Poetry & Prose Round-up: Beyond The Blog

It feels like a real time of growth for the writers in our community of poetry and prose. Less than a fortnight ago Victoria of Verily Victoria Vocalises attended the glamorous MAD Blog Awards as a finalist in the Most Innovative Blog Category. This was a huge achievement and she described the experience in her fabulous poem Are You MAD Enough? Meanwhile Stephanie Arsoska of Beautiful Misbehaviour played host to a fabulous night in – our very first Online Live Mic Night via Google Hangout, which also featured BlueBeretMum, Secrets Of The Sandpit, Monochrome Thief, and myself, All At Sea. There was poetry, prose, wine, curry and even viewers! We broadcast live on YouTube and you can watch the fun we had here. We are looking forward to a second get together soon, so make sure and let Stephanie know if you fancie joining in.

It’s been a busy month for me whilst I finished the writing and artwork for my poetry collection A Familiar Voice which is now back from the printers. I’m eagerly awaiting the release of a few other anthologies currently being put together by fellow bloggers, and Instinctive Mum announced the exciting news that she is self-publishing her fabulous poem A Monster Ate My Mum, which cleverly tackles the topic of post natal depression through the eyes of a bewildered child. I’ve designed the artwork for this book and I’m very excited for its future release. It’s fabulous to see so many of us bravely taking our writing beyond our blogs.

Tea Lady Mumbles eloquently contrasted the celebration of the above with her utterly beautiful piece Thirty, a poignant comment on age, change and the ambitions of our youth, whilst Secrets Of The Sandpit bared a little of her soul in the powerful and moving Yahweh. MAD Outstanding Blogger Of The Year award winner, Edspire, continued to write from the heart in the honest and shattering Musings About Miscarriage, whilst I faced a late summer’s day with a heavy heart in Bloom.

Instinctive Mum eloquently battled the demons of sleep in Insomnia, whilst The UnCheshire Wife had me nodding my head in recognition with her cleverly crafted Dear Child. Three Children and It whispered her Confessions of a 40 Something Mum, and if it’s humour you’re in the mood for don’t miss the highly entertaining Mirror Mirror… Take 1, and Mirror Mirror… Take 2, light-hearted twists on children’s classics from Lovely 2CU.

And Baby Makes Three pledged the world in all its beauty to her young son in her gorgeous piece What Would I Give You, whilst Supper & Syntax remained hopelessly lost to love amidst The Technicalities Of Love. EmmaandIsaac journaled the bittersweet passing of time beautifully in Change Is In the Air, whilst Beautiful Misbehaviour illustrated the fragility of our connection to our past in her engaging audio Lost Stories. Blueberetmum took me back more than 30 years via Happiness – Or On The Importance Of Chocolate Cake, whilst Beth via The Oliver’s Madhouse continued to amaze us with her writing talent at the tender age of only 12 – I See You There Watching Me.

Life As It Is paid tribute to the bravery and horrors of an American September past in 911 & The Hand Of Reality – Emma’s series of travel tales scattered throughout her blog make compelling and beautiful reading, giving a rich insight into her life before motherhood.

If you haven’t already crossed their path you should have a look at Word Bohemia, a new poetry webzine who are steadily growing a lovely following and are on the lookout for submissions. In the last month they have published work by both Beautiful Misbehaviour and All At Sea.

It’s autumn now – darker mornings and darker nights. After weeks of neglect I look forward to returning to my blog, to fires and sofas and cups of tea. For those of you yet loathe to leave the summer behind, why not indulge its memory a little longer with the gorgeous One Week from Older Mum, which kicked off beautifully earlier this month with The Zen Of Washing.

Enjoy the last of the mild weather and I’ll see you in December!

About Helen Braid

Helen is a graphic designer who is lucky to live on the beautiful Scottish West Coast with her husband and their 2 young children. Since launching her blog All At Sea, Helen has focused on developing her poetry and prose. She is inspired by all things coastal and has a 5 year plan to relocate to the beach. Helen writes about family life and is author of blog series ‘Stories Of The Sea’, which is a whimsical collection of nautical tales. She has a quiet belief in angels and tries, whenever possible, to recognise beauty in the stuff of everyday.

• Mail
|
• Web
|
• Twitter
|
• Facebook
|
• More Posts(5)