Writing Stories and Celebrating Poetry

Hi my fellow bookworms,

Happy Spring!

This month I spent much time writing. It has been a while since I pushed myself to do so (with school over and whatnot), and though while the writing was instructive, it was the most creative writing I have accomplished in a while. I am prepping to host a memoir workshop this upcoming month, based upon the Story Circle Network's Older Women's Legacies initiative. I made a complete revision of the workbook that was used previously. It was hard, since I have a couple returning members, but I wanted this experience to be special and new for them. After much research, thinking, writing, and rewriting, I am happy with this new workbook. I hope this next month will be full of heartfelt writing and memories.

March honors many holidays and celebrations, but one I wanted to bring a focus to is Women's History Month. One of the blogs I read promoted this calendar featuring different books for each day in March, celebrating different women in history, written by women. I have not yet read these titles, but the one I want to is the book titled Let's Call Her Barbie by Renee Rosen. Find out more information about the books on Janis Robinson Daly's blog here. 

(c) Janis Robinson Daly, 2026

You can always use this opportunity to check off the squares on your bingo card (featured in my January blog post), or to check off your Read Harder list from Book Riot. :) 

Goodreads also has finally unveiled their DNF option, or "Did Not Finish" option. I just categorized a book on my Goodreads shelf as DNF and tagged it, so I will hopefully read it again when I have a moment! I feel like I started and stopped quite a few books this past winter, but haven't updated my public profile. I am aiming to read for fun for at least 20 minutes a day and will hopefully bring you some lovely new reviews soon! 

Speaking of books to read, there is a list of free fantasy novels for your Kindle! Check out the blog, Stuff With Fantasy, for your ecopies today. I believe you will have until the end of the day on Monday to download your chosen novels.

Continuing with my earlier conversation about celebrations...

(c) Once Upon A Book Blog(ger) 2026

April honors many different celebrations, including Deaf History Month, Earth Day, April Fool's Day, Arab American Heritage Month, National Poetry Month, National Scrabble Day, International Dance Day, and of course, religious observances, such as Easter and Passover. One of my coworkers is creating a display for our library observing National Poetry Month. She will be displaying artwork titled "blackout poetry." Blackout poetry is a form of poetry in which you take a page from a printed book (we are using discarded books that are now going to be upcycled), black out most of the page using a permanent marker, and create a poem based on the text present. Some who are more artistically inclined can draw pictures to help further the poem's meaning, others create more profound messages, but it is aimed to help overcome writer's block and unleash your creative spirit. I created my own! :) ^ See here ^

Last year I did my own display for April and National Poetry Month using "Pocket Poems," or poems you can fit into your pocket for on-the-go reading and inspiration. I also had a section were visitors could submit their own poems for display. While I am not a great poet, I love the elegance and rhythmic language and the imagery each poem evokes. 

Would you write a blackout poem? If you do, or just want to write a regular one, or even share a poem already in existence, please do so here! 

Until next month...Happy Reading! :)

Wishing You a Happy New Year

Good Afternoon Bookworms,

I hope you had a very happy holiday season so far!

(c) OnceUponABookBlog(ger) 2020

How did you do with Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge for 2020? I can tell you that I should have read harder, as I read only 7 out of the 24 categories this year. This year was hard for me to read actual books. Audiobooks were fun, as well as comics and graphic novels. What time I usually spent in transit reading was not there this year. I also started reading then stopped reading a few books. There were many other things going on that made it harder to read, but I hope with the new year, I can get back into the swing of things and buckle down and just read! Here are my final categories, with the categories read in bold:

1. Read a YA nonfiction book
2. Read a retelling of a classic of the canon, fairytale, or myth by an author of color
1. Snow White, an Islamic Tale by Fawzia Gilani-Williams 
   
3. Read a mystery where the victim(s) is not a woman
1. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
4. Read a graphic memoir
1. Almost American Girl by Robin Ha
2. They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker 
3. Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh
5. Read a book about a natural disaster
6. Read a play by an author of color and/or queer author
7. Read a historical fiction novel not set in WWII
8. Read an audiobook of poetry
9. Read the LAST book in a series
1. The Fiercest Joy by Shana Abé 
2. Imagine Me by Tahereh Mafi
10. Read a book that takes place in a rural setting
11. Read a debut novel by a queer author
12. Read a memoir by someone from a religious tradition (or lack of religious tradition) that is not your own
13. Read a food book about a cuisine you’ve never tried before
14. Read a romance starring a single parent
15. Read a book about climate change
16. Read a doorstopper (over 500 pages) published after 1950, written by a woman
17. Read a sci-fi/fantasy novella (under 120 pages)
18. Read a picture book with a human main character from a marginalized community 
1. Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Peña
19. Read a book by or about a refugee
20. Read a middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the U.S. or the UK 
1. Melody Finch by Ian Boyd and Gary Luck
21. Read a book with a main character or protagonist with a disability (fiction or non)
1. The Aosawa Murders by Riku Onda  
2. Almond by Won-Pyung Song
22. Read a horror book published by an indie press
23. Read an edition of a literary magazine (digital or physical)
24. Read a book in any genre by a Native, First Nations, or Indigenous author

If you tried reading harder this year, let me know what your favorite book was this year! If not, let me know anyway! If you want to try Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge for 2021, you can do so by clicking the link. If you happen to finish the entire list, you can receive 30% off of an order at Out of Print!

Happy last day of 2020! This year has been one wild ride. There is much to look forward to this upcoming year. I hope that by this time next year, we may be able to see each other in person once more. May you fill the new year with new adventures, books, accomplishments, and learning!

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Until next year! :)