Tag: books

Saying Goodbye to the Rollercoaster Year of 2025

The year 2025 will always stand out in my memory for being a year of extremes. It was a year where survival was on my mind more than once. I live in an environment downwind from the Rocky Mountains. We have had extreme winds and some fires. The overall temperature this year has been higher than usual, so it is dry. I keep the car full of gas and a suitcase packed in case there are orders to evacuate. Fortunately, before Christmas, a friend sent a gorgeous and huge white poinsettia to cheer me up. Christmas Eve was lovely as I spent it with friends. And, it was a relief to have snowfall on December 29th.

On the personal level, I have had a good year. I have enjoyed meeting with my various groups. I have particularly enjoyed participating in the Columbine Poets because my knowledge and understanding of poetry have expanded. I have enjoyed hosting the BWA Poetry Circle because I have met a diverse group of poets. Additionally, I even managed to submit a poem to a poetry contest. I recently facilitated a workshop on Goal Setting for Writers at the local library and connected with an interesting group of writers.

I always spend the dead time between Christmas and New Year’s working on my goals for the upcoming year. This year, I will focus on a specific poetic form each month and practice learning to write each of the forms. I will also write about the forms in this blog. I will work on sonnets in January, ghazal in February, villanelle in March, ode in April, elegy in May, sestina in June, tanka in July, sijo in August, ballad in September, haiku in October, rondeau in November, and finally the cinquain in December.

My Writing Goals for 2026

  1. Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

BWA Poetry Circle: The December Poetry Circle featured Julie Cummings. She focused on how to write a contrapuntal poem. The workshop was well attended and attendees wrote drafts of original contrapuntal poems.

Cannon Mine Poets Group: Valorie Szarek presented on her new book and played music with some friends during the meeting in December.

  • Continue to make progress on my draft novels: 

Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): No progress

Finish my second novel (G):   No progress

Continue to work on my third novel (PW):  No progress

  • Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing: 

Boulder Writers Alliance: I missed the Happy Hour in December.

Columbine Poets: I attended three meetings in December. Unfortunately, I missed the holiday party.

  • The Sonnet: A sonnet is a poem of 14 lines. Sonnets are often written in iambic pentameter and have a specific rhyme scheme, but vary in slight ways. Shakespearean sonnets differ from Petrarchan sonnets. A Shakespearean sonnet typically has three quatrains, that is, four-line stanzas that develop a theme or a problem. A Shakespearean sonnet concludes with a two-line couplet which may conclude with a summary, a resolution, or a shift in perspective known as a “volta” or a “turn.”

Example of Shakespearean Sonnet

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date;

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;

Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:

    So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

    So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Example of Shakespearean Sonnet

A Petrarchan (or Italian) sonnet is a 14-line poem in iambic pentameter, split into an eight-line “octave,” which uses the rhyme sequence ABBAABBA and presents a problem. The octave is followed by a six-line “sestet,” which may rhyme CDECDE or CDCDCD and offers a resolution to the problem.

Example of a Petrarchan Sonnet

She ruled in beauty o’er this heart of mine,
A noble lady in a humble home,
And now her time for heavenly bliss has come,
’Tis I am mortal proved, and she divine.
The soul that all its blessings must resign,
And love whose light no more on earth finds room
Might rend the rocks with pity for their doom,
Yet none their sorrows can in words enshrine;
They weep within my heart; no ears they find
Save mine alone, and I am crushed with care,
And naught remains to me save mournful breath.
Assuredly but dust and shade we are;
Assuredly desire is mad and blind;
Assuredly its hope but ends in death.

    Taking Time to Be Thankful

    November is a special month for me because it is my birthday month, thus a time of celebration. This year, friends and I feted the occasion with champagne and hazelnut cake. And, of course, Thanksgiving Day is one of my favorite days of the year. To consciously honor those we love, and our country in general, is a wholesome act. It warms our own hearts and the hearts of those around us. Gathering with family and friends over a sumptuous turkey dinner with dressing, mashed potatoes, and gravy, delicious side dishes, and pecan or pumpkin pie is a comfort and a pleasure. While the temperature outdoors descends, the warmth rising around us is palpable.

    During November this year, I was busy writing a paper. I belong to a group in which members present a bi-annual 35-minute talk. Since I am becoming more involved in the local poetry community, I chose to write about five women poets: Ann Bradstreet (1612–1672), Phillis Wheatley 1753–1784, Edna St Vincent Millay (1892–1950), Louise Glück (1943–2023), and A. E. Stallings (1968–present). The only one I had previously studied was Edna St. Vincent Millay. Researching their lives and work was very satisfying. Understanding their personal reactions to the periods in which they lived made me think deeply about my own education (which certainly could have contained more information about talented women) and my own path through life. I gave my talk, “Spotlight on Five American Women Poets,” on Zoom for the group on December 4, 2025.

    Now that it is December, I am enjoying a gorgeous white poinsettia that a friend sent me, the blossoming of holiday lights around town, the bustle of people shopping on the mall, and joining friends for holiday brunches. A highlight of this past week was local poet Valerie Szarek’s CD release party and sobriety celebration on December 4th at the Junkyard Social. It was a truly heartwarming event resplendent with poetry, flutes, drums, and singing. If you are interested, you can check out Valerie’s website: https://poetval.com/poems/

    I wish all my readers a Happy Holiday Season and a Wonderful New Year!

