Write 2 Rise Young Writer's Workshop & Competition

Write 2 Rise Young Writer's Workshop & Competition Fulton County District 5 Commissioner Marvin S. THE WORKSHOP: Fulton County High School writers are invited to participate in an empowering 6-session workshop.

The mission of WTR is to provide the encouragement, resources, training, and inspiration young writers need to stimulate their imaginations and challenge their potential. Arrington, Jr., the 5 Lights Projects, Inc., Friends Of Wolf Creek in association with Opus Cultural Lifestyle Magazine presents the Annual Write to Rise Young Writer’s Workshop and Competition (WTR). The mission of WTR is to pr

ovide the encouragement, resources, training, and inspiration that young writers need to stimulate their imaginations and challenge their potential. This valuable opportunity will foster the development of the participants’ enthusiasm for, and expertise in their literary works, and to provide a platform to celebrate their writing successes. The workshop will be supported by authors, writers and industry professionals who will help guide participants through a comprehensive preparation program which will focus on personal and professional development as a writer. Participants will automatically be entered into the WTR Competition. THE COMPETITION: Young aspiring writers have a platform to spread their wings by offering them the opportunity to showcase their literacy skills and passion for writing. The writer's’ work will be juried by luminaries with education and publishing backgrounds. Panelists look for works that best exemplify originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a clear personal voice or vision. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will receive cash scholarships and other prizes, and have their work published in Opus Cultural Lifestyle Magazine and other participating publications.

Skin DeepBy KarlD Pre- Release Listen Here: https://emastered.com/tracks/skin-deep-7Skin Deep is more than a song to...
07/23/2026

Skin Deep
By KarlD

Pre- Release Listen Here: https://emastered.com/tracks/skin-deep-7

Skin Deep is more than a song to me—it is one of life’s lessons that first found its voice as a poem. This is the first time I’m releasing a poem alongside the song it inspired, because my poetry has always been the foundation of my songwriting. I hope these words encourage you to look beyond what first captures your eyes and toward what truly deserves your heart.

“Beauty was always meant to introduce herself. Character is what remains after beauty has gone home.”

Skin Deep
By KarlD

🎧 Listen Here: https://emastered.com/tracks/skin-deep-7

She caught my eye...

and for a moment,
time did what time has always done
when beauty walks into the room—

it paused.

Not because beauty
deserves worship,

but because God
never intended my eyes
to be blind.

I've admired His artistry
in every shade of brown.

Honey
that borrowed light
from the morning sun.

Golden caramel
that carried warmth
before a single word
ever crossed her lips.

Cinnamon...
wrapped in quiet confidence.

Rich mahogany,
holding generations
inside a single smile.

Midnight beauty,
reflecting stars
that daylight never notices.

I've admired
every masterpiece
His hands have painted.

And I never apologized
for seeing beauty.

But somewhere along life's journey,
I confused
what caught my attention
with what deserved my commitment.

I mistook chemistry
for compatibility.

Desire
for discernment.

Excitement
for evidence.

I thought attraction
was telling me
what love had found...

when all it had really found
was something beautiful
to look at.

Then...

life became my teacher.

Mirrors
never negotiate
with time.

Flowers
never argue
with autumn.

Perfume
cannot convince
the wind to stay.

And youth...

no matter how breathtaking...

eventually bows
to tomorrow.

Beauty
was always meant
to introduce herself.

Character
is what remains
after beauty
has gone home.

That lesson
changed everything.

Today,
I still admire
a beautiful woman.

I'd be lying
if I claimed otherwise.

God gave me eyes.

He simply expected me
to use my heart
before I trusted them.

Now...

I notice
how she speaks
to people
who have nothing
to offer her.

I notice
whether humility
wears her
better than fashion.

Whether peace
follows her...

or drama
arrives before she does.

Whether wisdom
fills the silence...

or attention
fills the room.

Those things
never wrinkle.

Integrity
doesn't age.

Kindness
never loses
its beauty.

Wisdom
never goes
out of style.

Faith
never fades
with the seasons.

Those are the things
time
cannot steal.

So yes...

I still admire
every beautiful shade
of God's brown sugar.

Every smile.

Every graceful stride.

Every reflection
of His creativity.

But I no longer stop
where beauty begins.

Because I've learned
that a beautiful face
may capture
my attention...

yet only
a beautiful spirit

can hold
my admiration

my respect

my peace

and one day...

if God so chooses...

my hand.

For beauty...

is a blessing.

But character...

is the covenant.

And I have learned
to seek

what was never

Skin Deep.

Night BallerinaShe Dances in the Dark Because She Knows the LightBy KarlD"Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a w...
07/09/2026

Night Ballerina

She Dances in the Dark Because She Knows the Light

By KarlD

"Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised."
— Proverbs 31:30

I. The Stage Is Set

She dances in the dark —
not because the light has left her,
but because she has learned
that night was never her enemy.

The stage is life itself,
and she has rehearsed in rooms
no audience ever entered —
in silence,
in prayer,
in the long before-dawn hours
when only God held the curtain.

Her beauty does not beg to be seen.
It arrives like morning —
quiet, certain,
and without apology.

II. The Soul Anatomy of Her

She is not the surface.
She is not the mirror’s answer.
She is not charm dressed up
trying to survive the season.

Look deeper —
past the grace in her posture,
past the soft authority of her stride —
and find a woman
whose soul learned reverence
before her mouth had language for worship.

