Tag: poetry

Greetings From the Happy Poet

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

Hello,

It’s been a while. I haven’t posted anything since June with my Creature in the Forest series but I’ve read a few books, more recently Circe which I kind of enjoyed kind of didn’t toward the end (story = meh, but the writing is good).

On the weekends, I’ve been writing less and playing Hogwarts Legacy – this is the reason behind my lack of presence via blog and social media. It’s enjoyable to get lost in another world on my days off, relax, and stop obsessing over writing. I’ve had time to breath and in the process start gearing up for this year’s NaNoWriMo.

Even though I haven’t had the itch to write these past few months – I’ve been working on three poems (really one long one that keeps morphing into two then back into one again and a faceless third). I even dared to edit a couple of chapters of my NaNoWriMo project from 2022 (it’s half of a book about, surprise, witches).

Everyday I’m thinking about my novel and as for the future – trying to decide which journals/publications I want to submit some of my work to.

Besides Hogwarts Legacy (which I won’t even talk about right now – there’s too much to say), I’ve been going to a movie or two a week just to get out. The Little Mermaid was captivating in a weird nostalgic way while Oppenheimer was meh. I loved Barbie, enjoyed the latest Spiderverse and want to see TMNT.

Between it all when I’m commuting I’ve been listening to anything I can think of from Doja Cat to Muddy Waters, 80’s New Wave, and Frank Sinatra. All over the place really, I’m in an exploratory mood and looking to shake up my routine.

What’s next? I’m not going to promise anything besides you’ll be hearing more from me closer to October/November. Until then, here’s a poem for the day, my August 2023 spotify playlist, and what I’m currently reading.

Signing off,

Alina

Creature in the Forest (Part 6)

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

I’m hungry.

The men have been scouring the woods for five days. I’ve stayed hidden, climbing up into the trees when needed. They stink and their clothes and boots are loud when they move.

I watch them, trying not to breath, they are ruining my forest. They have scared all the other animals away while they look for that man wedged in the rocks.

I think about leading them to him, I think about eating them, but both ideas make my stomach turn.

I want them to leave so I don’t have to flee to the north where it is so cold and there isn’t as much food. I don’t want to have to sleep for years again when the weather is bad.

I will wait.

Creature in the Forest (Part 5)

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

-8 Months Later-

I’m drinking from the belly of a doe I just tore up. I like chewing on the fleshy parts just underneath the fur, it is elastic and keeps me preoccupied. The aroma of blood, the dissipating essence of death has already left her.

In the distance, I hear a growl. Not from an animal but something else. Something I had forgotten. There is a grinding and a roar, it’s getting closer.

I rip some meat off the doe’s thigh and run toward my shelter about a mile away.

It’s trucks.

A whopping sound above belonging to a bulbous metal thing, the blades spin in a circle, keeping it afloat. Helicopter, that’s right. They had those in the city.

The men used them to hunt for other men.

They must be looking for the body I left in the boulders. I had forgotten all about it.

Creature in the Forest

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

Below the mist, I lay on wet soil among the rubble and ruin of past selves. Crisp outlines of shadows
dance with the fall leaves and cascade into the still lake beside me. A scuttle of creatures, the movement of stones, as they scurry to the water’s edge to drink or clean bloody claws.

I am waiting for the moon to rise, to peak out between the mountain scape so I can join the owls and other night animals in their hunt for fresh flesh. Once, I lived in a city, now I’m just another thing gnawing on bones. What am I?

Winter in San Francisco: A Writer’s Second Year

Alina H. Hansen Writer & Poet

It’s a quiet Sunday morning, and our Boston Terrier, Nora, is in a deep sleep. Curled up on the bed, her eyes twitch, and she huffs and gives a little bark. What’s she dreaming about?

The window is open, and the brisk 50-something air creeps into our apartment. It hasn’t rained in more than a week, and I’ve been enjoying my second chilly yet sunny winter in San Francisco. I’ve been taking long walks in North Beach and Chinatown, and last week took Clay Street all the way to the Ferry Building, where I hung out and read by the water. I can’t say it enough, I love this city.

Now as 2022 is easing into 2023, I’m hoping next year won’t be as chaotic. Approaching the third-year anniversary of the Pandemic and I can’t help but feel like I’m wedged somewhere between whiplash and a gnarly hangover.

white wooden framed glass window
Photo by Nida on Pexels.com

It’s not even ten in the morning but I’ve already gone to store and stocked up on groceries for the week. I’m sit with my cup of cold green tea wondering if I should take a stab at writing 1,600 words of my new novel today (about 2/3rds done) or if I should try to scribble out a poem or two. But honestly, I want to read.

I’ve been reading constantly for the past few weeks, blasting through a few 300-something-page novels, and catching up on the most recent issues of Poetry Magazine. My reading goal for 2022 was to read 25 books, I’m behind, but it’s not as bad as I would’ve thought (18 books read). It’s an itch I need to scratch, and I know I could spend the next few hours getting lost in a book or two. What am I reading?

Books on Writing Novels and Feminist Literature

Still Mad: American Women Writers and the Feminist Imagination

Novelist as a Vocation

Mastering the Process: From Idea to Novel

gift boxes under festive tree
Photo by Olena Bohovyk on Pexels.com

What are my plans for the holidays? Staying home, writing, and reading more books. I’ve settled into a nice rhythm with reading, and I feel like I could quickly begin reading as much as I did in college (4-5 books a month).

This slow winter month feels like a gestation period. I’m thinking of new ideas and trying to wrap up chapters of my NaNoWriMo22 novel (no, I didn’t finish it by November 30th, and that’s alright). There’s been a lot of progress and I feel like I’m levelheaded enough to take on a big project or even start an online course on top of everything else I’m doing.

Recent obsessions? Cooking. I’ve been watching a few shows and would love to take a class, really learn how to properly chop up vegetables would be helpful.

person slicing vegetables on chopping board
Photo by Kristina Snowasp on Pexels.com

My favorite meal this week: Surprise! It’s ramen

Nongshim Shin Ramyum cooked with baby bok choy and a handful of sliced white mushrooms and topped with an over-easy egg.

What am I drinking? Wassail and gin.

While I’m not reading, working, or deep in a writing jaunt, I’m listening to music a few hours a day.

What am I listening to this week? Here’s a link to my SF Dec(ember) 2022 playlist. Some old and some new stuff but really it’s a certain atmosphere that I’m going for when I’m putting together a monthly playlist.

Are you writing or reading anything fun? I want to know. Leave a comment below!

Thank you for reading, and I wish you Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

decor and confetti on the floor
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

If you’re a writer looking for a Beta Reader, I can help. Check out my Alpha/Beta Reading service here. Questions? You can message me on Fiverr 🙂