A place that encourages writers, artists, and musicians from around the world to work together to create beauty and spread positivity. All work must be credited. Recent Collaboration: "ACSpreadslove." Next prompted collaboration coming up! Tag your collabs as #artisticcollaborations to have them reblogged. This blog is brought to you by @just-4-thought
Thanks to all participating poets who wrote this very long, yet very beautiful tale of love and war! Originally, we conceptualized the poetry chain to consist of twenty verses (two verses written by every poet). You wrote two strophes each! As it turns out, some stories need more verses to be told. It's a long read under the cut, but it's worth it!
Participants (in order of written strophes): @strawberrystarcake @rudolphsboyfriend @goneahead @betweenthetimeandsound @mkaugust @kindledshadowpoetry @she-wears-glasses @env0 @sha-ms @scaevolawrites
.
She was born on the horizon of a war-torn land.
Bathed in the glowing blood of gods
.
Every Sunday her mom took the wine as she prayed
From Mondays, hard liquor was god in its stead
Now she lives like a gun, the only time she has faith
Is when the powder kicks in and the bullet flies straight.
.
The paved city heat taught her how to survive
And that feverish life burrowed through her insides
Now it runs in her veins, burning into her soul
She’s setting ablaze anyone who comes close
.
He was born where mother ocean cradles
the vast wide bones of ancient mountains,
a sea dragon’s son with more salt than blood
in the blue of his veins, pull of the tide in his smile.
.
A summer storm drove him to the grey concrete
harbour of city streets. Now he sits and watches
her over his glass, a woman of smoke and burning.
He watches, and hears the hiss of lava, hitting the sea.
.
What is adolescence, other than an open-air cocoon
without any guarantee that the wings will bear flight?
As children, they saw glass shattered across the floors,
then dared to walk on them like flamingos in water.
.
As they glance at their wounds, pustulent yet elegant,
they only now tolerate pain, knowing what it means to survive.
At night, they bathe themselves in the milky moon’s light,
because they don’t know what it tastes like when milk is sweet.
.
When winter comes,
the storm starts again;
it's a different storm this time.
.
Still, they know what it means to survive,
what the burning and the blood will mean,
their newfound faith in each other is not crushed,
their hopes not yet dashed.
And in that faith borne through the storms of strife,
Wounded, healing; safe harbour beckoned
An entirely new feeling growing in the darkest hour.
Renewal - like seeds sewn from Persephone’s hand - emerges the blossom of hope
Taking root and binding them as they dare to look forward.
Where a past self would burn all that surrounded her, the molten turmoil lashing forth,
Like the phoenix demanding freedom and trusting none - spurned in a gilded cage,
Instead is her own heart at risk of going up in flame,
Ignited, exploding at the sight of him.
Where a past self would not know sweetness, she had walked into his life
Shackled with need, he was unable to fathom life without the taste of her.
Her kiss divine Ambrosia, a salve for his soul.
To him, she was the key to his salvation and his ruin.
.
At first, he was terrified of all of these feelings,
because when he first looked into her eyes he saw
all of the fireworks and sparks dancing in her hazel eyes;
the same fire that she’s always had,
but this kind of fire he saw in her
wasn’t so much from her pain but
it was the kind of fire that would suck him in.
Smoke from her flames and his water
darkening their surroundings to where he only saw her.
She was addicted to his cool eyes
that calmed her fears and kept her flames as fireworks and sparks,
instead of violent explosions.
As days turned to weeks, turned to years,
both of their heartbeats continued to soar for each other;
no fears or hesitations, her fire and his water were like
yin and yang; they belong to each other, a perfect fit.
.
Sun-licked skylines scored the land
Blackened soil of her homeland silt slips
A duskless dustless land, burning with its people’s passion
Time spilt from battle-broken hourglasses
.
Consummate and consuming of his salt-water soul
Twinkled as he steamed into the dark sky
A wink among many hopes that pierce the blanket of night
From her peeling lips, his name survives
.
Her soul yet again fleeting from the outside world,
she tries and burry herself within their memories though
she wakes up every morning with a smile, even when
the bruises run deep, for she saw him in her sleep.
.
