The Writer

I started writing poems the year I turned sixty. Since taking my first class at Frequency, everything changed.

I didn’t read until I was in my teens, with ADD and dyslexia, so, intellectually, I didn’t have much “school” confidence. If you know me, I’m sure you find this hard to believe. (I have tons now.)

I try to write daily….  think that part of my writing process is taking classes. Sometimes I use a technique that my Frequency teacher, Nick Rattner, taught us: start with “Today I have nothing to write….” Go from there. It works for me!

If I’m not writing poems, my goal is to edit old poems and to submit [for publication]…. I have tons of rejections but also personal responses saying things like, “your poem sat with us a long time, we really liked it, but in the end have chosen not to publish it.”

This past year I started to apply to residencies and workshops. Last October I spent a month in France in a residency with nine artists who have become life long friends. In December, I was supposed to go to Kenya for a residency, but there were political troubles and the residency was canceled. This summer I’m going to Sarah Lawrence College for a weeklong workshop. All three have given me stipends.

These opportunities would not have presented themselves without my Frequency background. I’ve taken over twenty-five classes with Frequency and never left a class feeling unsatisfied….

I encourage anyone to take a Frequency class…. Everyone is welcome, from the non-writer, to those with published books. (fingers crossed I get one someday!)

The Writing