Language is beautiful. Part of my interest in storytelling as an art, is in the way people communicate their stories. I love discovering the origins of words, how their uses have evolved, and how they are related to other words. It’s why I receive reference.com’s daily Word of the Day emails. Based on this etymological curiosity and the fact that I took (and passed!) Linguistics 101 in college, I think I qualify as an amateur linguist (probably). Continue reading “Weird Words of the Something”
Summertime Wishes: June Cat Review
Our music reviews seek to trace the narratives that weave between songs and albums. Check out our Rhythmic Fiction tag for other stories told through music.
Stumbling upon new music is probably the greatest aspect of online accessibility. I stumbled upon Walk Off the Earth (along with a few million other people) when they posted their now-famous cover of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know”. And I stumbled upon Gotye when that song played in a bar in Devon, England, spurring a conversation between myself and a friend over whether the vocalist merely sounded like Sting, or if it was, in fact, Sting.
Anyway, I have once again stumbled upon more promising music, courtesy of June Cat. Continue reading “Summertime Wishes: June Cat Review”
The Most Poignant, Succinct Summation of Storytelling
The art of storytelling fascinates me. Over the course of the last few years, through much reading and working writing into an everyday habit, I have developed my own theories and ideas about the nature of storytelling. Some of these I have tried to put into my own words, perhaps successfully, perhaps not. Continue reading “The Most Poignant, Succinct Summation of Storytelling”
February’s Theme: Mel Gibson in a Kilt
January’s theme was decidedly dark. From romantic struggles, to social complacence, to haunting memories, each of the four poems used the theme of blood and wine to clean some skeletons out of our collective closets.
While discussing what the theme could be for this month, Jessie had the bright idea to just use the mascot of the Super Bowl winner as the theme. So congratulations to the New England Patriots; you are the subject (sort of) of a poetry theme. Also, congrats to my friends in Boston. I didn’t really have a horse in the Super Bowl race, but I like that two all-time great coach-player tandems have won championships in the waning years of their runs (Belichik-Brady, and Popovich-Duncan of the Spurs, who won the NBA championship in 2014). We’re on to the poetry! Continue reading “February’s Theme: Mel Gibson in a Kilt”
Rock Song – Vino y Sangre – Marcy Erb
The Family Dinner Party
Where the man
at the top of the stairs,
the butcher of our tiny land
came from, nobody will say.
Every family has one.
We gather together,
blood running down
the wooden steps
The Lives I Might Have Lived
I’m a history buff. I studied history for my bachelor’s degree and area studies for my master’s. Since I was a child, I have fantasized about living in particular historical eras and places, being a part of the periods and events which have shaped humanity’s shared heritage. I also fell in love with the academic storytelling art of history; it is the story of the past, the narrative of how we understand ourselves and where we came from. Continue reading “The Lives I Might Have Lived”
Rock Song – Vino y Sangre – SD
Red-Handed
Sat back with iPads,
Sniffin’ wine caps and
Actin’ through that high
Political rap, Continue reading “Rock Song – Vino y Sangre – SD”
Misplaced Missives #1 – Fire – JG
I realized belatedly that I never said what my Misplaced Missives are, and I figure there’s no better time to explain than at the beginning. Thus, down below is the first – not the first written but the first rewritten into my private journal. These are the lost letters to the ones I’ve loved; letters I was never brave enough to send or letters there’s no longer anyone to send to. So thank you for reading these in the stead of those who never will. Continue reading “Misplaced Missives #1 – Fire – JG”
Finding a Stopping Point… and holding on for dear life
I’m one of those people who never feels totally satisfied with a written work. There is always a different idea, or a new line, or a twist to the rhyme scheme that I could have/should have made. That’s why I re-read my own writing as little as possible once it has been “finished” — or posted here. Continue reading “Finding a Stopping Point… and holding on for dear life”
Rock Song – Vino Y Sangre II – JG
To Wash Away The Memory
Cut in a way,
A blade never will,
Shallow and deep,
But blood wasn’t spilt.
More subtle, more fine,
Complex and in my mind’s eye:
Divine.
These wounds taste like wine. Continue reading “Rock Song – Vino Y Sangre II – JG”
Evening Satellite Publishing 