Welcome to Kelton Khronicles, the digital canvas where words, images, poetry and prose, intertwine to narrate the vibrant tapestry of life as seen through the eyes of David Kelton Starks.
I am a writer known under the spoken word alias Kelton. Born in 1959 in Cleveland, Ohio, I hail from a family with literary prowess and oratory skills.
My journey into the world of creative expression commenced at the tender age of 15 when I began to capture the essence of his surroundings through Poetry and Prose.
I attribute my early foray into poetry to my father, Walter M. Starks Sr. and my brother John A. Starks, both prolific writers and publishers of books, who instilled in me the belief that I possessed the capacity to craft meaningful verses.
Despite grappling with reading difficulties during my youth, with love and support I was able to nurture a profound love for language and the written word.
My desire is to inspire and contribute in a meaningful way ideas that stimulate dynamic discourse about this journey of life we all share.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, I launched “Notes From the Road” (NFTR) on Facebook to narrate my cycling journeys, which brought me joy amidst restrictions.
NFTR evolved from mere cycling tales to exploring emotional and life themes through my rides.
As restrictions eased, I expanded the content to include cycling across the EU and a non-cycling three-week trip to India, enriching the narrative with my photography passion.
Encouraged by a childhood friend, Leon Seard, I rebranded NFTR to “Kelton Khronicle,” derived from my middle name “Kelton” and a playful twist on the spelling of “Chronicle”, making it more personal.
This rebranding led to creating a dedicated Blog and website, moving away from social media to offer a neutral platform for sharing life experiences, inspiration and entertainment, while also introducing my New Books.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, I launched “Notes From the Road” (NFTR) on Facebook to narrate my cycling journeys, which brought me joy amidst restrictions.
NFTR evolved from mere cycling tales to exploring emotional and life themes through my rides.
As restrictions eased, I expanded the content to include cycling across the EU and a non-cycling three-week trip to India, enriching the narrative with my photography passion.
Encouraged by a childhood friend, Leon Seard, I rebranded NFTR to “Kelton Khronicle,” derived from my middle name “Kelton” and a playful twist on the spelling of “Chronicle”, making it more personal.
This rebranding led to creating a dedicated Blog and website, moving away from social media to offer a neutral platform for inspiration and entertainment, and introducing my New Books.
I began writing poetry when I was 15 and soon developed my poetic voice, recognizing that poetry is a powerful means of self-expression.
My poetry became a tool to articulate my love, joy, frustration, fear, anxiety, dreams, and desires. I realized that writing was something I couldn’t ignore. The words flowed relentlessly, collecting in my soul until they spilled onto the page.
Later, as I joined open mic poetry readings and slams, I discovered the impact of my words in giving voice to others struggling to express their emotions or thoughts.
While I understood the entertainment value in my writing, the most rewarding aspect was the opportunity to inspire.
For me, poetry is the potent elixir of words that captures events, emotions, or experiences too vast to be contained. It is the distillation of a thousand pages into a few verses, making it powerfully wonderful, dangerous, and magical.
It can motivate, expose, reveal, unnerve, disturb, and thrill. It can dance like a leaf on the wind or crash down like an avalanche of boulders. It can ease the pain of loss, the sting of sorrow, and ignite a movement.
A poet’s role, as I see it, is to gather experiences by observing the world around them, distilling those experiences into a potent elixir of words that delight, challenge, and expand the reader’s mind.
A poem begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness
For me, poetry is the potent elixir of words that captures events, emotions, or experiences too vast to be contained. It is the distillation of a thousand pages into a few verses, making it powerfully wonderful, dangerous, and magical.
It can motivate, expose, reveal, unnerve, disturb, and thrill. It can dance like a leaf on the wind or crash down like an avalanche of boulders. It can ease the pain of loss, the sting of sorrow, and ignite a movement.
A poet’s role, as I see it, is to gather experiences by observing the world around them, distilling those experiences into a potent elixir of words that delight, challenge, and expand the reader’s mind.
A poem begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness
My oldest brother, Walter, gave me a camera when I was 22, and I fell in love with photography.
He taught me that photographs are a way to capture the essence of a moment. Truly an amateur, I have been shooting ever since that first day—first on film and then transitioning to the digital format as technology advanced.
Photography now plays a crucial role in helping me tell stories. The images provide a visual experience, allowing my readers to fully immerse themselves in the narrative.
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