Denizens of the Dark Eyes: A Collection of Poems

By Steven R. Lindsay

Jacob Maxson is a twenty-one-year-old drifter who reluctantly returns home to the town of Lynx, Michigan. He is young, slender, and athletic, but still grieves for his dead mother and father. Then, Jake suddenly falls in love with a divorced nurse named Catherine Havenbeck. She is gentle, attractive, and compassionate, but suffers the deep burdens from her ill-fated marriage. However, a growing terror leads them on a harrowing journey through an unspeakable shroud of horror. This poetic story and many of the authors literary works await the reader in Denizens of the Dark Eyes.

"Impressive work." - Writer's Digest International Self-Published Book Awards


Judge's Commentary

What did you like best about this book? I like the hard work reflected in these poems, well over 100 of them. The author clearly works and reworks his poems to get the rhyme and meter desired. He writes in tight, short lines, making the rhyming even more difficult; some lines have only four words and that's impressive work. I also liked his willingness to write about very personal topics, like "Ode to a Cancer Cell." And he also manages to capture hours of action into a few lines and make a statement about society as well in a poem like "Sunday Cinema." And I liked the use of metaphor as in "The Attic Upstairs" which speaks not only to objects that have been put away for storage but, of course, mental memorabilia as well.

How can the author improve this book? My only suggestion for reconsideration, should this volume be reprinted, is the choice of titles. The title suggests a volume of dark poems, poems about loss and loneliness, about death and dying, about dead friends and frustrated dreams. While some poems touch on these subjects, the majority of the poems are not nearly as negative in nature and thus may either be missed by a reader thinking the title implies poems too negative to be enjoyed, or disappointing a reader looking for melancholy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 28, 2009
• ISBN: 9781514469064

Steven R. Lindsay

Steven R. Lindsay is an American writer, poet, actor, environmentalist, and cancer survivor. He was born in Michigan in 1971. After several years in the performing arts, he delved into reading many works of classic literature. Inspired by a host of different genres, numerous author influences, specific music selections, and a variety of cinematic films, Denizens of the Dark Eyes-A Collection of Poems was a labor of love according to the novice poet. He resides in rural Michigan.

Book preview

Copyright © 2009 by Steven R. Lindsay.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Rev. date: 02/18/2016

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Contents

Out of Place

Drive by Raven Beauty

Royal Oak, Michigan

Empty Bed

Eye of the Lamp & WTC

Mind Distortion

The Touch of a Woman

The Lost Soul

A Long Journey into the Weekend Night

Road Kill

Aura

Barricade

The Dreaming of Aerial

Bluff Creek

The Whole Complex of Factors

The Night Wind

Bloodshed in Baghdad

Orange Lavender & Feel but Cannot See

Summer Rock Band

Odyssey

Ode to a Cancer Cell

Suzy Banyon

At the Speed of Rapid Plight

Infinite Outer Space

Sunday Cinema

The Conform Room

Freighter

Ashley Ashleigh

Travel the Gravelly Road

Step into Renaissance

Accent

Cabo San Lucas

UFO

Dead Greens and Brown Leaves

Arena of the Tarantula

Wild & Vagabond

Excess Times

Never Learn

Morgan le Fay

Surreal

Up from the Depths

This Heart Broken

Proscenium

Utopia Inside You

The Vine

Chameleon Ceiling

Grace Under Pressure

Double Overtime

Island of Natural Love

After Trash

Marks of a Monster

Inviting the Witch

This One Life

The Hawk

Behind the Door

Her Smile & Press Play for Music

Warrior Queen

Swelter and Shade & No Mood for Games

Momentum

Disaster Mine

Sleepy Lakeside Township

The Brontë Three

Letter of Scarlet

Tame the Savage

Face with a Name

The Harp & My Beard

The Attic Upstairs

Morning Dawn

Blue Denim Jeans

Supernatural Forces

Glider

One Cent Tent

The Parcel Miles

Late Night Snack Shop

My English Rose

Best Birthday Wishes for My Mom

Tundra Landscape

The Bloodworm Burrow

Quivers in the River

Moog

The Pumpkin Lantern

The Gangrene Axe Gang

Darkroom of Red Hell

Decade

Bed and Breakfast

The Fields at Dusk

Hand in Hand

H.G. Wells

Cider Mill

Television Vampires

Helpless in Her Arms

Meddle at Pompeii

I Have Never Been to Ireland

Lava

Nightmare from 1976

Blade of the Samurai

Solace

Map

Emerging Spring

The Bobsled

Fireplace

The Bulldog Ant Swarm

Weather Forecast

Maze of Thorns

Zephyr and Cat

Dedication

This collection is for my family, friends, and mentors including the lovers of every artistic genre from around the world.

Out of Place

Running out of things to do,

Feeling alone and subdued;

Can’t hide the look upon my face,

Feeling lost and out of place;

Absorbed in my own endeavors,

Fooling myself to be clever;

Proving to others is such a waste,

Here I am, still out of place;

A young couple sits in a nearby corner,

Sharing kisses, coffee and laughter;

This world I continue to chase,

Their love never seems out of place;

To envy others just drags me down,

Short on confidence before the dawn;

Let these emotions leave without a trace,

So I can stop feeling out of place.

Drive by Raven Beauty

A casual stop at the light,

And there you were;

Peering through my rear view senses,

Breathless allure;

When the light changes, you follow—

Keeping unison with my car;

Exchanges of looks to reassure me,

There’s something more by far;

Watching her steering wheel turn,

She moves with such grace;

Touching the dashboard,

Studying the expressions on my face;

Drive by raven beauty,

Not knowing my name;

When turning the corner,

You were out of frame;

Her brunette company,

I will never know;

Reading the red needle,

So I drive on home.

Royal Oak, Michigan

Bustling streets,

Numerous feet;

Crosswalks separate,

Open office space;

Couples embrace and embark,

Changing leaves make their mark;

Signs of the coming fall,

Denims and overalls;

Outside lunch,

Chocolate crunch;

Construction tape, orange hubs—

Cash machines, taverns, and pubs;

Stop light showdown,

Traffic slowdown;

White, blue collars converge,

Bohemian youth surge.

Empty Bed

Safe and secure,

In my empty bed;

Dark and demure,

In my empty bed;

Vacant tranquility,

For endless hours;

Distant sirens ablaze,

Echoing power;

Insomnia intoxication,

Encircles a visual frenzy;

Surfing the remote highway,

Undecided lately;

Plagues of vigilant rage in my head,

A shower of jealous devotion, blood red;

Instead, a shelter of her Venus joy

And pour heaven into my empty bed.

Eye of the Lamp

Naked bulb points down,

In a corner town;

Illuminating light,

Barricades