Kayleigh Diaz
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kleighdiaz.bsky.social
Kayleigh Diaz
@kleighdiaz.bsky.social
650 followers 700 following 2.8K posts
Mother, educator, bibliophile. Aspiring author with a penchant for acquiring entirely too many old books. 📚
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kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | global/world ✨🌎

Lennie mostly talking to herself (😅) w/ her otherworldly friend who doesn't speak.

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: “Do you think there are other worlds out there, Shrimp? Ones where they got it right the first time over? I like to think there are. That maybe somewhere there's another girl and her uhh”—she elbowed him in the ribs and he shied away, grinning—“trusty sidekick.” She chuckled once, but the smile slipped from her face as she contemplated the distance between them and the heavens. “Only, they're dining on the best foods out there, maybe dancing in moonlit halls. Wearing clothes made of starlight…” She trailed off, and Shrimp turned to look at her. She glanced at him. “Okay, yeah, you're right, that may be a bit too much, but anything's possible out there in them other worlds, right? ‘Specially if it's in a different time.” She sighed and shook her head, but she met Shrimp's gaze—saw the frown digging between his brows—and offered a small, encouraging smile. “Well, I don't know if you dream, but that's what I see when I close my eyes at night.” She grabbed his hand and held tight. “All them silly renderings in the stars.”
November 23, 2025 at 10:39 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
The wall is a character
Tom Snout as Wall in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
November 22, 2025 at 5:46 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | crystal

🌊

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: She stood staring out at the crashing waves for a long time. She wasn't sure what she'd expected—crystal-clear water lapping at her ankles, warm and soothing, welcoming her with whatever secrets it held on its salty breath. This water was cold. She could tell without touching it. And some small part of her knew that if she waded in, she would never leave. Shrimp slipped his hand into hers and looked up at her. “Well, it ain't exactly what I thought,” she said, watching the gray waves slosh. “But it's still beautiful in its own way, isn't it?”
November 22, 2025 at 9:14 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | direction

Bit of stargazing. ⭐

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: “C'mere and take a look.” She sighed as she padded over and sat heavily in the dirt, reaching her arms back to cushion her head as she lay beside him. “What'm I lookin’ at, Micah.” He pointed up. “See that square with the line off to one side? And the smaller one that looks like it above?” She squinted and shook her head as a thin veil of clouds passed over. He took a long look at her, then moved closer, positioning his head next to hers and taking her hand. He waited until the clouds parted, closed one eye and held up her pointer finger, encircling the rest of her fist in his. Then he traced the stars. “That,” he said, voice low, moving her finger along the path, “is the handle and the bowl.” Their hands dipped down together, hard lines that cut across the midnight blue. “And this here”—he glanced at her—“these two that’re right next to each other, they point in the direction of the North Star.” She took over, stretching an imaginary arrow to the first star they led to. “Okay, and what does it matter?” He released her hand gently. “Well, that's how you can navigate, if you're ever lost.” He paused and moved back into his own space. “In case anything ever happens to me. You and Shrimp…that's how you find your way home.”
November 21, 2025 at 9:44 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
I don't even have a working title 😅

#Novmemeber
Document with my current WIP entitled: Writing Stuff
November 19, 2025 at 6:17 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | run vibes✨

(“Run over by a truck,” except they don't have trucks in the apocalypse.)

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: “How you feelin’?” Micah asked. She groaned, massaging her throbbing temple. “Like somethin’ chewed me up and spat me out.” She eyed the near-empty bottle and her stomach lurched even at the sight of it. “Oh, that's bad. That is some no-good, rotten, devil's-own—” She stopped and put the back of her hand to her mouth, swallowing and shaking her head. “No kidding,” Micah said, picking up the bottle. He tilted it to the side and watched the sediment settle. “Stuff’s poison.” Then he chucked it as hard as he could out into the woods, and as he did, the light caught on his skin, the ridges of scars all up and down his forearms. He never had told her where they'd come from. “Why do you think we're out here in the first place?” His eyes flitted toward her and away again. “All it ever did was make my Pa meaner than mean an’ dumber than dumb.”
November 16, 2025 at 9:02 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | progress vibes✨

