As someone who primarily writes prose, I rarely compose poems. (I don’t count the scores of rhyming verses I’ve written for birthdays, retirements, get-well wishes, and other events.) However, after submitting two poems in 2023 (my first poetry submissions ever), and having both accepted, I’ve added a page for POEMS to my website. More importantly, I’ve decided to write and submit more. Thanks to my fellow writers and journal editors for the encouragement!
Title: Carl and Carla
Publication: The Weekly Avocet, April 05, 2026, #696
Log line: The poem “Carl and Carla,” about the cardinal couple who winter over in my burning bush, ponders leaving “advanced care directives” not only for ourselves, but also “nature directives” for the plants and animals in our environment.
Journal: The Avocet
Title: Snappily Ever After
Publication: Anna Karenina Isn’t Dead: An Anthology (2024)
Log line: Anna Karenina Isn’t Dead: An Anthology imagines better endings for women who have been ignored, vilified, or otherwise mistreated in literary works. “Snappily Ever After,” is a series of limericks lauding the many maligned females in fairy tales and classic children’s books.
Publisher: Improbable Press
Title: Dripless
Publication: Quill & Parchment (December 2023)
Log line: A poem about candle wax on a Chanukah menorah becomes a metaphor for how different members of a family respond to life’s daily detritus.
Journal: Quill & Parchment