    My Writing Goals for 2025

    1.  Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

    BWA Poetry Circle: I hosted the BWA Poetry Circle in November. Veronica Patterson presented on: Where in the World? Veronica Patterson received Individual Artist Fellowships from the Colorado Council of the Arts in 1984 and 1997 and has had residencies at the Ucross Foundation, Hedgebrook, and Rocky Mountain National Park. Veronica is a graduate of Cornell University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Northern Colorado. She also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Warren Wilson College. Veronica was named as the first Poet Laureate of Loveland, Colorado, in 2019 for a two-year term. Her books include: Sudden White Fan, & it had rained, Thresh & Hold, Swan, What Shores?, How to Make a Terrarium, and others. Her reading was engaging, and a good discussion followed. Then, she suggested that we write a poem about how to do, fix, or cook something. Here is the poem I wrote during the session:

    How to Tame a Squirrel

    First, put a drink on the deck table.

    Next, add a plate of crackers.

    Don’t forget a napkin.

    Select a chair facing the lawn and trees.

    Sit quietly at the table.

    Watch patiently.

    When you see a squirrel, take a cracker and munch it.

    Drop a square of cracker on the deck.

    Don’t move.

    Don’t blink.

    Oh no, you blinked, the cracker is gone.

    Columbine Poets: I attended four Saturday meetings of the Columbine Poets. I enjoyed Anita Jepsen’s presentation on “Spanish Language Poets”. The online Zoom presentation on the rondeau form led by Lynne McNamara was exceptionally well done. I wrote my second rondeau. Ricardo J. Bogaert-Alvarez presented a workshop on the Romantic Tanka, which was fun and informative. I also attended an online Zoom Critique Group and received helpful feedback on my work.

    Cannon Mine Poets Group: I did not attend the Cannon Mine Poets group this month.

    • Continue to make progress on my draft novels: 

    Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): I identified the “mirror moment” and developed a new idea.

    Finish my second novel (G):  I identified the “mirror moment.”

    Continue to work on my third novel (PW): I thought about where I could place a “mirror moment.”

    • Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing: 

    Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended the BWA Happy Hour and enjoyed the conversation. I also hosted a luncheon for the changing of the guard as the Steering Committee will have new members. This is my last month as president of BWA, and the vice president’s last year as VP. Our replacements are perfect for the organization, and I wish them success in their endeavors. I will continue to host the BWA Poetry Circle monthly on Zoom.

    Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter.

    Women Writing the West:  I watched some conference sessions online. I particularly enjoyed the presentation by James Scott Bell on the “mirror moment.”

    • Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

    Today is December 7, 2025. I am posting my twelfth blog for this year. It is hard to believe that another year has passed. My personal 2025 has been filled with friends and surprises. Having set myself the goal of being engaged in local literary circles, I can happily state that I attended many writing and poetry events, met new writers and poets, and produced new work. I look forward to the New Year and plan to write new goals for 2026.

    For this December blog, I discovered the following Thomas Hardy poem. It uses exquisite words and images and alternating eight and six-syllable lines. My favorite line of the poem is “In blast-beruffled plume”.

    A Poem for December

    The Darkling Thrush

    By Thomas Hardy

    I leant upon a coppice gate

    When Frost was spectre-grey,

    And Winter’s dregs made desolate

    The weakening eye of day.

    The tangled bine-stems scored the sky

    Like strings of broken lyres,

    And all mankind that haunted nigh

    Had sought their household fires.

    The land’s sharp features seemed to be

    The Century’s corpse outleant,

    His crypt the cloudy canopy,

    The wind his death-lament.

    The ancient pulse of germ and birth

    Was shrunken hard and dry,

    And every spirit upon earth

    Seemed fervourless as I.

    At once a voice arose among

    The bleak twigs overhead

    In a full-hearted evensong

    Of joy illimited;

    An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small,

    In blast-beruffled plume,

    Had chosen thus to fling his soul

    Upon the growing gloom.

    So little cause for carolings

    Of such ecstatic sound

    Was written on terrestrial things

    Afar or nigh around,

    That I could think there trembled through

    His happy good-night air

    Some blessed Hope, whereof he knew

    And I was unaware.

    Expanding One’s Understanding of Poetry

    This month, I read a wonderful book by Helen Vendler (1933-2024), Inhabit the Form, which I recommend to anyone who is drawn to writing poetry. Dr. Vendler held the title A. Kingsley Porter University Professor at Harvard University. She was interested in the two indispensable constituents of lyric poems: originality and the embodiment of feelings. In the book, she discusses poets from Yeats to Ocean Vuong.

    At my local level, I continue to be involved in multiple poetry groups. I continue to explore books on writing poetry. I am currently exploring how to write different forms of poems. And I continue to read at open mics when I have the opportunity.

    My Writing Goals for 2025

    1. Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        Bardic Trails: The Talking Gourds/Bardic Trails is a monthly Zoom presentation of poets, followed by an open mike, which is broadcast from Telluride, Colorado. On November 4, Bardic Trails featured Beth Franklin, who read from her work. The following open mic session was excellent.

        Colorado Poetry Center: Each month, Beth Franklin, the director of the Colorado Poetry Center, hosts poetry readings at the Boulder Book Store. In October, Juan Morales read from his newest book, Dream of the Bird Tattoo. Michelle Battiste, whose The Elsewhere Oracle was just published, handed out oracle cards and read oracles for the audience. Both readings were impressive.

