Welcome to volume twenty-four my Literature series, The Ladies of Lit!
The premise here is simple. Below you will find an assortment of Literature features from a selection of female deviants here on DeviantART, all of them suggested by you. In this article, you will also find a variety of other things of interest, including:
This article’s deviant spotlight: featuring the amazing HugQueen. She has offered to answer a few questions as well, to tell us a bit about what inspires her writing and which piece in particular she favors. Additional information about our upcoming events, including a special critique Q and A session in our official TheLadiesofLit chatroom. And we also have a selection of other interesting Literature news links to share with you. Our “meet our contributors” section. Be sure to note me if you would like to volunteer your services or offer additional suggestions as to how to improve this series. We also have a new series format for this news article, due to recent DeviantART website changes. Deviants are still able to 
this journal, so please take a moment to do so, to continue to show your support for our devious writers.Now – On With the Features!
Suggested by: ATrue
“There's something special about writing done by someone who has more years behind them than the average-aged writer on DeviantART. They tend to focus more on the small moments that make life special; they have a more subtle sense of humour and a deeper perspective. This, I believe, sums up the writing of beeswingblue.”
DearPoetry
TigressShe is the kind of girl who smothers herself in astronomy,
New Age philosophies and coffee shop poetry.
All fire and dragon scaled-
She hides her tiger stripes behind bruises and ink stains,
living her life by way of verse-
throwing Hemingway around like insults.
Writing her letters to the moon,
she hides her heart underneath her own floorboards,
folding blank paper birds just to set them free at 3AM.
But, it's the lipstick stained collars,
the rose thorned fingers,
and the dead stars in her chest cavity
that tell her- even a tigress can bleed.
She Talks With MonstersThis girl never had a fear of monsters.
She allowed them to rest on the insides of her eyelids,
the crook of her neck, the empty spaces of her chest cavity.
She had no fear, there were much scarier things in this world
than darkness, clawing at her back. Living for the night
she etched her dreams upon the bars of her cage
whispering of centuries past because she truly missed the sun,
grass on her back. Frosty Decembers have her forgetting
what it feels like to love, but she knows who she is—
she doesn't need the taste of cigarette ash
suffocating her inside her own flesh.
November skies tore open this night,
ripping a hole i
Cigarette BurnsI dream in static romances,
where time stands [ still, ]
and clocks no longer
ticticitc
to the sound of h e a r t b e a t s
and old school radio tunes.
The incense of my soul
smell like cherry blossoms,
and what should be
sweet kisses,
big city summers:
A place where I can wear these
[ hieroglyphics ]
On my flesh like a fashion statement
[ And not be just
another angel
covered in ash. ]
Suggested by: xMotherMoonx
“Her poems are simply breathtaking when stumbling across one of her poems in the dead of night with your eyes half open in search of something amazing to read here on dA. While some poems of her poems have a darker undertone, you cannot tear your eyes away and you feel like you want to read more of her gallery. Her words create beautiful pictures, no matter how dark the poem might be. This is one poet worth taking a look at.”
PoetryOD
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Suggested by: Tobaeus
“Whether her work is happy or sad, her imagery is always vivid and visceral.”
callerofcrows
Little SinsMy lips blister at your name;
you are the devil on my skin.
Each moment is another bead
falling off my rosary-
rolling,
clattering,
sticking somewhere between common sense
and a brimstone heart.
Prayer is but a temporary balm-
relief in upturned eyes and cool resolve,
but burning at the back of my skull
is a hollow cry
for anything but this brand of redemption.
May it Grow Like a WeedImagine the heart is a dandelion, now,
sending its pieces out with a gentle breath.
Hope is the wind,
carrying seeds of ardor to fertile ground,
so what once was blank landscape
becomes fields of flowers.
More Than KismetThe world was a quilt
and we matched corners.
Somewhere in our patchwork
was the same thread,
woven.
It did not matter
that we weren't quite complimentary colors...
border to border we matched
and that was all we needed.
Suggested by: Mrs-Freestar-Bul
“Her poetry holds a very gentle and delicate feel into it. Whatever the subject is, she always manage to weave such magic and beauty in every poem she writes.”
towards-eternity
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on marrying medusaso she
told me, hair water-
falling down over her
ship's deck shoulders, that
she would like to be
with me: we
could write stories, said
she.
i reached
out: empty
air; the ground splitting
beneath me into warring
factions and i
had been standing on the
17th parallel for
too many years now, as the
pressure escalated up, up, and
away –
"you won't be happy,
with me," (her stainless steel
nails dig deep into
my serotonin skin as she
takes her place beside
me, distracts
me from the
fall) – "no, you
won't be
happy," she
assures me, "but then,
again, you ne
Suggested by: SadisticIceCream
“Drawing on sources of inspiration as disparate as Greek mythology and her own experiences, towards-eternity's experimental style and vivid imagery make her an emerging writer to watch.”
My Spotlight Deviant:
HugQueen
I Want To Breathe When he came home that night, tittering about exaggeration with a partial stutter in his voice, I knew he wouldn't make it past six months. What I didn't know is how he'd prove me wrong and live two more years. Hope left mile-long stories on his face, and every time he got a new test result back he made me wish for one more day.
It was three-forty eight when I watched them roll his half full-of-life body into the ambulance, the wheels groaning with each shift in the concrete terrain. I botched my small steps and ended up tripping over every word he mumbled. Even with heavy anesthesia from earlier that morning, he still managed bisected jok
Of Half-Filled WordsShe is not a flutterbird.
