Thought Wheel

Ann Chiappetta

August Newsletter V 2.8

| Filed under blindness nonfiction Poem

Annie Shares News volume 3 Issue 8 August 2024

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🌻  🌄  🌅  🌆

I love this time of year, late summer is peaceful and productive for me. Pittsburgh, what I now call PGH, is filled with street fairs, farmer’s markets, and indoor and outdoor performances. What a great city. It is packed with historic locations, museums and sports arenas. I also heard a rumor PGH International airport will be adding a direct flight to Ireland. I hope it happens soon, I will be on a flight to the Emerald Isle as soon as possible. ✈️☘️

 

As you know, I am a poet and I am also a lifelong learner. Improving my poetry skills is and always will be a priority for me. I am currently in a small, focused poetry critique group facilitated by award winning poet, John Sibley Williams. If you are thinking about joining a small group of poets  and truly wish to step up your crafting skills, a group facilitated by john is the way to go. He offers affordable workshops on writing, publishing and crafting poetry, fiction and nonfiction.

 

I am always looking for opportunities to share  poetry with others. I would love to connect with schools, libraries and organizations who would like to consider me as a guest speaker either in person or virtually on Zoom. I  specialize in speaking to children, adolescents and adults on blindness and advocating for people with disabilities. I have over fifteen years of lived experience using a guide dog and  my knowledge base includes other types of service dogs and the organizations training them. My contact information is anniecms64@gmail.com or 914.393.6605.

Future plans change but I will share I am working on a new novel which will not be out until late 2025 or 2026.

 

 

Until next time, Yins –

 

Enjoy this poem.

 

TROPHIES

By Ann Chiappetta

 

Burnished figures on pedestals

Inscribed electroplate

Into households they gather, insidious

Conniving onto shelf and mantle place

 

They represent childhood paragons

Foster a competitive edge;

Rally spirits when called upon

As we leap and clear the proverbial hedge

 

They possess our emotions, sentiments

woven into beliefs

A bit of blanket, a toddler’s treasure

Photos that trigger grief

 

Even in death we cannot escape

Carved markers above bones underneath

Grassy knolls peppered with maudlin

Guardians, trophies the dead bequeath

 

Yet the living tend the reminders

While the dead are set free

What a breath holds dear

Spirits don’t need.

 

2005

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annie Shares News May 2024

| Filed under blogging Poem

Annie Shares News Volume 3 Issue 5 May 2024

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Email: anniecms64@gmail.com

Blog: www.thought-wheel.com

🐝 💐 🌸 📙

Hello readers, it’s wonderful to share some items of interest with you. I’ve been juggling the release of my second contemporary novel, Imperfections and the audio book release of my first contemporary novel, Hope For the Tarnished on Audible.com . Since cloning isn’t an acceptable work around my time management skills are being put to the test. 🕰️

 

Beginning May 8, 2024 my blog tour will promoting Imperfections. I’ll be posting the links on Facebook. I’ll be sharing inside information about my book, the characters, the plot points and the writing life. I like to surprise people with little known tidbits, so if you follow me on FB, why not click on the blog where I am posting at the time of the tour and get to know more about me and the indie authors who support independent publishing.

 

My gift to you for subscribing to this blog and my newsletter is an interview I did in March launching Imperfections. The link to the MP3 is

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/jalpwnf1ncdm9lp52zrgx/2024-03-21-BBL-Ann-Chiappetta-Audio.mp3?rlkey=c6r7zm08o66jkzvye7pjwqkok&dl=0

 

Since moving to Pennsylvania,  Jerry and I got the birding and gardening bug. We hung up a few bird feeders and a fountain. The diversity of the types of birds who come to feed is remarkable. Plus the deer, turkey, rabbits, squirrels and  a large rat snake provide some excitement, 😉

 

The poem below is a tribute to the songbirds we hear in our yard and neighborhood.

