Tag: Harmony Kent

Menagerie Blog Tour: Day Three With Harmony Kent

Published on by Joan Hall

Hey, Readers. Welcome to the third day of the Menagerie blog tour. At each stop, I’ll feature a different story in the collection and tell what inspired the idea.

Today, I’m visiting Harmony Kent. In addition to contributing to Story Empire, Harmony is a multi-genre author and poet. She is one busy writer, having released two books of poetry in 2022. Her most recent release is Sorrowful Soul, the third in a trilogy of poetry collections. All of us deal with loss at one time or another, and this collection deals with stages of grief.

Below is a list of the stops. Links will be updated as each post goes live. Comments are closed here, but I’d be delighted if you’ll join me today at Harmony’s site.

  • Day One – Mae Clair
  • Day Two – Staci Troilo
  • Day Three – Harmony Kent
  • Day Four – D. L. Finn
  • Day Five – Gwen Plano
  • Day Six – Jan Sikes
  • Day Seven – John Howell
  • Day Eight – C. S. Boyack
  • Day Nine – Beem Weeks
  • Day Ten – Stephen Geez
  • Day Eleven – Marlena Smith Burris
  • Day Twelve – Judi Post
  • Day Thirteen – Teri Polen

This Week at Story Empire

Published on by Joan Hall

Happy Friday, everyone. One four more left this year. Can you believe it?

After taking a break for the Thanksgiving holiday, it’s been a busy week as I’m wrapping up the edits of my short story collection, scheduled for release in January.

Story Empire had another full week.

  • Harmony Kent began the week with a summation of her series, How to Use Prologues. If you missed any of the posts, she has the link to each one in the post.
  • On Wednesday, D. L. Finn’s topic was What Every Writer Should Know. She gives some sage advice, so I know you won’t want to miss it.
  • Interested in bringing humor into your stories? Then make sure to check out John Howell’s post today. Click this link to read.

This fall has been one of the most beautiful ones Texas has had in years. On Sunday, my husband and I took a drive in the country. The colors of the trees were amazing. I snapped a few photos. Most were taken from inside the car, so please overlook the glare from the windows.

The photo on the right is the oak tree in my front yard. Beautiful (until we have to rake the leaves).

That’s it for now. I’ll return next week with a new Mystery Monday post.

This Week at Story Empire

Published on by Joan Hall

It was another busy week around the Hall household. I’ll not bore you with the details of needing a new car battery or the parts place first telling us the battery was good, but the alternator was bad. Suffice to say we had a busy and “interesting” day Tuesday. But all is now well, the car is fine (so was the alternator), and we were able to replace the battery at no cost.

Today, I plan to have lunch with my former co-workers. Wanda, the person who retired the same day as me, is also joining us.

But enough about me. Time for this week’s Story Empire links:

  • On Monday, Jan Sikes continued her series on marketing. This week’s post cautioned readers to beware of Marketing Scams.
  • C. S. Boyack took the stage Wednesday with another Expansion Pack post. He had an interesting view of writing specific types of scenes. Be sure to check out Writing From the Side.
  • Wrapping up the week with today’s post, Harmony Kent continues her series on Prologues.

Another week in which I didn’t take any new photos. Since I’m thinking of autumn, and our trees are just starting to turn, I thought I’d share a shot I took in 2009 with my first digital camera. It was only a little 8-megapixel Sanyo point-and-shoot, but I was still able to capture some nice images with it.

Hope you enjoy the weekend.

Book Review ~ Life & Soul by @harmony_kent

Published on by Joan Hall41 Comments

I was delighted to have Harmony Kent as my guest earlier this month to talk about her latest collection of poems. If you miss that post, click here. Today, I’m sharing my review of this delightful collection of poems.

Blurb

Life & Soul is the second book in the Soul Poetry Series by acclaimed author Harmony Kent.

This beautiful collection of over fifty poems will take the reader through the highs and lows of everyday life via contemporary poetry in a range of styles and themes. Within these pages, you will find reflections on the Lonely Soul, the Seeking Soul, Brief Soul, Friendly Soul, and the Loving Soul—states of mind and living and longing we each experience over the course of a life.

Life & Soul offers something for lovers of poetry from all walks of life.

My Review

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Life & Soul is a collection of poems divided into six sections—Lonely Soul, Seeking Soul, Brief Soul, Friendly Soul, Loving Soul, and culminating with The Life of a Soul.

The author’s feelings are laid bare, and although she has been through some traumatic events in life, she didn’t allow those things to keep her down.