        Columbine Poets: The Columbine Poets hold four regular meetings each month, two in-person sessions where a poet reads or someone presents, and two online meetings that are critique sessions. The critique group was helpful with a poem I submitted. I attended the meeting in Lafayette to do a send-off for Diane Rex, who is moving to Nice. Julie Cummings was there. On October 18, I attended a tanka workshop led by Ricardo J. Bogaert-Alvarez. I enjoyed my first attempt at writing in the tanka form and wrote several. On October 25, I attended the Columbine Poets workshop led by Julie Cummings. And, on November 1, I attended the Zoom critique group. Members provide excellent suggestions for improving our work.

        Cannon Mine Poets: Abby Seber is now hosting the Cannon Mine Poets group in Lafayette. This month, Julie Cummings, who is a past President of the National Federation of State Poetry Societies and past President of Columbine Poets of Colorado, read from her work. Her book of poetry, Ride of My Life, is available on her website: https://juliecummingspoetry.com/store and on Amazon.

        2. Continue to make progress on my draft novels: No progress.

        Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): No progress.

        Finish my second novel (G): No progress.

        Continue to work on my third novel (PW): No progress.

        3. Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing: 

        Boulder Writers Alliance:  I hosted the BWA Poetry Circle in October. Our speaker was Abby Seber, who presented on the recently deceased poet, Andrea Gibson. Participants also each wrote a new poem and read their new poems aloud.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter.

        Women Writing the West: I enjoyed the online conference in October and read the winning short story.

        4.  Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is November 7, 2025. I am posting my eleventh blog for this year. As I was searching for a poem to include this month, I realized that many writers view November from a bleak perspective. Personally, November has always been one of my favorite months. I find the fall weather invigorating and the reds, oranges, and yellows of fall stunning against our blue Colorado skies. Plus, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. May we all have something to be thankful for this year!

        A Poem for November

        My November Guest

        Robert Frost, 1874 –1963

        My sorrow, when she’s here with me,
             Thinks these dark days of autumn rain
        Are beautiful as days can be;
        She loves the bare, the withered tree;
             She walks the sodden pasture lane.

        Her pleasure will not let me stay.
             She talks and I am fain to list:
        She’s glad the birds are gone away,
        She’s glad her simple worsted grey
             Is silver now with clinging mist.

        The desolate, deserted trees,
             The faded earth, the heavy sky,
        The beauties she so truly sees,
        She thinks I have no eye for these,
             And vexes me for reason why.

        Not yesterday I learned to know
             The love of bare November days
        Before the coming of the snow,
        But it were vain to tell her so,
             And they are better for her praise.

        Blood Moon

        My love and attraction for the full moon have always been a part of me. Over the course of about three years, I published two books of poetry about the moon: Moon Chimes and Moonglow (available on Amazon). Both were based on projects that I set for myself. Over the period of two different years, each evening during the full moon, I drove to a hill above my city to watch the full moon rise and soar in the sky. Each poem was inspired by my observations on each evening.

        Today, there is a total lunar eclipse, which is sadly not visible from the United States. This particular eclipse is being called a “Blood Moon.” An eclipse occurs when the Earth passes directly between the sun and the full moon, casting its shadow on the moon. With an extraordinarily long and reddish 83-minute totality phase, this eclipse will be visible from Antarctica, Europe, Africa, Madagascar, Asia, and the western Pacific Ocean. So, if you are reading my blog from any of those regions, I hope you step out into the dark to view it.

        The occurrence of this exceptional eclipse inspired me to investigate the meaning of the word “eclipse.” Being a word smith, I enjoy expanding my knowledge of etymology and meaning. “Eclipse” derives from the Greek verb ekleipein (to leave, to fail to appear), formed from ek- (“from” or “out”) and leipein (“to leave”). “Eclipse” has three essential meanings. The standard meaning of the word is the “obscuring of the light from one celestial body by the passage of another between it and the observer or between it and its source of illumination.” (Merriam-Webster). The literary meaning is “losing or having lost significance, power, or prominence.” (Merriam-Webster) And, the third meaning is ornithological and defines the fading of feathers on some birds: “Eclipse plumage is the dull, female-like non-breeding plumage that male ducks and some other birds wear temporarily after the breeding season to camouflage themselves during a simultaneous molt of their flight feathers, which renders them flightless and vulnerable to predators.” (Merriam-Webster). The verb “eclipse” thus can be used to mean “surpass,” “exceed,” “top,” or “better,” while the noun is the synonym of “declination,” “deterioration,” “decline,” “degradation,” or “descent.” (Merriam-Webster)

        The origins and meanings of words fascinate me because so many of our abstract uses of words come directly from the concrete world, which we observe on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. So, my wish for myself and for you for this month is that we shine brightly, that no one or nothing obscures our light, that our reputations remain admirable, that our hair color does not fade, that our positive expectations are exceeded, and that we suffer no decline. Have a wonderful month of September!

        My Writing Goals for 2025

        1.     Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        Bardic Trails: The Talking Gourds/Bardic Trails is a monthly Zoom presentation of poets, followed by an open mic, which is broadcast from Telluride, Colorado. The beloved poet Art Goodtimes is the host. This month, the featured poet was Pete Anderson, author of Riding the Wheel, Reading Colorado, Heading Home— Field Notes, and First Church of the Higher Elevations.

        Columbine Poets: Columbine Poets meets on Saturday mornings—sometimes in person and sometimes on Zoom. In August, Lynne McNamara presented a useful in-person session on the rondeau. One week, Anita Jepson Gilbert presented on the work of Naomi Shibab Nye on Zoom. On August 30, I presented an in-person session on Charles Baudelaire and his poems from Les Fleurs du Mal and Le Spleen de Paris.

        Cannon Mine Poets: The Cannon Mine Poets group in Lafayette in August featured a group of poets: Abigail Seber, MD Friedman, Valerie A Szarek, and Naomi Horii in an inspiring presentation that combined poetry and music.

        2.  Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): No progress.

        3.  Finish my second novel (G): No progress.

        4.  Continue to work on my third novel (PW): No progress.

        5.  Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing: I continue to enjoy logging on each month to Bardic Trails and attending poetry readings, one arranged by Beth Franklin at the Boulder Bookstore and the other hosted by Larry LaVerdure in Lafayette. I have also learned a tremendous amount about how to write and read poetry in the Columbine Poets group since I joined. The critique groups are quite useful, and the presentations are excellent.

        Boulder Writers Alliance:  As president, I attended and hosted our August Social at Chautauqua. I also attended a Zoom presentation by Terry Mark, who writes The Vim Hood Chronicles.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter.

        Women Writing the West: I am looking forward to the online conference on October 17–18, 2025.

        6.  Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is September 7, 2025. I am posting my ninth blog for this year. August was a pleasant month weather-wise where I live. My flower garden is splendid. And, I have been involved in poetry groups, presented on Baudelaire, and attended both in-person and online poetry presentations. As Voltaire commented, “Il faut cultiver notre jardin.”

        A Poem for September

        September

        By Lucy Maud Montgomery

        Lo! A ripe sheaf of many golden days

        Gleaned by the year in autumn’s harvest ways,

        With here and there, blood-tinted as an ember,

        Some crimson poppy of a late delight

        Atoning in its splendor for the flight

        Of summer blooms and joys—

        This is September.

        Changing Traditions

        When I was young, summer vacation began with Memorial Day and ended after the celebration of Labor Day. We had a full three-month period to enjoy the beauty, freedom, and warmth of summer. The following nine months were devoted to school and school activities, with, of course, skiing thrown in when there was enough snow to cover the ski hill. But I remember with a smile all the summer days I spent riding my horse around the large valley we lived in, heading for the hot springs to relax and swim afterwards, and the beautiful, long evenings with the sunset painting our surrounding mountains various shades of rose, orange, and red.

        Today, in the city in which I live, students are heading back to school on August 13 or 14th —depending on their age group. I am always surprised when, in August, I see families loading up their cars with school supplies and school clothes late in July and the first week of August. My heart feels a tug for the young people who are deprived of the beauty and warmth of the lovely month of August. Rather than being outdoors, they will be inside, in an air-conditioned room. Fortunately, they will have some after-school activities. But, when Labor Day arrives, they will be thinking, labor has already started for us!

        Even our local university now opens its doors and “fall” classrooms in August, with Open Enrollment beginning on August 14. Amazingly, this year the university’s final exam week begins on December 6, 2025. While I spent most of my life as an academic, I wonder if some of these students sometimes yearn for a free month of August in which they could relax, vacation, and spend most of their time outdoors, with school openings beginning after Labor Day.

        My Writing Goals for 2025

        1.     Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        Bardic Trails: The Talking Gourds/Bardic Trails is a monthly Zoom presentation of poets, followed by an open mic, which is broadcast from Telluride, Colorado. The beloved Art Goodtimes is the host. On August 5, 2025, David Mason and Cally Conan-Davies presented an amazing array of poems.

        The Colorado Poetry Center: Beth Franklin, the director of the Colorado Poetry Center, offers an in-person, monthly session at the Boulder Bookstore. In July, Alysse McCanna and Jackie White read poems from their work.

        Columbine Poets: In July, I attended a critique session and a workshop on Naomi Shihab Nye led by her friend, Anita Jepson-Gilbert. I also Zoomed into a special session to celebrate the life and work of Andrea Gibson, the Colorado Poet Laureate, who died in July from ovarian cancer at the age of 49. Although it was not sponsored by Columbine Poets, some others from our group and I attended a workshop called Po-Open the Doors & Windows: Revising for More Air, Illumination, Hospitality, which was led by Marj Hahne.

        Cannon Mine Poets: The Cannon Mine Poets group in Lafayette is hosted by Larry LaVerdure, but I was unable to attend in July.

        2.    Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): I worked on rearranging and editing using my spreadsheet to help me clarify my timeline.

        3.    Finish my second novel (G): Nothing accomplished here.

        4.    Continue to work on my third novel (PW): I worked a bit on this novel during a BWA workshop on writing a climax.

        5.    Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        Boulder Writers Alliance:  I attended our July happy hour. We also had an officer’s lunch at Chautauqua and met with the manager who is setting up our August Social, which includes a bar and hors d’oeuvres. Additionally, I attended our Writers Who Read group summer gab fest hosted by Gary Alan McBride. Gary is in the process of publishing a book on his method of literary analysis that he calls Literary Forensics. I also attended a BWA online workshop led by Professor Kika Dorsey Kiko, who discussed different approaches to writing a climax.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter.

        Women Writing the West: I registered for the online conference.