Until next time, happy spring! 🌻

 

Avian Speak

Ann Chiappetta

Wee-see, wee-see, wee-see

Tufted messengers

Spring’s here

black cap flitters

cuck tuk TukTuk

yeep peek chuckle

Perched Passeri

burbles and wing beats

 

cherry blossom promises

Cheer up cheerio chick burr

So pretty so pretty so pretty

Drink your tea

Photo is a close up of two eastern bluebirds side by side on a cherry blossom tree branch.

 

 

 

Annie Shares News V 2 Issue 12 🧧🎁💖

| Filed under blindness Poem writing

Annie Shares News Volume 2 Issue 12 December 2023

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Web: www.annchiappetta.com

Blog: www.thought-wheel.com

 

🎅  🤶  🌲  💖

 

Christmas and holiday greetings, readers. In these trying times of war and strife, peace and joy are elusive and sometimes difficult to express. It is for these reasons I am writing this newsletter. My purpose, as insignificant as it may be, keeps me grounded and it is my hope it helps someone else to keep the hope going.

 

I am pleased to report my second novel, Imperfections, is being sent to the independent book publishing company, DLD Books  for formatting. The release is planned for spring 2024.  It’s been a long and rewarding path for the writing of this story. It is less biographical and  I hope different enough for readers to rave about. I’ll be telling you all more about it in the January 2024 newsletter.

 

Also in my Sharingdom, Smashwords/D2D is launching an End-of-year eBook sale from December 15 to January 1, 2024. The sale will include genres from children’s books to horror titles.    Upwelling: Poems, my first poetry collection is free and my other titles are discounted. eBooks make great gifts! 🎁🧧

Save this promo link so you can shop as soon as December 15 rolls up:

https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos

 

Of course, by now, being a subscriber to this newsletter, you are aware I am a person with a disability. I support other writers with disabilities as well as promoting my own writing and books. One such writer, Patty L. Fletcher, is the person who  had a role in assisting me to find my own path to independent publishing. I am excited to include the information for readers to check out her new book.

The Blended Lives Chronicles: Sides of the Order.

 

If you prefer an anthology, check out this one, hot off the indie press, Behind Our Eyes 3 A literary Sunburst. It is written and edited by writers with disabilities and the proceeds from the sale of the book go directly to funding the Behind Our Eyes organizational literary programs , most  offered  free-of-charge. Sales will also assist in the costs of publishing  their biannual literary magazine, Magnets and Ladders.

 

 

My gift to you is a recording of the poem, Little Tree by e.e. Cummings. Below is the text.

[little tree]

  1. E. Cummings

 

“little tree
little silent Christmas tree
you are so little
you are more like a flower

who found you in the green forest
and were you very sorry to come away?
see            i will comfort you
because you smell so sweetly

i will kiss your cool bark
and hug you safe and tight
just as your mother would,
only don’t be afraid

look           the spangles
that sleep all the year in a dark box
dreaming of being taken out and allowed to shine,
the balls the chains red and gold the fluffy threads,

put up your little arms
and i’ll give them all to you to hold.
every finger shall have its ring
and there won’t be a single place dark or unhappy

then when you’re quite dressed
you’ll stand in the window for everyone to see
and how they’ll stare!
oh but you’ll be very proud

and my little sister and i will take hands
and looking up at our beautiful tree
we’ll dance and sing
“Noel Noel”

 

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/miiljk17ugsupwqud79m9/little-tree-by-Annie-c.mp3?rlkey=1c9rsomli57qm8s5h05pudfao&dl=0

 

 

 

 

Annie Shares News V. 2Issue 10

| Filed under blindness Poem Relationships

Annie Shares News Volume 2 Issue 10 October 2023

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www.annchiappetta.com  Blog: www.thought-wheel.com

🎃  🍂  🍃

Autumnal greetings!

The most important  announcement is we are now living in Pennsylvania. Western PA cozied up beside Pittsburgh. We found a lovely one level house.  It came equipped with solar panels, three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, laundry, den, picture windows, garage and a beautiful, fenced yard. Not too much to maintain and plenty of living space.

