Colleen’s Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 80, GATHER & SOFT, #SynonymsOnly
I received a lovely gift from my dear blogging friend, Samantha Murdoch
It was a lovely letter, a bunch of crystals (amethyst, rose quartz, red jasper, obsidian, carnelian, jade and of course a Bloodstone, as Sam said in her letter, ‘ the piece as featured on the spine of your novel,’ plus two cute cat napkins! Such a wonderful gift.
So, of course what better way to thank her than to write a Tanka!
For gather I shall use collect, and kind for soft.
Couldn’t ask for a better friend, Samantha is such a diamond. 🙂
To join in with Colleen’s weekly Tanka Tuesday do follow the link:
Bye for now, a very happy Saturday to you.
Much love, feeling very blessed to have such lovely friends.
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Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Poetry Challenge No 77 : Charm and Time
This tanka is inspired by the two main characters in my novel – The Curse of Time Book 1 Bloodstone, Amelina the main protagonist and the mysterious, unfathomable Ryder….
For time I used tempo and for charm bewitched.
A heartbeat’s tempo,
Bewitched am I, misled too,
Shadows invade me,
I struggle to break your spell,
I daren’t guess who you are.
To enter the challenge follow the link:
Hope you enjoyed my tanka. Happy Easter Sunday folks.
Exciting News: Tomorrow is a very special day. It is the intended release date for my paperback so I’d love it if you pop over to my blog to celebrate with me.
Bye for now,
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Colleens Weekly Poetry Challenge No: 76
My Tanka for Colleen’s weekly poetry challenge using the synonyms delight for Joy and passion for fury.
I find dreams fascinating. Often we wish we could continue our dream when the alarm rings to wake us up. But, if the dream becomes a nightmare we are only to keen for it to end! Would this dream be a nightmare I wonder…
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Hope you liked my Tanka!
Bye for now. Happy dreaming!
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Colleen Chesebro’s Weekly Poetry Challenge #Cinquain #Poetry #5lines
The prompt words this week are Renew and Fresh. I chose to use improve for renew and shocking for fresh.
The idea for this particular Cinquain came from a recent critique session at Cambridge writers. I’d submitted the first draft of my prologue for Book Two. Not everyone is a fan of prologues so the comments were kind of… make it shorter…. so short it would be tiny. Dare I make it a four, five line prologue? Anyone got any advice on tiny prologues?
I wrote this Cinquain with that in mind:
Hope you enjoyed my Cinquain…
Happy writing!
Bye for now,
Link to buy: http://myBook.to/TheCurseofTime
Authors Website: https://mjmallon.com
Collaborative blog: https://sistersofthefey.wordpress.com
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Colleen Cheseboro’s Weekly Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge no. 73
Sometimes you have to stop and take a photo! Isn’t this snowman so cute? I spotted him on Saturday in central Cambridge. I was out for a shopping day and this cheeky chappy caught my eye. It was the combination of his daft hairstyle and walking stick that did it. Those twigs are so perfectly perched on his head sweeping over his left eye and his walking stick is firmly planted in the ground. He means business. Ha ha! He really made me smile.
To celebrate his awesome cuteness I decided to write a Tanka especially for him…
For Mr. Snowman
This snowman’s vigour,
Frosty spirit caught my eye,
He winked, the snow fell,
His hairstyle melted my heart,
Sweet guy stay mine forever!
I used the synonyms vigour for power and spirit for energy.
To join in the challenge: https://colleenchesebro.com/2018/02/27/colleens-weekly-tanka-tuesday-poetry-challenge-no-73-energy-knowledge-snyonymsonly/
Please feel free to comment or post your photos of snowmen in the comment field below.
Bye for now,
Link to Buy Kindle copy of The Curse of Time Book 1 Bloodstone: myBook.to/TheCurseofTime
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Colleen’s Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge No. 72 Breakthrough and Movement
Sometimes you just have to pinch yourself. Colleen’s prompt words this week express my morning breakthrough in such a wonderful way. I’ve been writing my prologue for Book Two of The Curse of Time and I had a BREAKTHROUGH. The words flowed so effortlessly I wanted to do a happy dance. As I was beetling away writing the prologue I suddenly had an unexpected flash of inspiration. I’m going to start each new chapter – (Puzzle Piece,) with a Cinquian! Bring it on.