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: “We're not goin’ fast enough,” he muttered. “Need to find a trail.” He moved closer to the edge, and a couple pebbles came loose, rattling down the slope. Lennie reached out reflexively and pulled him back. He frowned at the tight grip she held on his shirt. Then his eyes slid up to the flush in her cheeks, and a slow grin unfurled. “What, you think I ain't sure-footed?” “I think you're a lot of things,” she said. He quirked a brow and she cleared her throat, releasing her clenched fist. “But I like ‘alive’ and ‘in one piece’ best.”
November 15, 2025 at 10:15 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
Made this a family affair! (If you're going to get bad from me, you're at least getting cute from my kids.) 😅

The prompt: Draw a bad-guy cowboy in 60 seconds. (Mine, husband's, 7YO’s, 5YO’s)

Thrilled by the 5YO’s flowers, tbh.

#Novmemeber
My pen sketch of a smirking cowboy bad guy with an oddly long chin, impossibly high and slanted smirk, and two eyes that are not the same size. Angled eyebrows meant to express bad-guyness. Pretty decent cowboy hat tho. I promise he is scarier than the hasty lines suggest. 😅 Husband's pencil sketch of a cowboy bad guy. He took too long shading the hat and had to scribble a beard and eyes without irises. He's actually not a bad artist; this is not representative of his skills. 😅 7YO's teal marker drawing of a cowboy bad guy. Full body, very long neck, angry face with angled eyebrows and a wicked grin. Missing feet and shoes. Well, obviously, can't have shoes without feet... 5YO's red marker drawing of a bad guy cowboy. He's looking up with a very cute grin. Full body. 5YO counted the fingers on each hand. 😁 This one has shoes! And flowers! Very impressive.
November 14, 2025 at 1:26 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | shirt = vest

Lennie's first (& probably last) time being intoxicated. She's gonna have a hell of a hangover. 😅

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids (one a little stranger than the rest).

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: The drink had gone to her head, and she had to steady herself, hiccuping as she walked past the fire to where he lay asleep. She crouched over him. “Shrimp,” she whispered, inches from his face; her own breath bounced back at her in a cloud of ethanol and she winced. “Shrimp, wake up.” His eyes snapped open. She examined them closely, the mismatched hazel and blue, only there seemed to be four now instead of two. “You an alien, Shrimp?” she asked, squinting to focus. “Blink once if yes. Twice for no.” He stared at her, unblinking. She watched a minute, then muttered, “Gaddamnit,” went to stand and fell back, catching herself inches from the fire with a whoop of laughter. Micah stoked the logs. “Careful, now. He might be fireproof, but you ain't.” She groaned and ambled over to him on shaky legs, sitting beside him on the overlarge stump. She reached down for the bottle of shine at his feet, but he snatched it up, taking a long swig and grimacing before setting it on the other side of him. “Absolutely not, ma’am.” “Aw, y’old curmudgeon,” she said, but she laid her head on his shoulder, the leather of his vest warm and soft from the heat of the flames, smiled, and closed her eyes.
November 12, 2025 at 1:20 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
Sharing this stunning piece I had commissioned from @professoremily.bsky.social for my little post-apoc kiddos! Thank you so much, Emily!! You’re the best!

Featuring: Micah, Lennie, and the one-and-only Shrimp.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky
Digital art by @professoremily.bsky.social of a teen boy (~15), teen girl (~14), and young boy (~10): Micah, Lennie, and Shrimp, respectively, from my post-apocalyptic WIP. Upward-angle view of them, set against a backdrop of trees. They show signs of trekking through the woods—arms and knees scuffed up, clothes disheveled and muddy. Micah is closest in the foreground, with a dark crossbow partially raised, an arrow set in it with a purple fletching. He’s looking to his left, on alert. He has tan skin, medium-length brown hair, blue eyes, and wears a black, sleeveless vest, green v-neck shirt, and dark jeans. Behind him is Lennie, in a blue shirt and red shorts. She has copper hair (braided) and matching eyes with a smattering of freckles across lightly tanned cheeks. She’s looking off into the distance with an expression of concern, her face partially in shadow while she holds Shrimp’s hand. He is bald and pale-skinned, though partially illuminated by golden sunlight, smiling and seemingly carefree—a stark contrast to the expressions of the other two. He wears mismatched clothing: a loose red tie that hangs low on his chest, a wrinkled, orange-collared shirt, and a faded maroon robe. Golden hour sunlight shines through massive trees, a canopy of green obscuring the sky, foliage on the forest floor, mushroom caps on tree trunks. A single, bent 70mph speed limit sign is off to the left, covered in rust.
November 11, 2025 at 1:40 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
K, Pam. Here's cool me. With books. Told you I got nothing!! But this is my happy place. 😅
Girl in dress holding a stack of books with a smile emoji.
November 11, 2025 at 4:58 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
1700s I wish! Very expensive 😅

