Poetry, by definition, is a piece of writing or literary work that expresses feelings and ideas in an intense way that usually has a distinct style and rhythm. That may sound a little vague because poetry comes in so many types including lyric, narrative, dramatic, and epic. Some of the more common forms are sonnets, haiku, free verse and even limericks.

That means we can go from “A rose by any other name…” to “There once was a girl from Nantucket…” and it’s ALL poetry.

What I like about poetry is it can be a way of expressing your biggest emotions, thought, and feelings without providing the blow by blow in full description. You don’t have to say, “I felt bad today because I got left out of something I wanted to be a part of so badly.” You can simply say, “Uninvited and alone, I hurt.” Either option shares the same information, one more factual and the other deeper in feeling.

Also, please remember that poetry does not have to rhyme. It’s great if that’s the way your mind pictures the words you jot down or if it offers the structure you need. But free verse is absolutely fine, and your words still find a rhythm and style.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought, and the thought has found its words.”

Robert Frost

WRITING TIP

When it comes to writing a book, poetry can be a way to weave it all together. I had a client who ended each chapter of her memoir with an original poem that wrapped up everything from that chapter with the gift of hindsight and introspection. It was a wonderful way of saying here’s what happened then (the chapter) and here’s how I see things now (the poem).

If you find yourself stuck in moving through your narrative, try jotting down a few lines of poetry to collect all those emotions. You may decide to incorporate into your manuscript, or not. But drilling down to the basic feelings you or your character (for those fiction writers) has can help breakthrough that wall that’s stopping you. Writing a poem can sometimes shine a light on a false message you’ve been carrying in your head. The key is to write with abandon. Don’t worry about editing or even letting anyone else read it. Just WRITE!!

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT

This month, I’m so excited to highlight a dear friend of mine – who I had lost touch with until recently. Barbara (Morai) Grace is actually poetry in motion. The way she moves through the world is fascinating. She’s worked as a midwife, massage therapist and now a writer. She describes herself as an Elder, Story-Keeper, and Grandmother, but she is so much more. She’s knee-deep in an amazing project that she explains wonderfully:

“What started as a simple desire to listen became a living archive. One conversation at a time, I sat with women who had walked the long road of birth work, women who had witnessed thousands of beginnings, who had held life and loss in the same hands, and who carried a depth of wisdom that was, all too often, going unheard. Over the years of this Elder Midwives’ Legacy project, I have conducted more than fifty interviews, now 55 and counting, recording their stories, their practices, their reflections, and their truths.”

Please check out her related Substack Elder Midwives’ Legacy of Grace. The book I’m shining upon this month is her offering, Winter Cedarlings. A book in support of her project and written for both children and the child in you still listening. The back cover description is…you guessed it…poetry:

Under winter’s vast starry skies, Mazie Keensmouse keeps her cedar-forest community warm with kindness and joy. Come dance among the roots and discover the quiet magic of Twitchabit Landing.

Check out both, Winter Cedarlings and Elder Midwives’ Legacy of Grace.

APRIL BOOK RECOMMENDATION

My book recommendation this month is very subjective, as all poetry is. I have a deep fondness for Robert Frost, hence the selected quote of the month. Here’s a wonderful collection: The Road Not Taken and Other Poems. His thought provoking decision in The Road Not Taken can be life changing if you let it. However, I strongly encourage you to find a poet who writes in the style you enjoy reading. By the way, that can even be songbooks because lyrics are poetry and have the power to transport us to different times and places.

Find your inner poet and write a line or two for me!

Love ya, mean it!

Mavis Lamb

The Intuitive Story Wrangler

March 14^th is PIE DAY, because of course 3.14. We know the number goes on (and on), but you get the point. And hopefully you also get a piece of pie!

Guess what? March 14^th is also National Write Down Your Story Day! What a great day to remind you that YOUR STORY MATTERS.

