In Pursuit of Elusive Motivation

August 11, 2018 / Penny L Howe / 1 Comment

If you are attempting to increase your motivation for accomplishing a thing but feel stymied on how to make this happen, then consider the following:

A passionate determination is the true starting point for enabling the release of one’s emotional persistence. Persistence, in turn, opens the (often too tightly closed) gateway into core inner strengths (energy).

We become stronger and more capable (in effect more motivated) for dispelling personal fears – facing down and overcoming obstacles that frequently occur during our pursuit of goals. The message here is very clear – be passionate. Be passionate with your creative endeavors. Be passionate with your beliefs and most importantly, your belief of self.

You can do this! Yes. You. Can.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great week ahead and always remember to take care of you. I wish you well.

~ Penny

Dichotomy’s Dissertation of Lonely and Alone

September 22, 2016 / Penny L Howe / 6 Comments

A creative interpretation through the medium of words viewing man’s struggle to understand man.

All Alone Am I

“Seeking through the blur of today’s truths

blending with yesterdays untruths (well, my interpretation thereof)

I find myself staring out the window

through early morning misty emptiness

even as

sunlight streams through my senses

creating a blistering awareness of being alive …

and worthy? I do not think I know what that word truly means

or in the obtuseness of my current thinking processes

it seems I don’t wish to know.

Yet do I recognize

how lonely am I

midst humanity’s crush

where futility sneaks in to blossom and flourish

in spite of hope.

Hope? Are you out there?

I’ve lost my way and find

my new reality is reminding me that

there is not one single soul caring

(the perception that I may still be of some selfish use for them not withstanding)

about me in this mass of life’s everything-ness.

Caring about

where I be

why I am

or even

more explicitly …

Who am I and if I am, do I indeed matter – in the whole scheme of things … do I?”

~ Plh, 2016

Sigh, it does seem, on some days that we humans are more confused than not. But I believe we are all seeking our place in the whole mixture of life’s adventure. And then there are those clever little things called “our emotions” likening to a riptide, riding high one moment and pulling you under the next. But I also believe we do, somehow, always manage to #GoOn! And that is a most excellent thing! 🙂 Have a great day and wonderful weekend to come.

With much sincere affection,

~ Penny

A Warmth Against Her Skin – Sunday Photo Fiction

January 26, 2016January 26, 2016 / Penny L Howe / 10 Comments

Hi Al and thank you for providing this wonderful weekly writers challenge (200 words or less) based on a photo. I love your city photo below, beautiful! For more information on how to enter Sunday Photo Fiction’s writers challenge (or to sample the other authors creative work) click here

My offering follows:

Photo Credit and copyright Alastair Forbes 2016

A Warmth Against Her Skin

Walking briskly along the street, she listened to early morning sounds of the waking city. Although warmly dressed, chilly air still managed to permeate the several layers of thick winter clothing. She hugged herself feeling an intense need for warmth against her skin.

Continuing her morning walk, she passed street vendors, inhaling the enticing aromas of breakfast fare being served to waiting customers. Recognizing her, a few vendors waved hello, welcoming smiles spread upon their friendly faces.

“Nancy,” one of the vendors called, volume of his voice raised so she’d be sure to hear him. “How about a hot cup of coffee and pastry to warm you up this morning? And say …” he added, noticing she was alone, “where’s your walking companion today?”

She shook her head, smiling a sad little smile back, hugging herself even more fiercely against the cold.

“I’m solo now,” She responded, an involuntary shiver to her movements, realization finally setting in that it wasn’t warmth against her skin that was missing, it was a warmth so desperately needed to stop the cold dark emptiness pouring out of her broken heart.

Thank you for stopping by, I hope your week is a great one filled to overflowing with warmth – in both your heart and your life!

♡

With much affection,

~ Penny

Sunday Photo Fiction – A Beaker of Magic Passion!

January 3, 2016 / Penny L Howe / 26 Comments

Too too long since I have written flash fiction for Al’s wonderful Sunday Photo Fiction, click here for more information on how to enter your own short short story based on the photo (around 200 words) or to read some of the other delightful entries. Thanks Al.

To me the object in the photo looked like a beaker, the lights at the bottom a little bit like magic, so I wrote accordingly:

A Beaker of Magic Passion

“As you can see,” she whispered seductively, “I hold in my hand a beaker of passionate magic. It is up to you to decide what’s to be done with it.”

He scoffed. “More likely a beaker filled with your overactive imagination.”

“Perhaps, as you say, it is a beaker of imagination. Yet I have found imagination to be closely related to the nature of passions in one’s life!” She responded with a sweet smile.

“You speak nonsense.” He said.

The smile remained on her face although there was a strained quality to it. “It is nonsense only in this reality that you currently endorse as your life. But there are many realities and in mine, the beaker I have is filled with passionate magic. What do you wish me to do with it?”

His caustic laughter most unpleasant and dismissive with intent. “Do with it as you wish, my love. As you wish. I care not for your silliness. I shall go about my day doing precisely as I desire – without need for any mythological magic.”

