Katie's Blog

I know, I know, it's been far too long since I've updated this blog. I'm guilty. Summer wasn't even incredibly busy, so I don't have a great excuse other than the fact that sometimes I just don't have a whole lot to share in terms of my writing progress. That's not even true. During the summer, I completed a brand new poetry manuscript ( Benzene Benedictions) , found a publisher for my collaborative project (yay!), presented at Gemini Ink, and taught a poetic analysis class for the first time. It was a good summer overall--a little stressful because B was furloughed from his work, but he's since found a new job, so we're found a new sort of normal. His new job is in Beaumont, so we're waiting for our lease to finish, and once that does come the new year, I hope we're moved to Beaumont so we can both ditch this nasty commute from Houston (but damn, I really love Houston's poetry scene!). The fall semester has begun, and it's of...

My oh my is this semester flying by or what? Today is my unofficial start of spring break, and it's already been a wild and crazy semester. Somehow, though, a bit miraculously, I've been able to keep my head above that proverbial water. I'm not ridiculously behind with my grading. I feel on track with my teaching. I've traveled to Corpus Christi and to San Angelo. And I'm even ::gasp:: getting a little bit of writing done. Oh, and I'm training for a half marathon, too! I think I'm getting a hold of this whole time management thing. I've been stressed, but not a ridiculous amount of stress, more like just a healthy, "I got this" kind of stress. Good things. So, I thought with this little blogpost today, I thought I'd look back at a few of the significant events I've done so far and give some context and reflections on them. One of my goals this year is to expand my poetry circle. I love the valley, it's true, but I want t...

Last week, I read at a wonderful event, Noche de Palabras, in Brownville. I had such a fantastic time! I was honored to be the featured reader at this event. There we are, all smiles, above. All of the readers! From the bottom left -- Linda Romero, Amy Becker-Chambless, Ana Hinojosa (I think that was her name!), McAllen's new poet laureate, Priscilla Suarez, Roberto de la Tore. On top, from left -- the owner of the cafe!, little old me, Rossy Lima Padilla the event organizer extraordinaire, Julieta Corpus, and Lupita. What a wonderful night! My dad and Bruno joined me, too, so that made it even more fun to have my family there with me.  To be honest, it was one of the better poetry readings I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of. Brownsville is such a lovely town, and it seems as though the people are eager for the arts. And the readers? Fantastic. It was about 50/50 English/Spanish, and the atmosphere was really just inspiring and supportive. I even sold ...

My last few days have been, well, let's just call them adventurous. A cat had kittens in my attic, and said kittens fell into the wall. B took a sledge hammer to the wall, and by some miracle, I found two squeally, scared and hungry little buggers. We've trapped the mom kitty, and she's at the vet clinic right now getting spayed. The next step is finding homes for the little ones.  Anyway, this evening I took a break from my kitten antics and sat down to get to a task I'd been looking forward to for awhile, writing my first blurb for another poet, PW Covington, for his upcoming poetry collection, soon out from Slough Press. PW and I had the briefest of conversation about his project at this year's Valley International Poetry Fest. My first collection, The Garden Uprooted, was with Slough Press, also, so I was delighted to hear he was "joining the family" so to speak. And that's us, pictured to the right. Chris Carmona, editor of Slough Press,...

Ah, yes... It's about that time of the year when my world slows to a halt, when the craziness of busy schedules, to-do lists, and responsibilities go away, and I'm left with no more excuses not to write. It's summer. Today was my first official day of vacation, my first full day. I'm off, for sure, from now until the middle of July, and if my classes summer classes don't make, until the end of August. It's an interesting feeling -- the pressure of work and teaching falls away, but the pressure to write, to produce, to make the most of my time of rest builds up. I can't waste a perfectly good two/three months of writing time, of me time. Last week, I eased into my new writing routine, and it's actually been going pretty well. I'm writing in the mornings and then doing other writer-related business in the afternoons, like editing, submitting, and blogging. It's a pretty good system. So what are my goals for this summer? I don't thin...