If you need an excuse, a reason, a purpose to jot down some words…a poem, a verse, a sentence, a chapter…this is the month to do it, and March 14^th is your day! That’s why I chose this day to kick off my Inaugural Story Drive. I’m taking a small group of writers on a 6-month focused journey (online, of course) to guide them to write their stories and finish their books. I’m excited about this event and will be sharing updates throughout the ‘drive’!

Writing Tip

When it comes to writing, I like to remind folks that as long as your writing, you’re moving forward. You don’t have to clear your desk, have the best writing program, block the entire day and lock the door. I mean if you want to and you can do that – go for it. But if you only have a corner of the kitchen table and the back of an envelope…grab a pen and put that thought down in writing.

One of the biggest myths we tell ourselves is that we don’t have time to write. The truth is that we’re getting in our own way, but when we talk about time, it seems like something outside of us that we can’t control. So we can say it’s not really our fault if we don’t have time to write. More than likely, it’s not that you don’t have time. It’s that you have a false message rattling around in your head that’s telling you you shouldn’t even start to write. There are several varying reasons for your personal message, but trust me – that message, that voice, that thought, it’s lying to you. You can write and in fact you need to write because YOUR STORY MATTERS. Yes, I said that again because it’s so important for you to understand.

I encourage you to write with great abandon and no worries about what next. Don’t think about publishing and marketing and all of those things. Why? Because if you never write anything, all of those ideas and plans won’t matter. JUST WRITE!

If a blank screen gives you vapor lock (and it does for even the best writers), grab some pretty paper or a simple spiral bound notebook and start writing. If you put in just 10 minutes a day, you can have a book in one year! You can even start by writing something like “I don’t know what to write about because my head is just a tilt-a-whirl of thoughts. I don’t focus well and I’m not even sure how to get started. But I’m going to do this anyway…” You get the idea, right? Before long you’ll hear your writing voice in your head and coming out of your fingers…you’ll land on some thought that rings so true it might make you pause. “Wait, did I just write that?” Yes, you did and you can keep going from there. Start with just that thought, that idea, that phrase that hit your inner core and it will grow.

Quote of the Month

Another perspective on getting started—regardless of the circumstances—is captured by a wonderful quote from Louis L’Amour. If you’re not familiar with his work, he was a master writer of western tales including Hondo, The Quick & The Dead, and The Sacketts Series

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

Author Spotlight
Telling your story leads me to the author I want to highlight this month. This man has gone through the wringer…he hit bottom in his world but then he clawed his way back. Now he shouts at his viewers, “Wait! WAIT!” then offers a cup of love, that’s all for us and asks us to hold his hands through the screen. His pause, his deep breath and his taking a moment to be there for us is pure magic. You may already know I’m referring to Bruce W. Brackett!

It’s not my place to tell Bruce’s story, but I have been following him on social media for more than a year. He’s gone from making it to Off-Broadway and developing several addictions to finding his true calling and thankfully his way back to sobriety through art and by advocating for recovery to his online audience of over 1.5 million people. I asked him if I could mention his book in my Substack this month and he happily said yes. Trust me, he doesn’t need my plug because he’s got a great online following but let me tell you that his book “Show Up and Shimmy: Discover Your Worth, Recognize Your Potential, and Lead the Life You Deserve” is about everything I’m saying here. First, we show up, claim our self-worth and then we shimmy in our own glorious glow and glitter. Telling his story was a part of saving his life and making the life he is living now. He encourages us all to show up and shimmy. Buy his book here (or pre-order if you’re reading this before March 24th) and support another author stepping up, stepping out and shouting their story.

Wanna know something cool? He has already published a book, “How to Breathe While Suffocating A Story of Overcoming from Addiction, Recovering from Trauma and Healing my Soul.”

Now he’s taking his story (and support and encouragement) to another level with Show Up and Shimmy. He knows that his story matters to his life, to those in his life and…to so many others he may never know about. You see, when we get brave and tell our story, I ask you to ignore and turn away from those who can’t lift you up (no matter what their reason). Remember that there is at least one person out there who needs to hear your words and understand your story because it will give them hope to do the same, to feel less alone to see that glimmer of hope and that there is a tomorrow for them that will be better than today.

