Scene Break
July 28, 2024
Scene Break end of July 2024
WHAT'S NEW IN POETRY
Several acceptances have come through, but they're not published yet. I did something I'd never done before. An online journal requires we write collaboratively. Instead of asking a friend I signed up for their drawing for a partner. I think I hit the jackpot with lovely Florence! She's French American living in New Jersey. The call was for hermit crab poems, a specialized form. We had a lot of fun over zoom talking and composing three poems to submit. Turns out, Florence also likes tarot. I invited her to join Kim's online tarot group that I usually attend.
Hermit crab poems are written in the guise of something else. We did one as a house for sale ad, another as a recipe, and the last one was a trouble shooting chart for a boom box. I think the chart was our best poem, but we'll see.
A few people are buying my latest book, 'Hand-Me-Downs' from Amazon. Thank you so much if you are one of those people! I'll include the link in the publications section below.
WHAT'S UP WITH CICADA SONG PRESS
I thought I'd start adding this section to my newsletter since it's a big part of my daily work life. Our first collection – 'Lost at 27: Musicians, Artists, Mortals' is coming along nicely. At last count I have 46 poems with at least 5 more expected. Our submission window is open until August 15. I'll put the updated ad at the end of this letter and with it an extensive list of people for whom we don't yet have poems.
Our next project is a short story collection. Watch for that on our website: www.cicadasongpress.com.
WHAT ON EARTH IS UP WITH MY FICTION
More rejections for UNDER THE BUBBLE. I need to get busy and send out more queries.
Concerning DREAMS TO VISIONS, I'm stagnant. I was stuck for a long time and let it sit. I had a tough time getting back to it. When I did, I decided to draft the novel in verse. I'm still not making much progress and I don't know if this will work. I don't want to abandon the story or the characters, but I couldn't continue the way it was. Like so many other things I do, it's an experiment.
WHAT I'M READING
I was reading THE THINGS THEY CARRIED by Tim O'Brien but had to toss it across the room. I got about halfway through and came to a part with animal cruelty. I won't read that.
Let's get real. I was talking about all the books on TBR shelf and all the books on my wish list on Amazone and what I should read next. Then it hit me. I have 5 books I've started and not finished. One is almost done; one is barely begun. The others are in between. One is a huge poetry book I'll read between other things.
For now, I'm finishing 'The Compass Rose' book of short stories by Ursula K Le Guin. I have the books stacked on the couch beside where I sit. That's my reading spot, TV spot, and as it turns out, my sleeping spot. And of course, my cuddling-with-Jose spot. I am reading them there as opposed to stacked in the bedroom where they were. In 'The Compass Rose,' I just read Gwilan's Harp, a really sweet story. I found a video on YouTube of Ursula reading the story.
PUBLICATIONS SINCE LAST SCENE BREAK
My second book of poetry: https://www.amazon.com/Hand-Me-Downs-Generational-Trauma-Memoir-Poetry/dp/B0D9FMS65T/ref=sr_1_1
A story based on fact I'd tried to get published for almost 2 years https://www.redrosethorns.com/post/needles
STAR TREK
I was right about a couple of predictions for Star Trek Prodigy. Gwyn's father was a sweetheart and I think he was the absolute best character in the entire show. And there was no passionate embrace between Janeway and Chakotay. My favorite regular character on Prodigy is still Dal. I hope there is a season three.
WHAT I HAVE LEARNED
This is tough for me this month.
I started a new poetry group at The Creative Academy. I'm trying to rotate the days between Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. A man who's new to Creative Academy joined in our group the first time. We ended the hour with readings from each person. Everyone seemed to enjoy that so that's a good thing to do. In the coming months I hope to teach a few forms, respond to poetry, and critique each other's poetry. For the most part, those are the things I've heard that people want.
This section is supposed to be about what I've learned. A LOT. From Johanna, how to respond in writing to a person's poem written in extremely broken English. From a YouTube video, how to write hermit crab poems. From my body – I'm still not doing something right.
TODAY'S CARD
Tarot cards are addictive, kinda like tattoos. I bought 2 new decks. This card is the King of Cups from Tarot of a Moon Garden by Karen Marie Sweikhardt. I love this deck because of the bright colors and fanciful designs. Totally opposite from my other new deck, which I'll feature next month.
I need to be generous and kind to myself. I'm an artist.
Thanks for reading!
https://www.linktr.ee/monaiv