As with most collections, I had favorites. Wild and Free serves as a reminder that we should not be quick to judge others or attempt to mold someone into what we believe they should be.

I’m not the prettiest flower in the field

But neither am I a weed

Take the time to watch me bloom

Don’t cut my stem and moan when I fade too soon

Far better that you leave me be

Dancing in the breeze, wild and free

True Friend gives the meaning of true friendship in thirty-one short words.

friendship

does not measure

nor count the give and take

of offering, asking, sharing

of life

ever loyal, honest, and true

I’ll always be around

to share the ups

and downs

A bit of the author’s humor shines through in This Ain’t Kansas. Part six, The Life of a Soul, is a journey into Kent’s life.

The poems are short and easy to read but speak volumes. Many readers can relate to one or more of them.

I don’t read a lot of poetry, but this book moved me. An easy five stars.

Life and Soul #New Release by @harmony_kent

Published on by Joan Hall50 Comments

Hey, everyone! Today, I’m excited to have as my guest friend, fellow author, and Story Empire contributor, Harmony Kent. She’s here to talk about her brand new book, which releases tomorrow.

Welcome, Harmony!

Hi, Joan. Thanks so much for hosting me today. It’s always wonderful to visit with you. Here’s a little bit I’d love to share about my latest book of poetry …

From Friendly Soul:

Holding Hands

friends see

your highs and lows

share triumphs and failures

hold your hand when you want to die

of shame

help you see the light at the end

of your darkened tunnel

find the humour

in pain

This poem comes from a time when friendships were shifting, and a deep betrayal from my sister left me reeling. It brought me to contemplate what friendship is/should be.

Holding Hands is about the acceptance of both others and self, no matter how bad we think our mistakes are. If we have to pretend around others, it’s not true friendship. I hope you enjoyed this poem and would love to know what you think.

Blurb

Life & Soul is the second book in the Soul Poetry Series by acclaimed author Harmony Kent.

This beautiful collection of over fifty poems will take the reader through the highs and lows of everyday life via contemporary poetry in a range of styles and themes. Within these pages, you will find reflections on the Lonely Soul, the Seeking Soul, Brief Soul, Friendly Soul, and the Loving Soul—states of mind and living and longing we each experience over the course of a life.

Life & Soul offers something for lovers of poetry from all walks of life.

Praise for Slices of Soul, Book 1 in the Soul Poetry Series:

“I found my answer in this wonderful treasure-trove and have already read it three times.” Robert Fear

“I found in Slices of Soul something approaching aesthetic bliss, a sense of being connected in some way to other states – like tenderness, kindness, ecstasy – where art is the norm.” Colm Herron

“A stunning collection of poems that I read in one sitting! Unable to simply put this down until I had read the last. I love the clarity of the short poems, such clear images created in so few words or phrases. Many of them touched my heart and I will be giving them a 2nd and 3rd read!” Audrina Lane

Universal Link: mybook.to/LifeAndSoul

AUTHOR BIO

Harmony Kent spent 13 years in a Zen Buddhist monastery, where she faced her demons and overcame devastating low self-esteem and found freedom. After a life-changing injury, Harmony returned to the world at the tender age of 40, and her life as a writer began.

Harmony is an award-winning multi-genre author, and her publications include:

The Battle for Brisingamen (Fantasy Fiction) AIA approved

The Glade (Mystery/Thriller) AIA Approved/BRAG Medallion Honouree/New Apple Literary Awards Official Selection Honours 2015

Polish Your Prose: Essential Editing Tips for Authors (Writing/Editing) New Apple Literary Awards Top Medallist Honours 2015

Finding Katie (Women’s Fiction)

Slices of Soul (Soul Poetry Series: Book 1)

Life and Soul (Soul Poetry Series: Book 2)

Interludes (Erotic Short Stories)

Interludes 2 (Erotic Short Stories)

Moments (Short Stories and Poetry)

Jewel in the Mud (Zen Musings)

Polish Your Prose (How to Self-Edit)

Creative Solutions (Creative Writing Inspiration)

Backstage (Erotic Romance and Thriller)

FALLOUT (Post-Apocalyptic Dystopia) BRAG Medallion Honouree

The Vanished Boy (Psychological Thriller)

As well as being an avid reader and writer, Harmony also offers reviews and supports her fellow authors. Harmony is always on the lookout for talent and excellence, and will freely promote any authors or books who she feels have these attributes.

Harmony’s Website

twitter: @harmony_kent

Goodreads: Harmony Kent

BookBub: Harmony Kent

Story Empire (co-authored blog): Harmony Kent