Her hands are built for giving.
Her voice carries kindness
like a hymn she learned
before she knew it was holy.

Her strength is not borrowed.
Her joy is not circumstantial.
She can bend for love
without breaking from it.

And when life wounds her,
she does not collapse —
she adjusts her weight,
shifts her center,
holds the form,
and keeps becoming.

This is discipline.
This is beauty.
This is divine.

III. She Dances in the Dark

She dances in the dark —
no spotlight required,
because God placed a lamp
inside her spirit.

She is the woman
who rises before the sun,
who works while the candle
is still the only witness,
whose lamp does not go out
just because the night gets long.

Her feet know pressure.
Her prayers know pain.
Her grace has scars
the world may never name.

But every hidden ache
became part of the offering.
Every sacrifice
became part of the song.

She does not dance for applause.
She dances because Scripture is playing,
and her spirit cannot stay still
when the Word of God begins to move.

Every pirouette — a prayer.
Every pause — a petition.
Every leap — a surrender
that somehow looks like flight.

IV. Her God Is Not a Theory

She does not speak of God
like distant weather,
with guessing in her voice
and doubt in her hands.

He is her Choreographer.
He is the music before the music.
He is the strength in her center
that makes the impossible
look obedient.

She trusts Him
with the full weight of her being —
not leaning on her own understanding,
not worshiping the map,
not demanding the whole road
before taking the next step.

And He directs her path.

Her covenant is not performance.
Her worship is not a costume.
Her faith is not something
she wears for the crowd.

She has sat with God
in dark seasons,
when applause became silence,
when friends became distance,
when pain became teacher,
and she danced anyway.

Because she knows
the fruit of the Spirit
does not bloom only
when life is easy.

Love.
Joy.
Peace.
Patience.
Kindness.
Gentleness.
Self-control.

These are not decorations
on her character.
They are the evidence
of who has been tending her soul.

V. She Shall Be Praised

She dances in the dark —
and the dark makes room for her.

Let the world chase the mirror.
Let the culture sell the surface.
Let empty charm
dress itself in temporary light.

This woman is far above rubies —
not because she declared it,
but because her life
has already testified.

Her works have spoken at the gates.
Her wisdom has covered her household.
Her prayers have built altars
where others only saw ordinary floors.

She is grace with backbone.
Soft and sovereign.
Still and surrendered.
Beautiful without needing
to be worshiped for her beauty.

Charm is deceitful.
Beauty is vain.
But a woman who fears the Lord —
she shall be praised.

And so she is.

Not only by people.
Not only by family.
Not only by the eyes
that finally learned how to see her.

But by the God
who watched every rehearsal,
counted every tear,
received every prayer,
and called her becoming holy.

Rise, Night Ballerina.
The stage was always yours.
The darkness was always your canvas.
The covenant was always the road.
And the Light —
the Light was always in you.

Walking AwayBy KarlDQuote:I am not walking away because I am weak. I am walking away because God gave me instructions.I ...
07/03/2026

Walking Away
By KarlD

Quote:
I am not walking away because I am weak. I am walking away because God gave me instructions.

I am walking away from every voice that sounds loud but carries no scripture.
Walking away from opinions dressed like wisdom, from crowds that clap for confusion, from advice that never bowed before the Word of God.

I am a Black man conditioned by life, shaped by storms, scarred by lessons I did not ask for, but somehow survived.

I have seen enough paint to know pride is expensive. I have carried enough weight to know peace is not passive. I have stood close enough to expiration to know breath is borrowed.
God spared my life.

Not because I was perfect.Not because I had all the answers.Not because I knew every chapter or lived every verse without falling.
God spared me because mercy had a purpose with my name still attached to it.
So now I walk by faith, even when the road does not explain.

I walk with the Bible as instruction, not decoration.
I walk away from bitterness before it builds a house in me.

I walk away from temptation before it learns my weaknesses by name.
I walk away from people who want my presence but reject my peace.

I walk away from anything that asks me to become less holy to feel less lonely.
Because I have been near the end, I have felt life whisper, “You might not make it.”And still, God answered louder.
Live.

So I am living.
Not reckless.Not faithless. Not chasing every door just because it opened.
I am walking away with discernment in my spirit, scripture in my heart, and scars that no longer shame me.

I am walking away from everything outside the words of God.
Not because I know it all, but because I know who kept me.

And if God gave me another day, then this day deserves obedience.
This walk is not retreat.
This walk is a reverence.
This walk is my testimony, moving forward, one faithful step at a time.

04/30/2026

This one is for the incredible women who are the true heartbeat of our homes. Their love, strength, and warmth create a sanctuary. Watching this tender moment between a mother and child reminds us of that profound connection.

04/28/2026

Reflecting on the power of deep conversations and holding onto precious memories. Lessons in resilience and perseverance shape who we become.

04/26/2026

Laughter echoes through the park as friends come together for a vibrant outdoor dance, all in honor of the incredible mothers in their lives. A truly heartwarming and energetic tribute.

04/25/2026

Witness a powerful moment of resilience, faith, and deep-rooted heritage on a city street. This encounter speaks volumes about enduring spirit and cultural pride.

04/24/2026

Feeling thankful for the simple things: purpose, power, the air we breathe, and the grace that surrounds us. From moments of exaltation to the joy of graduation, life's blessings are abundant.

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Atlanta, GA

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