My poem on the pandemic is online now at the marvelous journal Eclectica! I’m thrilled to have it included in this stellar springtime issue. With thanks to editor Christine Potter for selecting it. Here’s a link to the poem: Eclectica-Dacus. And here’s the poem: After the Great Pause I never wanted to leave the sudden silence, of the pandemic, the global pause shared like a Girl Scout pact and the masks we colored as badges. It…
I’ve been making animated recordings of my poems — poem movies, if you will. I love listening to poetry, especially when read by the author. Adding visuals is fully engaging for me, so I’m using the program Canva to layer the text over moving backgrounds for a full poetry experience. Here’s my latest on Youtube — “I Get Over Myself”, a poem from my book The Artist’s House.
My new poetry collection. The Artist’s House is a cultural autobiography, honoring the literature, art, and artists that have shaped my writing, with illustrations and interactive features. It will include Art Nouveau style drawings and links to music, dance, and poetry online. Listen to a song by Jacob Collier while reading a poem about Emily Dickinson’s lines dueling with Taylor Swift’s. Watch a performance of Twyla Tharp’s “In The Upper Rooms” ballet after reading the…
New Review! Very happy to have my new poetry collection reviewed by author Elizabeth Havey on her recent blog. Read the review here. She writes “Rachel Dacus is an amazing poet, choosing her words to explore ideas…every poem a gift that touches, informs and shines” I’m honored to have the book so enthusiastically reviewed. One of the dimensions of the book I’m most pleased by is the art work I included, drawings, photos, and paintings.…
Nur Melange: a Ghazal Anthology is a joint project of South Asia Institute and Glass Lyre Press. The collection was edited by Glass Lyre’s publisher Ami Kaye. Here’s a short definition of the ghazal form. A ghazal is a poetic form that originated in Arabic and is often used to express romantic or spiritual love. To the Sufis, spiritual love can hide in the guise of a romantic utterance, but is really a love song…
Ode to My Purse The three French handbags came with lifetime warranties. Clasping heavy straps, I cinch them saddle-tight against the grasping world. Dark wells, they incubate details, stash my days in hidden rooms. My black postman’s case clacks clock-neat on thigh, ticking tasks. Weekends I sling a red pouch that eats torn tickets and topless lipsticks. Keys to many locks eel through my caramel creel. Open Purse, I say: swallow phone, glasses, cash. Bring…
Solace From Small Birds A house finch built her nest on the garland of the front door next to ours. This is a week when our dear Soul-friend has just departed. We first noticed twigs on the doormat, then sticking up above the round of faux leaves. Then we heard the cheeping. Now a finch mom and pop sit on eggs at our passageway. Coming and going, we must be quiet under our avian blessing.…
Clouds have always intrigued me. They’re like immense art murals on giant walls that you walk past every day without giving them thought. But I give them thought all the time. I try to decipher them. I take photos, hoping that later I can crack their mysterious code. I can’t help taking them personally, learning their names and causes. The evanescent formation mystify and grab me, as if they’re trying to say something to me.…
I’ve been reviewing a book by a favorite poet lately, Alice Oswald, and thinking about magical realism in poetry. I realized one of the qualities I love in her poetry could be termed magical realism, if that term can encompass verse and imagery that evolves into story. Oswald is an acclaimed British poet, author of the award-winning book Dart, and has published a total of eleven volumes of verse. I happened to dive back into…
I came across a poem today that speaks with the voice of my aching heart. I was delighted to find the author is Amanda Gorman, whose poetic voice often resonates with me. She’s a poet for this moment on earth. Young, truthful, gifted, she speaks plainly with vibrant images, simply but with rhythm, alliteration, and assonance. Amanda Gorman is the author of The Hill We Climb and Other Poems. She was the youngest inaugural poet…