Every time she does she opens their favourite book,
put aside the last rose she pressed, and read the only
highlighted line: “When the horizon is free from smoke,
I’ll be home again!"
.
The time she spent here with him, a place
made of ink and imagination. It used to
make her blush. But now a single touch
from him is enough to comfort her.
.
It has become their thing, sinking into a
world of their own choosing. Freed
from everything else; free
to just be.
The static of the bedsheets crack like puffed rice
On my tongue, curling around your name
The first time you said it on the phone
Note: this is the collaboration between myself and @haikkun as a result of the CPR Challenge!! She's amazing and wonderful and if you don't follow her, GET OVER TO HER BLOG AND FOLLOW!! ❤
Collabs with Babs! I was so thrilled to ask @sanddollarpoems to collaborate with me on a poem because I’ve admired her work for a long time and wanted to challenge myself to collab with a female poet (I don’t know why, but I have only ever teamed up with male poets 🙈) BUT LOOK AT HOW GLORIOUS OUR CHILD IS!!!! 🤩
Holiday lights line darkened streets and hope to compete with the cosmos. This bright burning, desire to glow brighter than ever before. There is a design behind beauty and a fire burning for those to see what we are made of. This season of love, the test for open chests, hearts that express their very best to others.
Ironic that it comes in the darkest of times when the sun almost refuses to come out. When the days are short, it seems we rely on the strength of our love to carry each other through. That is what this season does to you. It is all about turning outward for once. Concentrating on another’s joy instead of on our own and that just overflows everywhere I go. That is why I love this season so much.
Hearts warm despite the dark and the cold. Despite the long winding road, we walk. Travelers talk and they care, what are you doing here! With love they impart pleasantries to those around them. Melodies that stem from open hearts and here we are, United, life brightened, by a common desire, to raise others higher, to brighten their day, in any way, we can.
Love transcends and that is special to behold. Carols sung, cookies being passed out, warm fires lit as families gather with hot cocoa to sip. The lights all around kindle the way to each other’s hearts! The happiest season is here, when the heart refuses to surrender to the cold, and lights a fire of its own. The joy, the warmth, the gift giving whether big or small, seem to bring out the best of us, like we have been saving this all year to be released at this perfect moment, wish it was always Christmas time!
c.S. and e.v.e.
Beautiful heartwarming collaboration with @argumentsfromwithin
This poem was a collaborative work with @vacantinkandprettypink (V.I.P.P) It was an absolute pleasure to create something together :)
We went back and forth writing and revising stanzas trying to really describe a feeling we have in common. It was a fun creative pursuit and I would encourage anybody to try it!
I am looking for people who can break me worse than you so maybe I can love them more than you.
Search for them if you must, you won’t find any who could break you worse, for they all have hearts. It takes a heartless monster like me to break someone so beautiful like you.
I wish you realise that even with all your monstrosity, I love you.
What’s the point of loving a monster when he can only bring you pain, and nothing else.
As long as the monster loves me back, the pain is passion.
What’s a love without a heart, for monster’s heartless.
Yes, my monster is missing a heart for he left it with me and I am protecting it within me, I grew a new ribcage to keep our hearts safe, I am keeping our love safe.
You protected his monsterous heart and monster learned to live without it, you nurtured the love that existed and the monster was filled with only rage. The heart you keep safe with you, will no longer fit within the monster, the atrocities have occupied the space which once belonged to a heart.
If it doesn’t fit, I will dig a hole in his chest, I know he won’t mind for he loves me to death.
Dig a hole if you must, wouldn’t need to be too big for the heart you might have kept safe would be a meagre one, he’s a monster at your disposal.
And I love him to death.
Amidst the pain, the harshness, the heartlessness, he loves you too. Tears stream down his face, as he tries to hide away. You, so beautiful, he can’t bring himself to look in your eyes.
I will take his face in my hands and look him in the eyes. We won’t need any words to talk about the love we gave to each other, for each other. The eyes never lie and his are the most beautiful ones that make me sigh. They say beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, my beast is my beauty and my eyes only show a reflection of him, of his heart, of his love, of his beauty no matter what.
