journal entry

Ode to the Poet

Ilove poetry. I’ve written some myself, and I’m always in awe of the people that look at life through a poetic lens. They can express themselves so beautifully. These sensitive and special folks see with unique eyes, possessing the distinct capability of focusing their creative thoughts into what seems to be effortless stanzas of articulation. The poets among us are a separate breed.

With an uncanny ability to direct their imagination, poets combine both a fresh way of looking at the ordinary with an oft times romantic perspective of the world or maybe they just give us a glimpse into a few seconds that are happening in the real world, or maybe just a peek into their own world, but nevertheless, they make time stand still with their words.

What many people don’t realize is that writing poetry is a separate skill set from other types of word-smithing and that within the poetry genre, there are quite a few different forms of poetry, from free verse and sonnets to haiku. Some of the poets that we publish in The Journal have never been published before. I imagine the feeling they have when they see their words in print.

As we get ready for next month’s Milford Readers and Writers Festival, we pay tribute here to our poets and also explore the writing dynamic of best-selling author Nelson DeMille and his son Alex DeMille as they discuss their collaboration on the 2019 book, The Deserter. Celebrated historian and food author, Paul Freedman took time out from his professorship at Yale to speak about his newest book. We also hear from local true-crime author Michael Worden about a horrific crime that took place in 1892.

And in this issue, I’d like to acknowledge our many local writers who work with The Journal. We all say thank you!

Amy