 

I can’t wait to celebrate the holidays here and welcome  visitors who will be able to stay in the guest room.

 

In writing news,  Hope For the Tarnished is being narrated and it is halfway done. My second novel, Imperfections, is scheduled for a spring 2024 release.

 

I am looking forward to winter routines like drinking hot tea, slurping soup and cooking stew in our crock pot. And now I am also a Steelers fan. 😉

 

Here’s to a blessed month. Until next time.

 

The move has inspired  me to write a few poems.  Here’s one I wrote the day we moved from the apartment in New York.

Moving Day

By Ann Chiappetta

An empty room

Where once  life’s evidence  —

the energy and the sound  Saturated

Now Sparseness  joins

echoes. Memory echoes

touch echoes  visual echoes

 

Present yet empty.

 

Medium tan home bottom lined in matching brick. A truck is parked in the drive. A small lawn and peddle walkway in front and flag mounted above garage.  Halloween decorations  and a bench are to the left of the front door.

 

 

Annie Shares News July 2023 newsletter

| Filed under nonfiction novel writing Writing Life

Annie Shares News Volume 2 Issue 7 July 2023

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www.annchiappetta.com

 

Summer greetings!

🏖️ 🩴 ✈️ 🍹 🧳 🚢

New Projects and New Beginnings

June and July are busy months for me and my family. We take on projects and enjoy long weekends driving to regional fairs, events and picnics. I’ve been an active member of the American Council of the Blind for over twenty years. Our National conference and convention is in July. Since  the pandemic, ACB has incorporated it’s virtual and in-person attendance,  accommodating a hybrid program and schedule. Now that I am invested in and serving as the Friends In Art affiliate President, my time and passion for the arts and FIA  keeps me busy in late June with the virtual program as well as attending some of the hybrid events. I wanted to attend the in-person portion of the conference taking place in Schaumburg, Illinois but circumstances have kept me from doing so. Positive circumstances, like house hunting and finishing my second novel. 😊

 

July is Read an eBook month.

All my Books are On Sale DURING JULY

Now is your best chance to find my entire eBook collection for a promotional price at @Smashwords as part of their Annual Summer/Winter Sale! Find my books and many more at https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos all months! #SWSale2023 #Smashwords

 

 

I support learning something new each year post-retirement. Last year it was Zoom and all its bells and whistles.  In 2021 it was  learning how a two-channel USB connector and studio microphone and headphones worked with my pc and crafting a portable noise damper. Yes, folks, I used a twin sized sheet, 12 x 12 foam tiles and plenty of safety pins to  make a tent. And, no, I am not taking pictures. It is too embarrassing. It works when needed, that is all I will tell you .

This year I am learning how to use a digital audio workstation, or DAW, called Gold wave. I am working on recording my next poetry collection myself. 😉

The novel? Imperfections is in final rewrite mode. It comes in under 300 pages and is a romance.  But it is  more than a romance; it is a great story about  love, hope and healing. It’s not too late to be a beta reader. Email me at anniecms64@gmail.com if you would like to read an advanced copy and provide answers to six targeted questions.  Once you return your answers, I will compensate you with a copy of the book.

 

My guide dog, Bailey, has recovered from his surgery and  is healthy.  He is still working part-time for me, enjoying  road trips and attending presentations. I am blessed with the gift of independence in the form

of a great dog. Bailey will retire soon but indicates he still wants to work, so we  will continue, being mindful of his condition.

 

I was featured in an article discussing the digital divide for people with disabilities. Go here to read it.

 

The energy I’ve absorbed  from the recent summer solstice  fills me  with exciting plans. Relocating  to another State  is happening soon as well as  decluttering our current home in advance of the move.

 

May warm breezes and pleasant experiences be with you.