Removing the stopper from it’s container, her smile became sad as she spoke. “I will do as you have requested. I wish for my own passionate love of you to be transferred to someone who loves and respects me believing that all things are possible if you believe they are.”

A moment later she vanished. He never saw her again, but over the years in his loneliness he often thought he could hear her gentle happy laughter echoing in the reality of the empty chambers of his heart.

But of course he knew it was only his imagination!

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed. Have an excellent new week ahead.

With affection,

~ Penny

Important Tips – How to Be a Successful Writer!

May 8, 2015May 8, 2015 / Penny L Howe / 14 Comments

“Stay writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on” ~ Louis L’Amour

Write … on the good days.
Write … on the bad days.
Write … when your happy.
Write … when your sad.
Write … in the morning, and/or
Write … in the afternoon, and/or
Write … in the evening, and/or
Write … in the night time.

Just Write!

That’s it. The one thing every single successful writer will tell you is that they write – a lot – whole bunches & bunches of words.

All the other things you’ll need to know about editing, publishing, marketing etc. you can research and learn … when you’re not writing!

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Thanks for stopping by, have a great weekend – are you writing? ☺

~ Penny

The Canvas of my Dreams – A Poem!

February 5, 2015 / Penny L Howe / 15 Comments

*

The Canvas of my Dreams

not limited it seems.

Being free to wander

freer still to squander,

fantasies fulsome Gleans.

Thanks for stopping by, have a wonderful weekend,

With affection,

~ Penny

Sunday Photo Fiction – A Scary World Out There (in your head)!

November 23, 2014November 23, 2014 / Penny L Howe / 12 Comments

photograph © Alastair Forbes

Trapped in A Vortex of Negativity

“Hey, I tell you it’s a scary world out there.” Jerry said.

“I think it’s all in your head.” His best friend replied. The two were sitting in the warm den near the fireplace, mugs of coffee in their hands.

Paul waved toward the window. “Just look outside into the forest. It’s frightening. Weird sounds and I’ve heard people are going missing. Bad things are happening everywhere.”

“You’ve heard, yes. but has anyone actually been lost in our forest?” Paul held his fearful friend’s gaze with his own level one, waiting for the response and then he motioned to the window and the beautiful forest scene unfolding outside. “The sun is coming up, it’s going to be another great day. Enjoy the day Jerry, enough with this negative crap, already. There are always bad things going on somewhere, but no more so than at any time in history, maybe less.”

“Yes but they say…” As Jerry stopped for another drink of his coffee Paul interrupted him.

“They say, they say … it’s all in their heads too. You know what Jerry, I’m sick of all this.” He stood up banging his cup down on the table. “You all need to come to your senses. I’m going home.”

Jerry watched as his friend headed for the door calling out to him “It’s dangerous out there Paul, would you like me to walk with you to your house?”

Paul snorted, shaking his head sadly as he looked back at his friend before heading to the doorway, derisively adding “Jerry, I just live next door.”

Paul could be heard to mutter to himself as he slowly opened and then closed the door behind him. “An emotional epidemic, that’s what this is and it’s contagious, everyone thinking, saying and writing all these negative things. When will they see it’s all in their heads. Thoughts are things and they’ve created this condition with their thoughts. They’re trapping themselves in a vortex of negativity.”

***

For more information about Sunday Photo Fiction where the photograph is the prompt to your imagination, click here for the details. Alastair will be your guide. And, while there, be sure to click on the little blue guy for more short stories by some great writers!

Thanks for stopping by, have a great Sunday and week to come,

~ Penny

What is blogging? Playing nice …

November 12, 2014 / Penny L Howe / 26 Comments

… In The Sandbox of Multimedia!

If you’re reading this – you are probably a blogger. And if you aren’t a blogger, why not? It’s fun, fulfilling and creative. Kind of like having your own sandbox where you can invite others to play, when you want! And you get to go to their sandboxes too. Woo-hoo!

So we’re all adults, but as it turns out we still have the same needs and desires we had as a child (only we use bigger words to express ourselves) – wanting to share, be interactive, make new friends, have fun, be cared about, appreciated and loved. Some things never change.

Are there rules when we blog socially? Well, apart from the obvious rules centered around technical “how-to’s” for getting your blog pages set up so you can publish and be “out there”, there don’t seem to be any clearly defined guidelines. Just a bunch of understandings you acquire as you start-up your blog, publish posts and begin to be socially interactive online!

Although there is a wider audience online and they may stop by (because they’ve entered a few words in a search engine and the “tags” for one of your posts matches up) – your audience primarily comes from other bloggers, or from one of your other social media connections. So, that being said, how do you make your blogging experience the “best ever”?

I’m going to pass on a few thoughts regarding rules of the road, but I’d like to begin with breaking down the parts and pieces of how a blog is constructed and viewed!

The Content
The Comment Section

Okay, so only two things to think about … not really. You see, the content of your blog is also composed of several different things.

