writing | Shawn L. Bird

poem- murder May 6, 2015

Filed under: poem,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 4:57 pm
Tags: amwriting, creation, death, high, imagination, murder, mystery, school, writing

It’s awkward

all this repeated death.

Everyone has the solution

to remove the trouble maker

Everyone has a special skill

that will do the necessary damage.

How would you…?

Count down.

3, 2. 1.

You could…

From every department

something new.

Murder is not hard to do

if it imaginary, and there’s

not practical follow-through.

.

I am presently writing a collection of short stories set in a high school. The staff at my school keeps coming up with suggestions about the next murder. It’s been quite entertaining! I had no idea that apparently all teachers can come up with a scary death related to their subject area in under 3 seconds. How about you? My husband, (a Youth Probation Officer…) is appalled. lol

UPDATE: This project became Murdering Mr. Edwards and was published by Coffin Hop Press April 2018 https://coffinhop.com/crime/murdering-mr-edwards/

Comments (6)

poem- enticed May 3, 2015

Filed under: Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:00 am
Tags: amwriting, entrapment, office, romance, taunting, temptation, trouble, writing

She leaves the wine bottle in the bottom desk drawer

undoes two buttons on her white blouse,

French cuffed, of course. Lace peeks out.

Jeweled pendant lies between her breasts, the chain

offers a direction.

She stands, displacing gravity to expand the view.

Her black pumps click on the linoleum in the hall.

She pretends to talk on her cell phone,

pausing by his open door; her chest rises on a

tingling laugh she knows he won’t resist.

Her black pencil skirt covers the assets tightly,

in taunting style,

“See you later, then!” she tells her imaginary

phone companion,

as she strolls to the photo copier room,

trailing temptation behind her

without a backwards glance.

.

(A poem based on a new novel project).

Comments (25)

quote- magic of creation April 30, 2015

Filed under: Quotations,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:13 pm
Tags: Charles de Lint, creation, imagination, magic, Mystery of Grace, quote, writing

We all have magic, it’s all around us as well. We just don’t pay attention to it. Every time we make something out of nothing, that’s an act of magic. It doesn’t matter if it’s a painting or a garden, or an abuelo telling his grandchildren a tall tale. Every time we fix something that’s broken, whether it’s a car engine or a broken heart, that’s an act of magic.

And what makes it magic is that we choose to create or help, just as we can choose to harm. But it’s so easy to destroy and so much harder to make things better. That’s why doing the right thing makes you stronger.

If we can only remember what we are and what we can do, nobody can bind us or control us.

Charles de Lint The Mystery of Grace p. 235

I was reading this book tonight and was struck by this passage. I will share it with my Creative Writing class tomorrow. This is what it’s all about. The magic of creating something from nothing. It’s about crafting worlds from electrical charges firing in the brain, such sparks are magic in its purest form: undeniable..

Comments (11)

poem- 3 things March 25, 2015

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:07 am
Tags: assonance, lesson, micropoem, passion, poem, poetry, promise, prompt, repetition, rhyme, sound devices, triplet, writing

On her blog @SarahDoughty prompted:

Tell me a story covering three things:

a promise
why you write
a passion

This was my response. Not exactly a story, but you know, brevity is an art! 🙂 What’s your response? Go check out her blog and leave a thought.

.

I do; I do
release the stories,
my dreams of you.

.

POETRY LESSON:

I feel like I need to take this moment to point out what is going on in this poem, because while there are only 3 lines and eleven words, they are woven tightly using a variety of poetic technique. First, while each line responds in order to Sarah’s 3 prompts, they also read as one sentence, so there are overlapping meanings. Secondly, there is a pattern of 4-3-4 words. Thirdly, repetition in the first line is quite emphatic, but provides a rhyme that tightens the ending with you.

Fourthly, I get seriously carried away with the sound devices assonance and consonance, binding each component of the words to their fellows. There are three vowels sounds repeated, the only out-lier is the ‘o’ in stories. e.g. I, I, my; do, do, you; release, stories, dreams; the, of. (Reminder: assonance is repetition of a vowel sound, NOT a letter). The consonant sounds also repeat with do, do, dreams; release, stories, dreams; release, stories, dreams; my dreams. The the and of are both *fricatives, and so while not exactly the same sound, the brain hears them as ‘close enough.’

Finally, that leaves only the ‘l’ is without a partner, except visually–because I,I,l look the same, don’t they? And of course, the lonely o from stories, visually matches the o’s in do. In other words, every component of each word is tied somehow to the rest of the poem. Absolutely everything fits like a tight puzzle.

Did I do any of this intentionally? No, actually. I just responded to the prompt, tidied it up until I liked it, and then when I copied it here, I noticed how tight it was.

*Fricatives in English are f,v, s (both s/z sounds), th (both θ and ð).

Comments (21)

poem-flipped January 23, 2015

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 3:35 pm
Tags: couple, injury, invalid, night owl, poem, poetry, reading, relationship, rhyme, schedule, sleep, writing

You need a silent rest

and I need recumbency.

I find a peaceful place,

I recline and read and write

throughout the night,

come to bed at dawn

to greet you as you rise.

But office workers

call at nine, nine thirty, ten

and so with blurry eyes I

pretend lucidity,

then fall back to sleep

until you return at two.

My head and ankle

have schedules

out of sync with offices,

though I’m in tuneful counterpoint

with you.

Comments (9)

poem- almost January 3, 2015

Filed under: Poetry,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:15 am
Tags: amwriting, editor, manuscript, poem, poetry, process, work in progress, writing

When you think

that you’re finished,

that all the Ts are crossed

and the Is are dotted,

that every word is brilliant,

that the reader will be on the edge

of her seat from first page to last,

then you submit your work to your editor,

Who shows you

that you’re wrong.

Comments (12)

poem-ready December 31, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:45 am
Tags: alliteration, assonance, challenge, character, consonance, metaphor, poem, poetry, protagonist, struggle, victory, writing

She’s reached the end of her rope

and she’s swinging hard,

pumping her legs for maximum height,

fury fueling her flight.

She’s aiming for the edge

she’s leaping into space

and she’s grabbing on the way down.

When she lands,

she’s crushing injustice beneath her feet.

and throwing up her hands,

in victory.

.

Been editing tonight. Just getting to the end of the story, when the downtrodden heroine seizes power… 😉

Comments (8)