Wait a minute, I have no clue how to write a Cinquian. Never fear… Colleen is the Queen Bee of mentoring! She is a fabulous source of inspiration and her blog is full of useful information, so without further ado, I popped over to read up on how to write a Cinquain. I discovered there is a reverse Cinquian too. Boy, this is getting exciting! More happy dance! What a morning…
Here is a tiny excerpt (unseen until now!) about Cinquians from the first (unedited,) draft of the prologue of The Curse of Time – Book Two – Golden Healer:
I’m so stressed. My go to when I’m stressed is writing. Poetry. It’s my number one anxiety solution, a bunch of words in a tight format make me feel better. But somehow I don’t feel in the mood for Tanka. There have been too many weird changes for that. I need a new more challenging form of poetic expression. I’ve heard about Cinquian. It’s very formulaic, first line is the title, second line add two adjectives that describe the title, third line stick in three verbs that express action, fourth line are four words that shout out feeling or describe more and the fifth line takes it back to the beginning. Closure. That appeals. The fifth line is a synonym of the first line. Sounds good. If anything will take my mind off my present anxiety this will do it. I feel it in my gut. Cinquain. I like it. It sounds like a cash register. Not that I’m materialistic but I feel a Cinquian coming on. Bring it on!
So to my Cinquain. I’ve used synonyms – Quantum Leap and sign.
That last line was a struggle. I had one of those ‘can I really do this moments.’ But I like a challenge so I didn’t give up. Then I found the word. Auspicious. Oh, I do like auspicious! I hope it brings me luck. 🙂
Any feedback for this novice Cinquian writer would be gratefully received.
Bye for now you lovely peeps,
Date for your Diary! My paperback is due for release mid April. The pre-release blog tour begins in April with my #ABRSC club pals, followed by a release tour with Neverland Blog Tours. (Jenny Marston is also a #ABRSC member!) http://neverlandblogtours.weebly.com/
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Twitter: @Marjorie_Mallon and @curseof_time
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Colleen’s Weekly Tanka Poetry Challenge no. 71 Character and Affection
My Tanka is Valentine inspired today. I’ve used devotion for affection and for character I chose mould.
My hubby and I are both creative souls, he loves music so, so much! And of course, I love writing… We met many moons ago. Two many moons to tell you! We began our lives as tender, teenage sweethearts and are still going strong. Perhaps it is this creativity and passion within us that is our rock. There is room for a huge amount of love in a relationship, for each other and of course for the things that rock our lives – music and writing! Perhaps, one day we will be able to write and play music full-time, now that would be wonderful.
To join in with Colleen’s challenge follow the link:
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Colleen’s Weekly 2018 Tanka Tuesday Challenge No 70 – Destiny and Challenge
Since I have been writing and blogging there have been so many cases of serendipity, discovering like-minded souls who share similar interests. My lovely friend Colleen Chesebro, fellow writer, chief sister, (blog originator,) at The Sisters of the Fey, loves crystals, fairies and all things magical. Colleen helped me enormously with my manuscript The Curse of Time. She went way beyond a beta read and I am so indebted to her for her kindness, helping me achieve my dream to publish my first book.
Carolina Russo who blogs at Yesterday After (my illustrator,) also has a crystal connection! She makes crystal jewellery and has created two wonderful pieces of art to illustrate my book, which I will be sharing in a special feature on my next blog post on my main blog – https://mjmallon.com so keep an eye out for that!
And the lovely Samantha Murdoch, who loves cats and crystals kindly emailed me lots of photos of her beautiful black cat Lily to promote my cat character Shadow, as well as an image of the Bloodstone which graces the spine of the paperback.
I would also like to mention, Irene who fashioned this beautiful necklace promoting Colleen’s YA novel The Heart Stone Chronicles – The Swamp Fairy https://colleenchesebro.com/category/the-heart-stone-chronicles/the-swamp-fairy/ which I adore wearing. You can order it and other pieces of Irene’s jewellery via her Etsy shop:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/480852170/black-silk-necklace-with-silver-wrapped
My friend Wendy Anne Darling had a magical challenge too, to transform Dr John C Taylor’s brilliant images of the Corpus Christi Clock into a magnificent book cover. She did a fantastic job. Do pop over to Wendy’s blog, and check out her book design service.
Oh, and did I mention that Dr John C Taylor, OBE, inventor of the Corpus Christi Chronopage clock is a keen geologist, loves crystals and of course clocks too…
Such is the power of serendipity! Would you believe it?
I truly believe that The Curse of Time and all these wonderful connections were meant to be.
Have you ever had a similar experience, when everything came together in such a magical and mysterious way?
Do comment I’d love to hear all about it.
My links:
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To join in with Colleen’s weekly poetry challenge follow the link:
Colleen’s Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 68, “Myth & Write,” #SynonymsOnly
Goddess of lovers,
Born from the tumultuous waves,
Intriguing legend,
Autograph of mystery,
Beautiful Aphrodite.