Her fingers are skittish,
her smile is not.
Do not fear that you will
drive it away.
Sadness is her fumbling limb.
It is unwanted, yet
necessary.
When it is January
she will tell you,
"I am still struggling.
And I am becoming so many people
all at once.
A conglomeration of beauty that
I have managed to mangle.
Please, do not be sad for me."
Sometimes her sorrow is
meant for you. But mostly her.
Those specks and spots
of ocean storm lulls
reveal her truths:
ones she does not want
to extract from herself.
Her heart is not a rabbit.
When it beats
faster, faster, faster,
you need not
run harder
Stephany has a diverse gallery packed full of pieces that come straight from the heart. Her writing is thoughtful, imaginative and filled with love and spirit: exactly like her.
She has also taken a few moments to share some of her own insights as a writer. I asked her a few questions:
Why do you write?Probably because I am horrible at drawing. Honestly though it's what feels right to me. I think the best way to explain it is thats how I process the world around me. I analyze and map, with the right words, what is happening so I can make sense of it. Which is why I am a terrible person to talk to outside of written communication, by the time I think of exactly what I want to say the conversation has moved on.
What things in your life aside from DeviantART keep you connected to your writing?Oh gosh, writing is one of those things that is interwoven in anything and everything that I do. It is something that sits in the back of my mind constantly no matter what I'm doing. I tend to have lots of notebooks and scraps of paper all over the place because I will think something out about a plot or come up with a new line. I have accumulated a rather nice pile of ideas, words, partial plots and characters.
As the keeper of DAlit, with your Love dA Lit Series, what prompted you to begin the series and how do you think it has impacted the community?Haha, oh gosh, Keeper of dAlit? I don't know about that, but I do keep an extensive eye on the literature portion of dA.
Love dA Lit was a slow progression, it was originally a few links that related to literature based contests and projects around dA. It quickly spiraled into it's own journal which promptly ran out of space because I am an insane link hoarder.
What really inspired me to turn my Love dA Lit journal into a weekly series was ATrue. Before I began the Love dA Lit journal she ran this awesome resource, 'The Lit List'. However, she needed to focus her time on being amazing and doing other things around the Lit Community. I found it to be incredibly helpful and I wanted to do something similar, but not quite the same. I decided to add resources, a list of prompts and contests, as well as featuring a group every week. I wanted it to be well rounded, a resource that would kind of be a 'one-stop-shop' for literature happenings and above all, generally useful.
I want to be exceedingly modest and only say it's been helpful and leave it at that. But I know it's done much more than that. Personally, I've found some amazing people, projects, and groups just by compiling Love dA Lit every week and I know that anyone who regularly skims[I don't expect anyone to read it fully because it's just so enormous now] or just stumbles upon it finds the same thing to be true. Sure, there are links that some find exciting and there are some that may not be even slightly interesting. Yet that is what makes the Lit Community what it is, we're diverse and Love dA Lit showcases that. I believe the article really helps deviants realize and appreciate that diversity.
Plus, it's kind of handy if you're looking for something literature-related to do.
What motivates you to share your writing on DeviantART?A few things, I suppose. I share my writing on dA because it's another way for me to reach out to people, to connect with them. I've always loved reading and being drawn into those moments where you're only focused on the words in front of you. That moment is something I want to pass on to others if I can. The Lit community here has really given me the desire to improve my writing and to step out of my comfort zone as well.
Which piece featured is your favorite and why? It would have to be Of Half-Filled Words and maybe that is a bit of a cop-out, but it is an explanation of myself to the people that I love.
HugQueen will also be joining us in the our TheLadiesofLit chatroom for a special critiquing session for her wonderful literary work. If there are any critiquing tips you would like to offer her toward any deviations that you have seen featured here today or others that interest you – this is the place to be on August 12th at 8pm EST! (What time is this for me?) And as an extra incentive: for those of who offer HugQueen the best critiques, there will be a few extra goodies in store for you, so don’t miss out!
Meet Our Contributors:
I want to express my gratitude toward everyone for all of the ongoing support of this project. I duly hope to see even more suggestions in the future. Also – those of you who did not see your deviations selected and posted in this article, they may be featured on the next one. We will have plenty of upcoming deviants to spotlight in the future. If you would like to be one of those, or to suggest others, feel free to note me and be sure to tell me what you love most about them and why these writers appeals to you. Do not be shy – get involved! The more suggestions I receive, the more writers that get featured. For now, check out our volunteers who sent in their features and offered assistance, and don’t forget to thank them!
Our Wonderful Suggesters and Volunteers ATrue
xMotherMoonx
Tobaeus
Mrs-Freestar-Bul
SadisticIceCream
HugQueen
WorldWar-Tori
If this article interests you, be sure to check these out! LadyLincoln’s previous issues of The Ladies of Lit. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII,IX,X,XI, XII, XIII, XIV,XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII, XX, XXI, XXII and XXIII
LadyLincoln’s 30 Writers You Should Discover: Volume X
BeccaJS and thorns' July Literature DD’s
DailyLitDeviations’ Daily Lit Deviations for August 7th
dreamsinstatic’s Friday Night Features: LVIII
LITplease’ The Favorites Project #159, #160 and #161
SixWordStories’ #SixWordStories Showcase: July 16 -30
wyldhoney’s Writers with a Promise: #15
Yours,
LadyLincoln
You can find it here: