Book Adventures - #TankaTuesday #FFFC #tanka #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #WhiteDew #BilboBaggins #Frodo @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! I'm once again combining prompts. The first prompt comes from #TankaTuesday where Colleen Chesebro invites us to use a kigo word from the White Dew season in our poem. I've chosen to use harvest moon, Bilbo Baggins, and Frodo. The second prompt comes from Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge which provides us with the fantastic image below.

My love of fantasy began with The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien. My 7th grade English teacher, Mrs. Hoffman, used to read it to us. She even took us to watch the play being performed by a high school cast. So, with this month including both Bilbo and Frodo's birthday, I had to include them. I chose to write a tanka for this challenge.

(image courtesy of Getty Images)

adventures galore

reading under harvest moon

I enter portal

Bilbo Baggins, Frodo join

unforgettable journey

Would you like to write to one of these prompts? Click the links below:

#TankaTuesday

Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge

The Breakup - #WDYS #W3 #Quadrille #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! I'm back online after taking some time off to focus on my wants and needs. I experienced several revelations, all of which were good. Since returning, I've been focused on my health, both physically and mentally. That's taking some of the time I used for writing, but it's all about balance, and my health needs to be part of the equation. So, today is my first day with time to write poetry, and I've chosen to combine two prompts.

The first is an image from Sadje's What Do You See? prompt, which works perfectly for the Wea've Written Weekly (W3) prompt. In the W3 prompt, Lisa Paul invites us to write a Quadrille, a 44-word poem, about transitions - beginnings and endings. 

(image credit; Egor Myznik @ Unsplash)

The Breakup

it was never going to last

you and I

dreams of a future

seen through a foggy window

never clearly showing a path forward

the exhaustion of trying

seeped into our bones

both realizing

we couldn't fulfill the other's needs

a bittersweet final goodbye

Would you like to write a poem for either of these prompts? Join us here:

Sadje's What Do You See? prompt

Wea've Written Weekly (W3) prompt

Lunch Date - #WDYS #TankaTuesday #nonet #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! I honestly don't know how I am getting one more poem in before I go offline for the next several days, but I did! I am taking a couple of days off work (which I never do) to focus on some self-care. And part of that is staying offline. So, here is my last poem for this week.

I've combined Sadje's What Do You See? prompt and #TankaTuesday's Poetry Challenge. Sadje provided the photo below, and Willow at #TankaTuesday encouraged us to imagine a color, smell, sound, or image that triggers a memory. I've chosen to write a nonet for this poem.

(image credit; Peter Thomas @ Unsplash)

Lunch Date

salty sea spray permeates the air

lazy waves lap upon the shore

pops of sunset-hued flowers

decorate the terrace

my friend and I laugh

sipping our tea

treasuring

friendly

love

Would you like to write a poem for either of these prompts? Click the links below:

Sadje's What Do You See? prompt

#TankaTuesday's Poetry Challenge

Becoming One with Nature - #FFFC #dVerse #Quadrille #haibun #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Last week was so busy that I only had time to write one poem. This week isn't going to provide me much writing time, either. Thankfully, my busyness is connected to enjoyment, which I've been missing out on because of other life circumstances. My renovation still isn't done, but I'm dealing with that situation. For now, I'm focusing on the positives in my life.

Today, I am combining two challenges. The first is dVerse's Poets Pub - Quadrille #231, which De Jackson invites us to use the word much (or a semblance of the word) in our Quadrille. I've chosen to add an 'l' and use mulch instead. I decided to create a haibun for my Quadrille.

The second challenge comes from Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge, where Melissa shares with us the image below and invites us to let it inspire us.

(image courtesy of Getty Images on Unsplash)

Becoming One with Nature

Hiking is one of my favorite pastimes. Listening to nature's symphony, walking among the giants, and breathing in the soil's richness relaxes me, allowing me to shed negative energy and absorb life's precious gift.

nature's mulch fosters

new life deep in the forest

protected Redwoods

Would you like to write a poem for either of these prompts? Click the links below:

dVerse's Poets Pub - Quadrille #231

Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge

#RRBC Writers' Conference & Book Expo is happening now! Join us! @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! I have not been able to enjoy writing poetry as much as I usually do. This week has been really busy. I wanted to share this amazing online conference with all of you. It's call the RRBC Writers' Conference & Book Expo, and it's happening now. Authors have set up virtual booths to showcase their works. Feel free to visit my booth here. You may even win a prize by visiting the booths and leaving a comment!

Visitors will find writer workshops, games, raffles, and scavenger hunts to enjoy. Each visitor who leaves a comment in an author's booth or purchases a raffle ticket has the opportunity to win from $5 to $100 in prizes and gifts. This really is a fantastic event, and I hope you will pass by and enjoy it while you can. Click here to start exploring!

