Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

poem- I wanna be January 19, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 3:33 pm
Tags: , , , ,

I wanna be

that person who is fit and trim

so I buy the health magazines and plan to get a gym membership.

I wanna be

that person who  is literate and up to date with the latest trends

so I buy the literary journals and plan to read them.

I wanna be

that person who travels the world

so I buy the suitcase and send for the passport.

I wanna be

that person with the spotless house

so I buy cleaning products and sign up for email de-cluttering reminders.

I wanna be

that person

but until I actually take real action,

no purchase or plan can create the identity

I wanna be.

.

.

.

(Some of these are true desires, some of wishful thinking, and some are part of my real life.  I’ll leave it to you to figure out which!) 😉

 

poem-writing is like baking a birthday cake January 18, 2014

Filed under: Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:43 am
Tags: , , , , , ,

Writing a novel is like baking a birthday cake.

First, you figure out what kind it is

chocolate, vanilla, spice, angel?

historical? horror? teen? romance?

What is your audience?

Three toddlers?  Fifty seniors?

Then you add the ingredients in some order

flour, eggs, milk, sugar

protagonist, conflict, plot, setting

Then you mix them all together and add some heat

from an oven

an editor or first readers

It cooks, changing from ingredients into cake.

It’s edited from a manuscript to a book.

When it tests as being done,

it has to sit a bit to cool

Then it is shared with a small group, or a huge crowd

People celebrate with candles, smiles and songs

A cake lasts a moment, but the memory can linger.

A book lasts longer, but the memory of the first moment  lingers.

 

 

poem- swirl January 16, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:39 pm
Tags: , , , , , , ,

Reality spins

into imagination

awakening dreams

long forgotten.

Reality whirls

through intimations

of what seems

downtrodden

Reality curls

into foundations

revealing themes

all new again.

 

Thought- secret of success January 15, 2014

Filed under: Pondering,Quotations,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:17 pm
Tags: ,

Talking to Oprah Winfrey, David Copperfield says the secret of success has three parts:

Passion

Preparation

Persistance

If you love what you do, you work diligently at your craft, and you stick to it, despite set backs and discouragement, eventually, you will achieve your goal.

It seems to be the case in my experience.  How about you?

 

poem-parking

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:41 pm
Tags: ,

Around

around

around

around

around

the block.

There!

.

.

.

Damn

Smart car.

.

Around

Around

 

poem- night breath January 14, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:42 pm
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Night breathes

its peace in

shimmering air

dusted with winter.

.

Night breathes

its silence in

rustling wishes

between sheets.

.

Night breathes

an invitation in

a lingering look

over the shoulder.

.

Night breathes

a promise in

peace,

silence,

invitation.

 

poem- winter wind January 13, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 7:06 pm
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Wafting on the cool wind

as I plow through the snow to the car

comes the heavy scent of roses.

I look for the source without success

as the air is saturated with summer

in frosty winter:

Perfumed paradox.

 

writing- advice I wish I’d had

Filed under: Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:14 am
Tags: , , , ,

This is a great series worth reading from C. S. Lakin at  Live Write Thrive who  interviewed authors about what they wish they’d known before they started writing their novel.  This link takes you to the final post in the series, so you may want to poke around her blog a bit and read the rest of the series.  It’s a really good source of information for writers.

 

quote- John Green on coffee January 12, 2014

Filed under: Quotations — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:08 pm
Tags: , ,

Colin didn’t like coffee.  He liked the idea of coffee quite a lot–a warm drink that gave you energy and had been for centuries associated with sophisticates and intellectuals.  But coffee itself tasted to him like caffeinated stomach bile.

John Green in An Abundance of Katherines. p. 11

I also like the rest of the paragraph, from which I lifted the quote.  It conveys the tone of the protagonist, Colin, who has just broken up with his 19th girlfriend, each named Katherine.

 “He did an end-around on the unfortunate taste by drowning his java in cream, for which Katherine gently teased him that afternoon.  It rather goes without saying that Katherine drank her coffee black.  Katherines do, generally.  They like the coffee like they like their ex-boyfriends: bitter.”

Colin expresses my feeling about coffee.  I started drinking it at the Calico House in Kelowna, after young people’s events when I was about 17.  We’d gather around the table,  wanting to continue in each other’s company, solving the problems of the world, planning our futures, having fun.  Calico House put a pitcher of coffee at the table.  Inevitably, it ended up in my cup.

I don’t really like it, and I do not do well with caffeine.  I had a cup of 2/3 hot chocolate 1/3 coffee at 4:00 on Friday, and I was up until 3 a.m. (and completely unaware of the time.  It felt like 9 to me).   Most days, I drink either hot chocolate (Carnation, preferably) mixed with some Ovaltine or an herbal tea with honey.  This time of year, a hot beverage is a great comfort.

How about you?  Do you drink coffee?  What is your beverage of choice?

 

poem- silence

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:52 am
Tags: , , ,

In response to a poetheme prompt on Twitter, a micropoem:

.

 My silence is my power
A weapon of contemplation
& distillation
The weapon of a sage,
enraged.