explore | Grilled Cheese

@teaintheweeds.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 2:40 AM

How much of what we suspect is the truth? And who is innocent?

#PoemsAbout #Bites #TakeRisks #EndOnAnImage #AvoidCliché #Poetry #DarkPoetry #NarrativePoetry #Amilie

Amilie

The reeds are nestling into the wind,
and the autumn season twitches.
The trout are whispering in my ear—
“I don't care. I don't care. I don't care.”

There's a line and bobber pulled from the water.
Hush. Hush—
the bass murmur to soothe.

The girls at school
candied their comments.
I choked on what their sweetness disguised.
Their amusements were carnival games.

Sinking beneath them—
an offering to savor.
They will find you.
They will find you.
They will find you.

My principal drew me into his lingering embrace.
His gaze summoning others.
Search closer—
You'll find me in the filth around you.

What has the muck preserved?
Clasped tight. Clasped tighter. Ensnared.

And the preacher held my hand.
His big fingers rested over mine.
He'll let go. He'll let go. He'll let go.
I counted the spaces between his private lectures.
Call my father. Call my father. Breathe on—

Please, God—oh Lord, save my soul.

My mother was impatient.
I wandered out of sight.
Come home. Come home. Come home.
She called me back—the night laughed.
Step by step. Stone by stone. All alone.
And in the dim light of the glade—
she begged, she moaned.

I took a path in a princess dress,
where the rushes ached for water.
The sedges tangled around my ankles,
and bubbles slipped between agonizing gasps.
No one there. No one there. No one there.
A tackle box sat beside the bank.
Please find me. Please find me. Please find me.
Not a sigh. Not a break. Not a howl.
Only the fish playing games in my mouth.

The reeds are nestling back into the ivy.
Spring—the season, now slowly vanishing.

And the tadpoles grow legs and turn into toads.
But here I am. Here I am. Here I am.
The trout—they whisper, “I'll see you next autumn.”
No one's coming. No one's coming. No one's coming.

The wake—it washes the tears from my hair.
Sparkling gown—torn to pieces beneath heaven.
Wait for me, pray for me, sunk somewhere along the bottom.
I'm still here. I'm still here. I'm still here.

—LaShelle—

@ardeninthewild.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 2:28 AM

#poemsabout #bites

@zentinl.bsky.social Oct 10, 2026, 2:46 PM

I considered and discarded several ideas for #PoemsAbout #Bites this week. What finally emerged was Seen.
Thank you @alanparrywriter.co.uk & @thebrokenspine.co.uk

#poetrycommunity #poetry #poem #poems #skypoets #blueskypoets #blueskypoetry #poetsofbluesky #skypoet #writingcommunity

@brendafromia.bsky.social Oct 10, 2026, 1:37 PM

#bites #limerick
My 2nd offering for #poemsabout 3 limericks presented together

Surrounded by each sound bite
Coming from both left and right
Lies abound
I have found
Right is wrong and Left is alright

Back biting has become the norm
Lies come at me in every form
I have found
That lies abound
Midterms are causing a storm

We must be ready to bite and claw
To defend democracy and rule of law
Lies abound
And must be found
For our protection from the outlaw

@deemclachlan.bsky.social Oct 10, 2026, 9:18 AM

A poem for the @thebrokenspine.co.uk #poetryprompt #bites
My slant on it after the wind blew in from the sea.
#poetrycommunity #poets #poems #poetsofbluesky #poemsabout

Westerly
By Dawn Mclachlan
On that day
an insistent breeze
came from the west
and gathered in its bite
the siren's song
of far dark oceans
It sung of moon guided ships
and the endless horizon
In the teeth of the moment
I felt it
the hard urge to follow
the tugging of the tide
a kiss of salt upon my lips
as a run away wind
called my name

@suefinch.bsky.social Oct 10, 2026, 7:56 AM

'I've Nothing to Offer the White Horse in the Dream' for #PoemsAbout #Bites @thebrokenspine.co.uk

I’VE NOTHING TO OFFER THE WHITE HORSE I DREAM OF
Head down shy
a white horse senses me,
whinnies – as if a desire to gallop
is rising inside.

