Judith Skillman Poetry
A Cadence of Hooves
from Yarroway Mountain Press
The Plow Horses
POEM OF THE MONTH
Copyright, Judith Skillman
POEMS RECENTLY APPEARING
June 2010
The Never
Published by Dream Horse Press
These poems sizzle with elemental directness and judgment, linguistically sharp and probing. Like the never which seems indistinguishable from the always, this book aims for truths which give us the comfort of no-comfort. That makes poems in this collection something to trust.
--David Weiss, Editor, Seneca Review
Few poets seize the natural world in the tender, particular ways that poet Judith Skillman does... For a poet who sees this world as does Skillman, nature's beauty and cruelty is ours as well.
--Chicago Sun-Times Book Review
Antechamber
"In the very antechambers of feeling
it is forbidden to be explicit..."
- Pessoa
Is it alright then, to be a cult?
A solitary?
To substitute oneself for God,
albeit casually?
What the hot sun
doesn’t kill it punishes
with lethargy, save
the birds, who give
themselves up
to thermals.
NEW RELEASE
New Book Release Party for The Never
Richard Hugo House Cabaret, Wednesday, September 29th, 7:30 - 9:30 pm
Please join Judith Skillman for a reading from her latest collection, The Never, about endangered and extinct species, and more:
"For a poet who sees this world as does Skillman, nature's beauty and cruelty is ours as well." - Chicago Sun-Times Book Review.
Fellow Mount Baker Poets Pat Hurshell, Susan Lane, and Joannie K. Stangeland will join read their animal poems as well.
The cafe will be open, and there will be plenty of time for questions & chat.
Admission: free.
Master Class in Poetry: Ars Poetica
In this hands-on workshop, students will write poems that address their need to create -- to be the little god who makes order out of chaos. "Ars Poetica" refers to "the art of poetry." As such, it provides a means to understanding a writer's philosophy, background and vision. This class will incorporate discussions of established poets' ars poetica oeuvres, as well as brief, guided free-writes. Poems will be workshopped in a supportive environment, with the focus on developing a unique voice and ars poetica of one's own. Bring 10 copies of an original poem to the first class.
Instructor: Judith Skillman
Meets: Monday, September 13, 2010 - Monday, November 15, 2010
Monday, 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Min: 5 Max: 15
Poetry Reading
Inklings Bookstore in Yakima WA on September 12th from 4:00 to 6:00 PM
UP AND COMING EVENTS
Judith Skillman is the author of twelve books of poetry. Her work has appeared in Field, The Iowa Review, Northwest Review, Poetry, Southern Review, and Prairie Schooner.
"Skillman's poems embrace matter, rather than meaning, and all manner of matter from the Hellenic to the Hebrew, from the heroic to the quotidian ..." - from Poetry International, of Circe's Island
"Also fierce, rage-suffused, and undeniably brilliant is Judith Skillman, who offers us the horrors of her dark little vision, 'Infanticide.' Skillman's was the first truly brilliant poem I ran across on my poetic journey, and I was in awe of the sheer skill of her line breaks, movement, and control, as evidenced in this fantastic poem. Much like Heather McHugh, Skillman is a 'poet's poet,' and to read her work makes me rejoice, as poet, in the possibilities of the art itself."
