#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 29: The Next Slant

On the Slant by Maria L. Berg 2021

This morning the sun came out and did my work for me. Mr. Kitty is known in the biz to be an uncooperative model, but he didn’t know today’s theme was slant.

It’s a good day to reread Tell all the truth but tell it slant by Emily Dickinson.

Telling It Slant by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a next poem.

What’s Next?

Doesn’t help to ponder
only think up possible
contingencies, or plan
escape routes aplenty
I mean pretense
dictates portance
but I’m pretending
while planking
that all will remain placid

Pondering doesn’t help the
possible up-link only
plans contingencies, a
plentiful route, escaping
pretense and mean.
People don’t average well
Portance, though archaic, dictates
pretending. I am but horizontal,
planking while placid.

Slanted Shadow Cat by Maria L. Berg 2021

If you’ve enjoyed the photographs I’ve been taking, I’ve added some to my RedBubble store and I’m excited about the new products. The abstract bokeh really lends itself to product design. So fun. Sale on Now! Get 20-60% off when you use code CYBER5.

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 28: Reclaiming My Time

Reclaiming the Light by Maria L. Berg 2021

For today’s images, I crumpled up the photos that I tore up for my visual poetry and let them reclaim the light in the mirror world. I love the way the lights reflect off the crumpled glossy photo paper.

Beyond the Curtain by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a slow down poem.

To Reclaim My Time

To reclaim it,
first it must be taken,
or in an undesirable state,
displaying wrong or improper
conduct to be recalled from,
before rescued, subdued, or tamed
My time runs wild and wanton
How will I demand to obtain its return
and regain possession, to slow
its exponential speed, and hold it still,
still while I breathe
still while I think
no ticking, no tocking
no hands, or faces, or digits
only the hum of the space heater
and the warm, soft, micro-fiber blanket
holding me to the couch
and plush blue socks
holding me to the thick carpet
and the wine, and the wine couch
cushions, supporting my weight,
seconds, minutes worth of seconds
squirm under those cushions, but
I won’t let them escape
eventually they will tire themselves out.

Box of Needles by Maria L. Berg 2021

If you’ve enjoyed the photographs I’ve been taking, I’ve added some to my RedBubble store and I’m excited about the new products. The abstract bokeh really lends itself to product design. So fun. Sale on Now! Get 20-60% off when you use code CYBER5.

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 27: Burn to Memory

Burn to Memory by Maria L. Berg 2021

I have been wanting to play with candles in my mirror world, so inspired by today’s prompt “burn,” I thought I would give it a try.

Burning Bright by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a remix poem. It’ll be a fun day of looking back over the poems I’ve written this month and finding connections.

Burn Blue by Maria L. Berg 2021
Burn Brighter by Maria L. Berg 2021

Burn to Memory

Memories are malleable
innocently altered
but upon condition
I could finagle
to enable a feeling of wild abandon:

as wild as a huckleberry
after the first frost
a crisp, tart-sweet burst
as wild and fresh as raindrops
collected in the yellow petals
of a buttercup among ferns
as wild and fresh and vibrant as light
breaking through the thick gray.
You won’t be as pleased
as I am with my display

It’s not that you were unexpected
or unwelcome, or unwanted
we found a balance
exceedingly vague
Did you notice
the gravity pulling
you into orbit while it was there,
or only after it was gone?

Memories are malleable
innocently altered
when recalled
you’ll be at a loss
for a cause.

Memories are malleable
innocently altered
they sit in corners
lost in dark shadows
because they are haunted
by my touch.

Burn Hot by Maria L. Berg 2021
November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 25: Thankful For

Corrupted by Maria L. Berg 2021

Today’s images were inspired by the happy accidents created by digital video stutters and glitches. This thanksgiving I am so thankful for digital bokeh photography. The instant images and limitless possibilities of exploration bring be so much joy.

Twisted Paths of Corruption by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a thankful poem.

The Little Things

uninterrupted time in
new combinations of light
captured and frozen
to match images pre-seen
once figments now creations
to bring elation on repeat
simple and healthy activity
free except electricity
and time, precious time
rationed commodity
of juggled priorities
I give thanks
to this place
where there is space
for creating worlds
temporary, but not
put away while still
inspiring daily
growth

Digitally Corrupt by Maria L. Berg 2021

NaNoWriMo

I’m very thankful for the inspiration NaNoWriMo is giving me on this re-write. I’ve come up with a lot of new ideas that make my characters more interesting and relatable, and connections between the characters that are fun and unexpected. None of this would have happened this month without NaNoWriMo. My most interesting ideas have come during the regional write-ins which is convincing me that I’m a more social (digitally social) human than I like to believe. Getting today’s words in might be a little tough, but there’s always tomorrow. Good luck everyone who’s trying to write around family gatherings today.

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 23: Unplugging and Finding My New Palette

A Galactic Find by Maria L. Berg 2021

Today I thought I would find a new palette for my new filters in the mirror world, so I strung some new lights and moved the mirrors, but by a happy accident, I found that I really enjoyed the effects I found with no filter at all.

