Author Open MIC: Welcomes Poet Amy Lyre Turner + 2 Signed Prints of Pieces of the Soul

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Welcome!

I have a treat for you today.  We have our first Poet Open MIC and Interview to share with you today.  Amy Lyre Turner has an amazing book of poetry titled Pieces of the Soul.  You know how I love souls, folks and this little number is aptly named.  Amy was gracious enough to provide me with a copy to read before this guest post/interview.  I don’t normally read poetry, so I was excited to give this book at try.  It has not left my purse since I received it in the mail.  I pull it out and read a poem whenever I can and I’ve already marked some of my favorites. I think everyone can relate to the emotions that Amy expresses in the lines of her writing.  Things we celebrate, love, regret, hate, our insecurities, loves lost….  She captures all the elements we are inside and out.  Pieces of the Soul is available at Amazon for $3.99 Kindle.  She has two author signed copies to give away today, so stay tuned.  Let me introduce Amy and then we will hand her the Mic.    

ABOUT THE POET

Amy Lyre Turner

Amy “Lyre” Turner is a military brat and mental health professional who enjoys writing poetry and fiction, spending time with family and friends, and playing with her feline daughter, Samhain. “Pieces of the Soul” is her first published work. Ms. Turner lives in Northern Virginia.

Author Links

AuthorHouse : http://www.authorhouse.com

My Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4412731.Amy_N_Turner

Pieces of the Soul on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9527702-pieces-of-the-soul

Pieces of the Soul on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Pieces-Soul-Amy-N-Turner/dp/1438989539/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1362956784&sr=1-2&keywords=Pieces+of+the+Soul

Blog: http://amy-lyre.blogspot.com

 

GUEST POST:  THE INTERNAL POET

One of the things I love most about poetry is that it can be so very personal. The style itself can be a reflection of the poet’s internal process. Whether a poet chooses free verse or haiku or something far more structured, like a sonnet, it’s about expression. For the most part, I am a free verse kind of girl. It gives me a great deal of flexibility to express what I want to express and how.

For me, poetry is often about catching a moment and distilling it – the essence, the truest emotion of that moment. Sometimes the emotion is my own, and other times, I’m trying to understand someone else’s emotions. My full time job is in community mental health, so I deal with emotions a lot. It helps me to sometimes get things out of my system if I can put it to paper, whether it’s my own stuff or someone else’s. I also find that there are just moments that are so pure and breathtaking that they end up inspiring me to jot something down so I remember it. Later, those little notes sometimes end up becoming a poem.

I read some poetry regularly, but mostly I spend my days reading fiction. Some of my favorite poets, though, are pretty classic (Robert Frost, William Wordsworth, Emily Dickinson) and a little more contemporary (e.e. cummings, Anne Sexton) and a little more interesting (Ellen Hopkins, who is really more a blend of poetry and fiction).

Who is your favorite poet and why? ~ Leave your comment and enter to win a copy of Pieces of the Soul by Amy Turner

INTERVIEW

When did you start writing poetry?  Were you born with it or did you discover your talent?

I remember writing poetry as far back as middle school, but I’ve always been a storyteller (according to my parents, anyway). I’ve had a love affair with the written word from a very early age. I am an avid reader and love stories. I probably more discovered my poetry talent, though. When I was younger and we were living overseas, my mom used to watch this TV show called “Beauty and the Beast” (Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton). In it, Vincent (played by Ron Perlman) often reads poetry to Catherine (Linda Hamilton). They made a tape (ha, just dated myself a smidge) of music from the show and Ron Perlman reading poetry selections: e.e. cummings, William Wordsworth, Shakespeare… I think that’s the first time I was conscious of how powerful poetry could be.

Where do you find the inspiration for your poetry?  Personal experiences, observations, locations etc…

Yes. Ha! No, seriously, all of the above. I have several poems in Pieces of the Soul that are location inspired – either by something I saw or heard in my environment or a feeling I have about the place. Other poems are more interaction based; they stem from experiences I’ve had with other people or from experiences that I’ve observed between two people. Some are from dreams (day or night) and others are wishes or memories.

What inspired you to write and publish Pieces of the Soul?

Well, Pieces of the Soul really started as a bunch of different poems that I had written over the years, kept all over the place: notebooks, livejournal, scrap pieces of paper. I am a fairly creative person and the year before, for Christmas, I’d given my dad a scrapbook of memories I had of just the two of us doing things. So, I then started trying to brainstorm something different for my mom. Mom is a big reader, like me. She is probably the one to blame for my voracious book appetite (THANKS, MOM!) and my love of words in general. So, I decided to try to get my collection of poetry bound and I would give it to her. In the process of trying to figure out the best way to do that, another author (Dorothy Morrison) suggested that I look into self-publishing. Then came the research into companies that do self-publishing and what options they had. I ended up choosing Authorhouse because they had a poetry-specific package and I knew someone from college who had used them. He was pretty pleased with the work they’d done with him, so I figured, why not? So, after I received my author copies, I ordered a copy for her. She got my first autographed copy of Pieces of the Soul.

