Every summer, I read the issues of Poets & Writers that I haven’t had the time to read during the school year. (AKA all the issues.) This summer, as I was perusing “5 Over 50” (a favorite with this 59-year-old), I came across debut poet Shareen K. Murayama. When she’s questioning herself as a writer, … Read more
When my friend Mary Helen Stefaniak launches her third novel, The World of Pondside, her April 19th reading will be the first in-person author event I’ve attended at Prairie Lights since COVID. This momentous occasion has led me to reflect on the many readings that have enriched and shaped my life—both professionally and personally. Professionally, … Read more
This past Friday, I laughed hard and thought hard at Prairie Lights. I was part of an enthralled inter-generational crowd listening to Lyz Lenz discuss her debut book, God Land: A Story of Faith, Loss, and Renewal in Middle America. The book combines the personal and the political. Lenz analyzes the cultural work performed by … Read more
How do you make the most an author’s campus visit? How do you lay the groundwork? I’ve pondered these questions since I started teaching at Mount Mercy 26 years ago, back when my friend and colleague, the poet and essayist Jim McKean, directed our Visiting Writers Series. The questions have become more important to me … Read more