Actually, turns out that was a lie too because I forgot I have this massive old bible from 1844 lol
Cooperstown, N.Y. Published by H. & E. Phinney 1844
November 10, 2025 at 11:21 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
@sagetgreene.bsky.social said "no cheating" for today's # Novmemeber, which I was planning to do, so I'll share this disassociated from the tag. 😅

Sneak peek of art I'm commissioning from @professoremily.bsky.social. 😍❤️

#WritingCommunity
Line work of a commissioned drawing, a young girl holding a kid's hand. Both disheveled, dirty, the kid wearing a loose, rumpled tie, collared shirt, robe.
November 9, 2025 at 2:06 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | picture

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: She plucked a dusty picture off the wall, rubbed the glass with the bottom of her sleeve, revealing a smiling family of four. A dark-haired man with his arm around a lighter-haired woman—her neck rolled back, caught mid-laugh—two children in bathing suits, a sand castle between them. “Shrimp!” she called. “Come here, come take a look at this.” He meandered over and she pointed, her finger hitting the glass, leaving behind a smudge of dirt. “See that? In the background there? All that blue.” She grinned, almost as wide as the woman in the picture. “That's the ocean.” Her chest swelled as she breathed it in, imagining the sweet, sea-salt air. “That's where we're going.”
November 9, 2025 at 1:28 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | little ✨vibes

🦗

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: “Shrimp!” she hissed, crouching low. “C’mon, we have to go!” He scrambled frantically, hands out in front of him, searching through the leaves and thicket. “Shrimp, leave the damn thing!” Lennie said as the voices drew closer. “We'll find you another cricket, c'mon!”
November 8, 2025 at 11:15 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | movement ✨vibes

Wrote a HAPPY scene (to appease some folks 😅😉).

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: It was that golden hour when the sunlight bled through the leaves as they lifted and danced in answer to the wind. Lennie gazed up at them, transfixed by the shifting patterns, the colors—russet, amber and orange. Both caught and free, she thought as the little things fought their stems. Then Micah’s laugh broke the quiet, and she sat up, looking to the middle of the clearing. He was sitting cross-legged in front of Shrimp, tracing something in the dirt with a twig. Shrimp was frowning, shaking his head as he grabbed the stick from Micah's hands. “What's so funny?” she asked, standing and dusting off her pants. Micah scratched his head. “Uhh, we're drawing.” She headed over, and there, side by side, were two clear illustrations of Shrimp. Only, the one closest to Micah was way out of proportion, Shrimp’s bald head enormous, eyes like saucers, a tiny stick-figure body scratched beneath. The other was a piece of art, as far as art in the dirt went: fluid, sweeping lines, an exact replica of his outfit, down to the loose tie and swaying hem of his robe, caught up in a phantom breeze. “Wow, kid,” she said. Then she tilted her head when she saw something small and oddly shaped in the background, set amid a field of what she took to be stars. “Huh.” She glanced at Shrimp, but his expression was as still as that of his image in the earth. “That sure looks like—” “Don't say it,” Micah muttered. “But—” “Nope.” “But it's got”—she gestured emphatically—“them lights and everything!”
November 7, 2025 at 9:25 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
I mean...is this a bad time for this snippet
Writing snippet: “What is this?” “Krill,” she said, watching Lennie poke at it. “You know, like shrimp?” She closed her eyes. Maeve frowned. “What, you're not allergic are you?”
November 6, 2025 at 1:15 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | trail

Lennie encountering a less-than-ideal scene after searching for meds for her friend.

(Context: Micah's pretty good at tracking.)

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: Shrimp pulled at her arm again, but she planted her feet and shook him off. “No!” she cried, staring him down. There was no trace of fire left in his eyes. Just a grim resignation. She picked up the bow and slung it over her shoulder. “I might not be Micah Ellis,” she said, turning from him, “but I sure as hell can follow a trail of blood.”
November 5, 2025 at 10:27 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
He is, at times, slightly more terrifying than the doodle would suggest (and is not an actual shrimp. That we know of). 😂

@reaper-man.bsky.social
An original @reaper-man.bsky.social doodle. “A Superhero of Legend: Shrimp Boy. A peeled, lightly seared anthropomorphic shrimp.”
November 4, 2025 at 8:16 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
Lennie energy. They're goin on a journey.

