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Storm at Sea

~ Allison Nicole ~ 16 Comments

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We are nothing but vessels on the sea,
constantly praying that a storm isn’t brewing.
But one always is-
and once the winds call the clouds to attention
and the downpour begins,
there’s nowhere to go.

We are stuck
in the middle of an empty ocean
with nothing-
only our hopes and prayers to protect us.

We have only a small faith
that lightning won’t strike our masts,
that we wont capsize,
that this storm will end.
But it always does-
The clouds will subside,
the sun will arise,
and a new day will appear.

We may be shaken up,
bruised,
and a little dizzy,
but we survive the storms-
only to appreciate the sunny days
even more.

Publishing??

~ Allison Nicole ~ 9 Comments

It has been so long since I have been able to post and I apologize. I am half-way finished with my grueling summer class schedule and am hopeful that I will have time to write and post more than I’ve had the chance to this past month.

I have a question for anyone who may be able answer.

I have written a simple, short chapbook and would like to attempt to get it published, or figure out how to self-publish it and sell it (for a very minimal cost) just to see if there really is any potential market for my writing. My question is: Do you know of any publishers that are currently accepting submissions for poetry? And, if not, do you know how I could self-publish and sell a pdf version on my blog?

I’ve been researching this and have had no luck whatsoever. If you have any advice or knowledge about this, please share! I would really appreciate your help 🙂

The Liebster Award

~ Allison Nicole ~ 13 Comments

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Shubhada, Julia, and Ayushi nominated me for the Liebster Award!

Thank you, Shubhada, Julia, and Ayushi it really means a lot to me that you considered me for this blog award. 🙂 If you haven’t, check them out:

Shubhada: https://loveexpressing.wordpress.com/
Julia: https://myredpage.wordpress.com/
Ayushi: https://fourwindsinajar.wordpress.com/

Here are the rules of the award (I didn’t follow most of them):

– Once you are nominated, make a post thanking and linking the person who nominated you.

– Include the Liebster Award sticker in the post too.

– Nominate other bloggers who you feel are worthy of this award.

– Ensure all of these bloggers have less than 200 followers.

– Answer the ten questions asked to you by the person who nominated you, and make ten questions of your own for your nominees.

– Lastly, COPY these rules in the post.

Since I’m late doing this and have three to do, I’m just going to choose three of each of their questions.

Here are the questions I chose that were asked by Shubhada:

1. Where would your dream house be situated? And what would it be? (A cottage, a bungalow, a flat, a caravan, anything!)

Actually, I have always dreamed of living in a little cottage, in the middle of the woods. Surrounded by nothing but solitude and nature. But with wifi and cell service, of course.

2. Which character from a novel are you similar to?

I haven’t had much time to read many novels lately (school and work overload), the last one I finished was Paper Towns by John Green, and I saw quite a bit of myself in the main character, Q. He had a problem accepting people for who they were, wishing for them to be the way he wanted them to be. I have this same habit. There were other small quirks he had that matched my personality and habits, but I can’t remember specifially.

3. Are you more of an extrovert or an introvert?

I am an introverted extrovert. I love to keep to myself, I hate group gatherings and parties, but I LOVE talking to people.

Now, for Julia’s questions:

1. Why do you blog?

I blog simply because I felt like I had something to say and no one to share it with. I wanted to share my thoughts with the world, see if anyone maybe feels the same, grow as a writer, and meet new people.

2. What is the simplest thing that makes you smile?

Cats. I love, love, love any and all things cats.

3. Best compliment you’ve received?

One of the best compliments I think I’ve received, recently at least, was honestly from Danica, who has compared my writing to Emily Dickinson. I actually hadn’t ever looked at her work until after she made that comparison, but since, I have fallen in love with her writing and I take that as the highest compliment.

Last but not least, Ayushi’s questions:

1. Any two things about yourself you are proud of.

I am proud of myself for the grades I keep in college considering I work full time and take full course loads. I work really hard and it’s one of the few things in life that I really pride myself in. Another thing I am proud of is who I am as a person and the beliefs and morals I hold and stand by. I rarely let myself down, and that’s a big deal to me.

2. One of your favorite writing of your own.

Definitely my poem, “The Storm.” It was one of the first that I wrote, I didn’t post it on here until fairly recently though. It was an experiment, I just thought “I’ll write the alphabet and see what happens.” As I was writing it, there was no meaning at all, I was just putting words and making it rhyme and I wrote it in about 10 minutes with no revisions. When I went back through and read it though, I couldn’t believe that it made any sense at all. It has been my favorite piece ever since. I don’t know if I’ll ever measure up to that again, haha.

