Poetry Is Alive and Well

      Judging by the many excellent submissions I've received for possible inclusion in my upcoming anthology, poetry is alive and well in the nation's classrooms.
      Here's an example by eighteen-year-old Kristen Dawn Wilson, a student at Allen County Scottsville High School, Scottsville, Kentucky. Kristen's teacher is Lisa Logsdon. The photograph is by Julia Stein, a recent graduate of Blake High School, Silver Spring, Maryland. Julia's teacher is Kerri Blankenship.

Destroying the Walls

I was trapped there.
Trapped in the nothingness.
Trapped behind the walls
that were built to guard my heart.
I was my own prisoner,
ignoring my own screams,
lost in a fictional land,
trapped in disillusioning dreams.
Last night I awoke
from the fire in my soul,
and each thought fed the flame.
The walls had to go.
With my bare hands.
with my healing heart,
with this new anger,
I tore those damn walls apart.
Now I feel.
Now I weep.
Now I scream.
Now I run.
Now I fly.
Now I escape,
ridding myself of both
sorrow and hate.

        At this writing I've received 103 submissions for possible inclusion in my upcoming anthology, Reflections. If you and/or your students would like to submit work, contact me at hankpix(at)yahoo(dot)com with the words Poetry Guidelines in the subject line of your e-mail. Please don't submit work without having read the guidelines. The deadline for submissions is 10/30/10.

Write What You See

Although my publishing house, Cottonwood Press, has been sold to Prufrock Press, the book is still available at www.amazon.com, elsewhere on the Internet, and in bookstores everywhere. What's more, you can ask your school or public librarian to order it for you.

        Write What You See is a collection of photographs and writing prompts for the classroom. The book presents 99 black and white photographs accompanied by a wide variety of writing prompts to motivate students. In the book I provide not only my own suggestions for using photography in the classroom, but also ideas from real teachers across the country who have used photography successfully to inspire writing. At just $24.95, Write What You See includes a CD-ROM. Order today!