Pseudonyms: Yes, No, Maybe So?

June 5, 2018June 5, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! When exactly did June get here? This year is flying by, isn’t it? Or maybe it’s just me. In the past week, a friend and I started talking about pen names and whether using one for certain genres is smart/acceptable. She’s worried that her name leans a little too much toward romance and the other things she currently writes, and if it would even attract attention if she branches out into other genres. Then, we talked about the process of actually picking a pseudonym (which is surprisingly difficult sometimes). It wasn’t something I had really thought much about or talked about before, so she was a little stunned that I already have one picked out. Anyway! Today, I thought I’d ramble a little about pen names and get other opinions on them.

Personally, I’m all for pseudonyms. I know a lot of authors who use them and a lot who don’t. The most common reason I hear in favor of them is that they conceal people’s identities when they aren’t comfortable being in the public eye. I think that’s a load of crap in this day and age (it’s far too easy to find information on people), but if they believe it works, more power to them. Mostly, I like the idea of pen names because there are some genres I feel more at home in than others. Those are the ones I want my real name associated with. Fantasy and horror are what my heart gravitates toward. Even though Shawna Borman doesn’t particularly evoke either of those things, I still want my name on anything I publish in those genres.

On the other hand, I also enjoy writing cozy mysteries (with a supernatural twist), but I’m not as comfortable in that realm. When I’m working on cozies or sci-fi or romance, I don’t feel like myself. So, my plan has always been to publish anything in those genres under a different name should I ever have the chance. It’s not that I’ll want to hide who I really am (any chance I get to be published, no matter the name, you guys will know). It’s just that using a pen name for those types of genres feels natural.

giphy (7).gif — A pseudonym is basically just an author slipping into (or out of) a different skin.

As far as choosing the name goes, the process is different for everyone. Mine came pretty naturally. I went through that weird phase as a kid where I named my non-existent children and, since I’m not having any, decided to put the girl’s initials to use. Then, I came across a last name that just felt right thanks to someone I used to know. Luckily, it doesn’t seem to be in use yet. Hopefully it’ll stay free until I need it (which is why I’m not sharing it yet). I think the hardest part of picking a pen name is finding one that doesn’t have too many other people attached to it on Google and social media sites. When I came up with my name, I wasn’t worried about marketing and all that, but it is something we have to think about as we explore our options.

14284_202048863_13034456 — Or you could use weird name generators. I’m Dame Dorcas Wraithbottom.

What are your thoughts on pseudonyms? As an artist, are you for or against them? Do you use one? How’d you choose it? What about as a reader? Do you think people who use pen names are hiding something? Does it bother you? Feel free to share your thoughts here or on my social media pages!

Thoughts On THE ODDLING PRINCE

May 29, 2018May 25, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! It’s the last Wednesday in May, which means it’s time for another book review. This time, I decided to get into a fantasy novel to mix things up a bit. Cozies and thrillers are great, but sometimes you just need a break. So, I requested a copy of The Oddling Prince by Nancy Springer from NetGalley. It came out earlier this month from Tachyon Publications. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for sending me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. With that out of the way, let’s get on with it!

OddlingPrince-662x1024 — It has such a pretty cover!

The Oddling Prince opens with Aric’s father, the king of Calidon, on his deathbed. A ring of unknown origins is sucking the life from him, and no one can figure out how to remove it short of cutting off the appendage, which no one dares to do. At least not until a stranger arrives on a horse that disappears when he dismounts. The stranger saves the king without mutilating him and reveals a secret that only Aric immediately accepts as true. This leads to adventure and arguments and secrets and a level of brotherly love that verges on the incestuous at times.

I fully admit that this book caused my inner yaoi fangirl to come out. If you don’t know what yaoi is, the best way I’ve heard it described is that it’s beautiful boys kissing beautiful boys. Granted, it tends to go much farther than that, but I won’t go there because the book doesn’t. So, if you’re reading it and get some strange vibes that make you want to put it down, don’t worry. It’s really just creepy levels of brotherly love. For the yaoi fanpeople, you will be slightly disappointed. But hey! At least Aric and Albaric came together in the end. *winkwinknudgenudge* Just in a completely different, but equally satisfying way.

