Dark Poetry
Government’s Best Friend

Government’s Best Friend
Technology is a bitch with an irrational itch
Technology is a weapon of inhumane destruction
And your eyes and ears are desensitized to the demolition
Technology is a disease without a cure
Technology is society’s whore that has no standards
And your eyes and ears are desensitized to the demolition
Technology is a cigarette that everyone
inhales
Technology is the government’s best friend
And your eyes and ears are desensitized to the demolition
Technology is a calculating thief with a political tongue
Technology is a hard on that we all play with and don’t admit
And your eyes and ears are desensitized to the demolition
Technology is a rash that can’t be removed
Technology is a vindictive slut that you are embarrassed to acknowledge you kissed
And your eyes and ears are desensitized to the demolition
Technology is a two headed monster that screams and laughs simultaneously
Technology is a tool that is used to wipe out civilization as we know it
My books are available on Amazon.
Author of Observations (Complacency with Luther Ross)

Author of Observations (Complacency with Luther Ross)
I’m a crackerjack at destroying intimacy. I replace truth with flirtation to keep arms distance. No one pays attention to the color of the outline of my soul. I’m genuinely brash, but disguise my sensitivity in my cryptic verses.
I unbutton my innuendos with a playful grin and unleash my sarcasm with a bite. I have been misguided and misplaced. I should reside inside an antique store on Belmont street. I’m a clown without face paint. The world is a stage and lost my manuscript the second I was born.
I tend to use blackjack tactics on the universe to discover my following. I am enthralled to the broken and repelled by the fake.
I fell in love with a mystery. She scoffs at daylight and is quiet at night. I am often perplexed by her claims. I receive fragments of truth with resentment dancing in her sapphire eyes. I am an introvert by choice. I preferred to wed a loyalist who only witnesses the deepest shades of love I give. She ignores the dead spiders in my closet. The fear of dying alone is my tarantula. I am a promenading conundrum and my contradictions force me to limp. I am loved but not understood. The clarity is ignored and is stomped on. My identity is the shape of a hexagon with sides never exposed. She is loved but doesn’t use her voice.
I’m an expert at sabotaging affection with a shine. She will pay the bare minimum like a credit card with the debt being severe. I crave gospel with a melody. I want principles with curves and hooks. I want to sink my teeth into confessions with tears of liberty. I want that crack of fear to be eradicated. She clenches onto to complacency because it’s comforting. I lack the diligence and just stare into my reflection knowing the empty circle falls on my conscious. I am the author of observations and waiting for my funeral to hear a room of formalities.
My books are available on Amazon.
Scattered Ramblings

I am a connoisseur of analogies and a lost paragraph. The expectations are nonexistent and the inconsistencies are bloodletting. I’ve washed my hands in rain and rinse them in agony. I hate to stare in my complexion of mediocrity. I walk around with a fistful of aspirations and cough up restlessness. She keeps the awakening truth inside her shell. She ignores the knock on the door of confrontation.My knuckles are shaking. I spell out my fantasies in luscious ink as she pretends to read them.
I am the cerebral nighthawk that dances in the moonlight and dreams like a joker. I follow the road without a sign, just the sound of dragonflies, and the heartbreaking temptations.She’s made claims that I have acquaintances and sidekicks. She’s joined in holy matrimony with a introverted cynic who’s dying on the inside as the second hand moves. She holds in her frustrations and the fears stuck to her palms. I play with riddles and hide between the ten feet conundrums. I play with her subconscious and the ghosts that appear in her sleep. The end is just the beginning and the beginning is just a part of the end.
My books are available here.
Checkerboard Notebook (Therapy Session with Charles Wright)

I was born between a California dream and a fog in the suburbs. I’m twenty percent scarecrow and the rest of me is a lion without a roar. I carry a pen and checkerboard notebook with fear parading in my alcoholic eyes. I have acquaintances that are on parole and a heart that is a victim of aggravated assault. Cassandra my dear, I’ve seen you take money from my camouflaged wallet. You plead insanity, is that what you want to call it? I juggle darkness and anxiety in my head. I fight battles I can’t see and shout at the gargoyles that laugh from the porch.
I fell in love with an embezzler who had a phrase “I don’t steal, I borrow” embroidered on her charcoal jacket. I once kissed an acrobat who tumbled away from my scars. I found myself glaring into an empty glass. I made love to a gypsy whose compassion and character couldn’t sit still. I was fond of a painter who sketched her tears on my chest. I found myself sipping on destruction. I was drawn to a lyricist who couldn’t convey her affection without a melody. I was magnetized to a whistle stopper who refused to stare into the truth. I found myself weeping in the dark gazing at the bottle.
I sat in therapy reliving my enigmatic past. He asked me in his continuous monotone voice “What do you write?” A part of me replied. “I write nonfiction because no one is listening.” He paused and provided his licensed smile.
“Can you please share your latest entry?”
“I thought I slept in a bed of catastrophe but I recognize that I’m the casualty in this foreign affair. I’m visiting a lackadaisical shrink who knows the answers to his longwinded list of satirical questions. I don’t want people to act like they care and he gets paid to show concern. I just have to move and stop sitting still.”
My books are available on Amazon.
Once Upon a Rain, She Bloomed – Release Date