        6.  Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is August 7, 2025. I am posting my eighth blog for this year. Summer in Colorado has been pleasant, allowing time for writing, going out, and attending outdoor activities. I particularly enjoyed attending the Colorado Music Festival. Composer Michael Abels’ Amplify, co-commissioned by the festival, opened the program, which then featured a splendid performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony conducted by Director Peter Oundjian, with performances by soprano Lauren Snouffer, mezzo-soprano Abigail Nims, tenor Issachah Savage, bass Benjamin Taylor, and the St. Martin’s Chamber Choir.

        A Poem for August

        August

        By Helen Hunt Jackson (1830–1885)

        Silence again. The glorious symphony
        Hath need of pause and interval of peace.
        Some subtle signal bids all sweet sounds cease,
        Save hum of insects’ aimless industry.
        Pathetic summer seeks by blazonry
        Of color to conceal her swift decrease.
        Weak subterfuge! Each mocking day doth fleece
        A blossom, and lay bare her poverty.
        Poor middle-agèd summer! Vain this show!
        Whole fields of golden-rod cannot offset
        One meadow with a single violet;
        And well the singing thrush and lily know,
        Spite of all artifice which her regret
        Can deck in splendid guise, their time to go!

        The Benefits of Participating in a Critique Group

        Over the last several years, I have been a member of Women Writing the West which hosts an annual conference each year. I am looking forward to the online conference this October 2025. The title of the conference is From Quill to Keyboard. The online conference offers two days of workshops and networking opportunities. WWW also offers the Willa Literary Award, the Laura Short Fiction Award, and the Downing Journalism Award. Additionally, the organization has an active listserv on which members share ideas and advice. The group also organizes critique groups. I have participated in one for a few years.

        Our WWW critique group began with four participants who were writing drafts of their novels. Eventually, this group devolved into just two of us, who have continued to work together on our drafts. We meet monthly on Zoom with the expectation that we will each provide about 2000 words for critique. The benefits I have derived are multiple. First, having a monthly critique meeting ensures that I will keep up with my writing in a steady fashion. Secondly, I have learned a lot from my partner who has already published two novels. And, thirdly, I feel that our regular meetings have provided personal as well as professional support—in fact, we have become long-distance friends.

        Recently, I joined a poetry organization, Columbine Poets of Colorado, which offers a workshop and a critique group each month. The meetings have from four to eight participants. The participants are experienced poets and share helpful feedback and encouragement. What I have found is that listening to the types of feedback given and to who pays attention to what and how they express their opinion is teaching me about poetry in ways that are novel to me. Regarding the feedback that I have received personally, I value the fact that it points me to a need for careful research on the topics about which I am writing. It also expands my awareness of how I might select topics and forms.

        While participating in a critique group can be helpful, it is important to consider which benefits you would like to incur from participation. First, identify which aspects or forms of your writing you would like to submit for a group review. Next, you might want to identify opportunities through local writing groups, think about whether you might prefer an in-person or online group, select a group that you think will meet your needs, and study how to provide useful and effective feedback. For example, check out a variety of books that have been published about critique groups. And, last, upon joining the group and participating in it for an appropriate amount of time, evaluate its effectiveness for you and for the other members.

        My Writing Goals for 2025

        1.     Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        Bardic Trails: The Talking Gourds/Bardic Trails is a monthly Zoom presentation of poets, followed by an open mic, which is broadcast from Telluride, Colorado. The well-loved Art Goodtimes is the host. On July 1, the speaker was Black Atticus (Joseph Woods), who is serving as the current Poet Laureate (2023-2025) of Knoxville, Tennessee. His poetry includes rap and spoken-word performances.

        The Colorado Poetry Center: Beth Franklin, the director of the Colorado Poetry Center, offers an in-person, monthly session at the Boulder Bookstore. In June 2025, the CPC featured Emily Perez and Aimee Herman. Emily Pérez is the author of What Flies Want—winner of the Iowa Prize and a finalist for a Colorado Book Award; House of Sugar, House of Stone; and two chapbooks. She is co-editor of the anthology, The Long Devotion: Poets Writing Motherhood. Aimee Herman is the author of the young adult fiction novel Everything Grows, which won the Forward Reviews 2019 Silver Award for Best Young Adult Fiction. Aimee has also published two books of poetry: to go without blinking and meant to wake up feeling.

        Columbine Poets: In June, I attended a Saturday workshop with the Columbine Poets led by Julie Cumming that focused on a deep dive into writing a villanelle—a form I had tried before. The workshop was excellent and improved my understanding of the form. I also submitted a poem and attended a critique group on July 5th.

        Cannon Mine Poets: The Cannon Mine Poets group in Lafayette is hosted by Larry LaVerdure and in June featured Douglas Jackson who had mentorships with the poets Yakshi Vadeboncoeur and Will Staple in Camptonville, California. Doug writes about his wanderings in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the Mojave Desert, and the Rocky Mountains. I admired his work and his style of reading aloud.

        Naropa Poetry Readings: In June, Naropa holds the Summer Writing Program. I attended readings by both students and visiting faculty on different evenings.

        2.    Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): Nothing accomplished.

        3.    Finish my second novel (G): Nothing accomplished.

        4.    Continue to work on my third novel (PW): Nothing accomplished.

        5.    Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended our monthly happy hour. I also enjoyed Gary Alan McBride’s Writers Who Read session in which we discussed Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe—a book that merits an attentive read.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers: I read the newsletter.

        Women Writing the West: I registered for the upcoming online conference. Our critique group did not meet.

