creative writing

Postcard from Faraway – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
I am in the countryside, sipping on a cold drink
on the patio and surveying the trees. The sky is
brighter here no matter what time of day, 
and I can run through the hills if I want to.

You should come visit someday, and we can grow
grapes and make it a vineyard. The deep reds and 
light greens will add more color to the land,
and people will come from faraway to see our

selection. We'll build an addition to the house, 
and keep building our country life. Until we have
built enough and move further into the country,
where no one can find us.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s wishful thinking to consider being able to travel soon, but that’s exactly why it’s been on my mind as something to write about. I don’t completely love the ending of this poem, but I couldn’t think of a different direction to take it in. Maybe I’ll go back and change it soon… we’ll see. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments! Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Not For The People – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
Walt Whitman once said The President is there in 
the White House for you, but what would he say
if he were alive today? America, you are failing us.
Live up to your name, bring weight back to the heavy
paper we have idealized for so long. 
Red for the blood in the streets, the people leaving us
forever. White for the only race that has full respect
in all of this country. Blue for the people that promise
to protect us, pledging allegiance to a corrupt system.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s definitely political, but hopefully you can respect my opinion 🙂 As you can tell from the poem itself, I was inspired by Walt Whitman. I’ve been slowly reading Leaves of Grass the past week or so, and I couldn’t even contain myself when I read that line. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

You Were In My Dream Last Night – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
I saw you last night, and not on my laptop screen
Outstretched fingertips to make sure it was real,

that you were real-- I now know that it wasn't.
Who says we can't make it a reality? Come 

past the cloudy swirls of my consciousness 
and be with me before my eyes, surprise me as

I wake and let the dream be true. If I don't see
you here, I'll meet you in the clouds again.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! I've been having a lot of weird dreams lately so you'll probably see a couple more dream pieces in the next week or so on here. If only I could remember more about my dreams...maybe I should start a dream journal. Please let me know if you have any feedback or writing challenges. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Last Taste of Summer – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
Summer tingles on our tongues, waving
goodbye along with the tides. The pressure 
of the last sunset melts when the colors 
blend vibrantly one last time-- purple pink
yellow orange all into deep, deep blue and
black of night. 
Just like that, things will end. The days in
the pool over, the sun not shining as brightly
anymore. Nature seems to know the rhythm
of our world.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! Summer’s not over just yet for me, but there’s barely a taste left (about one week!), so this was fitting. Even though I’m writing this in advance, on the day this goes up it will be my birthday the next day, so there’s room for one more celebration. 🙂 Please feel free to share feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Which Box Are You In? – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
If you know me, you know how I like to put
things into boxes. It's hard to place which box
you belong in. You're too colorful, too surprising
for me to sort you just yet.

Each box on my desk calendar filled in with tiny
handwriting, each box in my closet packing away
memories that deserve to be kept but belong 
in the past, each box reveals something.
Except you.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! Admittedly, I’m one of those obsessive organizers who has to file every piece of information in my brain and constantly keep my room tidy, so this was a natural thing to write about. Please feel free to share feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Join and Submit to Intersections Magazine!

BrookeLeave a comment

Hello everyone!

Today I’m going to talk briefly about something super exciting I’ve been working on! I’ve always wanted to start my own literary magazine, and I finally decided to run with my ideas and try to get it off the ground. It’s for teens, by teens, so there are age limits– we accept submissions from youth ages 13-19 and we accept staff applications from high school and college students. If you’re interested in learning more about the magazine, keep on reading!

Here’s the mission statement from our website: We seek to bridge the gap between literary work and the current state of our world. We would love to see writing that tackles serious topics that affect youth today, including but not limited to social justice, mental health, and the current COVID-19 pandemic. Our goal is to amplify the underrepresented youth voice, and be at the intersection of imagination and reality. This is an interactive publication, and we want pieces published here to open up a conversation.

Additionally, I had the idea to work on a special project called the Redefine Rejection Project. Rejection is a huge part of life, and it especially comes through as a hard punch in the literary world. It’s so gut-wrenching when you pour your heart into a piece and it gets rejected from a contest or publication, but it doesn’t define you or your work. That’s why I wanted to highlight work that people have had rejected.