3. One thing you want to change about this world.

I want to change the way people look at other people- the way they think about other people. I feel as if everyone goes through life believing that other people are just capsules of air and blood- that have no spirit. I want people to look at other’s and see the person, not just the body.

And the nominees are…..

https://sasha1587.wordpress.com/

https://wordsbyjustincase.wordpress.com/

https://stephaniecardozo.wordpress.com/

https://burningrock408.wordpress.com/

https://thoughtsofagirlnamedvierareign.wordpress.com/

Now for my questions:

1. Do you ever plan to write/do you already write anything beyond your blog? (Novels, chapbooks, journalism, etc.)

2. If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?

3. What is your biggest pet peeve?

4. Where is your favorite place on earth?

5. Who is your role model?

6. Do you have any weird or secret talents?

7. What inspired or provoked you to begin your blog?

8. Who is your favorite movie character?

9. If you could chose a color to symbolize yourself, what color would it be and why?

10. Do you prefer hand writing or typing your writing/poetry?

I’m sorry that it has taken me so long to respond to this. I have a lot going on with school, I’ve had several interviews for a new job (keeping my fingers crossed!), my current job, and some family/personal stress. Please don’t take my delay in posting as a sign of ungratefulness, I really am thankful for your support of my writing and my blog and for the nominations 🙂

WOW!

~ Allison Nicole ~ 6 Comments

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All I can say is WOW! Thank you! Today was an eventful day for me and my blog! I never imagined reaching over 600 followers AND over 100 likes on one of my poems AND doing it on the same day! I’m so thankful for all of you who have put your time toward reading/liking/commenting on my pieces and my blog.
I’m still growing as a writer and poet and I’m entirely grateful for those of you who have and continue to support me along the way.
Thank you!

Reading/Writing Poetry

~ Allison Nicole ~ 11 Comments

Does poetry need to be obscure?

I read a large amount of poetry on this site, and many poems I come across are so difficult to decipher. Using vague terms and strange allusions- forcing the reader to either analyze the writing or move on from it.

This poses a question to me.

Is it me, disinterested in the poem or not favoring the style or language presented? Or, is it simply poor writing?

Then, I am faced with another wondering.

I know I come across a number of these posts/poems a day. So, how many people have read one of mine and thought to themselves, “wow that was bad” or have just stopped reading several lines in?

Personally, word choice is a big aspect of poetry to me-more than the actual subject of the piece. If someone crams nothing but academic language, gargon, and “big words” into their poems, I, most likely, won’t enjoy it. Each word serves it’s own purpose. And no two words mean the exact same thing, so I think it is crucial to find the word that precisely suits the tone and emotion of the piece.

As writers, we can be our own worst critcs, but we also know more about our writing than anyone else, so it can be hard determining whether someone outside of our exact realm of knowledge would be able to accurately grasp the concept being expressed throughout our works.

So, I have some general questions:
Is there a particular aspect of poetry you find more important than others?
What do you find the most difficult about writing/reading poetry?

And a more personal one:
Is there something about my poetry that you would suggest I work on or consider changing?

What are You Thinking?

~ Allison Nicole ~ 8 Comments

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What are you thinking?

A question- so daunting.
That’s taunting,
And haunting my soul.

I say I want answers,
But what happens when they’re said?
Sometimes a word
can pull the last thread.

This intricately woven article
We hold so dear-
Is also the thing
We have grown to fear.

What are you thinking?

About me
About us
About everything you had-
About everything you’ve lost

Our minds are disconnected
Yet our hearts are entwined.
Is it only me, who feels affected
By this emptiness inside?

What are you thinking?

…But if your thoughts became words
And finally spoke your heart,
Reaching mine might be a bridge too far.

A Waste

~ Allison Nicole ~ 18 Comments

What happens
When you run out of words?

When the spark
That once lit your fire
Fades away
And leaves your mind
Sitting in the dark.

You stare at the paper
With pen in hand
But all that comes out
Are scribbles and
Little words
That amount to nothing-
That don’t make sense
Or mean a thing.

Their worthless,
Dull
A waste of ink and paper.
A waste of time.
And the waste of my mind.

Hopefully Soon

~ Allison Nicole ~ 2 Comments

I just wanted to quickly thank everyone for being patient with me. I haven’t had much time to post or give much notice to other blogs lately, and I apologize for that.

This is my last week of this semester, then I have one week without school before I begin my summer classes. However, I hope I will have time throughout the summer to post and respond more.