94e

But seriously, I found this story quite enjoyable. The characters were relatable despite being royalty. The plot was fun and had a lot of twists. My only complaint with this one is that the pacing is awkward. It feels like everything happens over the course of a few days, maybe weeks, but there are lines that suggest months have passed by. Honestly, I wouldn’t be able make a timeline for it even after finishing it, because I’m still not entirely sure whether days or weeks or months passed. That issue screws with a couple of other things, such as the relationship arc between Aric and Marissa. There wasn’t a sense of love at first sight, so when it seemed like they randomly fell in love after a couple of days, it felt like an afterthought. But if months passed, it makes a bit more sense.

vkgV9 — There were definitely no heart eyes when they first met!

As far as the writing goes, be prepared for older language and a rhythm reminiscent of fairy tales. It’s a little jarring at first, but it’s interesting. I learned things like a believable difference between calling a king “Sire,” “Liege,” and other things. Whether the information is entirely correct, I don’t know. I haven’t researched it yet. But it made sense in the story. And the author made the information feel like a natural part of the story instead of an infodump. It was really interesting

Ultimately, The Oddling Prince was a fun read. It seems like it’s going to be a standalone, but on the off chance there are more, I’ll pick them up. I also plan on looking for other books by Springer.

Overall, I’d give it four out of five stars. It’s a quick and amusing read. If you’re into fantasy or fairy tales or just looking for something light to read between things, I’d definitely suggest giving it a shot.

The Charmed Reboot Is Apparently A Thing

May 22, 2018May 22, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ 1 Comment

Howdy, howdy! A few days ago, a friend of mine posted a link to the CW’s new Charmed trailer (view it here). I admit that I vaguely remember talks of rebooting this show, but I never thought they actually would, so I didn’t keep up with the news on it. When I found out they were going through with it, I was wary and a little excited. In my experience, reboots tend to suck and when you’re dealing with content that was already pretty corny at times, it’s even more difficult to do it justice. The trailer did nothing to ease my fears.

Based on the trailer, the premise is basically the same as the original. Three sisters find out they’re witches after their mother dies , and they have to fight evil! Okay, it’s Mom instead of Grams who dies and the long lost sister (Macy) shows up in the first episode instead of after killing off one of the others to bring her in, so I suppose it’s not entirely the same. Also, their Giles (wait, wrong show)… I mean their Leo (I’m just guessing that’s who the dude who ties them up is supposed to be) appears and explains that they’re witches, which is kind of new. Then, there’s a glimpse of a baddie who looks like an emo whose eyeliner is running. That’s not new at all. And I’m entirely okay with all of this.

That being said, after I looked into some of the advertising for the reboot, I became less enthusiastic. The CW’s description reads:

This fierce, funny, feminist reboot of the original series centers on three sisters in a college town who discover they are witches. Between vanquishing supernatural demons, tearing down the patriarchy, and maintaining familial bonds, a witch’s work is never done.

200 — I made this exact face when I read that!

I’m sorry, but if you have to use “feminist” and “tearing down the patriarchy” in your description, you’re trying too hard. I get that advertising is all about pandering to your target audience, but the original Charmed taught us all about sisterhood and the power of female bonds and that women were as powerful (if not moreso) as men and all that jazz. And they did it through the characters and the story, not by telling us that’s what we were supposed to get from it. The phrasing just feels like a cheap trick to draw in viewers and, honestly, it’s going to work. But it’s also going to drive other people away. Blending this stuff into the show with context and emotion and sarcasm then letting your fanbase decide it’s a “fierce, funny, feminist reboot” is great. Flat out saying it in the advertisements is presumptuous and kind of annoying.

In all honesty, I’ll probably give the show a shot, but I don’t have high hopes for it. What are your thoughts? Looking forward to it or dreading it? Feel free to share your opinions here or on my social media pages!

Push Through The Pain… Or Don’t

May 15, 2018May 15, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been having some issues with pain brought about by adjusting my seat cushion. Needless to say, it’s been interfering with my writing. For three days, it was so bad that I didn’t do anything productive. Since then, I’ve been able to focus on doing most of the stuff I needed to do. But I wanted to take today to talk about pain and when to suck it up vs. when to take a break because of it.

il_570xN.1303835034_2jzs — I try. Sometimes, I fail.

When you’re cripple, pain is pretty much a guarantee. Every doctor I visit inevitably asks if I’m in any pain, and my go-to response is “no more than usual.” It’s a given that my neck/left shoulder always hurt, along with my back and hips. It’s more a matter of how bad I’m hurting. Low-level (about a three) aches that randomly spike to about a seven on a scale of one to ten are my norm. Those are the pains I’m used to, and yes, you eventually get used to hurting. They’re the pains that I can ignore and go about my day with.