        6.  Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is July 7, 2025. I am posting my seventh blog for this year. Boulder has had an unusually rainy May and June, thus the foothills and surrounding areas have been a vibrant dark green. I live in a beautiful area for hiking and being outdoors. As I watch the news of devastating storms and floods across the nation and the world, my goal of lowering my personal carbon footprint becomes stronger. I drive as rarely as possible and I haven’t flown anywhere for about five years.

        A Poem for July

        The Hunter

        By William Carlos Williams (1883–1963)

        In the flashes and black shadows
        of July
        the days, locked in each other’s arms,
        seem still
        so that squirrels and colored birds
        go about at ease over
        the branches and through the air.

        Where will a shoulder split or
        a forehead open and victory be?

        Nowhere.
        Both sides grow older.

        And you may be sure
        not one leaf will lift itself
        from the ground
        and become fast to a twig again.

        Living and Blogging in Distressing Times

         

        Each of us is an individual. Most of us have a devoted family. We have close friends. We belong to groups and organizations that we love. Personally, at the family level in the last two years, I have lost the three people closest to me which has been heartrending and leaves me with no one whom I can talk to at any minute I so choose. At the friendship level, I am in a book club that I started with a friend several decades ago. Our group, which has been meeting on Zoom since the Covid lockdown, is an intimate and supportive group of women. We all know each other’s life stories and have known each other’s partners and children as well. For this group who loves to read and discuss literature, I am thankful. I am in another women’s group in which one year we host and the following year we present a paper. The papers expand my knowledge into areas that are often unknown to me. As a professional, I have participated in several organizations. Thus, I have a strong professional network of individuals that I can trust and talk to about many different issues.

         Currently, I am a member of the Boulder Writers Alliance which provides around ten different activities for members each month. The group is fascinating in that the age span of men and women involved varies from the twenties to the eighties. We have a book discussion group, a meet for drinks and dinner to continue the discussion group, a poetry group, a happy hour group, several critique groups, and several silent writing groups. Participating in groups that have a focus on writing is a fulfilling activity for me as I learn so much from the others.

        Family, friends, and professional colleagues are a delight in happy times. They provide inspiration, collaboration, and support. Our small and large networks of reliable and likable people are essential to our well-being. Participation and sharing build our skills and our sense of belonging. Remember this, and rely on your, as the French say, “semblables” during the stressful days and months that our nation is encountering as I write this blog.

        My Writing Goals for 2025

        1.  Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets: I forgot to log on to Bardic Trails in February and thus missed the presentation by Wendy Videlock who is the Western Slope Poet Laureate, however, I did read her books. The Colorado Poetry Center monthly readings which feature a poet, have an open mike, and take place at the Boulder Bookstore have been enjoyable. The Boulder Writers Alliance Poetry Circle featured Abigail Seber who has published three full-length books of poetry. Abigail combines physics, painting, and poetry. As for my poetry project goals, I have managed to write one poem each week so far in 2025.

        2.  Finish my first novel and query agents (IW): I met with my critique group and presented a new section.

        3.  Finish my second novel, (G): I did not work on this novel this month.

        4.  Continue to work on my third novel, (PW): I did not work on this novel this month.

        5.  Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        a.  Boulder Writers Alliance:  I attended BWA’s Writers Who Read discussion, led by Gary Alan McBride, of Good Material by Dolly Alderton. The critical content of the discussion was quite knowledgeable. Our January BWA Happy Hour was entertaining. I did not attend a silent writing session this month. I organized the BWA Poetry Circle for both January (which featured Abigail Seber) and February which will feature Brenda Wildrick.

        b.  Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter and various emails.

        c. Women Writing the West: I read the newsletter and attended our critique group.

        6. Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is February 7, 2025. I am posting my second blog for this year. My original positive outlook for 2025 has been squelched by shocking political events over the last few weeks. As I try to remain calm so that I can focus on my writing, I feel compelled to follow the national news. My advice is: Writers Unite; Take Up the Fight!—but find your compatriots in writers who write for democracy.

        Some Lines from the Poem Bibliography by Nikki Giovanni (1943–2024)

        There is a bat

        In Chile named

        Micronyteris giovanniae

        Dr. Robert Baker named it

        After me. He discovered it

        While studying bats

        And thought the big ears

        Were just like me

        Maybe if the bat wrote

        She would be

        A poet

        Radical Acts of Optimism

        I enjoy watching the award shows for cinema—the European Film Awards, the Golden Globes, and the Oscars. Because Emilia Perez won Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Screen Writer, and Best Editing late in 2024 at the European Film Awards, I streamed the film to watch it. It is a powerful story. This week, it was also awarded Golden Globes for Best Musical or Comedy and Best Non-English Language Film, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Original Song. 

        When Jon M. Chu accepted the award for Cinematic and Box Office Success at the Golden Globes for his film, Wicked, he made an inspirational comment that caught my ear, he said, “a radical act of optimism.” For the rest of 2025, I will keep this statement in my awareness and attempt to be a writer who engages in radical acts of optimism.

        What will I be optimistic about? My writing, my life, and the world around me. I noticed recently that I tell myself, “I have to write.” I realized that it sounds like a command, so I will change this statement to “I love to write and I will reserve time to do so.” My life has been quite different over the last two years because of the death of loved ones. This year, I will be more appreciative of all my living loved ones and let them know that I think about them and love them. Given the shift in politics in the world around me, I have wondered what is wrong with average citizens who make terrible choices in elections. This year, I will focus on clarifying traditional democratic values when I can do so.