#Novmemeber
Kid Ellie from the Disney movie Up, showing a map of South America to Carl. Text: South America. It's like America, but South.
November 3, 2025 at 4:50 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | cobweb

Adding to my last snip w/ The Whistler in the Woods. Hopefully Micah learned his lesson. 🤫🎶

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: Lennie glanced at Micah, his bow still held out to the trees, arms trembling. A twig snapped, and he swung toward it, but it was only Shrimp appearing out of the thick. He looked like he'd been rolling on the forest floor, bits of branch and leaf clinging to his robe. Lennie rushed over, plucked a string of cobweb from his ear, but she paused when she saw the blood on his neck. “Are you hurt?” she asked, pulling down his collar, searching for the source. He shook his head, and when Lennie caught his eye, she saw the fire dying out there, a ring of red around the irises, fading fast. “Not his blood,” Micah muttered, still scanning the tree line. “Oh,” Lennie said. She took a step back, wiping a spot of it on her jeans. “Did you find them, then? Or—” She hesitated. “It?” He nodded and grinned. “And did you, uhh…” She cleared her throat. “Did you dispatch ‘em?” His grin widened. “Well, damn.” She let the words marinate in silence for a moment before putting her hands on her hips and spinning toward Micah, who at least had the grace to look sheepish as he lowered his bow. “You’re awful lucky you have him as your watchdog, Micah Ellis.” She shook her head and flung out a wrist to the trees. “After you,” she said, and when he glared at her, she added, “You whistlin fool.”
November 2, 2025 at 10:18 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | monster ✨vibes

Don't whistle in the woods at night. 🤫

Happy Halloween! 👻

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: Micah kept his bow at the ready, but the woods were quiet, and after some time, he glanced back at her. “Hey, what was that song you was singin earlier?” “Hmm? Which?” “It was something I heard before, a long time ago.” He whistled a few notes. “Went like that, but—” “Micah!” Lennie hissed, her eyes darting around them. “You oughta know better than to whistle in the woods at night. You wanna bring them down on us?” He frowned. “Them who?” “Haints! Spirits trapped between this world and the next.” She looked over at Shrimp, that ghostly pallor to his skin that seemed to collect the moonlight, cast it back out in a ring around him. He held her gaze for a moment, then looked ahead again. Micah scoffed. “Aw, c'mon, Len. Might be people in these woods, but you really believe—” Shrimp stopped suddenly, holding up a hand, and Micah lifted the bow, scanning the clearing. Lennie strained to hear something, anything out of the ordinary, but the only sound was the soft rustle of leaves swirling at their feet. Then Micah tensed, and she heard it: a high whistle that split the air, thin and unwavering, before it slid into a low, warbling crescendo. Her eyes went wide as Micah turned toward her. She put a finger to her lips. “Don't look into the trees,” she whispered.
October 31, 2025 at 8:56 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
We love simply draw! My husband tried it out with my kiddos. I think the 7yo did a better job than the hubby 😅
7YO's drawing of a fish with bubbles, shading, wavy lines for scales and fins. Husband's drawing of a fish. Shading at top and bottom. Fish looks unamused.
October 30, 2025 at 10:22 PM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
#WIPSnips | 🎶 spell on you ✨vibes

Should Lennie have a sweet, lil innocent crush on Micah? 🤔

From my post-apocalyptic #WIP w/ a misfit trio of kids.

#WritingCommunity #WriteSky #amwriting
Writing snippet: He chuckled, dipping the shirt into the stream, kneading the rough fabric to bleed out all the dirt. The sun hung high overhead, and she watched as the golden light caught on his skin—a sheen of sweat coating tawny arms, muscles working seamlessly beneath. “Lennie?” Her eyes snapped to his face. “What?” A corner of his mouth twitched. “You gonna answer my question?”
October 30, 2025 at 8:09 AM
kleighdiaz.bsky.social
Don't worry, Sam. We'll get tired of trying to discover your lair. Someday.
Pic of Aragorn: But it is not this day.
October 28, 2025 at 10:10 PM