I used to keep a photo of my father displayed in my campus office. I liked being able to look up from my work, which was sometimes the work of teaching and sometimes my own writing work, and see his face and think of him, as his life and death have been such an engine … Continue reading Wellspring
I'm delighted to announce that my second full-length poetry collection, MOSTLY HUMAN, has won the Wicked Woman Book Prize and will be published by BrickHouse Books in October of 2020! There are no words to express exactly how much I love this book and the weird girl character, Round Baby, who stars in it. It's … Continue reading Round Baby Lives!
I wouldn't call us birders,
The presidential election has been decided and I can hardly bear to speak the name of the person who emerged as the victor. The soaring elation I felt as I walked into the voting booth with my daughter and watched her push the button that recorded our vote for the first woman to run for … Continue reading Calm
If you know me, you know I typically love to celebrate my own birthday. I like to take the day off from work, treat myself to chocolate croissants and espresso for breakfast and let the rest of my doings emerge naturally, in accordance with my whims. Museum? Writing? Nap? Lovely. Delicious dinner with my spouse? … Continue reading Fig. 46
This is a thing my mother would say when she was trying to convey a sense of how she was feeling when there were too many things to do, and all of them demanding her immediate attention. Or, maybe when she observed me or my sister manically scattering our own attention when what we needed … Continue reading Like a Chicken With Its Head Cut Off
New Year's Day. The end of it, actually. I'm sitting in front of a Christmas tree that's lovely but needle-brittle. It has another few days in it, maybe, before we box up the lights and baubles and drag it to the curb. The truth is, I don't know what to say. I feel like I'm … Continue reading Small and New
I'm happy to announce that the wonderful Seven Kitchens Press has launched my poetry chapbook, In This Dream of My Father, and it's available for order now at their website. I have been a fan of the work Ron Mohring does for many years, so it's a special thrill to be featured in his … Continue reading In This Dream of My Father Now Available!
Today is June 20th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and I think I can finally say, with no hesitation, that winter is over. Doesn't the calendar say this happens in late March? Doesn't it feel like it happens in late April or early May? Hasn't it been green here for two solid months already? For the love … Continue reading Putting Away the Winter Clothes
I think I need to put my memoir away for a while. This is not an easy thing to do. When you write a book that you believe in, that you love, you want to do everything you can to see it thrive in the world. There's the writing itself, of course, first. The eight … Continue reading Lay it Fallow
