Forbidden Fruit

blade delicately balanced between finger and thumb, her most recent Mother’s Day present glittering on her ring finger.

Written as a way of exploring our darkest emotions, Forbidden Fruit: Poems of Love, Loss, Hope and Regret is a collection of poetry that pulls at the tendrils of thoughts we tend to sweep aside for fear of what bringing them into the light says about us.

This collection shines a light on those thoughts hidden within us where despair seems too close and love all too fleeting to be any barometer of truth. The poems guide us through those blackest of feelings back to where we can see the good. They allow us to express the unimaginable and realize we are all capable of regret and loss and, more importantly, love and hope.

Brandy L Prettyman is a writer, singer, painter, mother, wife, Army veteran, and coffee snob. A professional jack-of-all-trades, Brandy has earned a Bachelor in Business Administration and spent the last decade (maybe it's longer, but let's not make this awkward) reading and writing poetry as well as working on a debut novel. She enjoys delving deeper into her chosen profession by attending conventions for authors, and sometimes is asked to present classes at those same conventions on writing believable dialogue. Brandy has been published in multiple anthologies, including the Nebraska Writers Guild poetry collection How it Looks from Here: Poetry from the Plains and literary anthologies Voices from the Plains, Volume III and Voices from the Plains, Volume IV. Her writing tends to explore the dark emotions we face when confronted by our own morality and mortality. If you are interested in her day-to-day ramblings, visit her at her blog: The Journey Journal (www.brandyprettyman.com/journeyjournal). Brandy lives and works from home in Papillion, Nebraska, and spends her spare time traveling the world with her three kids (when they are home) and her husband. Most days she can be found drinking a large latte at her writing desk, frantically writing her thoughts down in verse before they disappear.