So, I had a new experience recently! A photoshoot! Whaat? My thoughts exactly. But it actually was pretty fun. There I am, soaking it all in and getting my goddess on! Here's how it all went down: Last weekend, I had the pleasure of getting interviewed for Beyond Arts Magazine . They cover all the arts events and happenings in the RGV, San Antonio, and Austin. It's actually a pretty nifty little magazine. Anyway, they wanted to do a little story on me and my award/book. Coolness, I say, and agree, not really sure what I was all getting into. The interview goes well enough. I meet with Alyssa, the writer, at a local coffee shop on a Sunday afternoon, and she asks me smart questions about my book, my influences, and feminism. We have a great little chat, and then, as we're about to say our goodbyes, she asks me, "Oh, are you down for a photo shoot a little later in the week? We'll need some pictures for the magazine." In my mi...

Today truly was just a freewrite. I'm beyond busy, which maybe comes across in this poem :-P The prompt was to write a pastoral. I went for a quick walk in my horribly overgrown backyard. I got bit by a few desperate mosquitoes. I saw some hummingbirds battle over the last drops of nectar in the feeder. I destroyed a few spiderwebs with my forehead. Meh. Napo 20 The weeds take over if you let them, Drown out everything you’ve planted Carefully, in a moment when your life Was something less chaotic. No, This isn’t the clean, neat garden You’d planted, complete with herbs, Chocolate mint, tarragon, and sage Growing in their tiny garden boxes, Gardenias, lavender, phlox, blooming In their flower boxes, the fruit trees trimmed to maximize efficiency. No, it’s absolutely overgrown – the rain Kept coming and you were too busy To tend to it, to clip, mow, or weed, And now the garden is beyond repair – Overrun by whatever took root. But somehow, bea...

Today's prompt was to write an erasure poem. I've never done that before, so this was, well, interesting? That's a good word. I took a women's health article about weight loss, and chiseled this nonsense from it: There may be no magic pill for weight loss, but dietician Julie Upton, MS, RD, of Appetite for Health stays on top of the science behind taming your appetite naturally. Here, she deciphers recent research and shares six foods that will keep your appetite in check. Feel like you need some help with hunger management? You're not alone. Most of my clients who struggle with weight loss or maintenance also struggle with hunger. Of course, it's no coincidence — it's hard to walk around feeling famished, particularly when you're faced with the temptation of high-calorie treats everywhere you turn. No wonder willpower wilt s! The good news is that several new studies have identified compounds in certain foods that trigger the release of h...

Today's Napo is about my grandmother. I inherited a lot from her -- my name, my chubby feet, my stubbornness. Probably most marked, at least recently, has been my spinal condition, though. My mom and my grandma never got along, so I never really got to know her very well before she passed away.  So this poem is a little bit about that. I'd like to write more about my grandma Grace, about our relationship that really isn't one, and yet, how she shapes the way I move in this world still.  Today's prompt was to write a poem about things I know for certain. When it comes to my grandma, that list is pretty short, but hmm... Napo 18 Things I Know About Her I know you had to be beautiful once, We all were in a moment in time When the sun danced on the tip Of your nose, when your skin Smelled of raspberries, your hair Like gardenias, when you wore spring Across your shoulders like a shawl. I know your life must have been marked With beauty,...

At the poets' table! From left -- Edward Vidaurre, Emmy Perez, myself, Sergio, Nayelly Barrios, Celina Gomez, and Chris My love, B, was behind the camera, which is his usual spot. So, yesterday was pretty special. I was honored to read a poem at the wedding of my friends Rodney Gomez and Sara Herrera. Being invited to do this was just so humbling. When Rodney told me about his plans for this evening, my heart melted. I eagerly agreed. The only problem? I don't really write love poetry. I'm a feminist poet, and, well, us feminists have a pretty conflicted relationship with love poetry, because so often it comes across as objectifiying -- written by a male subject to an unmoving female object. Bleh. Or it comes across as cliched, overly sentimental, gushing and bleh. So, in short, although I love the idea of love and love poetry, it's just something I find difficult to do well. Or maybe it's just that love is such a powerful force in our lives as human beings th...

A tiny anecdote about my day before I share this poem: I often blog about trying to write fiction. I am trying. My best. But it's hard, you know? I've written a handful of stories over the past two years, and now, I'm just getting to the point of submitting them. In fact, one of them was just published in The Thing Itself! I am so incredibly proud of that, because it means that my efforts aren't futile, but to be completely honest, it's amazing how fiction comes so, UNnaturally to me, compared to poetry anyway. Or maybe I struggled this much with poetry, too, only it's been so long ago that I don't remember? Anyway, today was kind of funny. I got a rejection letter from a literary journal from a fiction editor. It's a nice rejection with a few suggestions for revision, an encouraging note to try them again. But the curious thing? At the end of the email, it says, "Oh, and by the way, congrats on your big Texas Institute of Lette...

