Happy New Year!

It's been weeks since my last blog post.  A lot happened in the Fall of 2016.  The harvest lasted until the end of November, which seemed to be endless hours standing over pots of boiling water. The dining room table withstood the weight of jars upon jars of tomato sauce, strawberry, plum, raspberry, and "Blazberry"preserves, salsa, salsa verde, pickles, and more.

Here is canning evidence of  what was keeping me away from this blog:

In late October, I had the opportunity to go to the North Country SUNY Potsdam to promote my newest poetry collection Small Worlds Floating (Cherry Grove Collections, August 2016) as well as offering an Ekphrastic poetry workshop.  Earlier in September, I read at Writers and Books, and at Your Quiet Eyes Bookstore; and then in early November, I had the best time reading at CFI literary Cafe hosted by Poet Jennifer Campbell. I am very grateful to those who attended these readings and bought my book.  I am fortunate to live in a strong and supportive literary community.


Small Worlds Floating has received some buzz in thumbnail reviews:

5.0 out of 5 starsA Special Treasure in My Poetry Collection!

By Books Public on November 4, 2016

Verified Purchase

Small Worlds Floating was game changer in how I look at connecting the landscape to my life, family, seasons to my writing. Iuppa captured the much forgotten simplicity of life with Company is coming and landscape perspective with Natural History. One of the first poetry books I have ever read cover to cover. It spurred several concepts and memories to fuel my own writing.

 

5.0 out of 5 starsHighly recommended

By W. S. on November 6, 2016

If you have ever looked closely at a raindrop hanging from a leaf, you know that you can see images reflected and refracted, so richly held that you sometimes hold your own breath, lest the drop fall and the world be lost. I had the same feeling reading these poems. The "ordinary," the "quiet," the "everyday" of life trembles on their surfaces, while their complexity and the surprises inside them slip into view and make me gasp. I couldn't read the book all at one sitting - I kept trying, but couldn't do it. I needed to slow down and pay attention to what was going on in these "small worlds," because the invitation was there to travel inward, and so I did, and quite possibly I still am.

And featured on Verse Daily http://www.versedaily.org/2016/interview.shtml

Consequently, I will be doing more readings in the Winter-Spring-Early Summer.  Looking forward to promoting this collection in 2017, and awaiting  the release my fourth full-length collection This Thirst (Aldrich Press, September, 2017).