I’ve been scatterbrained this week. Between my daughter’s fourth birthday party and a new website at work, I haven’t had much time to write, read, or even listen to stories. But I did want to share some of my favorite poetry I’ve come across recently.

I’ve mostly been concentrating on speculative poetry these days. Honestly, I see myself getting deeper into spec poetry. After my Frankenstein collection, I feel the urge to explore science fiction and horror poetry. Of course, I will still write occasional contemporary verses, but you can expect to see more speculative poetry from me in the future.

As a hint of what to expect, you can check out my latest publication in January’s Star*Line. (Although you’ll have to pick up the print version).

However, moving onto other people’s poetry that I adored and is freely available online!

A Bit of Contemporary Weird

I loved the poem Bird by Crystal Ignatowski in the latest issue of Barren Magazine. I’m not sure if I would quite put this in the speculative umbrella. Barren is a literary magazine (not a speculative publication) but some of their darker pieces definitely border on the weird in that they deal with psychological metaphors that come into our realities. I feel this piece definitely does so. The bird metaphor is so strong that it becomes reality.

I’ve had a thing for black birds this past year. Ravens and crows, mostly, but also magpies. This made me particularly partial to this poem. Also the way each stanza turns, spiraling deeper and deeper into this depression, is amazing.

The Mythical and Modern

Old myths never seem to die. I feel like every generation will discover the old gods and write them anew, molding them to fit our current reality. One of my favorite myths is that of Medusa, so I love almost all retellings involving her. There are a lot of them. Seems she is the spokeswoman for angry women everywhere.

Medusa Gets a Haircut by Theodora Goss was in the latest Uncanny, and I loved the intimate tone of it. Also, I loved bringing personality to the snakes. It gives another layer to the story that I haven’t considered before. I think this poem is about a wisp of hope for new beginnings, and I think that’s something we can all use right now.

And that’s all I have for this week. I hope you take the time to really savor these poems, and let me know what you think about them. Did you love them as much as I do?