Tag: recommended blogs

Blogs I Like (and You Might, Too)–5/1/2024

On By Mike U.In Featured Blogs24 Comments
Image (c) Mike Utley

This ongoing initiative showcases blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think are deserving of more attention. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.

This week’s featured blog is Fata Cu Suflet De Cerneală (The Girl with the Ink Soul) by Romanian poet Bianca Alina. My first experience with Bianca’s poetry occurred last year when I saw some of her work published at the various Masticadores literary sites. I was immediately entranced by the passion and intensity of her romantic poetry, her deft skill with words and her deep understanding of the human heart and all it desires. Bianca’s poems speak to the secret yearnings of the heart, the longing for closeness, the sorrow of heartbreak and the singular joy of intimate love. Her words paint beautiful, poignant panoramas of human relationships and emotions and have a unique way of touching the hearts and souls of readers. What’s more, Bianca’s blog also features her original nature photography, and gorgeous images abound. Bianca’s talent is boundless and rejuvenating, and her universal themes of love resonate with all of us.

I asked if Bianca could share a bit about herself:

“I live in Romania. I am very passionate about poetry, learning new languages, and nature photography.

My mother is the one who taught me that language has power. I inherited from her the passion for writing.

I wrote my first poem when I was 11 years old. At 16 years old, I had a few poems published in the high school magazine. I continued writing poetry throughout my university years, but I didn’t publish any poems online. Then, I got my first job and I stopped writing for a long time.

I returned to poetry in 2022, when I started writing on my blog:

Fata Cu Suflet De Cerneală

I think poetry is the language of the soul and I try to convey pure emotion through every poem I write.

My writing has been published on MasticadoresRumanía, Gobblers & Masticadores, Hotel Masticadores and Masticadores Philippines.”

For some examples of Bianca’s sublime poetry, here are a couple of magnificent pieces:

“Love Spells”

“The Sunrise in Us”

Bianca’s poetry reminds us of the love and passion we all carry in our hearts, that desire and intimacy are powerful emotions that both hurt and heal, and that the magic of romance enhances our lives. Take some time and indulge yourselves in Fata Cu Suflet De Cerneală (The Girl with the Ink Soul), where the finest poetry of the heart awaits.

Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.

Blogs I Like (and You Might, Too)–4/16/2024

On By Mike U.In Featured Blogs46 Comments

This ongoing initiative showcases blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think are deserving of more attention. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.

This week’s featured blog is Ashley’s A Different View. I first met Ashley in November 2021 when he and I were both invited to take part in a discussion titled “Exploring Basho’s Moon,” an examination of one of Basho’s famous haiku, hosted by Mark Scott’s Season Words blog. I found Ashley to be the kindest fellow imaginable, and his delicate skill regarding the writing of traditional haiku was astounding. Since then, I’ve come to consider Ashley a good friend of mine, someone whose love of nature and poetic ability create a sense of peace and serenity. Ashley speaks my language, you could say, and his blog is a calm harbor of natural beauty and exemplary writing.

I asked Ashely if he’d like to provide a little background about himself and his blog. I’ll let his own words do the talking:

  • I’m 74 years old and married to Carol for 52 years although we were courting about 5 years before that so we’ve been together for at least 57 years
  • whilst Carol has had so much illness in her life (cancer x 4 + heart problems) SHE is still my rock
  • I’m a great grandfather
  • I was born in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland to northern English parents
  • Armagh was the ancient capital of Christian Ireland & whilst no longer a practicing Christian, the sound of cathedral bells is in my heart (see John Betjeman: Summoned By Bells)
  • left home at 21 to live & work in London, UK.  Work location then was close to the River Thames & that river flows within me still
  • 30 years spent living & working in England in the clothing industry: after redundancy, aged 45, worked in various jobs (transport, retail, health service) now retired
  • returned to NI some years ago
  • did voluntary work with the Woodland Trust (30+ years).  LOVE trees, obsessed by them
  • through WordPress discovered haiku & writing in season
  • have always wanted to write & illustrate
  • lower back problems meant that I restarted my life, exercising daily, a mixture of physio exercises & Qi Gong
  • I have only ever travelled outside the UK about 3 or 4 times but follow blogs all around the world.  With tools like Google Translate I am amazed how many different cultures & languages I am able to connect with
  • I love the simplicity of seasonal haiku

I would be remiss were I not to mention that one thing I find intriguing about Ashley’s blog is that I have some Irish ancestry, and the Emerald Isle is a land I’ve always wanted to explore. I’m able to do that vicariously through Ashley’s writing and photography. Ashley’s essays take us on strolls through the Irish countryside among wild flowers and the trees he loves so dearly, and his haiku–distilled to their very essence–paint glorious pictures of the natural world. For an example of what A Different View offers, here’s a post Ashley chose to share:

“Occasional Furniture (1)”

In a nutshell, if you love nature, if you appreciate fine Japanese short-form poetry, if you’ve ever felt the desire to travel to Ireland, Ashley’s A Different View has it all. I hope you’ll visit Ashley’s blog and walk along with him among the trees.

Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.

Blogs I Like (and You Might, Too)–4/9/2024

On By Mike U.In Featured Blogs22 Comments
Image (c) Mike Utley

This ongoing initiative showcases blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think are deserving of more attention. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.

This week’s featured blog is Kirsten Curcio’s Ghost Human Bones. Kirsten is without a doubt one of the coolest, kindest and most talented writers I’ve come to know on WordPress and I’m happy to call her my friend. She possesses peerless skill and ability writing prose—both individual stories and serials—and her poetry is sublime. Kirsten also has the most uniquely creative and eye-catching graphic design I’ve seen on a literary blog. Her immense talents are on full display with everything she creates.