Until next time,

Annie and Bailey

Annie and yellow lab Bailey licking her face

Bailey licking Ann’s face

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annie Shares News June 2023 🍿🎬

| Filed under blindness blogging writing

Annie Shares News Volume 2 Issue 6 June 2023

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www.annchiappetta.com

 

Making Meaningful Connections Through Writing   ✍️

 

The month of May skipped by with her basket filled with springtime blessings. I hope you were able to appreciate some of them. 💐

 

Bailey and I attended ten disability awareness presentations  for grades K and first graders in May. He has recovered from the removal of the tumor in his lung and is back to being the goofy, treat begging dog of my heart.  He celebrated his tenth birthday in April, working and playing with eight other Guiding Eyes guide dogs during a three-day seminar for the organization’s graduate council. Going to the facility and campus is like visiting our Almer Mata. It is, after all, just like a college for dogs and is our second home.

April was National Poetry Month (NPM) and I typed a poem a day, many of them  made it to the poems folder instead of the recycle bin, I am proud to say.  If you read this and would like a document including the keepers from NPM, email me anniecms64@gmail.com and ask for the file.

 

Back in April, I was a guest for the APH Career Connect interview series with Lori Scharff and Amy Lynn Smith. Check it out on the APH blog:

https://aphcareerconnect.org/blog/careerconnect-blog/finding-joy-and-career-fulfillment-in-self-expression/

Listen to the interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrYRPRgoDyA

 

 

Here is an article where myself and other blindness advocates are mentioned in relation to listening habits and terrestrial radio:

https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/programming-and-sales/radio-and-the-blind-an-evolving-relationship

 

In other writing and book related news, I finished the  first draft of my second novel, Imperfections. I am now seeking beta readers. If you would like to be a beta reader and read and respond to  questions after reading the draft copy, email me anniecms64@gmail.com and drop in “beta reader” in the subject line. The book is 250 pages.

This is a story of destiny and obsession and  the  determination of love.

 

If you want to listen to independent authors discuss their books, visit www.behindoureyes.org and check out the book launch presentations. You can listen to a recording or read a transcript.

 

Sharing this poem is my way to herald in the warm weather. Enjoy. Until next time,

Random Thoughts from September to the End of December

By Ann Chiappetta

 

  1. Shoes slip-on damp leaves, an olfactory  mockery

Reminiscent of  fungi and distinct smell prods thoughts about

What  to cook, who to think about or not to think of because

Not everyone  skips along with the holiday song or marvels

At the foliage  or bakes ten dozen cookies or  decorates the weird, pimpled  squash gourds. It’s better To  mull over the ugliness of the  flesh hollowed vegetables then wonder how many less cards will come in the mail this year.

 

  1. . It’s not that I don’t like the essence of  Christmas, it dwells  in the intimate Place  only energy and intent reside, the location of which only I know and where both darkness and light are partners. I am not sure anyone else I know describes it like that but it is how I  do it.   God might know the place, keeping a respectable distance and maybe only  peeking  into the receptacle during  birth and death.

 

  1. It’s like that now, a time of resonance, a phase, time for the coldest air competing  with  the hottest air Pumping from the baseboard heating, pets snuggled beside each other for warmth. Snoozing late into the morning beside  my husband. Time for thoughts of others, catching up on social media.  The picture window in the living room apartment tapped by Nor’easter sleet beckons. It is  undecipherable Morse code sent by Brigid.
  2. Once the baby Jesus is placed in the cradle by millions of hands and millions of voices sing the chorus in a thousand tongues it’s time to

Let go. I’m going to keep the groovy gourd, eat leftovers and wait for the sleeping seeds protected  for months by damp fungus  and Brigid’s vast blanket   to burst. I cannot  read Nature’s Morse Code but My  nose can seek the  olfactory transition and my steps shall discover the burgeoning shoots of spring with a welcoming toe

Annie and yellow lab Bailey licking her face

 

 

 

 

Annie Shares News Holiday issue 🎁

| Filed under blogging Writing Life

Annie Shares News Volume2 Issue 11.5 November/December 2022

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🌨️  🎍  🦃

Hello and welcome to the last newsletter of 2022. I hope you all have had a good year and moving toward post pandemic activities once more.  The year has been productive, taking a positive direction in terms of writing

 

The biggest piece of news is adding another resource to share  news and writing related happenings. First, if you follow my blog, www.thought-wheel.com, you will receive an email posting my newsletter. I plan to test this new option for sharing the newsletter so don’t be surprised if you receive  something from me via Word Press.

