‘Effort’ Published at Rebelle Society!
I am so happy to share my prose poem, Effort, is published at Rebelle Society!
Rebelle Society is a home for passionate voices sharing work that the writer honestly loves. It is a home for the ‘creatively maladjusted‘, sharing prose, poetry, and insights from many gifted writers on wellness, wisdom, art, yoga, feminism, sex, and fiction.
One of my new year’s dedications is to actively write and share writing other than poetry. This means short stories and flash fiction and, of course, prose. Effort is my first prose poem.
Effort began as a poem of three stanzas and a short piece of prose I intended to submit to an anthology on mental health. My intention waned, however, with some thought as I realized the anthology was not the right home for Effort.
Transcribing both the short poem and the piece of prose from my notebook into a Word document inspired me. Suddenly I was called to cobble the pieces together, with the prose piece as the introduction followed by the poem.
I did not like it; it did not fit. I experimented. I alternated with prose and poem by breaking up the stanzas. My original prose piece was not long enough so, partly to fulfill word count requirement and partly because I was called, I just wrote. Words came to my fingers and I wrote them. I like to think this was the creative burst Amanda Gorman worked in composing The Hill We Climb.
Effort was birthed from this creative process. I love this piece and am not ashamed to share my love of it. Be proud of what you write: honest pride is not bragging. I believe bragging is when you talk about yourself in a way that intentionally shames or guilts someone else and that is not my intention here.
I invite you to enjoy Effort and think of waning but also waxing, of pride and also shame, of my perspective and also yours.
In the mirror I am not my perception of me. The glass can tell me I am ugly or coarse. The glass wants me to be broken. I resist.
This life was never meant to be a walk on the sandy shore of happiness. This life does not present one hundred ways to forget ourselves; it gives us one thousand reasons to realize how hard it is to crack open a coconut, but how sweet the reward . . .
Please continue reading here and feel free to share your beautiful thoughts!
Photo by Alfred Kenneally on Unsplash
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Nancy
Congratulations on getting Effort published! I like that it surrounds mental health – adds to diversity and at least paints a real picture of real life issues. The fight against mental health is not always the easiest. We ask ourselves why we do this to ourselves. Keep up the good work!!
Nancy ✨ mdrnminimalists.com
gemmaajaynee
This is amazing! Congrats on getting published and I love reading such positive stories during this time and it’s nice to see good things happening to good people xx
Jaya Avendel
Love the way you connected with this! Thank you for sharing.
SUDARSHAN PALIWAL
Congratulations keep going
bournemouthgirl
It is great to see you are getting publications even through this pandemic which is such a positive thing to focus on. It is a great piece of writing Jaya. Thank you for sharing.
Lauren.
lynnmumbingmejia
Congrats on getting “Effort” published! It’s amazing that your work is on so many different platforms. x
http://www.lynnmumbingmejia.com
Hayley
I felt seen in this one – especially after a dark morning wallowing in the self-pity of chronic illness. Your poem is inspiring and one that I want to look back on regularly, to reflect and to motivate me to not give in to myself and these self-imposed expectations. Thank you for sharing this with the world, Jaya. It is truly wonderful.
Jaya Avendel
Thank you, Hayley, for sharing your thoughts and the emotions you had reading this! I am beyond delighted it helped you.
barbaraleaver
Congratulations – beautiful heartfelt piece!
Thick’N’Stylish
You have made me want to broaden my scope even more and start reading poetry and more. Your writing captures one’s mind. Really enoyed this post. Thank you
Jaya Avendel
Thank you so much for connecting with this! Love that it inspired you.
short-prose-fiction
Heartfelt congratulations my dearest Java. Such a beautiful piece.
xoxoxo..
aimsysantics
Another great piece. I love how in-depth this one is, and it definitely makes you feel the various feelings expressed. Congratulations on having your first prose piece published. Another great writing accomplishment!
Aimsy xoxo
Aimsy’s Antics
Jaya Avendel
Thank you so much! It was so revealing to go deep into this writing. 🙂
Ingrid
Congratulations on your latest publication! This is a beautiful and inspirational place, deserving of your love for it and of many others! ❤️
Jaya Avendel
Thank you so much, Ingrid! 😍
Ingrid
You’re most welcome 😊
Je
Congratulations Jaya! Inspiring and beautifully crafted. You had me smiling from the very first line “In the mirror I am not my perception of me…”
Lisa's Notebook
Congrats on your first prose piece, it’s wonderful. I love the phrase, “contrast of a sharp bite of grief”, it’s so true. We do need the contrast to fully appreciate the good times. And your last verse about the snow in January – you could have written that for me as we got snow last week and it was MAGICAL! x
Jaya Avendel
Thank you, Lisa! I love that this writing found you at the perfect time. 🥰
Tom
Wow, this was an incredible piece. Congrats on getting it published! Ironically, despite the effort it surely took to compose, it reads very organically
Jaya Avendel
Thank you, Tom! Love the ring of your adjectives here. 🙂
Michele Lee
I enjoyed your piece, Jaya. Your prose poetry had so many standout lines that I can’t stop with one read. I am also enjoying the different online publications you are connecting with and sharing with us.
Jaya Avendel
🙂 I love sharing the new writing outlets I find. Poets sharing their publications is how I first began sharing my writing so it feels good to upcycle the love.
eob2
Congratulations! 🎊 acknowledging ones “Effort” is a difficult thing. You succeeded in doing so Jayla.
😊
Jaya Avendel
Thank you so much! Your words warm my heart.
eob2
You’re most welcome, keep it up! 😊👏🏻
quirkymoms486
Congratulations Jaya! You’re a word rockstar and I just love your writing!
Sharila
Congratulations! I love the line “[life] gives us one thousand reasons to realize how hard it is to crack open a coconut, but how sweet the reward.” Wow. Also, great reference to Amanda Gorman. You are both very talented.
Jaya Avendel
Thank you for sharing your favorite line and your amazing encouragement!
nickreeves
Well done, Jaya! This shoe fits you just fine. Cobbling is the future 🙂
Jaya Avendel
🤣 🙏 ❣️
Michelle (Boomer Eco Crusader)
Wow. This is a really powerful piece. These words really spoke to me.
“Teach me to appreciate your struggles by
Showing me your triumphs.
An eclipse is only a sun or a
Moon
Without the other.”
Jaya Avendel
! You quote some of my favorite lines from this piece. So happy you enjoyed it; thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Kelly Diane
A huge congratulations on being published again. Its so great to see you grow and know that more people are getting to enjoy your writing like I do.
Andrew McDowell
Congrats!