Monday Poetry - #WDYS #haiku #tanka #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Happy Labor Day to my fellow Americans. May you be using this day for self-care, whatever that looks like for you. I went to the beach yesterday for the first time in a long while, and I enjoyed every minute of it until the thunderstorm rolled in around 3:30 pm. Still, my soul was rejuvenated and my body enjoyed the two laps I swam to the buoy and back. Today, I'm getting things done around the house, which clears my mind, and writing this poem. :-)

Today's challenge comes from Sadje's What Do You See? prompt. She shared the images below, and I decided to write a poem for each of them. The first is a haiku, and the second is a tanka.

(image credit; Tanya Barrow @ Unsplash)

avid wanderer

open imagination

through planes, trains, and books

(image credit; Aaron Burden @ Unsplash)

not as colorful

unnoticed in vibrant world

I still have value

flashy colors aren't needed

to add beauty to the world

Would you like to write a poem for either of these images? Join us here.

August 2025 Book Reviews #bookreview #books #amreading #readingcommunity #dragons #fantasy #magicalrealm @PTLPerrin @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! This month was really busy for me. From starting school to dealing with my horrible contractor to dropping my son off at his university, it's been a month that has not left me a lot of time to read. Still, I read a phenomenal story and am excited to share it with you.

Sanctum: Dragon Guild Book 1

by PTL Perrin

Genre: Teen & Young Adult Magical Realism 

Pages: 294

Book Blurb:

Two worlds separated by time and space, a frantic search, a powerful enemy, and a baby dragon... At sixteen, Gabri’s life is complicated.

When a nightmarish vision rips Gabri O’Connell from her home and family, she wakes up powerless in a freezing tower on a hostile planet.

Saved by a dragon and brought to Sanctum inside the planet, her rescuers don’t want her there.

Will a baby dragon be the key to her survival? Will Gabri ever see her family again?

My Review: 

I first fell in love with this author's writing style in her Tetrasphere series. I absolutely loved this story! I first met the main character, Gabri, as a baby in the first series, where and she her mother helped save Terra, their planet, from exploding. This series begins when Gabri is almost sixteen, making this a completely new story. Some of the characters from the Tetrasphere series are in this story, but the focus is Gabri. She begins having nightmarish visions of a shadow that calls her the world destroyer. At first, she's transported through her dreams to the Shadow's world, but he then kidnaps her, locks her in a tower, and mutes her powers to communicate with her family.

Luckily, Gabri is rescued by others who live on the planet called Sanctum. While her family desperately searches for a way to locate her, Gabri is introduced to a completely new world, one is which she bonds with a dragon and an Aracai. Sanctum's time runs twice as fast as Terra's, and before she knows it, Gabri is bonding with more than just her bondmates. Unfortunately, the Shadow is not done with her, and danger finds her again.

This book is fantastic! The author is a queen of imagery and creating characters that are unique and well-developed. And I absolutely LOVE the dragons! I mean, look at the cover. Isn't the dragon just adorable? I would definitely recommend this story to anyone who enjoys colorful worlds, dragons, magical powers, and great storytelling.

Have you read any great books this month? I'd love to hear from you.

Creaky Hinges - #TankaTuesday #dVerse #personification #noise #tanka #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! I'm combining prompts again. The first is dVerse - Poets Pub's Poetics prompt, where Mish invites us to write a poem about noise. I've bolded and italicized my noise words.

For the #TankaTuesday challenge, Robbie invites us to use personification in our poem. Personification is a literary element that gives humanlike qualities to objects. I've underlined my personification. I decided to write a tanka to combine these prompts.

(image courtesy of Microsoft Copilot)

my angry door screams

tired of being neglected

complains with each move

a soft caress of smooth oil

hinge sighs with satisfaction

Would you like to write a poem for either of these prompts? Click the links below:

#TankaTuesday challenge

dVerse - Poets Pub's Poetics prompt

A King's Domain - #WDYS #dVerse #Quadrille #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Today, I will combine two prompts. The first is dVerse-Poets Pub's Quadrille #230. Kim invited us to write a quadrille, a poem of exactly 44 words (not including the title), using the word rumpus.  

The second prompt comes from Sadje's What Do You See? prompt where she shares two images to inspire our writing. I chose the photo below.

(image credit; Eugenia Pankiv @Unsplash)

A King's Domain

heavenly perch

throne of kings

patiently waiting

for the perfect moment

when a traveler

leaves his tithe of leftovers

a worthy offering

he divebombs toward the prize

intruders invade territory

a rumpus ensues

the king gets the glory

and flies away with biggest prize

Would you like to write for either of these prompts? Click the links below:

dVerse-Poets Pub's Quadrille #230

Sadje's What Do You See? prompt

Jive Hive - #FFFC #tanka #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Last week, I didn't have enough time to participate in all the poetry challenges and missed out on Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge, so I decided to make hers the first one of this week, especially since this is her 100th challenge post! 

This week's picture depicts a futuristic cyberpunk, but my mind went back to the past. Lol! So, I threw a little of the present into it and wrote a tanka.

(image courtesy of Nick Fancher on Unsplash)

chaos surrounds me

threatens to pull me under

neon-hued glasses

invite me to let it go

and join 'groove to the jive' hive

Would you like to write a poem for this image? Join us here.