But what about the days those random spikes linger? What about the days when the pain is so different (not necessarily bad, just unusual) that it distracts me from the things I need to focus on? Honestly, most of the time, I pop some Aspirin and goof around until it kicks in, then get back to work. As long as everything eventually returns to normal, I don’t worry about it too much. Granted, sometimes I waste a lot of time trying to figure out why I’m feeling the way I do, but that could just be another form of procrastination for me.

tenor (4)

Occasionally, there are days when the pain is higher than normal and doesn’t go away even with Aspirin. If I can figure out why I’m in pain, I try to figure out how to stop it, which can be a trial and error bit that lasts a couple of days (like with my seat). I know I’ll never be able to focus on those days. When I have pain like that, I usually move around a lot and have to sit in positions that make working at the computer impossible. Not to mention, pain makes it really hard to focus. My mind gets all jittery. Those are the days that I say screw writing and everything else I need to do. And that’s okay. We all deserve a little time off when we’re in pain.

Go-Ahead-Take-a-Break-FB-MEME — Stare blankly at the wall until the pain goes away.

So, if you’re not already aware of what kind of pain is normal for you, try to learn. It makes the decision to push through or take a break much easier. What do you do when you’re hurting? Do you pop a couple of pills and wait for them to kick in? Do you do yoga or tai chi or some other exercise in the hopes of working the pain out? Perhaps you meditate. Whatever your method of dealing with aches and unusual pains, feel free to share your tips and tricks here or on my social media pages!

The Bottle Above My Door

May 8, 2018May 7, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! I have nothing writerly to talk about this week, so I thought I would share the (boring) story behind one of my weirder decorations. Hanging above my door, alongside my collection of drumsticks and guitar picks, is a crumpled up plastic water bottle. Whenever I’m hurting and need to lay back in the chair to shift my weight (or I get stuck on something while writing and just need a break), I usually end up staring at that bottle for a few minutes. It has this weird ability to make me smile, despite being a piece of junk to everyone else. I guess it’s because I get to think about that December night back 2011 when I got it.

Kyo's Water Bottle — Yes, I’m one of those weird people who keep things like this

That year was a year for concerts. Miyavi came around in November (pretty sure one of the drumsticks is from that one), which was a no-brainer for me. I was definitely going to that show. Then, I found out that Dir en grey was coming through that December. I admit that I struggled a bit with the decision to go to that show. I knew Dad wasn’t a fan (screamy Japanese metal just isn’t his thing, though I knew he wouldn’t say no if I asked to go) and it was a little expensive, but I had never seen them live before. And you never really know if Japanese bands are going to come back through Texas, so it’s best to catch them when you can. Ultimately, I decided to go.

Dad, the Minion (yes, I call my friend a minion, except I think he still had the title of Puppet back then), and I piled in the van and headed down to Trees in Deep Ellum. It’s one of my favorite venues down there, though we haven’t been in a while. The owners were super nice. I heard they’ve reopened two other venues since the last time I went to a concert out there, which is neat. But I digress.

056 — The Minion! And yes, I wore a Mudvayne hat to a Dir en grey concert.

The concert was awesome. Sat by the stage, right in front of Toshiya, the bassist. At one point, Dad leaned over and said that he had just realized that that guy (Toshiya) was wearing a skirt. Given other bands I listen to, it wasn’t a surprise as much as an observation, but it was still funny. Then, when the concert was over and the band members were leaving the stage, Kyo (the singer) stopped and gave me his crumpled up water bottle. Still high on the live music buzz, it was the most awesome thing EVER! A little later, when asked what I planned on doing with his garbage, I vaguely remember a plan to harvest his DNA and clone him. That never came to fruition, but I did use it as a wall decoration.

And that’s how one man’s literal trash became my treasure. What’s something weird that you keep around? Do you have anything other people would look at and automatically think it’s trash? Share your story here or on my social media pages!

May Is Here!

May 1, 2018May 1, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! Apparently, May decided to arrive when I wasn’t looking. I don’t really have anything worth talking about this week (feel free to send me suggestions for topics), so I’ve decided to make my goals for the month public again. Motivation has been really hard to find lately. I have no idea why. But, hopefully this will help!

cc41ac16d8e8143edc6116ddcc9eb46b — Because Snoopy and Woodstock!

Here are my May goals, in no particular order:

1. Submit stuff 8 times (2 every Monday). This is the one goal that I haven’t failed at yet this year. I’ve gotten a bunch of rejections. One of my stories has been shortlisted, so I’ve got my fingers crossed for that one. And I have a bunch still floating in the slush pile limbo. Hopefully, I can keep up the submissions this month!

