I have a new book out, "Hurricane Warning". It's poetry. Some people have been bugging me for more fiction and trust me, it's coming, but poetry has always held a distinct attraction for me.
When I was a little girl I wanted to be a poet when I grew up. No one warned me that you can't make a living as a poet; I had to find that out for myself. I found out that it was even difficult to get your stuff published in magazines. Some magazines were happy to publish your poetry but they didn't want to pay for it, except in copies. All the same I kept writing poetry .
I am more than a little convinced that poetry is part of the original language form of our species. Poetry ties our thoughts and experiences together. Imagine a scene on the African plain two hundred thousand years ago. A small band of early humans is foraging peacefully. Then there is a ripple in the tall grass.
"Look out; a leopard!" one of them cries.
All of the band jump up and scream and shriek. The leopard, upset by the commotion and shaking its head over the weirdness of humanity, runs away. Later, another of this band of early humans tries to recapture the experience.
"Leopards on the grass alas!" she says.
Well, okay, maybe not. But it could have happened. No one was there to publish it. Anyway, you can imagine how I am delighted to have another book of poetry published. The title is "Hurricane Warning". There's a leopard in there somewhere. Look out!