Your eyes looking into his will melt him, melt him beyond anything he ever imagined, he’ll get lost in the deepness of your eyes, clutching on to your hands for dear life, as if they were holding him from falling into the pits of nothingness. Your warmth will calm the coldness in his veins, your touch will soothe his nerves racked soul and he’ll fall, fall like he never did before, fall in love with you, all over again.
And I will be his anchor for life for he has saved me from drowning in this light. When he falls, I will fall with him and we will be rising above in love, with love, for love.
He holds your hand a little tighter, still teary eyed, gazes up and says, “Look at the stars, look how they shine, for you.”
And I can only look at him, he is my star, my sun, my moon and my universe.
He sees the love in your eyes, holds you closer, a silent prayer escapes him, to always keep you safe, to always keep the love safe.
And safe I am in his arms, in his heart and safe he is in my arms in my heart.
These words don’t make sense without someone to hold, but my lips have been swallowing sand to bury hands that measure spoonfuls of the sun in your laughter. We could capture city lights in seasons light enough to stick to the outside of our palms, sing in outlines that foreshadow an encore too bold for a broken window - but the fastest way to fill silence is placing my thoughts on your chest.
I have been waiting for you since my soul has remembered your name. City is so crowded and my mind is so loud. But every time I hear your name everything goes silent. And I start smiling like my heart is covered with flowers and my cup of coffee never gets cold because I always drink it too slow.
A collab with the darling @blueemelancholia (via teacup13)
She’s the reason
You are happy
And you are
The reason
I’m happy,
I hate her
But I don’t.
Oh but she only
Seems to be the reason
I’m happy,
When I’ve never really
Found happiness,
In anyone other than
You.
You found happiness
In me by keeping me
At an arms-length.
Keeping you
At an arm’s length
Was for your good,
Any closer
And I may have
Burned you.
Keeping me at
An arm’s length,
But never
Letting me go.
How was
Trapping me
In the open
Ever be good
For me.
Would let it go
The string I was
Holding on to,
Go if you must
No longer trapped,
But know this
You take my happiness
With you.
I want to go but
I cannot leave,
Not when you
Call me happiness,
Yet chose her
To make you happy.
You say you care
Yet go on
And hurt me.
If you do love me
Let me know
And let me go,
Don’t ask me to leave
Because a body
Without a heart
Is just a
Dead person walking.
You can leave
And take my happiness,
If you lost yours
It can come in handy.
I was hurting and she came,
She’s great
Though I didn’t find happiness
It was lost with you.
She knows it
Says I’m hollow
Tells me I’m heartless
And it’s a total mess.
You don’t have to be
Without a heart,
Take mine by all means
If you must,
I’ll exist without it,
If that is indeed what I must.
I could have been
Your happy and
Your happiness,
But you
Never wanted me
Even though
You needed me
The most.
You do not
Get to decide
Whether I should be
With you or not.
You say you’ll burn me
If you hold me any closer,
But look at me darling
I am just ashes,
Left of the passion
You showed me for her.
How could I never want you,
When in every crowd
I pass through
I search for you.
Dark and grey has taken over
Since you left,
No colors exist anymore.
I have no say I know
For you’re hurt too.
You may be ashes,
But oh my dear
You’re ashes of the phoenix
Which will rise again.
The passion you talk about,
The feelings, the emotions,
They don’t exist anymore,
She has deemed me heartless.
Wanting someone
And having someone,
Are two different things
And even though you say
You wanted me,
You kept me away,
Thinking you were
Keeping me safe
While all you did
Was hurt me.
I hurt you
When all I wanted was,
To keep you safe.
You see,
I don’t trust myself,
I want you,
But I don’t think
I deserve you.
What if you come
And my demons
Make your life miserable,
Rather than better.
Nothing can make me
More miserable than
Not being with you.
I’d rather be sad with you
Than be happy anywhere else.
I can’t let you be sad,
I’ll do whatever I can,
To make you smile,
To make you happy,
For you deserve nothing less.
Will you be by my side
When the tides get high.
If you want me
To be happy then
Take me in your arms,
Let me be there
For as long as
You can hold me.
I need nothing more
Than you to
Keep me alive.
Let the tides get high,
We will be higher
By being at
Each others sides.
Let us shine bright
Like a beautiful sunrise.