She comes right up to the fence.

Spider-leg eyelashes frame her eyes,
defined jawbone
makes her almost too thin.

I want to touch
the coarse hair of her mane
to know if her blood warms it.

I am wishing now for an apple
or a carrot.

As if reading my mind her mouth opens,
those pupils flash wild.

I have nothing to offer.

A cloud of hayed breath
puffs between us.
Before I can release myself from her gaze,
she clamps my arm.

When I was young
I used to bite my forearms
to feel the resistance of flesh
imprint my incisors.

I bit my brother once.

Now there is a horse,
with blunted yellowed teeth,
latched on hard, biting my skin to burst it

to taste the metal of my blood.

@stacebot.bsky.social Oct 10, 2026, 6:24 AM

For this week's #PoemsAbout #Bites I'm thinking about how much we can do with our teeth without ever biting anyone.

@alanparrywriter.co.uk
@thebrokenspine.co.uk

#prompt #poetry #blueskypoetry #writesky #poetrycommunity #writingcommunity #poets #creativewriting

the smile problem

my mother always told me
not to show my teeth
in photographs

you see,
a smile and a threat
are simply
the difference between
having teeth and
using them

sometimes
i still catch myself
smiling into the dark
like a feral animal
searching for meat
between the teeth

@talahreed.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 7:23 PM

Not everything that bites has teeth. Unfortunately.

#poemsabout #bites #skypoet @thebrokenspine.co.uk #poetry

@karenpgonzalez.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 5:04 PM

Oh this is great @merrildsmith.bsky.social. This #poemsabout #bites slithers the way a snake would. Also was fun to see this rewrite with art. Blessings, Karen
@thebrokenspine.co.uk

@mwplovesmusic.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 4:49 PM

His Words

I’ll tell you a story,
one you won’t believe,
once
a cookie-
it took up an entire jar,
so full of chocolate chunks,
brimming with joy;

bite by bite
he chewed the cookie,
savoring
his prey,
he left only crumbs,
claimed he ate none

#poemsabout #bites @thebrokenspine.co.uk #poetry

@ctrlaltdltffs.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 4:38 PM

I was a biter
and would bite
my baby brother
until one day
my mom
bit me back
lesson learned

#PoemsAbout #bites #poetry #writing @thebrokenspine.co.uk @alanparrywriter.co.uk

@metaphorqu.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 3:43 PM

#PoemsAbout
@thebrokenspine.co.uk

#Bites

As a child, I recall that
We had a book called

The Biter Bit

I experimented - in my childlike way -

With nouns and verbs and

Adjectives - try it - to get my milk teeth round it -

Until - in the end -

My brother never knew what bit him.

@vientoverde.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 2:24 PM

@thebrokenspine.co.uk #PoemsAbout #Bites

I tried. As much as a woman with a stomach ache on a Friday afternoon can. I will be reading the rest later.

October Drizzle

I am the line between the pink silkiness of a sparrow's chirp and the cobalt anvil of an owl's hoot. Once a blanket of clouds covers me, I turn into an October drizzle. Then, I seep into the basement of your dreams. Slowly, like drops of navy blue onto the remaining song notes.

Even though you're pulling them shut, the doors swing on the threshold of my low voice and an underground quiet. They're ajar, sliding between uncharted moonlight and your carpeted imprints.