An excerpt from my book – The Curse of Time – Book 1 – Bloodstone:
We had arrived at the front of the restaurant by then, and I strained to recapture control of my drifting mind. Ryder held the door, and as I walked inside, I focused on the restaurant’s interior. Aphrodite’s proposed everything I’d expected and much more. The waiter seated us next to an exquisite painting of the waves crashing against the cliffs of Paphos Bay. We slid into our very own private booth.
A snow white Aphrodite statue stood in the centre of the restaurant as a focal point. Her exotic and mysterious image enthralled me. No wonder she deserved the title of the Goddess of Love. The realistic statue captured my attention. I almost expected her to step towards me and crush me with her stone arms in an over-enthusiastic embrace.
Large elaborate fish tanks lined the walls, housing exotic fish, including corals and ferns. I glanced around at the pictures of white doves which dotted the walls.
My eyes travelled to a painted likeness of the Golden Apple of Great Renown. I remembered the Goddess Eris had written ‘for the fairest’ on the side of an apple. Both Zeus’s wife Hera, and his daughter Athena, including Aphrodite claimed they were the fairest. But the Prince of Troy, Paris, couldn’t choose between them. The rest is history. Paris fell in love with Helen, which led to the Trojan War. I had been paying attention in history class after all. I reflected for a moment on what a bitter-sweet and ultimately destructive force love could be.
Ryder edged closer to me in the booth. He brushed a strand of hair away from my face. I could feel his breath on my face. A hot, sweet, intoxicating murmur that caressed. ‘You’re so lovely,’ he said, his voice coaxing me to come even closer.
I couldn’t resist his advances and snuggled closer to his side. He cupped my face in his hands, and leaned in towards me, planting a lingering kiss on my cheek. I closed my eyes and leaned back allowing his lips to brush my neck. My skin tingled with a strange heat where he’d left a trail of kisses. I longed for more. He ran a finger over the top of my lip. It was such a thrill, I trembled and my breath caught in my throat. I could hardly breathe. Catching my breath at long last, I inhaled him, my lungs filling with his heady aroma…
© M J Mallon 2018.
To join in the poetry challenge follow the link to Colleen’s blog:
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Our new collaborative blog – The Sisters of the Fey is a blogging collaboration between authors D. G. Kaye, Wendy Anne Darling, Marjorie Mallon, Belinda Miller, Annette Rochelle Aben, Colleen Chesebro, Adele Marie Park, and Tina Frisco to share all things magical.
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Colleen’s Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 66: DESTINATION & GUIDE (#SynonymsOnly)
The prompt words this week are destination, and guide. I chose to use the synonyms haven and guiding spirit. I created the above Tanka which leads to a short, but oh so relevant excerpt…
An excerpt from my YA/Paranormal Fantasy the Curse of Time – Book 1 – Bloodstone.
A hazy image materialised into a multitude of glistening sparks which transformed into a vibrantly glowing object. I heard the pounding hearts from each of us becoming louder and more distinct as we gazed at the object. The sparks coalesced, no longer separate entities they’d joined to form a spirit or a ghostly apparition. The specter sparkled like a million candle lights, speaking to each of us, in a wisp of a voice that drifted like the wind.
The spirit addressed me, knowing I possessed the gift to understand the crystals. ‘You have called me forth to open your heart to the truth. You must accept who you are and not be afraid. Embrace your true self. Encourage others to do the same. Then you will be a truly magical person, able to rekindle your family’s happiness. Beware those who want what you possess.’
The spirit turned and pointed at Joselyn. ‘Joselyn, you must move on from your past and accept the challenges of the future. Don’t be fearful. Your confidence will grow the more you follow your dreams.’
The phantom floated above us on invisible currents and pointed at Ilaria. ‘Ilaria, you have no more to fear from the children who taunted you. Your laughter protects you from their wickedness. Heed my words and use your skill wisely.’
Jade was last, and the spirit hovered near her face. ‘Jade, you possess the skill and craft of working with animals. You must cherish and nurture it. Be faithful to your friends, and most of all, beware of those who may lead you astray.’
When the spirit finished speaking, the ghostly form drifted toward the candles and hovered above them. Slowly, the flames were extinguished one after the other, and we found ourselves sitting in total darkness. The phantom had vanished. No one spoke. We were shocked into a stunned silence. Ilaria switched on the light, and with one glance, we all knew things between us would never be the same again. That night signalled the beginning of our own personal voyages toward self-discovery.
© M J Mallon 2017/2018
Hope you enjoyed the Tanka and excerpt.
Bye for now,
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Twitter: @Marjorie_Mallon and @curseof_time