Next, . I am happy to announce I am contributing an advice column to National Braille Press’s quarterly Our Special  variety magazine which  is only   available in braille. It feels good to share the years of counseling experience for the benefit of others. Finding writing gigs that fit my lifestyle and help pay the bills is challenging and I hope to find a few more opportunities like it in the coming year.

 

Thanks to Friends In Art, www.friendsinart.org the monthly Art Parlor podcast has added a few new episodes. Catch my talented colleague and author Chris Kuell in the November 2022 show as well as a collection of other artists from past episodes.

 

Where else have I been? 🐝   Collaborating with the many other authors of Behind Our Eyes, of course. We now have a solid podcast collection for listening, called the Behind Our Eyes Book Launch program, thanks to the passion and cooperation of our members. Each sixty-minute presentation highlights one author and recently released book recorded on the zoom platform.       Go to www.behindoureyes.org to find out more, to join or to listen to recordings of our members reciting their writing and questions from the audience. We already have members scheduled for 2023.

 

I am writing a new book and this time it is nonfiction and will include the healing process  brought about by therapy animals and my experiences working as a clinician.

 

 

 

Here is a fun poem I’ve been working on, I hope you like it.

The Torture of Sonnets

By Ann Chiappetta

 

I don’t know much of Sonnetry

‘tis with rhyme and meter I fail

Concocting strings of symmetry

Commences with pulling out my hair.

 

Pluck and twist  with fingers and fist

ta-dum, ta-dum, ta-dum,

Clumsy, I trip into the Muse’s grip

vexed  by verse, overcome.

 

A scribble a scrabble —  my attempts aren’t pretty

Word    smithing Causes my cranium to throb

and I fear my friends shall not withhold their pity

and with pitchforks, chase me like Frankenstein’s mob.

 

Mayhap soon  I shall toss  up a poetry salad

Once I imbibe in a few pints of ale

Such an endeavor may result in a ballad

When recited will not result in a rain of rotten kale.

 

Undaunted I mentally twerk and type

Until the meter, rhyme and poetic measure is ripe.

Annieand  Jerry smiling at the camera standing in matching holiday colors and Bailey the yellow lab at their feet.

 

 

Annie Shares News October 2022 V2Issue 10

| Filed under blogging writing

Annie Shares News Volume II Issue 10 October 2022

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Web: www.annchiappetta.com

Blog: www.thought-wheel.com

 

 

🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃

 

This is my favorite time of year. I love the seasonal shift, the influence the winter months have upon my writing. I’ve heard the fall and winter are the best times for writing and crafting because we are inside more and the element of hibernation isn’t quite gone from our instincts. So, here’s to all things pumpkin and fleecy and spiritually motivating.

 

Drop by Plum Tree Tavern for a serving of poetry, including one about my favorite birds:

Blue Jays Aren’t Blue

 

https://theplumtreetavern.blogspot.com/

 

 

I found this sweet little pome written about Fall.:

Autumn Fires

by Robert Louis Stevenson

 

In the other gardens

And all up the vale,

From the autumn bonfires

See the smoke trail!

 

Pleasant summer over

And all the summer flowers,

The red fire blazes,

The gray smoke towers.

 

Sing a song of seasons!

Something bright in all!

Flowers in the summer,

Fires in the fall!”

 

 

Here is a fairy tale written and read by me:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/du7x58xuievthrk/the%20maiden%20and%20the%20prince.m4a?dl=0

 

The warmest of wishes from Dreya the book dragon, too.

Dreya the book dragon is smiling and floating around with her best friends, books and musical notes.

