— just in case you were wondering, about last week, I did decide to take the high road after all. Sometimes that’s the only way to do it, and maybe it wasn’t even worth putting the emotional effort to be hurt or angry.…Read more Challenge Accepted– NaNoWriMo
Old Fashioned Love– Poetry
Here's a little poetry for your Tuesday, inspired by the older poetry I've been studying in class. It's interesting to realize that most writing was about religion back then, the faith and the hope people put into a power beyond them just to get through their days and their lives. Fascinating really. But, enough of…Read more Old Fashioned Love– Poetry
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