        My Writing Goals for 2025

        1.  Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets: Attend Bardic Trails, Cannon Mine Poetry, the Colorado Poetry Center events, and the Naropa events. I will also lead the BWA Poetry Circle and write one poem each week.

        2.  Finish my first novel and query agents( IW): Reorganize to clarify the plot and the storyline for each character, write necessary chapters, and edit existing chapters to fit the reorganization.

        3.  Finish my second novel, (G): Reorganize to clarify the plot and the storyline for each character, write necessary chapters, and edit existing chapters to fit the reorganization.

        4.  Continue to work on my third novel, (PW): Reorganize to clarify the plot and the storyline for each character, write necessary chapters, and edit existing chapters to fit the reorganization.

        5.  Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        a.  Boulder Writers Alliance: Attend Writers Who Read, the BWA Happy Hour, at least one silent writing session each month, and organize and lead the BWA Poetry Circle: I attended our first meeting of Gary Alan McBride’s Writers Who Read 2025 which provided a detailed analysis of Kaveh Akbar’s Martyr!

        b.  Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers: Pay dues and follow the newsletter.

        c. Women Writing the West: Attend the online conference and continue to work with our critique group each month.

        6. Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2025:

        Today is January 7, 2025. I am posting my first blog for this year. Despite my concerns about national politics, I am feeling positive and hopeful for 2025—I like the number! I am more comfortable in my own skin than I have ever been. I enjoy my friends and colleagues. I appreciate the wonderful individuals that I have met and worked with this past year and look forward to deepening these relationships. I enjoy the service activities that I accomplish. My knowledge of the local and state-wide poetry world has broadened considerably. The Zoom workshop I lead through the Boulder Writers Alliance Poetry Circle offers the opportunity to meet and collaborate with amazing poets. The other organizations I belong to offer friendship and remarkable connections.

        A Line from an Inspirational Poem

        When I was a high school senior, I represented my school at the State Speech Meet. The poem that I recited from memory was Renascence by Edna St. Vincent Millay—a serious poem for a seventeen-year-old. Here are a few lines from this long poem:

        From Renascence (1917)

        “…I know not how such things can be;
        I only know there came to me
        A fragrance such as never clings
        To aught save happy living things;
        A sound as of some joyous elf
        Singing sweet songs to please himself…”

        May you, my reader, sing happy tunes to yourself throughout the coming year!

        Winter Writing Can Conjure Up an Army of Writers

        What could be more lovely than to sit by a glowing fireplace and write? Maybe sitting by a cheery fireplace and reading while one listens to classical music trilling from the stereo system? As I grow older, nothing seems more perfect to me. Here I sit, cuddled up in a warm soft blanket, my toes tenderly warmed by the radiating warmth of the fire. Nevertheless, I have found it difficult to work on my creative writing lately.

        Even though it has been more than a month since the national elections in the USA, my artistic juices have congealed. I sit down to write a new sentence, a new page, a new chapter, and find myself looking out the window at the gentle falling snow. In frustration, I realize that if I am incapable of creativity, I might as well do some reorganization. I pull up my Xcel spreadsheet and fumble around for a bit—my organizational skills seem to have flown out the window to drift down on a snow-covered bush in the garden. I refuse to pick up my cell phone this evening. I have squandered too much of my life over the past month scrolling to distract myself.

        Instead, I will reflect a bit on what is weighing me down. I have always been a positive, forward-looking person. I have always been confident that I can solve my personal challenges and resolve difficulties with acquaintances. I have always believed in the greater goodness of the United States of America and had confidence that Americans are pleasant and dependable human beings. I have always believed that democracy in our country is as solid as the Rocky Mountains which tower above the area where I live. The outcome of the last election challenges everything in which I have ever believed. Politics has exploded my once-held beliefs into scattered whisps much like a thundering herd of buffalo crush the grass into fragments. As a writer, I feel compelled to “do something.” But I am unsure of what impact I could have in the grand scheme of things. While I have always been an active voter, I have never been a marcher, a demonstrator, or a protestor.

        Will I recover? Will I stabilize? Will I be able to view the horizon of the next four years with hope? I cannot continue to be overwhelmed by gut-level emotions that paralyze my creativity. What can I do to make sure that our democracy holds fast despite the outrage that has occurred against it?

        One step I can take is to express my thoughts through writing. I can clarify, reflect, question what is happening, and search for concrete connections that will sustain me and others. As I write, I imagine forming an army of writers who would join me in our paper protests. Writers who could set the goal of connecting across the nation through the power of writing.

        As Margaret Atwood said, “A word after a word after a word is power.” Imagine what might occur if writers harnessed their powerful words for positive change, for the preservation of democracy, and for the return of normalcy where individuals fill roles for which they are prepared and proficient?

        When I went to bed last evening, I could not fall asleep which is usually an easy slide for me. My thoughts would not stop or calm down. My mind resolutely began an incessant chant, “Writers Unite, Take Up the Fight!” I chuckled to myself and answered, “OK, Subconscious, I guess you are speaking to me.”

        My Writing Goals for 2024

        Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        In November, I attended Larry LaVerdure’s Poetry Party at The Collective in Lafayette. A grant funded the event which included a workshop led by Seth Harris, an open mike for student poets, and three featured poets: Valerie Szarek, Zbass, and M. D. Friedman, as well as treats and a fun discussion during the get-together afterward. I’ve met so many poets over the last two years that I knew many of the attendees and enjoyed chatting with them and learning more about their lives. Plus, the readings were all exceptionally good.

