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June 15, 2017

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Poetry

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Ballooning

IMG_4325

Like balloons, thoughts float,
spiraling up like hope,
like faith, like love.
If you let them.

Copyright 2017 Brenda Davis Harsham

Notes: I’ve been working on a chapbook and drafting twitter pitches for PBPitch, coming June 22 (curious? See Writing Tips). I need my thoughts to rise. This snippet inspired me:

Hands, do what you’re bid:
Bring the balloon of the mind
That bellies and drags in the wind
Into its narrow shed.

— William Butler Yeats, from the Balloon of the Mind, found in Poetry for Young Readers: William Butler Yeats, Sterling Publishing, 2002.

Thanks to Carol at Carol’s Corner for hosting tomorrow’s Poetry Friday! She is celebrating that Tracy K. Smith has been named the 22nd Poet Laureate of the United States. Woo-hoo!

Poetry Friday Heron

And it’s nearly summer! To celebrate, here are links to a Midsummer nibble of Shakespeare, a Midsummer fairy tale and a favorite poem from last summer, Fairy Tale Flowers.

61 thoughts on “Ballooning”

  9. Good luck with your pitch, and thanks for the amazing gift of resources in your other post! I may try to pitch Malvina Reynolds, even though it’s not a completed manuscript, just a NPM project…*wheels turning*…

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    • Hi Jane, It’s a great way of scrutinizing a mss. If you can boil the action down into 140 characters, it’s probably a strong story where the heart of the story is fully realized. If you can’t get it that short, it may indicate your story arc isn’t ideal. Although, I’m sure there are exceptions to that. Stories that need a longer pitch. It’s making me reexamine some of my mss and rethink the arcs. I wish you happy writing and I hope it works for you. I say, go for it, and let hope rise. 😉

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    • Yes, that is a variety of thistle, I think. My neighbor’s rock wall is very photogenic. She laid each stone herself. It always inspires me to create beauty where I can. Summer is a good time for floating thoughts with blue skies, beach weather and flowers bringing the rainbow to earth.

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    • Thanks, Robyn. I had a working lunch today. We went over pitches for a twitter party. I think they are my least favorite thing to write, but I persevered. This business of trying to be discovered by an agent requires letting your thoughts rise. 🙂

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    • So glad to please. I cheated and used a photo from last year, but I love those purple flowers. My neighbor up the street has a lavish garden with archways, rock walls and hundreds of blooms. She has invited me to go photograph when I like. How cool is that? 🙂 As for Yeats, I very much liked the PB of his poetry. Every poem was magical.

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    • Exactly. Take your chances, jump in there. If it doesn’t work this time, you’re still closer to your goal than you were before. I love that movie Big Hero Six because they tried to convey how many times you have to fail before you can succeed. 🙂

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    • Thanks, Tabatha. I do have a chapbook theme and name. An American, Rapt and Unwrapped. I talk about my roots, my family and the world around me. I entered it in a contest, but I just wanted a deadline to force myself to actually complete it. It was transformative to bring it to that point.

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