Poetry

Poet of the Month: Lola E. Peters

2017/10/01 — Leave a comment

Almost let this one sneak up on me again—fortunately, I made my decision a few days ago, so it was only a matter of sitting down and actually writing the post.

For this latest entry in my series of tributes to poets I know, I celebrate and acknowledge my friend Lola E. Peters. Her poems and essays have appeared in a number of anthologies, as well as on the Crosscut, Seattle Star, and South Seattle Emerald websites. She has also published two volumes of poems, Taboos and The Book of David, and a book of essays, The Truth About White People. She founded the nonprofit Poetry+Motion, which, over its five-year lifespan, brought together dancers and poets to create ‘new choreography for poems written and performed by local poets’; currently serves on the boards of Leadership Tomorrow, Seattle City Club, and Onyx Fine Arts Collective; and is a long-time member of the African-American Writers’ Alliance (AAWA).

As a poet, Lola has inspired me in two important ways: Continue reading

A better poetry flashback, c. 1980/81

2017/09/29 — Leave a comment

I was capable of writing decent poems back when I was in high school. There is one I would love to post, but I don’t have a copy of it anymore. But I do still remember this one—which may or may not have been published in the University of Washington’s student newspaper, The Daily (I no longer have the copy of that issue, so I don’t remember. I’ve had to guess at the line breaks, but I do recall I favored very short lines at that time…
Continue reading