I write from Whidbey Island watching mature cedars and hemlocks stand their ground against the forceful wind that shut power earlier in the day, marveling at the slate cloud cover pregnant with rain sweeping over our heads. In an hour or so there will be no more natural light. The big dark, the quiet days of January are upon us.

I think about the year gone by and swell with gratitude. I feel grateful for the myriad writing communities that thrive across the state, for all the people who year round organize and maintain poetry readings and open mics, for booksellers, for those who publish our poems in journals, newsletters, online magazines and books. In particular I feel gratitude toward teachers and librarians who are on the ground everyday sharing their love of letters and igniting other’s imaginations with their enthusiasm for learning and books.

Fondly I am revisiting the various literary and poetry festivals I attended this year: Inland Poetry Prowl in Ellensburg in early April, Get Lit! Festival in Spokane in late April, Cascadia Poetry Festival in Anacortes in May, Chuckanut Writers Conference in Bellingham in June, Centrum in Port Townsend in July, Poets in the Park in Redmond in late July, LitFuse in Tieton in September, Seattle’s Lit Crawl in October. What a list! And to think that these are not all of the literary happenings in the State.

Here I share a few of the titles I have picked up along my travels.

With the pitter-patter of rain against my window I send best wishes for a healthy New Year full of poetry and literary discovery!!