midnight —
settling into the background
of your sleep

@thebisylarke.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 2:02 PM

something simple sweet and a bit raw for
#PoemsAbout #Bites @thebrokenspine.co.uk

a list in the spirit of anne carson. been really into the simple pleasures of the everyday lately. and longing! can’t forget the longing

small bites with you

char-grilled oysters (down on the bayou) (someday) (soon)
poetry (notes app) (sent back and forth)
raw oysters (down the shore) (O the stars i’d sacrifice just to see you stand on jersey soil)
warmth (full-bodied) (with fuzzy feeling)
playlists (spotify) (sent back and forth)
bong rips (sputtering) (coughing) (laughing) (falling apart into the phone speaker)
listening (rapt) (leaning in)
talking (too much) (but you tell me it’s fine) (you mean it) (i feel it)
understanding (comes easy) (too easy) (almost feels impossible) (beautiful) (unreal)
love (of you and i and us and us) (and everything else too, babe) (all feels beautiful whenever i’m with you)
long drives (to you) (from you) (anywhere) (with you)
hugs (warm) (so needed)
char-grilled oysters (soon) (please let it be soon)

@brendafromia.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 1:28 PM

#PoemsAbout #Bites

The Apple and the Tree

He took a bite of stolen apple,
so sweet, he had to share—
he passed it on to another.

Bite by bite it disappeared,
until there was only just the core.

Tossed away without a thought,
that core found fertile ground.
Slowly it took root,
and grew into a tree.

Its fruit was not as sweet—
Rather it was bold.

Beware.
That fruit bears a name.

That name is Jane Doe.

Be bold.
Stand tall.
Use your voice to bite back—
and muzzle the thieves and liars.

Although once cast away,
like an apple core—
Jane Doe became one more
tree amidst the forest.

Be warned —
We’re all Jane Doe.

Brenda Sievers
October 2026

@pvcannon.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 1:01 PM

For #PoemsAbout #Bites

with much thanks to @alanparrywriter.co.uk and @thebrokenspine.co.uk

A free verse poem that explores bite as sensual.

@merrildsmith.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 12:05 PM

Good morning! My poem for #PoemsAbout #Bites is a revision of a poem I wrote for Paul Brookes @thewombwellrainbow.bsky.social ekphrastic challenge with art by @karenpgonzalez.bsky.social Thank you as always to @alanparrywriter.co.uk and @thebrokenspine.co.uk I'll be back later!

Poem:
Choices: Divergence, Convergence

In the woods, you choose a road,
this one, or the other,

perhaps they are the same—or not—

perhaps you meet a snake with jeweled
lapis scales,

perhaps he offers
you this or that,
his tongue flicking words
you catch poison-sweet
on your tongue--

perhaps instead
you see a wave of wildflowers,
nodding their heads,
scenting the path

just before the strike, the bite.

Art work by Karen Pierce Gonzalez, a snake in spring green, aqua, yellow, and orange, studded with round blue jewels or buttons. Black background.

@ianbrownlie.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 9:29 AM

Dating is never easy. #PoemsAbout #Bites

dating

me?
i love to fly
take evening strolls
and going for light bites
i have no taste for garlic
or for wild religious rites

oh no, you're another vampire, aren't you?

yes

@patriciajvs.bsky.social Oct 9, 2026, 9:22 AM

Friday again so it's thanks to @alanparrywriter.co.uk @thebrokenspine.co.uk for another #PoemsAbout #Bites
This one was inspired by my Dad's love of sailing and stories of the coast from Texel up to the Wadden Zee.

The Bite of the Bight
Whispering winds transformed
Northerly storms
Giants of the Arctic
Whistling down, around,
Engulfing de Duitse Bocht
Ship sheltering between isles and land
Evading the short grey Northern Sea For something worse to come
Silent swells forecasting
Omens of volatile seas
Of something worse brewing,
Frozen fingers gathering bights,
Shortening the sheets, Reefing sails ready For rolling waves,
Unexpected mud and sand Shifting creeks, twisting channels The triumvirate of Wadden rivers
Leviathans alone
Carving treacherous shoals
Surging tides, billowing waves,
Rolling with the wind
Calling the Waarschip to the depths Entrenched, consumed, chilled By a bitterly biting sea

@zoomburst.substack.com Oct 9, 2026, 9:09 AM

#PoemsAbout #Bites

A poem about nibbles. Which I think is a terrible word. I don't know why. But I have tried to think about it in writing this.