upcoming poetry readings

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Heather

April is National Poetry Month and I usually arrange to do something poetry-related during it. I encourage you to do the same. Get out of your comfort zone and attend a poetry reading.

I will be reading my poems on Tuesday, April 26th at 7:00 PM in Jackson, MI at Bella Notte Ristorante. I will be joined that evening by the poet, Tom Zimmerman. The event is sponsored by Jackson Community College and is free and open to the public.

I will also participate in a Tribute-on-the-Lawn for poet and and Michigan State University Distinguished University Professor, Diane Wakoski. My friend, Tim, has organized a wonderful “serenade” for Diane on Wednesday, April 27th at 6:00 PM on the Morrill Hall lawn on MSU’s campus in E. Lansing, MI. A group of former students, faculty members and friends will read Diane’s poems to her as she and we celebrate her last official office hours at MSU. The Morrill Hall conference room on the second floor has been reserved in the case of inclement weather. Please join us.

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wtf pwm

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Heather

Two of my poems are now live at the online literary journal wtf pwm. You can view “Night Classes, Life Drawing” and “Salamandrine.” Enjoy.

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Learning to be an athlete

Posted on March 9, 2011 by Heather

I was always a bookish kid, the one picked last (or next to last) for any team in gym class. Through my 20s I kept fit by walking for miles over the campuses where I studied and worked. I thought that athletes weren’t smart and that my natural metabolism would help me keep my figure. I was wrong on both counts. I turn 38 at the end of this month, and for the first time since elementary school I have become an active (almost athletic) person. I started working out at the gym seriously last September, but only recently hired a trainer to help me reach my goals. In addition to St. Paul (the name I secretly call my trainer), I added swimming 2 days a week and plan on adding a dance lesson once per week.

What does any of this have to do with poetry? I’m not certain. But lifting weights, swimming and dancing make me feel inspired. The way I feel inspired when I read my friend Angela‘s sports columns, Rounding Third (sports & poetry) and Project 3B. Ultimately, I am learning to be athletic, which isn’t unlike learning to write poetry.

Beautiful Pastries

At the gym I grill my trainer
about BMI, body fat percentages,
and the correct amount of protein I need to consume daily.

It blows my mind that I have to eat to get lean,
since I used to eat like Persephone—barely enough
to stay this or that side of death.

Lothar used to take me
to all these culinary dives in Detroit:
corned beef between potato latkes,
dill pickle soup in Hamtramck,
catfish posole at Mi Pueblo in Mexicantown.
I was always so afraid to eat.

He said we all have these fights with ourselves.
For him it was also food.
Growing up starving in a German refugee camp
during WWII can do that to you.

Now, instead of a fragile woman
in the mirror at the gym
I view myself as a series of muscles
working toward lean elegance.

The trainer says my body was in starvation mode
and I think that’s an apt description
of how I used to approach love, as well.
The men I craved were like beautiful pastries,
such empty calories.

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Forthcoming publications

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Heather

I’m very happy to note that several of my poems will appear in upcoming issues of Nerve Cowboy, one of my favorite poetry journals. The editors of Nerve Cowboy, Joseph Shields and Jerry Hagins, have generously published my work for the past 10 years. I am extremely grateful for their continued support and the fact that they are so dedicated to publishing new and emerging writers.

I’m also excited that two of my poems will appear in a forthcoming issue of the online journal wtf pwm. This is a cracker jack online journal and I’m pretty excited about my work being accepted there.

Finally, Ramshackle Review (another excellent online journal) has offered to reprint one of my poems, “Russian Style.” The editor, Mark Reep, sent a very thoughtful rejection of three other poems, but mentioned that he’d been to my website and was interested in reprinting “Russian Style.” I’m thrilled to be published by Ramshackle Review and I was delighted that Mr. Reep took the time to visit my site and express interest in my poems.

Appropriate links will be updated once the poems are online and in print. Thanks!

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Welcome

Posted on February 19, 2011 by Heather

Welcome to my website. This is where I’ll post information about my writing, editing, and research projects. Enjoy!

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