Amber Ridenour Walker and Brook Bhagat are proud to share that their poetry has been published in the first installment of a new summer community folio from Tempered Steel, the literary and arts journal of Colorado State University Pueblo. The journal is now accepting submissions from residents of El Paso and Pueblo counties, along with submissions from students.
One special feature of the folio is the inclusion of authors’ reflections on their creative processes for the work published there. Walker describes hers like this: “’It’s All Coming Back to Me Now’ was inspired by the sheer bonkers-ness of the Celine Dion music video. Written by Jim Steinman and originally promised to Meatloaf, Dion made it a hit in the 90’s. The video is truly over the top.
“’Bluebeard’s Subaru’ is based on the fairy tale of Bluebeard and a crappy lover. I can’t say I wasn’t warned about the other girls, but did I go there anyway? Of course I did. Villains are, of course, extremely charming (even in a filthy car).
“’August on The Downward Slope’ references a walking meditation I took part in as a graduate student at Naropa. We listened to Clark Coolidge read one of his poems while walking in circles and staring at our feet. If you have never tried this, I highly recommend it, as it gets you completely looped without having to use any substances whatsoever.”
Bhagat comments on her poetry writing process and her relationship with ghazals, a poetic form that originated in 7th-century Arabia: “I’m generally against rules, especially in poetry, and I wrote exclusively free verse for most of my life. Then, about two years ago, I tried writing ghazals, sticking to all the classic rules of the form. Something mystical happened: it was so tough that my poems had to take unexpected turns, turns that revealed strange images and truths I would never have found otherwise. I was in love. I never looked back, and now I’m working on a whole book of them.
“‘Ghazal for J’ is for one of my oldest and dearest friends. ‘Ghazal for the Outsider’ follows the Sufi tradition of addressing the Divine or Unknown in the second person, as the beloved. And in ‘Ghazal for Unbraiding,’ I imagine the self dissolving in different moments, different ways, like love or beauty or pain or meditation. Like a braid, coming loose.”
All three of these ghazals and Walker’s poem, “Bluebeard’s Subaru,” were workshopped in the Nearby Universe, and both poets express their thanks for the feedback and community. Read all the poems here: Tempered Steel Summer Community Folio
The Nearby Universe 