Shameless self promotion.(But the rejections have been many recently, so bear with me! Writers, you get it!)
I am pleased to learn that “Stopped,” a poem I recently wrote, will be published by Spillwords Press on July 19, 2018. As this poem was declined elsewhere, I am glad it has found a home. I enjoyed writing the poem, something rather out of my comfort zone! It was written as a response to a painting as a prompt.
**Note: I found this journal via the “Discover” feature of Submittable.com.
Thanks for reading!
Laura Lee
(Some of my) Published Writings
Some of my poems, short stories, and nonfiction articles are included in books and magazines published in the UK, Greece, New Zealand, and the United States.
*Spillwords Press, July 19, 2018, “Stopped,” a poem
Spillwords Press
*Tuck Magazine, June 2018
*Tuck Magazine, May 2018
* Southernmost Point Guest House (UK)
* Journal of Modern Poetry 21 (Volume 21)
JOMP Volume 21 Dear Mr. President
* Journal of Modern Poetry 20 (Volume 20)
JOMP Volume 20 Poetry Writer’s Guide to the Galaxy
* Journal of Modern Poetry 17 (Volume 17)
* Magazine (New Zealand) , Raewyn Alexander, Publisher
* Fiction in: http://staxtes.com/2003/ “Between the Sunlight and the Skipping” in English Wednesdays
* Illinois English Bulletin, a publication of the National Council of Teachers of English, nonfiction.
Poets? About Frontier Poetry: poetry contest and submissions
Frontier Poetry is accepting poetry
for a Summer Poetry Award and poetry for General Submissions.
What is Frontier looking for? It’s refreshing that Frontier specifically tells poets. In their words:
As a home for emerging authors & established voices together, we are looking for poems that express both traditional excellence in craft and a willing fearlessness in content and form. For us, the frontier of poetry is a place where voices—of all colors, ages, orientations, identities— are made equal by a shared belief in the power of language to confront the dark, the vast, the unexplored.
For further tips, you can look here: What We Look for at Frontier.
In other words, this is a literary press that tells you what they want, offers poets free submissions as well as reading fees for contests. It has it all, it has a vision, and it is exciting to read there.
Good luck!
And thanks for reading.
No Tokens Literary Journal
No Tokens Journal declares it is “…a journal celebrating work that is felt in the spine” and it can be found here, at No Tokens Journal.
Reading that reminds me of what Emily Dickinson wrote about poetry, that “If I read a book and it makes my whole body so cold no fire could ever warm me, I know that is poetry.” (http://notable-quotes.com/d/dickinson_emily.html).
No Tokens publishes a print/ bound volume as well as an online journal, making it doubly interesting, in my opinion. They publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, and “other,” which could include include plays, comics, graphic novels, interviews, etc.
The journal’s passion for great writing is evident, right down to when they declare they will ask for NO TOKENS (no submission fees) while they promise to be a journal:
“…featuring the words and artwork of all voices of the past, present, and future.”
I love this passion for words, stories, voices.
I think I will give them a try.
Thanks for reading!
Found Poem (on old flash drive)
What a pleasure to find an old rough draft of a poem on an old flash drive. I was looking for a document when I found this, simply titled: “Work on this poem.”
So I will work on this poem. I’m not sure about the rhetorical questions or who the “you” in the poem is, but I like a bit of mystery.
It starts like this…
Mud-crusted rags
wrap blistered feet.
Earthbound, I walk
beneath topsoil.
How would I drive?
Bridges stop around curves,
hidden in the fog or dust
a glimpse of surprised faces
before plunging
into the wide river of our poetry.
Where could I drive?
Then it goes on, but I won’t post more since I want to revise and rework to submit.
****
Thanks for reading.
Alt Minds Literary Magazine-Submissions Until 7-14
Alt Minds Literary Magazine is looking for “…fiction and non-fiction/memoir (1,000 to 3,000) of any genre and poetry (no more than 40 lines) that is related to mental health, in theme, subject matter, characterization, whatever “mental health” means to you.” Unlike many new journals, this is a paying journal with a very narrow audience: writing with themes related to mental health.
Furtheremore, the editor and founder is brave to state she wished to create “…a literary magazine that focuses exclusively on content about mental health and all the idiosyncrasies that come along in living with mental illness.” That’s brave.