✨Release Date: 3/5/2024
Once Upon A Rain, She Bloomed
Between shadows and memory, one woman’s diary elucidates relationships come and gone, those who helped shape who she is from the inside out. Turning the rain into something beautiful, the opening petals of a rose now blooming.
Veteran poet Braeden Michaels crafts his seventh collection of poetry into a mold of vision. Like pages from a twisted fairy tale, he narrates using his unique poetic style and perspective, first dissecting emotion before reconstructing and reimagining each one.
Pre order: Once Upon A Rain, She Bloomed
The Raven’s Poison – Reviews

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Michaels doesn’t fail to deliver in The Raven’s Poison. From start to finish I was taking around the horn on an emotional rollercoaster and was left in awe of his words. Can’t wait to get the next book!”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Braeden knows how to tap into the human emotion and the sometimes dark nature of our innate characteristics. This is a book that is sure to grab you by the throat from the very first piece until the very last. You will be gasping and grasping for more until the very end.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“I haven’t read a poetry book so full of great poetry in years. Everyone should pick this collection up.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“I highly recommend this well written book. His writing is full of great imagery and it draws you in leaving you mesmerized.”
My books are available here.
Bottle of Shadows

Bottle of shadows
Leave me a pile of scrutiny
Leave me a bag of aggravation
and I will toss it in the dying closet
Leave me a tiny bit of solitude
Leave me an ounce of spoiled milk
and I will throw it in the empty pantry
Leave me a gallon of spiked juice
Leave me a shred of laughter
and I will painfully swallow the bits
Leave me a bottle of shadows
Leave me a jug of sarcasm
and I will watch myself drown
Leave me a tank of affection
Leave me a plate of dirty lies
and I will break another mirror
Leave me a pair of worn out glasses
Leave me a little bit of rust
and I will never see my heart ache
My books are available here.
Stuck on Crushed Bones Lane

I’ve seen the icicles hang in the burning silhouette
I’ve been reminded of the unspoken truth
caressing my frozen ghosts
I’ve crawled between the spider like despair and mesmerizing sunset
Let the explanations seep and bellow
Let the justifications trickle down my face
Let the interpretations subside in the dusk
Let the denial drip down my pale cheek
I plead with my contradictions
I’ve tugged on my restlessness and uneven faith
I’ve been surrounded by strangers with
mind numbing tension
I’ve sought out simplicity but eroded into complexity
Let the explanations seep and bellow
Let the justifications trickle down my face
Let the interpretations subside in the dusk
Let the denial drip down my pale cheek
I plead with my contradictions
I’ve drifted away from the sympathy and magnetized to the obscurity
I’ve stolen hidden glances in my sleep and dream of the awakening
I’ve ran from fears wrestling in the dark and disappear in the light
Let the explanations seep and bellow
Let the justifications trickle down my face
Let the interpretations subside in the dusk
Let the denial drip down my pale cheek
I plead with my contradictions
My books are available here.
Landon Hall’s Cough

Instantly my judgements were casted. I sat at a table for three. I sat between a pessimistic dreamer and a carefree non stop smoker. I digested painted ideologies and exhaled nostalgia from my vibrating lungs. I scoffed at the handwritten kindhearted gestures. It was as if I had read them on a greeting card as a child. I tried to be engaging but was caught off guard by the long winded interrogation. Sidewinding questions, sarcastic remarks and complex theories were thrown at me like punches. I took a beating like a boxer.
Inside my head all I could hear was the regurgitating water downed clouds of systems.
The formulas, schemes, and strategies plotted by short sighted leaders of this self centered generation.
I nodded my head as the clarity dispersed. I was not treated like an equal. I sat between arrogance and a rattling jaw. I barely touched my grilled California chicken. I only took a few sips of joy. I was tired of the pointing fingers and criticism of my status. I was ridiculed by plastic snakes with their golden ideals in a frame.
Inside my mind all I could do was to assess the situation. I could sense I was a pawn in their chess game. I couldn’t shake off the smirk. I coughed up their sour and misplaced words.
I sneered at their ancient glossy wisdom. I could feel the itchy tickle in my throat. I hacked up a two hour disgusting stomach aching conversation after walking away from the table.
Blistering Silohuette