Bruce, thanks for being brave, thanks for valuing yourself enough to now become a light to so many. Let’s all SHOW UP AND SHIMMY!

Celebrate Yourself, Your Story and Pie

Now, to you dear folks reading this – grab a piece of pie, your favorite beverage, and write some words. Even if it’s just about the pie you're eating…great words can be shared about pie. Andy Grigg’s song, If Heaven says, “If heaven were a pie, it would be cherry.” So cool and sweet and heavy on the tongue. And just one bite would satisfy your hunger. And there’d always be enough for everyone.”

It’s time to take a bite, take a moment, write a word, write a phrase, write a bite of your story. It’s gonna feel so good.

Book Recommendation

If you still find yourself hesitating or avoiding because of some inner voice, I have a great book for you to check out. “The Big Leap” by Gay Henricks. In it he walks us through how to “conquer our hidden fear and take life to the next level.” Get this book in whatever format works for you, give it a listen and then take The Big Leap!

That’s it for now! Love ya, mean it!

Mavis Lamb

The Intuitive Story Wrangler

I’m not sure why February was chosen as Library Lovers Month, but I think getting lost in a cozy, warm library when it’s still cold and wintery outside sounds like a great idea.

The other thing that’s a great idea is reading more in 2026! I’m not talking about setting some crazy goal of reading 100 books or something, just read more! If you didn’t finish ANY books last year, vow to finish one. Then you can move onto another book if you’re so inclined.

Select the genre that entertains you the most! Do you like fiction or non-fiction? Memoirs or Sci-Fi…or Romantasy? Ignore what’s on the must-read or bestseller list unless those lists have a title you like. For your first book in 2026 (if you haven’t already started) pick something easy, enjoyable, and entertaining. The more fun it is to read, the more likely you’ll finish it. Short is okay. Simple is okay. This is like starting a new workout routine. Start slow and build up as your reading muscles get stronger.

No matter what you’ll read, you’re going to learn something, even if it’s that you never want to read anything by that author again. Seriously though, you will learn something because taking in information is the way we learn new things. Reading, rather than watching a video or movie, helps you remember whatever you learn that much more. Writing it down is even better…but that’s for another post and time.

Speaking of writing, here’s another other cool thing:

If you are a writer, one of the best ways to become a better writer is to read more books. You learn style, voice, genre, what to do, and what not to do. It may not make you a great writer, but reading will make you a better writer. I learned that from Stephen King. Not directly, he has no idea who I am. I learned it from a book I often recommend, Stephen King’s On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft. Even if you’re not a fan of his style of horror, reading this book will at minimum make you a better reader. Also, as my friend Don Roff (yes, he actually knows who I am) says, “If you listen to the audio version of this book, it’s like having a writing coach in your ear.” Sorry if that wasn’t the exact quote, Don! BTW, do you know who Don Roff is? In my opinion, he’s kind of a big deal. He’s an AMAZING author and screenwriter who has put in the hard work and is receiving all the recognition and success he deserves. Check out his latest film Oscar Shaw.

Now is the time. This is the month. It’s time to read. Pick something off your bookshelf, stop by that cute little neighborhood free library, visit a bookstore, or order something online. And if you’re feeling adventurous and daring, take a trip to your local library and wander the rows of books until you find a treasure waiting just for you.

Thanks for reading my Substack article and I hope you enjoyed my celebration and love of books and reading. This is my first of many monthly posts. The format will probably change but future articles will always include:

• Book recommendations

  • February: Stephen King’s “On Writing”

• Quotes from cool people, especially authors & creatives

  • February: Don Roff

• Writing tips for authors

  • February: Read More!

• Celebration & recognition other writers out there getting it done!

  • February: Don Roff (yes, it’s Don Roff Double Feature Month)

I’ll see you at the library!

Mavis Lamb – The Intuitive Story Wrangler