The Content:

The content for all blogging posts consists of 4 types of presentations you share with others. A thought, a message, something creative (written words, photographs, videos, music, art) or “how-to” instructions, often a mixture of several of these – a wide variety of topics related to your specific areas of interest.

The content is written in a manner related to your own personality (interesting isn’t it?) For example some use humor, some use a rather serious educational approach, some are very personal and chatty. Some, quietly formal. Some are totally off the wall, original and fanciful. Each manner or style of blogging is you expressing a part of your personality (well unless you’re copying someone else’s approach, in which case I encourage you to be yourself – you are vastly more interesting that way.)

Content is always personal (to both you the writer, and the viewer – a fact), there’s no way around this. Whatever you’re presenting, in whatever way you present it; bottom line is that people will view your posts as representative of you! And some will share their opinions about your content (personal) and depending on what they say and how they say it, you’re going to emotionally react to it (personal).

The Comment Section – Let’s move on to the second part of the blog – The comment section!

First part – your presentations (published posts).

Second part – your readers engaging with you by clicking on a “like” button, passing your post along through other social media (twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, etc.) and leaving a personal comment (well there are those rather impersonal 2 and 3 word comments which can mean they really liked your post but weren’t sure how to express it, or they are speeding through their daily “follows” as fast as possible, keeping their comments short and thrifty! Or a combination of both! Don’t dwell on it, move on.)

Third part – You engaging back by answering the comments of those who visited you. The key word here is “engage”. This is what all the “big boys and girls” in the commercial and government “online” world want their customers and perspective customers/voters to do. They know (through never ending research) that consumers/people who are engaged with them (giving opinions, entering a contest, etc.) are more likely to buy their product or message.

And whether you know it or not, you are selling something here on you blog – yourself!

Therefore, this also applies to you, the non-commercial blogger, When you engage with another human being, each of you feels a connection. We NEED these connections. They validate us. They’re important. ENGAGING is huge – in the blogging world and of course in life!

So the rules for our blogging sandbox:

Content – Be your own person. Be creative. If you’re presenting a strong message, okay, this can be good. Today we need strong messages to stand out from the overwhelming volume of content we’re reading and viewing, each day! Be true to who you are but be respectful of your viewers and readers. Your viewers may not agree with your opinions, but there is no justification for being offensive with either your presentation or your response to comments including how you respond in the comment section of other bloggers.

Comment Section – Engage! The comment section is there for a reason. But please, don’t hog another person’s comment section. It’s theirs – not yours. Blogging is a step up from the random trivialities that are frequently found on Facebook.The Facebook “experience” is a form of connecting and having fun, an expanded “Twitter” sort of thing. Think about blogging and commenting to other blogs as being more thoughtful and considered with your approach.

Summation and closing thoughts for playing nice in the sandboxes of bloggers.

– Share, engage, be polite, don’t steal or lie.

– Be respectful of others. Their content, their creations, their time and their space!

In many ways we are all just kids! The only thing that’s changed are the dimensions of our sandbox – the rules of behavior stay the same!

Thank you, have a great day!

~ Penny

previously posted

Haibun Thinking – Reading a Book!

November 12, 2014November 12, 2014 / Penny L Howe / 15 Comments

This week’s literary quote prompt: “I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of anything than of a book!”~ Jane Austen (Pride & Prejudice)

“Lost in the pleasure of a well written book”

Books (of the hold in your hands and turn the pages kind) are special to me. There’s a quality unique to the printed word on paper not to be found in today’s electronic readers. Disparity, clear and obvious to a book lover. One format meant as a convenience – a temporary reading experience. The other packaged in a form to become a permanence – an addition to who you are.

Apart from physical substance and texture, often enhancing the reading experience, the very act of picking up a book and opening it makes, for me, the reading process more personal. After reading, favored books reside on bookshelves acquiring a sense of an addition to family and friends. Your favorite authors, your favorite stories, your books of learning and literature repose near at hand for a return visit when so desired.

I wonder if books that are now electronic applications will eventually replace all the hardback and paperback books? I hope not. The me that is a reader, hopes not. The me that revels in each new book I acquire, hopes not. Books fill me up with all those things that I might otherwise miss.

advancement sometimes

less than one would wish for

a new emptiness

Haibun Thinking is a (weekly) opportunity for writers to stretch their writing skills. Honing their style of the written word. For more information click HERE. Your talented and friendly host, Alastair, will get you started. Be sure and click on the blue link icon to read the excellent entries, while you’re there! Thanks to Alastair for his time and effort in bringing this opportunity to us all.

Thank you for stopping by, hope you enjoyed,

~ Penny

A Passion for the Written Word.

November 11, 2014 / Penny L Howe / 15 Comments

Whether you are a dedicated writer or an avid reader, it is passion that moves you.

For the writer it is the longing to write, his or her passion – to embrace the muse. For the reader of the written word, their desire – to be passionately moved by the words in some manner.

The following prose is a dedication to those who love to read and write, for it is a truth; you cannot truly have one without the other.