Kirsten’s writing has been published at Masticadores, The Writers Club, Reedsy, Medium and Spillwords Press. You can view her Author Bio at Spillwords here:

Kirsten Curcio, Author at Spillwords

Additionally, her poem “Hopes and Dreams” is included in the poetry anthology Hidden in Childhood, published in 2023 by Gabriela Maria Milton of Literary Revelations Publishing House, and is available here:

Hidden in Childhood: A Poetry Anthology

I asked Kirsten if she would provide a little info about herself and her writing. Here’s what she had to say:

“I’ve always enjoyed writing since I was a child but once I got the internet everything changed. The earliest I started writing online was in the early 2000s where I roleplayed in wrestling efeds as different fictional characters – I was in a weird phase but I still heart Stone Cold Steve Austin, haha. When those sites went belly up, I shared my pre-teen angst on the now defunct Melodramatic.com, which is where I learned HTML and created layouts for other people’s sites (you can find more about Melo on the Wayback Machine). Then college came, work, my son was born, and I stopped writing for a very long time, although I never forgot about it. It wasn’t until I lived in North Carolina for a few years that I decided to build my own site and write. That state is so beautiful it just ignited that spark in me. But since I gave birth to my daughter then and was working from home full time, I started a lifestyle blog on Squarespace. I was experimenting with cooking, writing up recipes, baby and beauty stuff but it grew boring and I felt like I was doing it because that’s what other women were doing but it didn’t feel like “me”.  So I returned to fiction and didn’t look back. In 2021, this became Ghost Human Bones when I moved to WordPress. Through Ghost Human Bones, I can turn my observations of people into words, letting me indulge in my love for dreaming and storytelling. Currently, I’m in the process of writing my first novel and my published poems are available on Spillwords and in the poetry anthology Hidden In Childhood (2023).”

And from her blog:

“When she isn’t playing with words, she enjoys nature, traveling, art, photography, and peculiar things. There is also a fondness for vintage maps, history, and space. In Kirsten’s work, she plays with themes of life, death, and beyond that evoke a sense of surrealism, nostalgia, reflection, and ambiguity.”

Kirsten also participated in a thoroughly enjoyable 2023 interview which can be found here:

Kirsten Curcio—Interview at Gobblers & Masticadores

For a taste of what you’ll find at Ghost Human Bones, check this out:

“Arizona”

I hope you’ll take a moment to stop by and visit Ghost Human Bones. Kirsten’s masterful wordcraft builds universes of adventure and intrigue that are highly original and will leave you eager to explore further.

Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.

Blogs I Like (and You Might, Too)–3/26/2024

On By Mike U.In Featured Blogs34 Comments
Image (c) Mike Utley

This ongoing initiative showcases blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think are deserving of more attention. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.

This week’s featured blog is Nigel Byng’s Helping You To Succeed. Many of you are likely familiar with Nigel’s exemplary craftsmanship when it comes to prose and poetry. His brilliant short fiction—both stand-alone tales and serials–displays a sensitive finger on the pulse of humanity’s triumphs and sorrows, while his deeply moving and excruciatingly honest poetry shows a heart and soul attuned to the most raw human emotions.

Nigel’s work has been published at various Masticadores literary sites as well as Spillwords Press, where one of his poems, “To Surrender Now,” was nominated for Publication of the Month for Jan/Feb 2024. Nigel has most recently helped spearhead the #whattheydontsee project in cooperation with Michelle Ayon Navajas (editor, Masticadores Philippines) and artist Vanessa Melecio, which provides an opportunity for people to express their hidden fear, pain and regret in a safe manner through the written word.

On a personal note, I don’t just consider Nigel a fellow writer. He’s so much more than that. His compassion, kindness, honesty and intelligence portray a golden heart and soul, and I’m glad to call him my friend.

From Nigel’s blog:

“Writing brings the world to  life. My soul, my experiences, my secrets, they all fuel the things I put on paper. I am a freelance writer living in West Palm Beach. I observe and write about nearly everything and everyone I encounter. I have learnt that if I look at the world carefully, and long enough, I see a reflection of myself in everything. After all, we are what we put into the world.”

Perhaps this recent post will illustrate Nigel’s deft literary touch and his ability to connect with his readers:

“Jonesy”

If you’re familiar with Nigel’s work, you already understand the joy of his craft. If you’re not, consider stopping by his blog and experiencing his unique talents. It’s absolutely worth it.

Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.

Blogs I Like (and You Might, Too)–3/19/24

On By Mike U.In Featured Blogs57 Comments
Image (c) Mike Utley

Hey, everyone. I’m introducing a new feature here where I showcase blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think deserve more attention. I plan on posting every week or two if possible. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.

This week’s featured blog is Petrichor Archive. Author Sam Borromeo Villalobos is an adventurous writer whose deeply introspective work and uncanny wordplay really stand out.

From her blog:

“Created after coming to a head with the daily grind and deciding there was necessity in a creative source of venting about the activities surrounding the day-to-day. Frustration with the mundane, and roadblocks present. Emotion persisted and I found myself helpless to the constant evaluation stuck in my mind. Ever present with a dialogue to share and inexplicably confined to my own wits to share it with, I decided to look no further than share with the public and hope there is some remedy in this mediation.”

Sam is also a dedicated student of the works of Edgar Allan Poe, as evidenced in her recent poem “Poe at 13.”

An unique and intriguing reading experience awaits at Petrichor Archive. I hope you’ll take a few moments to explore Sam’s creative work.

Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.