2. Write 1 flash piece OR short story. I’m super behind on this one. So far this year, I’ve only written one short story and revised a couple of flash pieces. I was hoping to have at least three new pieces to shop around by this point, but I don’t. Soon, though. I hope.

3. Read 2 books. I’m currently reading an ARC of The Oddling Prince by Nancy Springer to review this month. The book club I’m in will be reading The Wicked Deep by Shea Earnshaw, so I’ll probably also read that. If I have time, I also want to read the third book in the Howl’s Moving Castle trilogy, but I don’t know if I will or not.

4. Make time for people. My recluse skills have been on point lately. I avoid chatting on Facebook. I only text one person regularly. Can’t remember the last time I talked to someone on the phone. And I really shouldn’t be that way. I should randomly message people and try to make new friends. The problem is, I’m comfortable not bothering people. That’s a hard habit to break. I’m trying, though. I sent a few messages out yesterday. I’ll try to send out a few each week. We’ll see how it goes.

5. Finish revising short story. I’m still working on fleshing out and revising the short story I wrote a couple of months ago. It’s a bit more sci-fi than I’m comfortable writing, but I’m enjoying it. I actually took a character from a novel I haven’t finished and threw her in a new world as a younger version of herself. I think this world might be the key to all the problems that made me quit that novel. But that’ll have to wait until I finish everything else I want to do this year. For now, the short story comes first.

6. Submit story to critique group. It’s been a while since I’ve submitted anything to my critique group, so hopefully some of them will be up to checking the story out when I finish revising it.

7. Begin revisions on LR. I decided to go back to the second novel attempt and work on revising it first. I miss my dragons and shifters and everyone else in that book. It’ll be nice to get back to them.

d2738480aa3b3d960f3041110f72287c — A pretty sea dragon by Carlos Herrera.

Those are my goals for the month! What about you? Feel free to share your goals here or on my social media pages!

Thoughts On SHATTERED MIRROR

April 24, 2018April 24, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! It’s that time again. Time for another book review! I got another Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) from NetGalley, so I must thank them and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me access to the book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. This month, I requested access to Shattered Mirror (An Eve Duncan novel) by Iris Johansen, which was released on the 24th (yesterday). It’s a thriller/mystery; genres I seem to be drawn to lately. What I didn’t realize when I requested the book was that it’s the 23rd in a series. That means I’m coming into a bunch of established characters and relationships that I know nothing about, which is always a little difficult no matter how well the author explains existing situations. With that in mind, I’ll get into the review now.

51dabfjk4uL._SX328_BO1,204,203,200_ — Interesting cover.

Shattered Mirror opens on a lake cottage where Eve Duncan (one of the top forensic sculptors in the world), her husband Joe Quinn (ex-SEAL, current cop, and who knows what else), and their six-year-old son Michael (basically a wise old man in a kid’s body with a touch of ESP or something) live. The scene is serene until a gold box containing a burnt skull and a two-sided mirror shows up in the passenger’s seat of their jeep. As Eve starts the reconstruction, she and her family are drawn into a psychopath’s trap. Throw in some family members that were sort of adopted along the way (Cara, an eighteen-year-old violin prodigy with a tragic past, and Jock, a retired assassin) and a Russian mafia leader (Cara’s grandfather, Kaskov), and things get volatile pretty quickly.

First, let’s talk about the plot. It’s a pretty standard revenge plot, and a portion of the story is from the psychopath’s (Norwalk’s) perspective, which I liked. The story actually starts in his POV, which threw me a bit because I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to know him from previous books or not. When I figured out what was going on, that it was going to be told from multiple points of view, I settled into the rhythm quite nicely. In the end, I would describe it as Criminal Minds and Bones meets *insert any ‘over-the-top action film with lots of explosions and a hero who fails to take the kill shot just to extend the action’ of your choice*. In other words, it’s fun as long as you don’t take it too seriously.

106ijj — We’ve all seen this scene in action flicks, the kitty just does it better.