Come then,
My arms are wide open,
Let me hold you.
I’m clumsy
But I won’t let you fall.
You’re too precious.
With you by my side
We’ll fight and defend,
Whatever comes our way.
We will glow,
Shed our tears,
Immerse ourselves,
In each other,
A beautiful sunrise, indeed.
a collaboration between @fragments-of-my-mind and @justscribbledwords
Underneath the dark sky, he lay wondering about the stars, some shining bright, others not so much, he was in awe of the beauty of them.
Just like some days, when we’re shining bright and on some, we dim our lights.
Why would we dim our lights though, he wonders in desperation, afraid he might not like the reason.
Yet he looks at the stars, hoping to find the answers, past the silent night.
In their brightness, he finds a peace that he didn’t feel existed.
In that moment the joy and happiness seeps in, the company of a billion stars bought him the love, that merely the world couldn’t give.
He couldn’t hold back the tears from falling though, the celestial love was indeed the best of those that existed.
He could only wish for a companion who’d admire the silent side of the universe with him, because that’s all he seeks for.
His longing for her increased in such situations, it was as if the stars were shining for them and yet she was far away.
Maybe even she wondered the same, longing for his presence but the universe had it’s own charm, to collide souls in its own magical way.
He wondered if she was staring at the same sky as he was, she always loved the stars he recalled, and in that moment he wanted to reach out to her, but no means.
So all they could do, was look at the dark shiny sky, and admire the different shapes of the clouds, searching for a face that only their souls knew about.
In the brightness of stars they found each other, tear stained, broken smiles and not wanting to let the other go, yet it was but a mere mirage.
Blinking eyes, and trying to fix that smile they believed the universe had a lot to offer, for the kind of souls they were, they wouldn’t stop until they’ve found their crystal.
The crystal they desired was the other person and both trusted the universe to make it work for them for they knew when one wanted something all the universe conspired to help that person achieve it.
That is what kept them going, in spite of being stabbed a couple of times. They knew the universe was in their favor, and things would eventually fall back into place.
Stabbed yet they didn’t perish, neither did the love they had for each other.
So they sent their love to the stars, wishing to keep it safe.
Sending their love, they smiled, a smile, no longer broken, but hopeful, they shall meet again.
- DG & Jann
An amazing collab with the pretty awesome @trustonlystars (My words in bold, hers in italics)
Welcome to Artistic Collaborations first Popup Peer Review! This week’s theme is the first paragraph/opening section of a wip. It’s all about a strong, clear opening and grabbing the audience’s attention. Beginnings can be brutal - together they don’t have to be!
If you have a piece you want reviewed, either post it to your blog and tag #acpopup and AC will reblog your piece, OR send AC a message indicating that you have a piece ready for review. (Make sure your piece fits the theme of the week).
At the end of the submission period, you will be paired with a review partner (you can request additional partners). Please read the post on submission requirements and peer review etiquette.
Feel free to ask any questions. AC will post instructions to help you through each step!
Welcome to Artistic Collaborations first Popup Peer Review! This week’s theme is the first paragraph/opening section of a wip. It’s all about a strong, clear opening and grabbing the audience’s attention. Beginnings can be brutal - together they don’t have to be!
If you have a piece you want reviewed, either post it to your blog and tag #acpopup and AC will reblog your piece, OR send AC a message indicating that you have a piece ready for review. (Make sure your piece fits the theme of the week).
At the end of the submission period, you will be paired with a review partner (you can request additional partners). Please read the post on submission requirements and peer review etiquette.
Feel free to ask any questions. AC will post instructions to help you through each step!
Welcome to Artistic Collaborations first Popup Peer Review! This week's theme is the first paragraph/opening section of a wip. It's all about a strong, clear opening and grabbing the audience's attention. Beginnings can be brutal - together they don't have to be!
If you have a piece you want reviewed, either post it to your blog and tag #acpopup and AC will reblog your piece, OR send AC a message indicating that you have a piece ready for review. (Make sure your piece fits the theme of the week).
At the end of the submission period, you will be paired with a review partner (you can request additional partners). Please read the post on submission requirements and peer review etiquette.
Feel free to ask any questions. AC will post instructions to help you through each step!