Once upon a blistering silhouette
I wiped away my tears with feathers from
the bitterness, I slept with misery and
the faults I refused to see, the sun
disappeared and my heart is vacant,
the veil is ragged and torn, the anguish
is dispersed and I wallow in the fields
of exhaustion, guided by thorns and
a cloud of animosity without a compass,
I use to embrace the darkness, I bellow
from the exotic tremors, hoping to discover
the light I have forgotten, I have gripping
dreams and an isolated peace I misplaced
My books are available here .
Once Upon a Rain, She Bloomed

Between shadows and memory, one woman’s diary elucidates relationships come and gone, those who helped shape who she is from the inside out. Turning the rain into something beautiful, the opening petals of a rose now blooming.
Veteran poet Braeden Michaels crafts his seventh collection of poetry into a mold of vision. Like pages from a twisted fairy tale, he narrates using his unique poetic style and perspective, first dissecting emotion before reconstructing and reimagining each one.
My books are available here.
The Devil’s Blacklist

Even the devil himself chuckles
The moon is carved with your lies
Tangled up in your demented mind
Serenaded by demonic gargoyles
Stains of convoluted fairytales twitch
Nightmares glide through your skull
as you become the twisted spin doctor
Even the devil himself despises you
The haunted tree is covered in your sins
Using the phrase “sick and dying” to draw attention
The line for the roller coaster to hell
banishes the disturbed and psychopathic rants
Even the devil himself cringes at your name
Fearing your chameleon sadistic skin
Wallowing in your fragile bones
Be careful what you curve with your tongue
My books are available here.
Never Ending Ink on Crooked Scream Road

Never Ending Ink on Crooked Scream Road
Like porcelain skin wrapped in gauze
Birthday tattoo displayed on her wrist
Daydreams slip out on from her weeping lips
Shadows blister, the monologue drowns
Clasping on to “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” in her pliable hand
And the lions on the wallpaper say her name in a chant
And the ceiling is her midnight and decorated
sky
And the hallway reeks of discretion and tongue tied riddles
And the ink she pours out never runs dry
Give me an invincible fire to stand within the pain
Give me the light to crawl in the dusk
An ounce of slump and stagnation whisper
Melancholy hanging over her head like a rain cloud
Glaring into a closet of aberrations
Atmosphere trembles, the letters trickle sanguine
Twitching in the discolored oblivion
And the memories flood on to the pillow from her eyes
And the moonlight that shines through her window growls
And the conversations are still heard in these four walls
And the ink she pours out never runs dry
Give me an invincible fire to stand within the pain
Give me the light to crawl in the dusk
My books are available here.
The Prologue (She Bloomed in her Rain)

The Prologue
I’m just a silhouette situated on a cracked street corner gazing into the crevices of the cement. I’m a wanderer seeking warmth from a gentle hand. I spend too much time looking inward and only see engraved scars. I’m just a singed shadow that leaves whispers and tears for an empty sky. I find myself buried in my beloved diary. I cling to it as I cry myself to sleep as I pray to a God that is made up of sandpaper beliefs and songlike scripture.
I tend to sleep with trauma with invisible gauze and bloodshot dreams. I rationalize the hallucinations due to the measurable weight on my shoulders. I live in a household filled with indifference, butterflies circling fears, and ghosts having sarcastic conversations with each other. I carry a laugh from an ancient carnival. My mother named me after two distinguished poets. The name Sylvia Poe Chandler feels supernatural on the birth certificate. My personality is upside down and is unseeable. I scoff at normalities and jokes about what can not be changed. I loathe logic defended by agendas that are written by parasites. I am drawn to the stars have a tint of green because the moon is jealous. I am fond of the night because I can see my skeletons sipping on ignorance in the closet.
I never once believed in the elegance and fragility of love. I believe in monsters, dark side of humanity, warlords, and anguish that swallows you whole. I don’t believe in the hands of compassion nor forgiveness. I can’t believe in concepts I’ve never felt. I never once believed in angels, optimism with a silver lining, and words spoken by the rich. I believe in individuality not the mummy walking mass. I never believed in rhetoric from men wearing blue suits. I do believe someone below is smirking at my trials and tribulations. I can’t believe in fairy tales but I believe in an epilogue with a waterfall.
She calls me an infant and he calls me ungraspable. I’m a mute but the list of endless adjectives are added to the scroll. I am seeking love and affection from heathens wearing sin like a trench coat. I’m full of spite but spit out caffeinated speeches. I walk with a phantom knowing I’m contaminated. Self worth is buried in the forest of my backyard. As I walk through the woodlands I can feel the mosquitoes surrounding my significance. The closer I become my eyes swell with grief.
I am a cloud hiding behind the sun seeking a ray of hope. I have a backbone that you can’t see. I am a star gazer with drops of melancholy in my hands. I have been destroyed by my foul mouthed pro creators and poisonous ex lovers. My fate is torn but my destiny sees a rainbow from a distance.
My books are available here.
Winter’s Scream

