It’s been quite a #NationalPoetryMonth here, one that ran the gamut. About five minutes after I walked in the door upon returning from the AWP Conference in Portland, I learned that friend and Mat-Su-based poet Julie LeMay had passed away. She was the latest member of the writing community that we’ve lost over the years. […]
Jeremy Pataky | Looking Ahead and Behind During #NPM19 Read More »
Writer Marybeth Holleman is the emcee at our upcoming Mary Oliver Tribute, “Such Deep Love,” which will be held Sunday April, 21, 4-6 PM, 2019 at The Writer’s Block Bookstore & Cafe | 3956 Spenard Rd, Anchorage. Read Marybeth’s appreciation and rememberance of Mary Oliver below: Mary Oliver was not just an American poet; she
Marybeth Holleman | The Chance to Love Everything Read More »
This was originally published last week in the Anchorage Press, the first in a new column there called Yeah Write. April’s half spent, early gulls have been showing up, and the sun is off and running on its night-eating, post-hibernation binge that will last till solstice. Proper spring’s not here yet, but it’s coming on fast. Gravel-crusted
Jeremy Pataky | Once Upon Right Now Read More »
As a poet, I am endlessly fascinated by questions of how to create poetry that has mystery without obscurity, how to be plainspoken without being prosaic. How do we give the reader room for thought but not leave them lost in confusion? This will be the focus of my craft talk later this month. In
Guest Blogger Julie LeMay | Don’t Slam the Door on Your Way Out Read More »
Happy National Poetry Month! In honor of the occasion, I want to share a few books that I’ve read that you may have missed. These three collections stood out for me because of their surprising use of language. The first is Revising the Storm by Geffrey Davis (BOA Editions, 2014). This collection is the winner
Guest Blogger Julie LeMay | Recommended Reads for National Poetry Month Read More »
I laid down in bed early on Saturday, exhausted after a busy but memorable week without enough sleep. Instead of passing right out, though, my mind wouldn’t turn off. There’s plenty on it, lately, but I was surprised when the mental autopilot eventually swiveled to Roethke’s poem “The Waking”. It’s a villanelle that I love
Jeremy Pataky | “I learn by going where I have to go…” Read More »
This year’s National Poetry Month poster showed up in the mail, sent from the Academy of American Poets. It celebrates not just poetry, but “the important and enriching role that letter writing has played in the lives of poets.” It’s a good reminder of that kinship between poems and letters – I think of the correspondences between
Jeremy Pataky | Committed to Memory Read More »
Early August 1985, soon to turn thirty, I arrived in Fairbanks to begin the MFA program in Creative Writing at UAF. I didn’t know anyone in Fairbanks, knew virtually nothing about the program. But earlier that year, in Seattle, amidst a failing relationship, I’d written a short story which seemed so much better than anything
How One Alaskan Started Writing Poems: A Guest Post by Ken Waldman Read More »
You catch a whiff of something on the border of consciousness. A phrase floats into your head and you recognize the voice. A fly buzzes at the windowsill; you wonder what it thinks it’s doing. Usually we dismiss such occurrences. They seem to have no practical use. But the suspicion lingers that these events may
National Poetry Month Begins Friday: A Guest Post by John Morgan Read More »
