Shawn L. Bird

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

Review- Art of the Fold February 21, 2019

Filed under: book reviews,Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:16 pm
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A fantastic resource for poets and book artists to make beautiful chapbooks.

I have a writer-artist friend on Pender Island who posted this book that she got for Christmas. I was so impressed that I bought a copy of my own!  With great thanks to Andrea Spalding, I’m delighted to share this book with you.

Hedi Kyle & Ulla Warchol have compiled a variety of techniques in Art of the Fold.  This is a GORGEOUS book! It will teach you how to make amazing folded art books that you can use with beautiful papers to create stunning, one of a kind, art books for your poetry and other special words.  Here’s a video of me showing some of the little practice books I made, while learning the techniques, with a peak at the book itself.

 

The beauty of this book is how Kyle and Warchol give you the bones of the books, but the scope of how you can apply the examples to make your own project is unlimited.  I am SO excited to buy special paper and make some lovely art books to give to special people in my world.  What a great resource for learning techniques of book folding.  I am so excited to use these with my English students!

You can buy Art of the Fold on Amazon, and you really should!

(I’m an Amazon Affiliate, so buying from the link gives me a penny or two for the recommendation).

(My dog decided to wrestle his bed all over the living room while I was recording the video , excuse his enthusiastic growls and brief appearances in the background! lol He finally abandoned it against a chair. Silly boy.)

 

writing-conference power February 19, 2019

Filed under: Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 8:49 pm
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I’m a huge advocate of the writing conference as a crucial key to a writer’s development.  For many years, I thought they were silly and over-priced.  I figured I could learn anything I needed to know by reading books about the writing craft and business.

What I didn’t understand was the importance of connection.  Writers tend to be solitary creatures. Their creativity happens when they’re alone.  Often our friends and family members don’t understand the stress of having to kill off a character we love, or the trauma of maintaining our words per day quota, or the soul-destroying nature of the twelfth (or hundred and twelfth) rejection letter for a project we adore.

Other writers do.

When you sit in a room with other writers, hear their stories, and realize they have the same kind of feelings and experiences you do, you realize you aren’t the only one. You’re not weird! (Well, maybe you are, but it’s probably a good weird, and you realize there are a lot of weirder people and you thoroughly enjoy being in their weird company!).  You feel like you belong.  You listen, you learn, you laugh, and you long for it to last.

Next March I am going to a new conference for me: Creative Ink in Burnaby, BC.  I see that some of my friends from other conferences (Surrey International, When Words Collide in Calgary, Word on the Lake in Salmon Arm) will be there. How great!

If you’re in BC and you’ve never been to a conference, this one is a good price ($80 for the weekend) and has some phenomenal people presenting and attending, so I already know it’s going to be great.  Learn about the craft and business of the writing life.  Share some weird.  Enjoy some fun.  Buy some books.

If you decide to go, tell them I sent you!

Creative Ink is at the Delta Marriott Burnaby, BC  March 29-31, 2019.

 

Giveaway! Book promo.

Filed under: Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 5:51 am
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A couple of weeks ago, I did a book review for The Emotion Thesaurus 2nd edition.  Today is official release day, and the authors have an amazing contest going!  

I love their product and I love writing conferences, so I fully endorse The Emotion Thesaurus 2nd edition AND their contest.  Here’s their info:

This second edition is more than a new cover. It’s been been enhanced and expanded to include 55 new entries and double the teaching material. Now we can go even deeper when showing our characters’ emotions!

You can read some of the reviews on Goodreads or find more information here. 

Also, one more thing to share…a MEGA-OPPORTUNITY to win something amazing!

GIVEAWAY ALERT:

To celebrate the new book & its dedicated readers, Angela and Becca have an unbelievable giveaway on right now: one person will win a free writing retreat, conference, workshop, or professional membership to a writing organization, winner’s choice (up to $500 US, with some other conditions which are listed on the WHW site).

What conference would you attend if the fee was already paid for…or would you choose a retreat? Something else? Decisions, decisions! This giveaway ends on February 26th, so hurry over and enter!

 

writing-talent v tenacity February 16, 2019

Filed under: Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:50 pm
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When I’m speaking to new writers, whether they be young or old, I spend time discussing the difference between talent and tenacity.

When you start, you may be discouraged because you see others with greater talent than you, but if you have tenacity, your dedication will develop talent, your resilience will keep you practising, your perseverence at pushing on doors will get you opportunities.  The most talented person who just holes up in a burrow will stagnate if they don’t work with what they’ve got.  So if you WANT it, you need to be tenacious, and eventually, your tenacity will develop your talent, and you will achieve your goals.

So much success in life relies on simply not giving up.

Caitriona Balfe, the actor who plays Claire Randall in Outlander, said some similar regarding making it as an actor, in a recent interview for The Irish Times,

a lot of it is just having the f***ing balls and grit to stick around and be persistent in the face of a lot of rejection. But I think that also comes from having a belief that if [there is] something you love to do so much, something that feels that it comes naturally, that in some way it has to be what you’re meant to do.

That’s it.  As Dory puts it, “Just keep swimming.”

 

poem- honestly February 15, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:34 am
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If I were being honest,

(truth hurts, my love)

I’d say that while the quotidien care

powers an appreciative couplehood,

sometimes cares require more than chores.

Sometimes, it needs a hug (you first)

or cooking a meal (with vegetables) and setting candles on the table.

Sometimes it means holding hands instead of striding ahead,

and no sighs of impatience or vibrations of irritation.

(Yes. We feel those, when you’re pretending, and it spoils the effort).

Sometimes your diligence with household chores is enough to know you care,

but sometimes

we need more.

 

 

 

poem-hearts February 14, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:11 pm
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It’s not the chocolates,

flowers,

romantic dinners,

sexy lingerie.

It’s just the words

and actions.

Fixing the brakes,

warming the car,

clearing off snow

before I head to work.

That’s romance.

That’s love.

 

 

 

Tanka- last message February 13, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:39 pm
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“My battery is low

and it’s getting dark.” Weep

for my silent voice.

Opportunity,

roved beyond expectation.

.

.

Today, the Mars Rover Opportunity has been declared dead. It was meant to function for 90 days, and instead, worked for 15 years  and sent amazing data about Mars’s hydrography.  It was recently caught in a dust storm that covered its solar panels.  In some future time, will someone clean the dust off this strange relic, and Opportunity will call to NASA again?  Until then, Sleep well, Opportunity.  More info here.

 

haiku- winter night February 12, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 8:19 pm
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Silent winter night

Snow falling peacefully ’til

the plough comes scraping.

 

poem-flashes February 8, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:26 pm
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I’ve forgotten your name,

but one glance at the back of a pear-shaped girl

in a tight striped top and jeans,

brought you sailing through the years.

Short, feathered hair.

Acne scars.

Knock-kneed shuffle.

Booming laugh.

Where did I know you?

Whoever you are,

I hope you’re happy today.

I hope your life has been all you dreamed.

 

poem- little steps January 28, 2019

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 7:43 pm
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Great dreams.

Big hopes.

Massive endeavours.

Long journeys.

All large things

take little steps.

Bit by bit

bite by bite

step by step.

War and Peace

started with one word

on the page.

Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony

began with one note.

Huge

begins

small.

Just

begin.