Warm Web by Maria L. Berg 2021
Cool Web by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s two for Tuesday is:

  • Write an unplug poem, and/or…
  • Write a plug in poem.

Today’s Detachment

You never know what you’ll find
when you unplug:
today I found my neighbor
who I haven’t seen in what
seems like forever
at the grocery store.
Unplugged I found
she’s been dealing
with pain and change
in diet and places
and patterns, practices
and expectations
as if life mostly
happens unseen.
When I got home
I plugged in
to share a recipe
and tell her
it was so nice
to see her
when I was
unplugged

.

A New Palette by Maria L. Berg 2021
November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 22: An Animal Bent

Bent by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write an animal poem.

Bent Bass
The human animal desires
pleasure in the form of escape
clawing at his own senses
to tear away reality’s pain
bliss found in the kiss of death
permanently polluting neurons
and nerves, then rivers and streams
making addicts of bass and perch
junky fish forgetting to spawn
swim to exhaustion for one more taste
think of the eagle and osprey that dive
their talons into that water to catch
and fly away with meth-addict fish
And let’s not think about the bears
wading in those rivers to feast
What a mess we make of this place
once bountiful now a chemical waste

Bending Space and Time by Maria L. Berg 2021
A Bent For by Maria L. Berg 2021
November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 20 & #SoCS: Overlapping Gray Areas

Family Clusters by Maria L. Berg 2021

After yesterday’s fun discovery, I created a family of new filters to try.

Every Family Has One by Maria L. Berg 2021

Stream of Consciousness Saturday

Today’s #SoCS prompt,”black, gray, and white,” inspired me to take some rich black and white photos with my new filters. It changed how I perceived the shapes. I was more attracted to juxtaposing different shades of brightness and searching for depth.

Layers of Connection by Maria L. Berg

Shooting these filters in the mirror world was a very different experience. I’m glad this prompt inspired me to try it.

The Nuclear Family by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to title a poem “(blank) You.”

After You

have taken the first bite
(not to be polite)
and have not been poisoned

have crossed the threshold
and found safe haven

have stepped into the unknown
and not been devoured

have leapt and fallen
and not been broken

have immersed yourself
but not drowned

have put your hand in the fire
and not been burned

have put your head in the lions jaw
and not been bitten

have experimented and proven your hypothesis
that you are rubber and all others are glue

have left decency behind
and faced no consequence

we can follow without fear
the world demonstrated
and made plain

All in the Family by Maria L. Berg 2021

NaNoWriMo

I have to admit I’m glad I decided to start completely from scratch on this novel. Last night during a write-in with my regional ML, I finally reached a scene from the original draft that I liked. However, even though I liked it, I still only kept a couple lines of dialogue. Turns out what I liked about the scene was the secondary character. She never even got a name the first time around, but I want her to have more scenes, maybe turn into a confidant or side-kick. She has a straight-faced dry wit, so she can add comic relief and she is full of inside information that can be useful for my MC.

Today, I’ll take her through my character creation spreadsheet, then brainstorm where she fits into the plot. I also have a new character who is a private investigator. I wrote his first scene last night as well, so I’ll take him through character creation and plan out his scenes as well.

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 19: A Shadowy Future

Bursting by Maria L. Berg 2021

I thought my idea for shadow wasn’t working. I created a paper shade for a lamp, thinking it would make cool patterns on the ceiling, but the paper was too thin. But then I used it over my lens hood and took it into my mirror world and got some really neat effects.

Ripples of Future Shadows by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a future poem.

Glimpses

Future shadows shimmer
through the darkest nights
They tempt and trick
with the pretense of knowledge
But it is useless knowing
pictures that can’t be
changed once seen
For a shadow is but a shape
of blocked light

A Reflection of Future Shadows by Maria L. Berg 2021

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaNoWriMo & #NovPAD Day 18: This Unknown Thursday

Into the Unknown by Maria L. Berg 2021

November PAD Chapbook Challenge

Today’s prompt is to write a Thursday poem.

Over at dVerse Poets Pub, Grace introduced the poetry form the Wayra. A short, syllabic, non-rhyming form that is new to me. She also challenged us to use onomatopoeia which fit well with my notes of the sounds of this Thursday morning.

This Unknown Thursday

Lap–these weaving waves
filled with golden light–slap rocks
after the skier passes
four heavy words travel
here “making the right decisions.”

Diving Into the Unknown by Maria L. Berg 2021

NaNoWriMo

Yesterday I had my first free day to write and . . . Nothing. However, today I have ten scenes planned, so it’s not that I don’t know where I want the story to go. My internet is being spotty, so I copied “The Gang Does a Word Crawl (It’s Always Sunny) into a text document and I am going to have fun and write my novel! How’s everyone else doing?

November Daily Prompts by Maria L. Berg 2021 Please leave your links in the comments. I hope you will join me.

Happy Reading and Writing!