I’ve submitted two poems there; one is about a competency hearing and one is about drives–literal and metaphorical.
I’m still very pleased and surprised to find so many literary journals–seems to be something for everyone.
Thanks for reading!
New Poem (“Stopped”) to be Published July 19th by Spillwords Press
Shameless self promotion.(But the rejections have been many recently, so bear with me! Writers, you get it!)
I am pleased to learn that “Stopped,” a poem I recently wrote, will be published by Spillwords Press on July 19, 2018. As this poem was declined elsewhere, I am glad it has found a home. I enjoyed writing the poem, something rather out of my comfort zone! It was written as a response to a painting as a prompt.
Thanks for reading!
Laura Lee
Submitted a Poem about BAD Summer Jobs–GeekyPress.co
Submitted a new, raw poem here:http://thegeekypress.com/
to their BAD SUMMER JOBS open call for poetry, fiction, and short plays. I’ve sure had bad summer jobs!
This one had dogs, blood, and me running away from that motel job as fast as my 14-year old self could. I don’t normally swear, but this poem called for it to be true to life.
If I were honest, this writing would be even more raw and awful, for it was an unsafe difficult job–but paid $4 an hour! A fortune we thought back then. I literally ran out of the motel, terrified. Had I been older, I might have been amused, but I was working when (illegally) very young there.
I’m old enough to remember when most places didn’t care to check on your age. They really didn’t. If some “official” wanted to see birth certificates, I’d just quit and go back in a week or so.
Did that at a fast food place, but that’s another story too. WHAT I LEARNED THERE! That I was not cut out for manual labor. That work was very hard for very little money. That you needed to be strong to work in many fields. That I would need an education to become something other than one who was burning self all day on fryers or fighting off men in motels…
Now back to the issue:
The call for submissions to the BAD SUMMER JOBS ends at end of day tomorrow, so if you are interested, check it out and get writing! They are accepting poetry, fiction, and plays about this theme.
Oh–a positive aspect about this publication? It splits all profits from sales of their print publications and e-books.
Thanks for reading.
“Ink and Voices,” a Mini-Review
Perhaps my skepticism about poetry being ALIVE was too skeptical? I am finding many fine literary magazines and communities, online and in paper, if I just take the time to look about a bit. What’s different for me, however, is how many of the publications are online only or mainly online. For an oldster like me who loves to learn and use technology, that’s fine. I am just happy that literacy in all its forms appears to be thriving.
One publication I just found is Ink & Voices, which can be found here: Ink & Voices.
Ink and Voices acknowledges that the internet is full of places to share writing and art, but states they are different in that:
Ink & Voices is an online publication and community for artists and writers. We are all about original and unapologetic voices, and providing a space for you to express your originality and humanness. We love pieces that are honest, raw and original.
This publication has three main sections, one for Mind, one for Body, and one for Soul. Yes, they are brave enough to use those terms in this sometimes snide and toocooltoshowemotions society. I found mainly fiction and artwork there, but liked what I saw and liked what I read. Perhaps I just couldn’t find the poetry, but I did look. Nevertheless, Ink and Voices is accepting submissions or writing and art and has a separate category for poetry, all through Submittable.com. The positive aspects here are that your work is read or viewed “blind,” and judged on its merit rather than your bio or name, or lack of a name in publishing.
I didn’t see a May or June issue, but they are still accepting submissions on a no deadline basis through Submittable.com, meaning they are paying to keep submission coming in.
I am going to investigate this new site more and consider submitting some poetry. I know I’ll be viewing the artwork there.
If you create “honest, raw, and original” artwork, including written work, why not give Ink and Voices a view? I personally like to support new literary ventures as well as the more-established ones.
Thanks for reading!
Laura Lee
Why Strangers Wept (parked here to edit and revise) (learning to use Iphone app)
And from the Iphone app no less!
Why Strangers Wept
Did darkness heal or was it
holding hands at noon
with a small boy who
needed a nap?
Was it the sun
or the silence of the moon
that lifted it all, just a bit.
Maybe it was someone
who remembers
the smaller child and knew
why strangers wept.
On the street, a young girl
skipped then ran then walked
while humming, purple ribbon
escaping black hair.
Laura Lee 