Today is one of those days Sitting here, at the city by the bay** Watching daylight’s grand display
The salt water is pearly and lyrical The sea air is clean and soothing The whispering breeze is gentle and cool The sky is a velvety blue The hovering clouds are fluffy and white The sunshine is pure and warm
And my lonely crescent moon Is expecting me home soon
** City by the Bay, Geelong, Australia, sits on the shores of beautiful Corio Bay, just 73 kilometres southwest of Melbourne.
Under the dry sky’s grey umbrella I saw a small flock of noisy Corellas Forlornly fossick for leftover shoots In between the naked tree roots And the paddock’s desiccated ground Sadly, there was no dried-up spice to be found
The drought’s hungry field mice Had devoured everything nice
Picture Caption: WordCrafter Poetry Treasures 5: Small Pleasures Tour Banner
Welcome to the WordCrafter Poetry Treasures 5: Small Pleasures Book Blog Tour. We have a great tour planned, and I hope you all will stick with us and visit each stop, because comments at each stop enter you for another chance to win one of three digital copies of Poetry Treasures 5 in our giveaway. We’ve got guest posts from contributors Michelle Ayon Navajas and Dawn Pisturino, readings from Barbara Harris Leonhard, Ivor Steven, and DL Mullen, and a special interview with Dawn Pisturino. Plus you may find a couple of early reviews from our wonderful tour hosts. So please join us and follow along on the schedule below to learn more about this outstanding poetry anthology and enjoy a few Small Pleasures.
Sun. 4/27 – Writing to be Read – (Wrap up) – Undawnted (Interview with Dawn Pisturino)
About Poetry Treasures 5: Simple Pleasures
Open the cover
and you will discover
Poetry Treasures
from the guests on
Robbie Cheadle’s 2024
“Treasuring Poetry”
blog series
on Writing to be Read.
Join poets DL Mullan, Barbara Harris Leonhard, Jude Itakali, Ivor Steven, Robbie Cheadle, Michelle Ayon Navajas, Gwen M. Plano, Elizabeth Gauffreau, David Bogomolny, Dawn Pasturino, Maggie Watson, and Colleen Chesebro share their own small pleasures in poetic verse.
This tour we’re giving away digital copies of Poetry Treasures 5: Small Pleasures to three lucky winners. Follow the tour and comment at each stop, so we’ll know you were there. You’ll be entered for another chance in the giveaway at each stop. Winners are chosen through a random drawing by WordCrafter Press. We’ll be watching for your name.
Book Trailer
A special thanks goes out to Teagan Genevieve for our lovely book trailer. Thank you so much Teagan.
About the Editors
You will meet some of the contributors along the way on this tour, but in this opening day post, I’d like ton tell you a little about the editors who put this project together and made it happen. I also thought it might be interesting to share a brief glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes when putting together a poetry anthology, which I hope you’ll find of interest.
Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and her Time-Travel Adventure novel, The Rock Star & The Outlaw,as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource. Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
My job is to edit the final manuscript, format and publish it. I find poetry to be a personal endeavor, so I do very little editing of the actual poems for fear of changing the poet’s meaning, since poetry often does not follow the rules of grammar and punctuation which apply to the English language. In addition, we have poets from all over the globe included in the anthology, which makes for variation in style and differences in spellings, so I pretty much leave the poetry as is unless it is something I know is a typo or mistaken word.
But the person who truly makes this anthology possible is my co-editor, Robbie Cheadle, who finds and schedules poets to be interviewed on the “Treasuring Poetry” blog series on Writing to be Read. It is Robbie who selects and interviews each poet, and she usually reviews their latest release, as well. Then, at the end of the year, Robbie sends out invitations to the anthology and collects and compiles all the materials into a manuscript before turning it over to me. Without Robbie to do all of the preliminary work, there would not be any Poetry Treasures Anthologies. I couldn’t do it without her.
Robbie Cheadle
South African author and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated sixteen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, and written and illustrated three poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.
Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.
You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/
That’s it for today’s stop. I hope I gave you enough of a taste of this delectable poetry anthology to make you want to sample more. There are several more tasty morsels from then contributing authors along the way. Join us tomorrow, on Colleen Writes & Publishes, where author/poet Dawn Pisturino will share a guest post and poetry from Poetry Treasures 5: Small Pleasures.