Then, there were the characters. I actually found myself focused on Cara and Jock more than on Eve and her immediate family. You have this young girl who was saved as a child by this super attractive ex-assassin with a Scottish accent and they’ve been best friends ever since. Well, now she’s older and totally in love with him. Except he’s kind of a manipulative dick. I mean, the guy ignored her for three months then showed up and expected her to drop everything and talk to him because he was ready to talk. And she did. The mysterious bad boy routine would probably have intrigued me when I was younger, but now I just keep hoping she runs away from that crap (spoiler: she doesn’t). And, if I’m being honest, all the men in this book were jerks to some extent. On the flip side, the women felt a little flat until the last third of the book when they seemed to finally come alive. Maybe if I had read the series from the beginning, I would feel different, but coming in at this point left a lot to be desired on the character front.

a214e5ffdc1198b3ca3e0b4323a67000 — Except Cara is too sweet to be sarcastic with Jock.

As far as the writing goes, I enjoyed it. Johansen introduces the characters and gives new readers all of the pertinent information without it feeling heavy handed or like an infodump. She’s wonderful at manipulating the pace through sentence structure (something I need to study and work on). I found myself reading this book like a writer and noticing useful techniques that I can try out later. I also really liked how she wove a supernatural thread through the story by giving Michael and Eve a kind of spiritual connection. It didn’t feel awkward or forced like those things sometimes do.

Ultimately, it’s not my favorite series and, since I didn’t connect to the characters, I don’t really have any desire to hunt down book one to start there. But it was an enjoyable read nonetheless.

Overall, I would give it three stars. It’s kind of corny and over-the-top, which was fun, but the characters just didn’t draw me in. If you like thrillers and mysteries, give it a shot. If not, you’re not missing anything spectacular.

The Revision Struggles Begin…

April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Hello, hello! It finally happened. On Saturday, I wrote THE END on the shitty first draft of novel attempt number three! Yay!!! I celebrated by doing nothing productive whatsoever on Sunday. Monday, I slowly dipped my toe into the revision pool by revising a micro fiction piece before sending it and another piece out into slush land. Which brings us to today (because I’m writing this on Tuesday). Now, the real revision struggle begins. Sure, I have a short story that needs to be doubled in length and smoothed out. That’s my immediate focus. But then, I have to decide which novel attempt to revise, two or three. And that’s what I plan on rambling about today.

Option 1: revise novel attempt two (LR from here on out). In my head, I know this would be the smart choice. For one thing, it would give me a break from the one I just finished, which is always encouraged so that when it comes time to trim the fat away, you won’t be blindly attached to it. I’ve had more than enough time away from LR to be able to make the hard cuts. I’m still super excited about LR, so that’s a plus. And I really do miss being around those characters.

The downside of revising LR first: while I love it, I’m not really sure it has much potential in the way of attracting agents. Are dragons even “in” anymore? Or are they passé? I know I shouldn’t worry about stuff like that, and I should work on whatever my heart tells me to, but it’s something I think about. I’ll have to do some research on the trends right now/where the trends seem to be headed. Plus, I’m concerned that if I get caught up in LR’s world, I’ll lose steam in the other one.

Don’t worry, Toothless. You’ll always be cool.

Option 2: revise novel attempt three (DS from here on out). Some of the advantages include that the plot is fresh in my mind and I still remember what all my little revision notes mean. From that perspective, it makes sense to dive right back into DS. It’s also a genre that’s always in high demand, but with a supernatural twist. So, I feel like it has a better chance of catching an agent’s eye. Plus, I’m completely in love with these characters and their stories.

The problem with starting with DS is that I wouldn’t have much time away from it, so I would probably still be super attached to all the fluff that needs to be chopped out. I have trouble decluttering my room because of sentimental values, decluttering a story isn’t any easier. It would also mean more time away from LR, which has been randomly popping into my head the last couple of months. Plus, I’m not entirely sure if the supernatural elements will be attractive in this particular genre or if it’ll be confusing and off-putting.

Too-many-options — I’m being indecisive and procrastinating all at once.

I guess I’ll read through both of them and see which one pulls me toward it more. Until then, I have a short story to focus on. What about you? How do you decide which projects to revise and when? What’s your method of making these kinds of choices? As always, please feel free to leave your comments or thoughts here or on my social media pages!

The Lessons of Writing Every Day

April 10, 2018April 9, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ Leave a comment

Howdy, howdy! How is everyone’s April going so far? Are you keeping up with all of your goals? I actually want to talk about how I’ve been doing with that whole “write every day” thing that I mentioned trying back in March. It’s been working! Every day in March (including Sundays and those days when I really didn’t want to), I wrote at least 50 words. Sometimes, I even made it up to 1,000 words. When April arrived, I upped it to at least 100 words a day. So far, I’ve kept at it! And I’ve learned some things from my experience thus far, which is what I’m going to ramble about right now.