The stress of school is starting to get to me, but I only have 2 more tests and 2 more big assignments to finish, then this semester’s stressors will finally be over! Just in time for next semesters to start. Anyway… hopefully I can get back to my routine and start writing more often than time had allowed this month.

Thank you again for sticking around for me:)

Liebster Award

~ Allison Nicole ~ 4 Comments

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First and foremost, I would like to thank the very talented Sasha for nominating me. It’s an honor. I’m so thankful that she actually thought of me for this award.

If you haven’t seen her blog, check it out: https://sasha1587.wordpress.com/ you won’t be disappointed.

Here’s the rules which I took from Sasha, who took it from her nominator, Sarah:

•Once you are nominated, make a post thanking and linking the person who nominated you.
•Include the Liebster Award sticker in the post too.
•Nominate 10 other bloggers who you feel are worthy of this award. (I didn’t follow this rule)
• Let them know they have been nominated by commenting on one of their posts.
•You can also nominate the person who nominated you.
•Ensure all of these bloggers have less than 200 followers. (I didn’t follow this one either)
•Answer the ten questions asked to you by the person who nominated you, and make ten questions of your own for your nominees. (…or this one. I may as well make it my own.)
•Lastly, COPY these rules in the post.

My nominees:

So, here are her ten questions and my best attempt at answering them.

  •  Why did you start blogging?
    • I just started blogging around the beginning of this year because I was going through somewhat of a difficult time and couldn’t find a way to cope with it. I initially started this blog to write essays and my thoughts and it somehow transformed into poetry. I’ve started other ones before, but never actually posted on them. They were just this thing on my computer daunting me to write. Maybe I just didn’t have anything to say yet, who knows. But this is the first one I’ve ever posted anything on and actually committed my time and emotions to.
  • What was the best time in your life?
    • The best time of my life, strangely, was probably way back in the day during middle school summer vacations. Days of riding bikes, staying up all night, jumping on the trampoline, and spending every waking and many sleeping moments with my best friend. No responsibilities. No worries. Just enjoying life. I miss that so much.
  • What would you do if you’re the only fellow left on earth?
    • I would sail around the world. I love the sea and big, fancy ships (pirate-like ships, not cruise ships). And I’ve always wanted to do that. If I was the only person left in the world, I would have the time, the freedom, and I wouldn’t need the money.
  • Advice you would give to new bloggers.
    • I’m still a pretty new blogger, so I always feel strange when I’m asked for advice. But the best I can give would be to write what you mean and mean what you write. There’s no point to blogging unless you enjoy it, this will also gain you followers because – believe it or not – readers can tell whether you’re sincere with your words or just writing for attention.
  • What kind of person are you?
    • This is a hard question to answer. It reminds me of those acrostic poems they always made us write in elementary school, where we write our name horizontally down the side of the page and write adjectives alongside each letter to describe ourselves. I’m so bad at that. But…. If I have to answer, I would say random emotional animal loving crazy person.
  • Do you believe in true love?
    • Yes. I don’t know if I believe in “ONE true love,” but true love, most definitely.
  • What do you love doing the most?
    • I feel like this is the typical answer any blogger would give, but I sincerely love writing. I don’t make nearly enough time for it in my life because it has to be pushed aside for my adult responsibilities and problems. But, it never fails to make me feel better. It’s like a long hug from a long lost friend.
  • Who is your favourite professional writer?
    • Stephen King. Even if I don’t enjoy the plot line, his writing and the way he tackles the story is amazing.
  • What is your biggest fear?
    • I honestly don’t know what my biggest fear is. Maybe tornadoes? Even though I’ve never been in or seen one in real life. Or maybe super natural things. Movies like The Woman in Black freak me out so bad. But I also love them at the same time. It’s hard to say. I’ll have to get back with you on that one.
  • Feedback for my blog, please?
    • I really have no constructive feedback for your blog. Partly because I don’t feel obligated to criticize and because I honestly don’t have anything to criticize. Haha, I think your writing is beautiful and if I were to give you any advice, it would be to keep doing what you’re doing! You’ve done a great job. 🙂

Now, the questions for my nominees (I’m only writing 7 because I only nominated 7):

  • Why did you start your blog?
  • What is the most important thing to you in life?
  • What do you say to yourself in tough situations?
  • Do you think people are innately good or bad?
  • Who inspires you?
  • What do you do other than writing?
  • What advice, comments, or feedback could you give me about my blog?

Again, I would like to thank Sasha for this award. I’ve been having a rough time and this brightened my day. You really don’t understand how much it means to me. 🙂