August, Poetry Challenge Month?

6 wordle         For decades, August has been my strongest “urge to poetry” month. Something about the light, the sounds, the smells–all is so REVVED UP. Poets, agree?

I used to be in vibrant online writing communities, and every August we would have a poetry challenge.  We would write a poem a day, no editing allowed, just to “rev” up our creativity.

It was glorious.

We (I!) wrote a lot of bad poetry, but I am still finding some snippets of good poetry on old flash drives and in old posts.

Hmm…perhaps it is time to reinstate an AUGUST POETRY CHALLENGE?

It couldn’t be here, on a public blog, I fear, for that would preclude subsequent publication.  Perhaps back on good old Facebook, with a private account only friends can access.

There’s an idea!

Readers, writers, what do you think?

Thanks for reading.

ROUGH DRAFT: MOVING LOVE

C5438C4D-7EFC-4B03-8398-D253E9D9DDE8      A few years ago, I found this old rough draft of a poem I started after we had moved.  I keep losing it and then finding it.  This time, I won’t lose it, but I will revise, edit, and work on the poem. There is something to the “moving on” theme that is compelling–maybe escape is the correct term?

In any case, thanks for reading.

Laura Lee

********

first draft:

Moving Love

Note: …..many stanzas before this…won’t post here so I can publish one day… and took out middle stanzas   

 

Memories, you said. I cannot move.
These have been
the best years of my life here.

How can you say that, I asked,
not wanting to see the paint-peeled walls
or the missing tiled floors even one more time.

They were my years with you, you said.

Today I looked for photos
I am sure I threw away in my
haste to leave and I wonder
how I could have been so cruel
how can I
live with such moving love?

Crack the Spine Literary Magazine: a Mini-Review

spines   Yes, people still read. Yes, people still write. Don’t forget that on days when you feel discouraged.

I know I am holding on to this knowledge when the news gets too awful, when I feel my own writing is not going well, when I wonder about the world.

But where there is a love of literacy, I sense hope. And I sense a lot of hope when finding so many earnest and passionate literary journals, including one that is new to me, Crack the Spine Literary Magazine.

When I first heard the name of this magazine, Crack the Spine (CTS), I was put off a bit–no cracking spines, please.  But I kept going back to CTS, intrigued by the name and wondering just what is this magazine all about.

I’m delighted to find out “Crack the Spine loves the written word. Some might say we’re in love with the written word.” (from their website)  Furthermore, the process of submitting to the magazine is full of kind humor, encouragement, and wit.  CTS publishes flash fiction, micro-fiction, poetry, short stories, and creative non-fiction, sponsors a themed print edition, biweekly digital editions, a “best of” and yearly anthology.

In addition, CTS has a cute “shop” where you can buy their published books as well as literary gifts such as mugs and tee-shirts.

While being a serious literary magazine, Crack the Spine emotes a kind and playful attitude that is welcoming to writers, even down to making submissions easier by using Submittable.com.  I highly encourage writers to read there and consider submitting to this magazine.

As to the name? I’ve learned not to judge a magazine by its title–but I’m still watching out for my aching back.

Thanks for reading.

 

Publications, Updated

cropped-be-creative-creative-creativity-256514      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.

*Coffin Bell Journal
“Herstory,” a poem, to be published October 1, 2018

*Spillwords Press
Stopped by Laura Lee at Spillwords Press

*Tuck Magazine, June 2018

Tuck Magazine

*Tuck Magazine,  May 2018

Tuck

* 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)

JOMP Volume 17

* Magazine (New Zealand) , Raewyn Alexander, Publisher

Raewyn Alexander NZ

* 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.

Change of Style

                         I wrote two poems recently in a very different style  from what I usually write. I brought one poem to a writing workshop tonight. Three of my colleagues in class cried. (They said it was a good thing.) It was a poem about the changing seasons and when I got to the line about when summer returns to autumn? I heard sniffling.

I think I’ll play around with the poem a few more times and make it better. Then submit it somewhere.

***Done. Worked a lot on this poem and submitted with the other one.

And what’s with speech to text that it does not recognize POEM? It types it as POME. Isn’t POEM a common word anymore?

Thanks for reading!

  6 wordle    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

35 submissions this summer—and the rejections roll in…

blog word cloud       Since late spring, I’ve made 35 plus submissions just using Submittable.com.  I love using this vehicle since it helps me keep track of my submissions in one convenient location.  I’ve also made email and US mail submissions.

My goal in submitting work is yes, to be published, but also to encourage me to improve my writing and to feel a part  of a writing community.  I am not a great writer, but I can be a good one if I work at it!

It’s obvious there are more poets than poetical publishing opportunities.  I am receiving a number of rejections after an early spring run of four acceptances, and so yes, I am feeling the sting a bit, even while the editors are quite kind in their notes.  Just doesn’t fit, not right now, etc.  No one has said I should seek solace on another planet.  Yet.

Poets, you know this is mostly unpaid publication anyway, and it’s the joy of being published that urges us onward.

While I’ve submitted mostly poetry, I’ve always worked on some mini-dialogue experiments and one short story.

In the meantime, I am enjoying revising my writing, and submitting more.

I am glad I am not trying to support myself with my writing, but I am also glad I write.  It’s been a part of who I am since I was an angsty pre-teen, writing my wretched “woe is me” type broken-hearted poetry.

Now it’s time to get back to work; I have a lot of writing to do.

Thanks for reading!

(Some of my) Published Writings

cropped-be-creative-creative-creativity-256514                         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

*Tuck Magazine,  May 2018

Tuck

* 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)

JOMP Volume 17

* Magazine (New Zealand) , Raewyn Alexander, Publisher

Raewyn Alexander NZ

* 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

poetry        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.