Here is an ‘Easter Poem’ from my archives. This one is from Easter, 2021
How To Eat An Easter Egg
[i] Carefully choose your Bunnies and Eggs But the “Violet Crumble” box is a MUST Deliciously smooth and tasty
[ii] Wisely place your purchase in the fridge Australia always has a hot Easter weekend And judiciously push the Easter delights towards the back
[iii] Patiently wait until Sunday morning Stoically obey those traditional procedures Mine were eaten by Saturday evening. How did you go?
[iv] Delicately unwrap the colourful foil covering I have diligently preserved the shiny shells since my first egg hunt Then gently nibble open the pointy end of the exposed Egg
[v] Fiendishly devour the irresistible chocolate Until you are more than fully satiated Then voraciously attack the bunny and bite off its ears
WHOOPS !! Surprise, surprise … that rascally easter bunny has left me some “Eggs” to find on Sunday… WARNING: This article is posted for Australian audiences, however ‘International’ followers may read the instructions above at their own RISK !!
Over at Weekly Prompts, the Weekend Challenge is the word Obsession. To visit their fabulous site, please click on >> Here. Some people say that I am obsessed with taking photos of the daytime moon … which is probably true, but in my poem today, I am using the ‘moon’ as a metaphor for ‘Easter Sunday’ …
Sunday Shroud
now you see me now you don’t I’m as pure as the driven snow and I covertly nudge my way through the cumulus clouds looking for that opening in the sky where I can display my Sunday Shroud and dispel that dreaded prophecy “He does not return”
Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku, Releasing After Easter
I’m delighted to be part of the ensemble of poets featured in Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku, published by Literary Revelations Publishing House. This beautifully curated collection brings together the voices of over 240 haiku poets from around the world.
The anthology features stunning cover art by renowned Japanese painter Hikari and fine-art photography by acclaimed artist Naoki Kimura. Tranquility will be released soon after Easter—stay tuned!
Blurb:
Following the overwhelming success of «Petals of Haiku,» which captured hearts and souls and became an Amazon bestseller, Literary Revelations Publishing House brings you “Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku.” This new anthology will enchant the readers with its delicate imagery and transitory moments, which inscribe themselves in eternity. Featuring nearly 240 talented authors, each bringing their talent and unique perspectives, Tranquility invites you to immerse yourself in a world where night flowers bloom and whispers linger in the spring air.
Poets are prophets linked to nature. In Tranquility, Haiku is their language. – Gabriela Marie Milton, author, editor, publisher
Here is one of my Haiku from the Tranquility Anthology:
Angel
My tranquillity Has wings and glides in heaven Free like an angel
A special poem I wrote, after I’d taken my Lady to the hospital for the last time, on the day of her 65th birthday, thirteen years ago.
Hello Carole, time goes by, and my heart has not moved …
Under The Snow
We emanate to a birthday. We deflate to a final day. Birthdays, they all come, they all go. Birthdays, in the sunshine, under the snow. Birthdays, slow to mature, quickly an eon. Birthdays, before we are born, after we are gone. Birthdays, hanging on by a breath. Birthdays, nailed to a cross ’til death. What does it all mean to be alive and cry? What does it all mean to live and to die?
how do the rivers know they ebb and flow over old sandbars where footprints come and go fresh today, gone tomorrow lost under the currents of time dreams grow below clouds of hazy rain leaving new watermarks in their shadows
Did you hear, during the night The sound of the full moon’s ambiance Oh, what a fantastic sight Embracing the world’s circumference With an aureola of light
I was tired and overwhelmed But now I’m positively feeling alright Knowing, I have my guiding light at the helm
I am delighted to have 5 of my poems in this anthology! Superbly compiled by the editors, Kaye Lynne Booth and Robbie Cheadle … And I join these fabulous poets, DL Mullan, Barbara Harris Leonhard, Jude Itakali, Robbie Cheadle, Michelle Ayon Navajas, Gwen M. Plano, Elizabeth Gauffreau, David Bogomolny, Dawn Pasturino, Maggie Watson, and Colleen Chesebro, who share their own small pleasures in poetic verse.
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 