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Snow Cloud [15 words or less]

Photo: Randy Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! I took this picture a few days ago on the North Shore of Lake Superior. I was gathering lots?of images of water in various forms to use in materials related to my forthcoming book, Water Can Be.… The temps were

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Mirror [15 words or less]

Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! I took this pic downtown (Minneapolis) because I liked the way the mirrors made it look like there were bowls holding these decorative balls, when there were really only half-bowls. Here are?3 things this photo makes me think of: 1)?the

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Blush (by Laura Purdie Salas) [poetry friday]

I’ve got a poem up as poem of the day?at PoetryMinute.org, the site started by U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate Kenn Nesbitt that features a children’s poem every day. Today, starting at 7 a.m. and for 24 hours, my poem “Blush” from Stampede! Poems to Celebrate the Wild Side of School, will be up.??Stampede! recently went

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Tracks [15 words or less]

Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! I took this pic while walking Captain Jack Sparrow by the lake. I love these tracks leading off into the distance.?Here are?3 things this photo makes me think of: 1)?tightrope walker 2)?the Yellow Brick Road 3) those little dress-up shoes

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Look Up! [15 words or less]

  Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! I took this pic inside the Luxor hotel in Vegas last year. When I’m looking for interesting pictures, I often look up. We tend to ignore what’s overhead most of the time. At least I do. So, maybe this

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Rope [15 words or less]

Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! This is a closeup pic, and?here are 3 things this photo makes me think of: 1)?Shampoo commercial 2)?Rope swing 3) Hangman’s noose And here’s my first draft. I had fun with my Things To Do poem last week and decided

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Bridge [15 words or less]

  Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)! Hi, everyone–sorry if you got an incorrect email of this post yesterday (and it was probably still last week’s post, anyway). I’m switching over servers, and it’s a big honking mess! Anyway. Here’s a pic from our trip to

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Song of the Ice Storm [poetry friday]

I wasn’t planning to post today, but Betsy’s Michigan poems inspired me when I stopped by to check out the round-up. So for my daily poem this morning, I wrote Song of the Ice Storm. Song of the Ice Storm winter storm swoops in on silent wings, but it nests in noise: it clatters and

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The View [15 words or less]

?? ? Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines are here)! Happy New Year! I mentioned earlier this week that I’ll be making some pretty major changes to the blog this year, but 15 Words or Less will not be going anywhere:>) I will be trying to increase

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Dancin’ (Snow)man (by Laura Purdie Salas) [poetry friday]

Happy Poetry Friday! First, please check out my online holiday card, featuring another adorable snowman, for all of you, my online friends! Ok, thanks:>) Now, I wrote this poem back in 2007, inspired by Mike Wohnoutka’s art for Grace Lin’s Robert’s Snow auction. I had fun writing this poem and thought I’d reshare it today. We

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Starlight [15 words or less]

?? ?Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines are here)! I hope you saw my online card earlier this week–I consider this 15 Words or Less community one of my very favorite things about my online life! Here are 3 things this photo makes me think of: 1)

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Man or Machine? [15 words or less]

?? ?Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here). Snow is falling hard and fast right now, so maybe by next week, I’ll have a gorgeous snowy image. But for today, it’s a picture from my physical therapy place! 3 things this photo makes me think of: 1)

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Thanksgiving [15 words or less]

?? ?Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines are here)! Happy Thanksgiving! Well, I was trying to figure out what picture to post on Thanksgiving. I wanted it to be something I’m thankful for, but didn’t think you guys would be super inspired by a picture of my

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[15 words or less] Elmo in Trouble

                                  Photo: Laura Salas Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines are here)! Three things this photo makes me think of: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Elmo escaping Sesame Street A kid in time-out having to

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Book Cookies

[my writing life] My family rocks!

Every once in a while, I’ll talk with a writer whose spouse is wholly unsupportive of the writer. I honestly don’t know how those writers survive. I feel so lucky to have my family’s support, especially that of my husband, Randy. As I get ready to go to NCTE, a trip that is costing money

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