Sit-down-and-bleed-Ernest-Hemingway — Well, a computer.

Thing the first: Sunday will never be a good writing day for me. Right now, Sunday is set aside for things that take up most of the day, so I wasn’t sure if I would be able to keep up with even 50 words. I did. Even 100 words has proven to be doable. But I don’t think I’ll ever do more than that on Sundays. It’s actually kind of annoying writing on those days. I miss my day off.

Thing the second: I still write better at night. I’ve tried for a long time to adjust to writing in the late afternoon/early evening with mixed results. Sometimes, words flow easily and I finish my 1,000 words before I even realize it. A lot of times, writing the words is like pulling teeth. But, I’ve found that when I open a story around 11ish at night to write my words on those days I’m too lazy to do it in the afternoon, the words always flow. Granted, I’m usually only aiming for 100-150 at that point, so it might just be that I’m not pressuring myself with a difficult goal. It’s just something I noticed. But I’ve always been a night owl, so this is no surprise.

i-am-not-an-early-bird-or-a-night-owl-4729985 — Pretty much.

Thing the last: writing every day is not a stress reliever for me. A lot of people I know say that they feel so much better after they write their words for the day. It’s like a catharsis for them to get words on the page (even if it’s just 50 words). I am not one of these people. I usually feel the same or worse after I write, unless I hit one of those rare days where the words tumble out onto the page almost by themselves. Most of the time, I’m just happy that I can play games or read or watch anime or whatever without feeling guilty. At least until I realize that it’s too late to do any of that stuff, then I’m just annoyed that I don’t have a day off to do any of it.

orig — When you finish writing and realize you don’t have time for anime.

In other words, my experiment with writing every day is going well. I’m about halfway through the last chapter of my current novel attempt (hoping to finish by the end of the week). When I switch to revision mode, I’m not sure if I’ll keep up with writing every single day, but I’m glad I’ve done it. I admit that setting low goals for each day is a helpful way of getting back into the sway of writing. Do you have any experience with something like this? As always, feel free to share your thoughts and comments here or on my social media pages!

Celebrating National Poetry Month

April 3, 2018April 3, 2018 ~ shawnaborman ~ 2 Comments

Howdy, howdy! It’s (already) April once again. Can you believe it? A quarter of the year has passed us by. As many of you know, that means it’s National Poetry Month. I admit that I haven’t given poetry much of my time this past year, but I want to change that. At least for a month. I didn’t realize how much I missed it until my Facebook friends started posting daily poems. So, I thought I would devote this post to a few of the ways that I hope to celebrate this month.

hello-april-1

1. Write a poem. I honestly can’t remember the last time I wrote one. But I recently had a nostalgia moment where I read through some of the ones I wrote as an undergrad, and that made me really miss the structure that poetry provides. I used to love writing villanelles and haikus and sestinas. Anything with strict constraints. I liked looser forms as well, but they weren’t as challenging. That little trip down memory lane even resulted in me submitting a poem to a contest. Send good vibes!

2. Read a book of poetry. Maybe I’ll read an anthology filled with different authors writing about the same subject. It’s always interesting to see how different people tackle the same basic topic. Then again, maybe I’ll read a collection by one author. I like to see how a collection connects from one poem to the next (or doesn’t connect at all). Hell, maybe I’ll read both kinds. It’s still early in the month after all.

l-cohen-poetry-ash-quote-crop-2

3. Base a story off a poem. I’m almost done with my current novel attempt, so I’m hoping to work on more short stories and flash pieces, that way I have more things to submit. I know I use art a lot for inspiration, but I’ve also been known to use songs and poetry in the past as well. It might be an adaptation, or it could just be loosely connected, but hopefully it’ll be something good.

4. Take the time to listen to some poetry. I don’t know of any upcoming readings around here, but YouTube has plenty. And there are always podcasts. I’m sure if I asked my Facebook friends for recommendations, I’d come away with too many options to check out in a month. Feel free to shoot me some podcast or other ideas for places to listen to poetry here as well!

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5. Look back at some of my old favorites. I used to have a few poems memorized, but I can’t get all the way through any of them anymore. From Ai to Donne to Poe, there are a lot of poems I should probably revisit.

That’s my plan for celebrating National Poetry Month. What about you? Are you going to read or reread some of your favorite poems? Maybe you’ll write some of your own poetry. What about my visual art friends? Have you thought about making your art based around a poem? Feel free to share your plans here or on my social media pages!

Shawna's Blog of Doom

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