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Nancy Devine, a three time Pushcart Prize nominee, is a writer, whose poetry, short fiction and essays have appeared in a number of online and print literary magazines and journals, including Bellevue Literary Review, Midwestern Gothic-A Literary Journal, Stirring-A Literary Collection, Berfois, Referential Magazine and Hermeneutic Chaos Literary Journal. She loves to cook, garden and figure things out. She teaches high school English in Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she lives with her husband and their rambunctious rescue collie.Nancy Devine is not only a dedicated writer, but her involvement in the Red River Valley Writing Project has helped to encourage other teachers to write and to share their writing as well. Thus, we join with her in celebrating the forthcoming publication of her poetry chapbook, The Dreamed. A chapbook is a short collection of writings, which might be poems, prose or even a combination of both.
Pam Fisher provides a glimpse into Nancy's chapbook:
"In this haunting and heart-rending series of interconnected poems, Nancy Devine’s readers accompany the narrator after her brother drowns himself. Tightly phrased evocative lyrics move each poem to explore the “questions unanswered” as together reader and narrator inhabit the family’s tragedies."
Nancy's chapbook is being published by Finishing Line Press, and pre-orders can be purchased here. Advanced sales are April 18, 2016-June 17, 2016. The pre-orders affect the press run, so if you are intrigued by Nancy's poetry, consider pre-ordering a copy! The official release date is August 12, and pre-orders are slated to be shipped August 22, 2016.
In celebration of her upcoming publication, Nancy graciously shared a glimpse into her writing world by answering a few questions for the blog.
Why do you write?
Sometimes I write because some thought nudges me. Other times, especially if I'm reading around, I come across an idea or term that I want to consider, so I write about it. For me, playing around with language is pure delight. Quite often, the sheer pleasure of hanging out with words makes me write.
Who currently inspires you?
Poets whose work has helped me learn new ways to think about poems provide me with ongoing inspiration. This includes Mark Strand and Terrance Hayes.
Who encouraged you to be a writer?
My parents always encouraged and supported me. Lurlynn Franklin, a terrific poet and artist, really pushed me to send my work out into the world. I got encouragement from Larry Woiwode when I took a creative writing class from him.
What are you currently reading?
I obsessively read The Atlantic and Aeon online these days. Mostly, I'm in a constant search for compelling reading material for my students, so I also read work at Longform.
What advice do you have for writing teachers?
If you are going to teach writing, you have to write. There are things you can learn about writing only if you're writing.
What advice do you have for writers?
If you're going to write, you need to read. And if you're going to write, you must accept that much of what you write won't be that great, so you'll need to revise...revise wildly, get rid of the vacuous stuff and revise again.
What genres do you write? Which is your favorite? Why?
Mostly, I consider myself a poet, and, perhaps, an essayist. I've written some short fiction, and I have a horrible novel hanging out on my hard drive.
If you could sit down for coffee with any author, who would you choose and why?
Right now, I'm really loving "Catastrophe" on Amazon Prime; it's laugh out loud funny. I'd like to meet the stars who are also the writers--Rob Delaney and Sharon Horgan.
Thank you Nancy for sharing your writing world with us!
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AuTHor Thursday Feature compiled and written by Erika Dyk.
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