Posted on by Laura Lee

Winnow Magazine:Let’s Support new Literary Ventures

typewriter-vintage-old-vintage-typewriter-163116    I like to support new literary ventures, and am supporting and submitting to this new journal, the Winnow Magazine,https://thewinnowmagazine.weebly.com/about.html

Winnow states:

the winnow is an online literary magazine devoted to showcasing urgent works of prose, poetry, and photography from underrepresented creatives.

​We strongly believe that everyone has something important to say. From the marginalized, to the disillusioned, to the unpublished, we want to hear your voice.

I, too, believe we should support hearing the voices of others.

Why not consider submitting there and reading there when they publish?

Thanks for reading.

 

Posted on by Laura Lee

Enjoying Litopia Writers’ Colony

I am really enjoying this online creative writing community: https://colony.litopia.com/index.php, although I seem to be one of the few from the US there.  That’s okay, for it is refreshing to meet other writers from all over the world.

I am humbled to read about the commitment to writing so many make compared to the insane amount of “living to work” I did for decades.  I wonder if living in a country with national health service allows for more artists to flourish?

Anyone else a member there?

sky-earth-galaxy-universe

Posted on by Laura Lee

Winnow Magazine: New Literary Magazine

          typewriter-vintage-old-vintage-typewriter-163116    I like to support new literature ventures, and am supporting and submitting to this new journal, the Winnow Magazine,https://thewinnowmagazine.weebly.com/about.html
which states:

the winnow is an online literary magazine devoted to showcasing urgent works of prose, poetry, and photography from underrepresented creatives.

​We strongly believe that everyone has something important to say. From the marginalized, to the disillusioned, to the unpublished, we want to hear your voice.

I, too, believe we should support hearing the voices of others.

Why not consider submitting there and reading there when they publish?

Thanks for reading.

 

Posted on by Laura Lee

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.

Posted on by Laura Lee

Literacy Tutor Training Tomorrow

book      “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” –Frederick Douglass.

Since I believe so strongly in the power of literacy to improve lives, I am going back to my teaching beginning, with adult literacy tutoring.  Although I am a licensed reading specialist, English teacher, and reading teacher, tutoring adults is different and requires specialized training.  I am going to https://literacydupage.org/ tomorrow, and may do the tutor training where I teach in the fall as well.  Then I will decide which program I want to actually tutor with.

I feel my life has been enriched because I can read and write rather easily, and I would like to help others grow in skills.   I’ve had a wonderful career in teaching (and still teach college part time), and I respect and truly like people.  I hope I have a lot to offer those needing help.

Back in the 70s and 80s, I was a volunteer adult literacy tutor, while I worked in business and before I entered teaching. Now that I am “sort of”retired, it’s come full circle and I return to my first teaching experience. It’s interesting how that works!  I also remember my students could not believe people were not being paid to be tutors, since in their countries they didn’t find free tutoring. I don’t know about that, as I’ve not been to another country looking for free tutoring.

I think it’s important to give back to causes that one believes in, and I believe in the power of literacy.

Thanks for reading.

Posted on by Laura Lee

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.

Posted on by Laura Lee

And the “DOCUMENTS” File Just Shows Up?

folders         Somehow my “Documents” folder showed up, along with the 1,000 folders and 27,000 files not in folders! Technology! Have to love it. Have to wonder about it…

I am glad I don’t have to try and find some 50,000 files. Yeah, I am old…I have that many files at least. I love to write!

Has this ever happened to you?

 

Posted on by Laura Lee

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!

Posted on by 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!