        Sadly, I forgot to log on to Bardic Trails this month.

        Finish my first novel and query agents:

        I worked with my critique group.

        Continue to work on my second novel:

        I talked to a fellow writer about this novel.

        Continue to work on my third novel: 

        I made no progress on this one.

        Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended the BWA Happy Hour in late November. I also attended this past week’s Writers Who Read session with Gary Alan McBride in which we discussed Jesmyn Ward’s Let Us Descend—the emotional level of which matched my own.

        Denver Woman’s Press Club: I read the newsletter but did not attend any meetings.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers: I read the newsletter.

        Women Writing the West: I looked over the new website which is nicely designed.

        Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2024:

        Today is December 7, 2024. I am posting my twelfth blog of 2024. I have now been writing this blog since 2018—a full seven years! I have enjoyed composing my musings about writing, the built-in goal setting which helps me focus and refocus, and having a fixed date for publication, which is the seventh day of each month. While my blog is a way for me to encompass my writing and my goal-setting in a single document, it is also a tool to help me contemplate writing as a profession and a nudge to keep me on track and working at my desk.

        Writers who were born in December that I particularly enjoy:

        Jane Austen, Carlos Castaneda, Willa Cather, Arthur C. Clarke, Joan Didion, Gustave Flaubert, Rudyard Kipling, Edna O’Brien, and James Thurber

        Poets that I admire who were born in December:

        Alfred de Musset, Emily Dickinson, Paul Éluard, Rainer Maria Rilke, Christina Rossetti, and John Greenleaf Whittier

        Creativity in a Stressful Time

        This past month, I have found it difficult to concentrate on my creative writing. I have spent hours listening to talk shows and pundits. I finally resorted to watching all the available versions of Matlock with Kathy Bates in one sitting. The writing, acting, and filming of that series are remarkably good. Kathy Bates’ performance is phenomenal. I was entranced by a TV show for the first time in years.

        Creative writing requires a mind that is rested and not distracted and, in particular, a train of thought that is not interrupted with “What if?” I managed to eke out one short poem in the last few weeks. However, I have not yet written the pages for my November critique group next week. On November 5, I simply sat at my computer and read various weak and unsatisfactory commentaries by various news outlets.

        I keep asking myself: what has gone wrong with education in the USA? Whose voices and whose writing can a wise person follow to understand current affairs? When and where can an everyday citizen be involved in stabilizing our struggling democracy? What can writers do to have an impact? Which kinds of stories can we tell that expand readers’ ability to recognize facts, identify lies, and interpret what they read? How can we help regular readers select reliable sources of information? How can we assure readers that all issues are not divided into “two sides”? How do we prevent division and separation among family members, former friends, and former colleagues? What is the common good that might unite?

        At the moment I have no answers—only questions.

        My Writing Goals for 2024

        Continue to develop my poetry and connections with other poets:

        In October, I attended the excellent Colorado Poetry Center poetry presentation by Kathryn Winograd at the Boulder Bookstore.

        I also participated in a poetry reading with Larry LaVerdure’s group in Lafayette and read one of my recent poems.

        I attended Bardic Trails, a program on the Western Slope, on Zoom. This month it featured two readers from the Navajo Nation: Zoey McKenzie of Las Cruces, New Mexico whose work can be viewed at: https://saaniidotcom.blogspot.com, and Milton Bluehouse, Jr., who is the son of a former Navajo leader and Tribal Chair, a hunter, rancher, and poet. He has worked in tribal, federal, and state inter-governmental relations, including facilitating and mediating multiple Indian Country issues. He has also provided relations training for federal and state agencies, private corporations, and non-governmental organizations.

        Additionally, I invited Bobby Parrot who has published hundreds of poems to read for the BWA Poetry Circle. Bobby’s work can be viewed in various online journals including: https://www.exactingclam.com/contributors/bobby-parrott/

        Finish my first novel and query agents:

        I drafted new pages for my critique group.

        Continue to work on my second novel:

        I talked to another writer about this book.

        Continue to work on my third novel:

        Even though I really liked the new BWA literary critique group, I decided that I could not manage another meeting, nor could I read more manuscripts at this point. So, with regret, I dropped out.

        Continue to develop a network of kindred spirits in the world of writing and publishing:

        Boulder Writers Alliance: I attended the BWA Happy Hour in October and Gary Allen McBride’s group this week in which we had an energetic conversation about Stephen King’s Holly.

        Denver Woman’s Press Club: Our 100th-year celebration was held in October.

        Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:  I read the newsletter and chatted with folks who had attended the conference.

        Women Writing the West: I could not attend the conference because I was sick. It was a big disappointment.

        Document my writing progress through my blog and post it on the seventh day of each month, one blog per month in 2024:

        Today is November 7, 2024. I am posting my eleventh blog of 2024. October was unseasonably warm—I continued to harvest beans and corn from my garden until October 18th. My flower garden lasted until Halloween when we had our first freeze. Our first feathery snowfall covered my garden with snow flowers this week.

        Writers who were born in November that I particularly enjoy:

        Margaret Atwood, Roland Barthes, Fyodor Dostoevsky, André Gide, Nadine Gordimer, Margaret Mitchell, Helen Hooven Santmyer, Mark Twain, Voltaire, and Kurt Vonnegut

        Poets that I admire who were born in November:

        William Blake, Marianne Moore, and Anne Sexton