I’m jittery but calm in my logic. I parade these streets with echoes and slippery sentiments. I feel misplaced, misguided, and my feet continue to fumble. I struggle with intimacy and the white lies I swallow. I walk with expectations that I can’t see and standards that I can’t comprehend. I ignore my swirling instincts and lackadaisical intuition. I camouflage my fears with sophomoric humor and childish innuendos. I cough up resentment on a daily basis.
I wear my pride like a tattoo with animosity sewn to my arms. I am slightly dysfunctional and walk with a scorched tongue. I have an appetite to be understood than loved. Love is just a mirror that shatters over and over. Affection is just an object that we all hunger.
I wiped away the frustration from my eyes and see myself residing in the winter’s scream. Please don’t hold me, just reach in to breathe in my cold air.
My books are available here.
Bitter Honey

Bitter Honey
Bitter honey, the aftertaste is drowning
the affection once pure turns into ink
Disjointed and spots of spite stick to
my worn-down tongue, I dwell inside
I lost my existence but found my shadow
I lost my fears but found my perspective
I lost my pride but found my character
Even in the despair, the calm was burning
Bitter honey, the aftermath is devastating
the devotion once concrete crumbles
Frail and specks of turmoil rushes down
my frightened throat, I wallow inside
I lost my independence but found my direction
I lost my truth but discovered the lies
I lost my innocence but gained my wisdom
Even in the melancholy, the silence was light
Bitter honey, the afterthoughts are distant
the tenderness once snug is crippled
Cracked and traces of sorrow drip from my
serenading eyelashes, I cringe inside
I lost my thirst but found my hunger
I lost my laughter but found the jester within
I lost my ghosts but found my guardian
Even in the dashed hope, the fall was awakening
My books are available here.
Television is an Empty Prostitute

Television is a disturbance of luster and plentiful
Television is a scandalous invention
Television is a disruptive mechanism clogging
your arteries
Television is a vacuum sucking the cells from your cerebellum
And the imagination crumbled
And the ingenuity succumbs
And she seduces hour by hour
Television is nerve gas crippling your legs and motivation
Television is a apparatus blended with hype and inferior hogwash
Television is a machine gun of information with a steering wheel
Television is a junkyard of contraband with sounds of justification
And the mind evaporates
And the muscles sit
And she seduces hour by hour
Television is a volatile substance with a grin
Television is a crutch with a bomb chained to your feet
Television is a fifty two inch rectangle civilians idolize
Television is a glass religion with no faith
And she seduces hour by hour
My books are available here.
Ceramic Villains

Ceramic Villains
stomach acid
gorges the frame of the picture
ceramic villains
stand in the center of the image
credit card smiles
seek the light of the troubled road
wallets become empty
as they cling to the objects of the room
Love was just a word to deceive
camouflaged tears
reckon within the twitching of souls
charades is not
just a game
but the poison
they drank daily
They laid drunk
in the center of the bed
photographing plastic memories
Love was just a word that they wanted to believe
My books are available here.
Tormented Sea

She bleeds heartbreak like tortured waves
She bleeds drops of hopelessness on her vacant canvas
She bleeds translucent sins and whiplash
She bleeds numbness and savage cuts
Tormented sea, please don’t let me drown
I have a will with armor and a fortress
She bleeds silent lightning and hollow caverns
She bleeds lost yearnings and tainted echoes
She bleeds obscurity with traces of animosity
She bleeds contorted anxiety with frustration stuck in her throat
Tormented sea, please don’t let me drown
I have a fire that won’t be extinguished
She bleeds nightmares with a voice of gnarled wars
She bleeds a cry with torn rainbows and blazing reverberations
She bleeds goodbye with a wailing fizzle
She bleeds into yesterdays with tomorrows screeching
Tormented sea, please don’t let me drown
I have something that you can’t see
My books are available here.
