The bed is made, and the dirty socks have finally migrated from the floor to the washing machine. The blanket of dust that used to cover the shelves is gone and the books are neatly organized by topic. Perhaps for the first time ever, the house is in order. I'm just about to polish the silverware when an email from my thesis advisor pops up in my inbox.
writer's block—
the cursor
winks
From the author: “Productivity” first appeared in contemporary haibun online, December 2009, Vol 5, No 4, but the haiku in which "Productivity" culminates, “writer’s block,” first appeared in print in Modern Haiku, 2009, Vol. 40.1.
Tracy Royce’s poems have appeared in The Mackinaw, MacQueen’s Quinterly, ONE ART, and elsewhere. Her work has been nominated for Best Small Fictions and a Pushcart Prize, and was selected for Best Microfiction (2026). She lives in Southern California, where she enjoys hiking and watching Richard Widmark films. Find her on Bluesky.