Your book of poetry touches upon some very deep emotions.  Does it have a message for readers?

Emotions are emotions. They are what we feel every day. They’re neither good, nor bad. It’s what we do with those emotions that counts. People get hung up on “I’m angry, that’s bad” or “I’m depressed, that’s bad.” It isn’t bad, it’s just how you feel. If you let your anger hurt your relationships, then you need to look at that. If you let your depression keep you from going to work, then you need to look at getting help. Feeling is what makes us who we are.

Where do you write?  Do you write to music, if so what?

I carry a little notebook around with me a lot (or I use the notes app on my iPhone) to try to catch some of the poems that come to me. I have little scraps all over the place sometimes! I also will email myself a poem from time to time. I don’t often write to music (at least, not poetry) because I find it distracting. It’s hard to stay on track with the emotion I’m capturing when the music I’m listening to is evoking something else. J

Any works in progress.  What can readers expect in the future?

Yikes, yes. I have two different works of fiction (novels) in the works, both of which started as NaNo adventures. I blame Jennifer Wells and Samantha Harvey, two very dear friends of mine, for sucking me into NaNo. They blame me for not finishing the novels yet! J I am actually trying to devote a lot of time over the next several months to finish the first one before I go back to the second.

I am always writing poetry, so hopefully in another year or so, I’ll have enough for a second poetry collection. It would be very different, because I am certainly a different person today than I was five years ago, and some of the poems in Pieces of the Soul are anywhere between five and ten years old.

Would you like to share a few of your poems from Pieces of the Soul?

Happily! I’ll admit, I had some difficulty choosing which poems to share, so I went to two close friends (Jennifer Wells and Samantha Harvey) for input. In addition of one of my favorites, I’ll be sharing one each of theirs.

BOOK INFORMATION

Amy “Lyre” Turner brings the magickal and the mundane to life, simply and powerfully, in Pieces of the Soul, her first collection of poetry. Take your time and enjoy the works within, and experience just “how freeing the words can be.”

• File Size: 272 KB
• Print Length: 132 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (October 6, 2009)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00644BT9C
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled

ASIN: B00ARU2Z6A

POEM EXCERPTs

First, one of my (Amy’s) favorites is called “last night”

last night
i dreamed of you last night
you smiled at me and i melted
into eternity

your words filled me like endless light
blazing forth from your soul
brilliant blinding
warm

you opened your world
and i wanted to fall in
just fall and never land
weightless and free

you held out your hand
and i reached
fingertips brushing
sending energy pulsing through my skin

when i woke up you were gone
the morning cold and gray
emptiness and sadness beckoning
then i remembered
fluttering and hopeful

i dreamed of you last night

One of Samantha’s favorites is called “you, me, and the end”

you, me, and the end

i don’t
remember
the beginning,

you, me, and the end

there was
laughter, happiness
sharing, smiles
even with space

which grew
wide and deep
and then,
(when, I’m not
sure)
change
subtle but building

rolling black clouds
blotting out the sunshine of us

I don’t
remember
the beginning,

you, me, and the end

but here we are

One of Jennifer Wells’s favorites is “Kindred”

Kindred

Strangers whose eyes meet
oh, so briefly – and,
while I do not know you,
I feel like I understand.
In the glint of your eyes, knowing,
and the warmth of your smile,
I saw a kindred soul.
Your words – both captivating and
exquisite –
I’ve found the essence of them
in my own craft, my own thoughts.
Were our worlds to overlap,
the irrevocable change,
what then?
Deep within, in the very quiet part of my soul,
a small piece of me longs to know.

Finally, the one that really captures it all:
freefall

dam breaking,
the water rushing free

an exhale
of relief, regret.

moments
of exultation, excitation.

the soul breaking out
into the sun

shimmering for the world
to see

how freeing the words
can be.

2 – Signed Print Copies of Pieces of the Soul. 

Answer this question: Who is your favorite poet and why?

RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY: ENTER HERE

Leave your answer below or just say hi!!

ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES TO WIN.  SEE RAFFLECOPTER LINK ABOVE.

Proud to announce the winners of the two signed copies of Pieces of the Soul

AMANDA RAY

SHADOW KOHLER