My final Poetry Challenge post! Oh my... For this post, I'm going to reflect on my spring break. No, I didn't go to the beach. I didn't party. I didn't do anything crazy. Well, except... Write! This week has actually been pretty wonderful for me. I've made some serious headway on my new manuscript, beginning to fill in the chapters I've planned out for it. I wrote 3 poems from scratch and have a pretty good draft going of a fourth poem. I had two wonderful critique sessions with other poets. Spring break, I seriously wish you didn't have to end. I seriously wish I could give so much of my heart, energy, and brainspace to writing year round. Instead, I find myself in ravenous writing sprints in these little calms -- the week of Spring Break, the month of May (and maybe June, depending on my teaching schedule) and December. My progress is slow, but there is progress to relish in that will carry me through the next few months of craziness until I ca...

I know I'm a little late, but I figured it was still more than worthwhile to reflect on what 2014 was for me as a writer. It was a very, well, let's just call it "eventful" year. One of my writer friends, David Bowles, shared a picture of his writing achievements on his facebook page on NYE, and I decided to copy him and do the same :-) So there, pictured above, is my 2014! Books, magazines and journals I either had something published in, edited, or wrote entirely myself.  First from the left, we have Edward Vidaurre's book, Insomnia, which I had the pleasure of writing the introduction to. It was the first time I'd ever written an introduction to, well, anything really, so it was a bit intimating. I really love the idea, though, of helping others celebrate their successes. And that's exactly what Edward's book was, a success. Here were are at this release party! Next to Edward's book, is RiverSedge, the new literary journal of UTPA that ...

The goddess with her new "pimp cane" The past month has been the most difficult and wonderful of my entire life. And I say that without hyperbole, without exaggeration -- just with stark, real honesty. A month ago today, I was in the hospital. I woke up that morning and felt the most terrible pain I'd ever experienced. It was more pain than I could bare. More pain than I knew possible. I called my doctor to let her know I was coming in, but as I got out of bed to make my way to the bathroom, I blacked out, fell to the floor, and went unconscious. I remember thinking how I just couldn't do it, that there had to be something I could do to end the pain, and my brain just shut down. B was there, thank goodness, and called 911. The next thing I know, I'm waking up, and the paramedics are loading me into an ambulance. I try to put on a brave face, but I was scared out of my mind. At the ER, the the doctor looks at me for two minutes and wants to send me ho...

The hosts and organizers of Langdon Poetry weekend! This weekend was absolutely lovely. I had the pleasure of heading up to Granbury, Texas, for the Langdon Poetry Weekend, a gathering of Texas poets. A fairly small festival, it's well-attended by publishers, laureates, and talent. Now, I've gone to my share of poetry festivals and conferences over the years, but to be completely honest, I think this was my best experience yet. This really was all about building a community of poets, of sharing ideas, of inspiration. The readings were all held in historic buildings near downtown Granbury, a small but beautiful town in north-central Texas. Everyone there seemed as though they were old friends, and though it was my first experience here, I felt like I was a part of the group. It was absolutely wonderful. I hope to return next year. So here's my story! It was early August. I had never heard of Langdon Review of the Langdon Poetry Weekend, and I kind of pride myse...

So... Here's my official announcement, dear readers! Lamar University Press will be publishing my next poetry collection, Goddess Wears Cowboy Boots . I am over-the-moon excited for this. Its tentative release date is September 1st, which is incredibly soon. To launch the book, I will be presenting at the Langdon Poetry Weekend in Granbury, Texas. The book will be available through Amazon and Barnes and Noble, and I will likely have an armful of books wherever I go :-) So how did this come to be? Well, let's take a journey down memory lane, shall we? It was late 2011. I was feeling this mixture of elation and depression about the acceptance of The Garden Uprooted . It's a little tough to explain, but my first book was something I had cherished and worked on for years, all my years in grad school and beyond. It was my identity as a poet. And it was out of my hands, gone. I needed something new to obsess over, something new to strive for, so I began writing. I...