Dreya the red and green book dragon smiles and floats in the air with her best friends, winged books and musical notes.

 

Annie Shares News V2 # 7.5 Lotsa Stuf 🛒

| Filed under blindness blogging Fiction writing

Annie Shares News Volume 2 Issue 7.5 July/August 2022

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www.annchiappetta.com

 

Hello Readers and followers, a blessed and belated Independence Day to everyone.  🎆 🎇 🧨

I wanted to get this out before we break for a vacation. I’ll share our adventures upon our return. Even the cats are coming with us, so it should be interesting.

 

The ever-expanding tribe of writers and readers means so much to me and I want to share a bit about them in each newsletter moving forward.

 

I had a great time being a guest blogger for a June Word Crafter blog tour for Hope For the Tarnished. It was a fun five days of getting to know the host bloggers and exposing my novel to new readers. To find out more about Kay Lynne’s newsletter, book blog tours and her excellent blog, Writing To Be Read, go here.

Leon Stevens writes: Looking for my first review for my second poetry collection. Readers can get a review copy through Story Origin or read on KU (Kindle Unlimited).

 

Receive a free review copy through Story Origin here: Review copy link

Read with Kindle Unlimited: Amazon link

 

 

I caught this great review of my novel, Hope for the Tarnished, from mystery writer and author, Trish Hubschman. Check it out:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1134230

m

☕ 🍵

Ms. Liz and I shared some TEA on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/IsfJTH_wDEc

Please like and share it and follow Miss Liz, she’s the best and she is making a difference one cup of spiritually-infused Tea at a time!

 

Since I’ve been sharing audio clips of my writing, I thought I’d share one of my short stories, Trolley Ride from A String of Stories from the Heart to the Future © 2020 and narrated by Lilian Yves.

 

 

May the summer breeze and warm winds propel your imagination and soothe your spirits!

Dreya the book dragon floating amid books and music notes. She is smiling.

Dreya the book dragon

 

Year in Review

| Filed under blindness nonfiction writing Writing Life

Annie Shares News Issue 2.2 February 2022

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Everything Annie: www.annchiappetta.com

Here’s to palindromes, 2.2.2022! There are ten palindrome dates during 2022 and in 2021 there were twenty-two.  Hm. 💭

 

I wasn’t going to do it, wasn’t going to give into the year-in-review, fan the rolodex of personal and literary accomplishments and ego-boosting feats and phantasms claiming it is imperative for others to read it and feign being impressed. What can I say? I gave in like a cheap pair of dollar store flip-flops.

 

Here’s a year in review. I’ll attempt to complete it in quarters and leave the unmentionables unmentioned.

  1. Two of my books on Audible.com.
  2. Narrating part of the book, Words of Life: Poems and Essays. Gads of winks to Lilly and Graydon for encouraging me to even do it.
  3. Completing my YA novel, Hope for the Tarnished and getting it to my editor, Leonore.
  4. Submitting to more journals and article writing opportunities in paying markets to benefit my craft and visibility in the writing community.
  5. Collaborating and developing two podcasts.
  6. Being a guest on two international podcasts to promote my books.
  7. Posting a monthly newsletter and making it a routine.
  8. Stepping back from stressful volunteer responsibilities and healing my overstressed mind, body and spirit.
  9. Joining a private weekly poetry writing and critique group that I adore.
  10. Embracing my talents in both the physical, creative, and metaphysical places and forms.
  11. Accepting the aging process and working with what I’ve been given.

I am sure I could go on to number over twenty items but won’t belabor it, folks. I am good and find the place where I am now one of wonder, learning, and balanced with stubbornness necessary to push through the challenges.

Peace and health for you, friends. I value the connections and the free exchange of support and care we’ve shared over the past year and hope we continue the connections into the future.

Dreya the book dragon wants to wish you all well and continued flights of creativity to come your way.

 

 

1Red and green dragon floating amid books and musical notes. She is smiling and Ann’s  name and the words “Making meaningful connections with others through writing” is to the right of the dragon.