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1. April is Poetry Month!
2. My dentist who was my hero recently.
3. March is over with. It was a tough month.
4. Jane Austen spin-off books. Many carry her voice.
5. Spring temperatures.
6. Captain Midnight who makes me laugh and fills my days with joy.!
7. Dreams.
8. Social media.
9. Spring flowering trees and bushes. Gorgeous this year!
10. American history. The personal stories of those who built our country are fascinating!

So, Sun Ra Arkestra

your Seductive Fantasy

is like my dreams

topsy-turvy

upsetting the applecart

subjects popping up here

and there

and over that a way

full, bright colors

sound ? not so sure

about that

will check tonight;

but alive

taking me away

coming back

sometimes rested

sometimes exhausted

where have i been?

You are invited to write what your passions are about Jane Austen and/or her books; your favorite characters, the character you like to laugh at, favorite books, movies-like or dislike and why. This includes the spinoff  books and movies that are related to Jane Austen i.e. Lost in Austen, Stefanie Barron’s Jane Austen mysteries, Death Comes to Pemberley etc.

Deadline of April 30, 2021 midnight.

You retain copyright for your work, permitting PurpleStone Press to publish it.

Send one item of unpublished prose (essay or personal thoughts) up to 1500 words; or send up to 5 poems, no minimum number of lines, maximum of 50 lines or less, each:   Send as a word attachment.

Name, address, email, tele. # in upper left hand corner. Bio- 50 words or less. Acceptance letter sent by May 15, 2021.

Please send your submission to: arlenebice1633@gmail.com as an attachment as soon as your piece is completed and edited. All accepted submissions will have a one-time offer to purchase anthologies (as many as you want 1 –100) at less than retail price.

Questions? I’m always delighted to answer questions. Send them on…  Arlene S. Bice

Remembering My Brother Bobby

2016.03.25. arlene s bice

as kids

he worried about me, his little sister

up in the trees; walking the spiked fence,

riding my bike; arms stretched out wide,

engulfing a world from the middle of the street

he was the quiet one

we went to the movies on Saturday afternoons,

roller skating rink; baseball games;

I talked him into taking the shortcut home

he believed me to know the way, and I didn’t

we always got home safely

as  a man

when his heart broke, he came to me;

I took his hand, we roamed all over Italy

drove through clouds down mountains

the dangerous curves of the Amalfi Coast

hanging over the brilliant, azure,

glittering Mediterranean Sea

in Verona, wandering streets at midnight

when he thought I knew the way, I didn’t

all lights were out, except one-a half

block away; a pizza place whose

owner was from New Jersey

he trusted me

his healed heart broke a second time

he came to the forests of North Carolina

anger and pain pouring out of him

with the gentle guidance of a loving sister

-I try not to be bossy-

he settled, calmed the waters by writing poetry

walking the dog, teaching high school kids

in his passing of life, he found peace at last.

photo by American Heritage Chocolate unsplash

1. After days of excruciating pain from an infected tooth, I am pain-free. Yahoo!
2. After a 90 minute drive to Danville on Monday, my appointment time was nil. It was a just-get-in-line deal; the line being 200’ + or = line. At least I had pleasant conversations with the Texan in front of me and the woman behind me for the 2 hour wait in cold weather that I was not dressed for and no sweater in the car because I just cleaned it out. But, hooray! My first vaccine has been accepted with no side effects.
3. Amoxiecillin. Need I say more?
4. Being able to think and create thoughts to write again.
5. Two days warm enough to have lunch on the sunporch with my new companion Captain Midnight. He loves it out there, sneaks up on the birds even though he can’t get to them. So funny.
6. Books, books, books. Between all the sleeping I did this week, were peeks into one book or another.
7. Email. Keeping me from being disconnected from the world.
8. Chobani Greek Yogurt to replace what anti-biotics take out of my system.
9. Dark chocolate cocoa powder that I mixed with the yogurt, adding a touch of honey, yum and all I could eat for a couple days.
10. Jumping back into my busy (thankfully) writing schedule.

You are invited to write what your passions are about Jane Austen and/or her books; your favorite characters, the character you like to laugh at, favorite books, movies-like or dislike and why. This includes the offshoot books and movies that are related to Jane Austen i.e. Lost in Austen, Stefanie Barron’s Jane Austen mysteries, Death Comes to Pemberley etc.

Your name, address, email, tele. # in upper left hand corner. Your Bio- 50 words or less.Send one item of unpublished prose (essay or personal thoughts) up to 1500 words; or send up to 5 poems, no minimum number of lines, maximum of 50 lines or less, each: Write THE END at the end of each piece submitted. This will be removed before publishing.

Send as a word attachment.Deadline of March 31, 2021 midnight. Acceptance letter will be sent by April 15, 2021.

You, as the author retain copyright for your work, permitting PurpleStone Press to publish it.The copyright for the anthology as a “collective work” belongs to PurpleStone Press.

The book will be available to purchase by May 30, 2021.   Please send your submission to: arlenebice1633@gmail.com as an attachment as soon as your piece is completed and edited. The first 10 accepted submissions will receive a complimentary copy within the continental USA.

All accepted submissions will have a one-time offer to purchase anthologies (as many as you want 1 –100) at less than retail price.

Questions? I’m always delighted to answer questions. Send them on…  Arlene S. Bice

1. Lost is Austen film for Jane Austen fans gives me deep belly laughs even though the American version cuts out some great scenes.
2. Deadlines for February are met.
3. Bitter cold weather has left us for this year.
4. Scratching posts for indoor cats
5. Artists who make life better because of their artwork.
6. My days last week without electricity are over.
7. Other writers.
8. TED talks.
9. Holidays, all of them, they give us a break in daily living.
10. All the people in my life.

The Ocean

arlene s bice

Created of small drops of water

a salted sea that fills the world

its ebb and flow

like thoughts of the mind

rise and crash of waves

like changes of heart

constant movement

inspirer of dreams

whether seaside or sailing across its surface.

1. Repairmen/women
2. Electricity
3. Internet
4. Candles
5. Flashlights
6. Afghans
7. Fireplace
8. Books
9. Tuna fish
10. Canned salmon

Why is the first time for any experience, good or bad, always remembered vividly when brought to mind.

Easily, this one popped into my head with electrifying response from just a word.

I remember this one so well, joyfully, of a foot -long, fat, cardboard tube.

It was placed into my hands with instructions to look into the tiny hole and twist.

I was a youngster of under 10 years of age holding an amazing, new object setting my imagination awhirl.

The kaliedoscope was a world of color, shapes, and marvel, changing as I twirled with such ease, just like my life has done since those early years.