Feb 4, 2016

Hello dear poetry enthusiasts!

I figured I’d send a quick update just to let you all know things are progressing. This project is alive and well. I continue to write and Jack continues to outdo himself time and again with amazing illustrations. I’d like to share three poems in their illustrated forms, which have not previously been posted on Inkshares. They are all quite different and were completed in the second half of 2015.

The first one, "Toils and Turbulations" I would say is semi-autobiographical. Though each stanza does not directly refer to my own life. But it is a very personal poem.

The second poem, "The Sentinel" is about the power of friendship. It is one of my favorite Jack illustrations and feels very much like The First Kingdom with the number and variety of figures displayed in a small space, all with unique emotion and body language. 

The last poem was my attempt at a commentary on the differences between handicapped people and handicapped animals. As proof that I never tell Jack how to illustrate a piece, I can assure you that when I wrote the original poem I did not have a one-legged pirate in mind who is companions with a three-legged dog. But in Jack’s own special way, the illustration speaks perfectly to the original idea.

I hope you enjoyed these! 

More to follow... And if you have a few more minutes and the financial wherewithal, Jack and I would greatly appreciate if you had a look at The First Kingdom on Amazon.