2020 / poetry / author

LESLIE DIANNE

 

AFTER THE
THIRD BEATING

*for Jenny

Say something
speak up
I can’t hear you
whispering
in the corner

say something
or wave your arms
so I can see that
you are still able to move

turn you head away
from the wall
look out here
towards the light

open your fists
and let the blood
on them thicken

let the scars heal
and the day you face
will blind you at first

but then it will
guide you down your
own birth canal
back to yourself

 
 

Leslie Dianne is a poet, novelist, screenwriter, playwright and performer whose work has been acclaimed internationally in places such as the Harrogate Fringe Festival in Great Britain, The International Arts Festival in Tuscany, Italy and at La Mama, ETC in New York City. Her stage plays have been produced in NYC at The American Theater of Actors, The Raw Space, The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater and The Lamb's Theater. She holds a BA in French Literature and her poems have appeared or currently appear in, Night Picnic Press, Passaic / Völuspá, The Moon Magazine, Ghost City Review, Kairos and The Literary Nest,and are forthcoming in The Magnolia Review and Hawai’i Review. Her poetry was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize.


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POETS IN MORSE CODE explores the role of interpretation in storytelling. By incorporating Morse Code, one of the most widely used and recognized ciphers in existence, Saiterux juxtaposes lines of poetry against photographs and technical illustrations of flora & fauna from the early days of scientific exploration. Through the text and image pairings, the illustrations lean into the abstract elements of a story, recognizing that storytelling depends on the written word as well as the imagination, experiences, and knowledge each reader brings to the occasion. More from Saiterux