Here’s the description of the project from our website: We want to start a conversation about rejection in the literary world. Feel free to share a favorite line (or multiple) from a piece of yours that’s been rejected from a contest or publication. These will be shared on our social media accounts and on a special section of our website. You may choose whether you would like to be acknowledged or you would like the line(s) to be recognized anonymously. Rejection doesn’t define us, but we can redefine rejection.

If you’re interested in submitting to the magazine, please use this form or check out our website to find the same form there.

If you’re interested in applying to be on our staff, please use this form or check out our website to find the same form there.

If you’re interested in submitting a line or a few lines of your work to the Redefine Rejection Project but not submitting to the actual magazine, please use this form or check out our website to find the same form there.

If you have any questions, please message me or leave them in the comments so I can address them! I would love for you guys to check out the magazine. You can also check us out at @intersectionslitmag on Instagram, and we’ll probably make a Twitter account soon. Thank you so much for your support on this blog– it’s one of the main reasons I thought taking on another project like this would be possible 🙂

Brooke

In The Fishbowl – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
Sometimes when I feel pressed up against glass,
I have to remind myself if I was really trapped,
I could break it.
It makes me feel better to be in control, but I know
that sounds silly when none of us really do.
Large round eyes like a fish swimming around
in its bowl, another characteristic to make me feel
more and more like an exhibit in an aquarium, 
but not even important enough to be the shark
in the huge tank that everyone wants to look at.
Stuck as an object in this place, yet nobody stands
and admires... 
is it time to break the glass yet?

I hope you enjoyed this piece! Funny side note– when I looked up “fishbowl” on Unsplash to find a picture to accompany this piece, only one picture came up. I actually love the picture I chose, but I just found it funny that a fishbowl would be such an uncommon thing to photograph. Please feel free to leave comments and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

A Visit Between Pages – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
You whispered to me behind that canvas 
I keep on the shelf, and I knew it was time
to open up your pages again. Say hello,
walk into your world and act like it was my
own for a while. It's not me neglecting
reality, it's being nostalgic, or at least that's
what I tell myself. You won't comment, 
because you don't know any better 
and you're just happy for a breath, 
the removal of the thin layer of dust 
on your cover. When your story comes 
to an end, you'll ask me to read it again.
That's the reason why we buy books and keep
them on shelves, right?

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s based off a strong itch I had this week to reread The Selection series (only the first three books… there is something left to be desired about the last two and I’m much more attached to the story of the original trilogy). It’s nice to dive into an old book, and I find it can feel like much more of an escape than reading something new and having to get to know characters and decipher meanings. That being said, I’m also the kind of person who will rewatch a TV show over thirty times, so I guess it’s just a personal problem. 🙂 Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Empty Rooms – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
I like emptiness until you leave. Look at this room,
a blank canvas, space for us to make our own. 
The light bounces off the white walls and your smile,
our voices echo through the halls, large shadows
of our own laughter. Let this emptiness be hope, 
promise, a starting point. I can't walk into an empty
room with you and be sad anymore. Even walking
away is only a reminder there's something better 
for us in the works, and we'll find it, together.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! I don’t understand how so many of the poems I write end up about relationships or at least appear to be about relationships when I’m not in one. The inspiration for this piece was not romantic at all– I started off with the image of our house being emptier now that my grandma’s moved out. Clearly my subconscious is up to something! Please feel free to share feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Learning to Run – Poem by Me

BrookeLeave a comment 
I used to have sea legs, and not because I walked
on water, but because I didn't feel whole on land.

You taught me how to crawl, then walk, and now
we're hand-in-hand on the boardwalk watching 

the sky turn a thousand colors, a cocktail of warmth
and beauty before our eyes. I still can't do the five

o'clock in the morning jogs, but my legs are getting
stronger. I'll run with you, soon and forever.

I hope you enjoyed this short little piece! It sounds more dramatic than it is– I basically based it off of the fact I hate to run, and went from there. Trust me, I’ve tried to like it! It’s just not my exercise of choice. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke