Happy Deathday Ms. Sexton!

On this day, in 1974, confessional poet Anne Sexton, took her own life by asphyxiating herself with carbon monoxide in her garage. She was 45 years old.

Many of you will already know that Anne Sexton’s life was haunted by abuse she suffered as a child, at the hands of her parents. She was committed to mental institutions, and underwent many years of intense therapy to treat her tendencies. It is said she abused her children and struggled with bipolar disorder, nervous breakdowns and alcoholism. If you would like more information on her personal life, we recommend her biography by Diane Middlebrook.

Sexton’s first book of poetry, To Bedlam and Part Way Back (1960), examines her mental breakdowns and subsequent recoveries. It was her confessional intensity that brought her to the forefront of the literary world, earning her a Pulitzer Prize in 1967 for Live or Die. Our favorite collection of poems by Sexton is undoubtedly All My Pretty Ones, published in 1962. It’s beautifully lyrical and just so… honest.

Several volumes of poetry were also published posthumously. Among them, our favorites are 45 Mercy Street (1976) and Words for Dr. Y: Uncollected Poems with Three Stories (1978), which are both edited by her daughter, Linda Gray Sexton.

Sexton utilized her knowledge of the human condition; pain, joy… vulnerability. Her  metaphors were harsh at times, and the unexpected twists and turns of her verse either made readers love her or hate her. I think it’s pretty clear where we stand ;) What made her a great writer was her brutal honesty.

Today… we encourage you to confess. Write about a secret you dare not expose… write about some innermost thought you’ve had, no matter how taboo. Expose yourself through the written word and see what happens. You may surprise yourself.

Also, please consider making a donation to The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, to help prevent another brilliant artist, friend or loved one from hurting themselves in the future.And if you feel yourself struggling with similar issues as Ms. Sexton, we encourage you to please seek the help you need… and continue writing. Writing Saves.

Write in in peace, Ms. Sexton.

Stormy Weather : Happy Deathday Ms. Welty!

Hello there, dear readers!

Over the weekend we had some stormy weather and our lines were down! So… we’re playing a bit of catch-up today!

On July 23rd, in 2001, 6-time winner of the O. Henry Award for Short Stories, National Medal for Literature and A1969 Pulitzer Prize winner Eudora Welty died in her Mississippi home at the age of 92.

Welty is certainly one of the strongest voices in Southern Gothic lit.

Though she only wrote 5 novels and numerous volumes of short stories, with Welty it is purely a matter of quality vs. quantity. Her writing is richly descriptive and darkly humorous. Her talent for comedy aside, the most surprising gift that Welty has offered her readers, and the text that speaks most directly about her work as a writer, came to fruition in 1983, when Welty agreed to deliver the first annual Massey Lectures in the History of American Civilization at Harvard University.

Our favorite works include her 1984 memoir “One Writer’s Beginnings”, “The Optimist’s Daughter” and her first collection of short stories “A Curtain of Green”  which was published in 1941. Of late, we have recently read “Losing Battles”, written in 1970, and it has steadily become a favorite as well!

If you are interested in Eudora Welty’s full biography and works, we recommend a visit to  the Eudora Welty Foundation, our resource for all things Eudora!

Today, we encourage our readers to reflect on why they love to read and/or write. What first drew your attention to the words on the pages in front you… Ms. Welty often reflected on things like this and drew on her personal experiences to craft her marvelous stories. So… write about your origins as a writer!

Write on in peace, Ms. Welty!

A Tall Order Today… Teasdale, Frost and Frame

On this day, January 29th, three absurdly talented writers died in 1933, 1963 and 2004 respectively. American poet Sara Teasdale committed suicide in new York when she overdosed on sleeping pills. American poet Robert Frost died of natural causes in Boston at the age of 88. New Zealand born writer Janet Frame died in Dunedin after succumbing to Leukemia. She was 79 years old.

Sara Teasdale published her first volume of poetry, Sonnets to Duse, and Other Poems, at the age of 23 and was rather well received by critics who commended her mastery over lyrical verse. Ms. Teasdale was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1918 for her work Love Songs. If you are unfamiliar with her hauntingly beautiful poetry, please follow this link to get better acquainted. Our favorite body of work by Teasdale is Rivers to the Sea, published in 1915.

It is a shame that she ended her life so abruptly at the age of 49 - we would have loved to read her work as she matured. Teasdale was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame in 1994.

Now, onto Frost. Robert Frost is one of the most recognized names in American literature and it’s no wonder… reading his poetry is like viewing a landscape or a painting… there’s always more to see.

In 1912, at almost forty years old, it may surprise you to know that he had only a few poems published and Frost made a decision to move his family to England where he took a chance at living life as a poet. Lucky for him, this gamble turned out to be successful and in 1913, he published “A Boy’s Will” which was extremely well received. By the time he returned to the States, he had published North of Boston and like Salinger, he was quite embarrassed by his sudden fame. Frost received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1924, 1931, 1937 and again in 1943. He was also awarded the Emerson Thoreau Medal in 1958.

There is something to take away from every one of his poems, but perhaps his most famous will always be our favorite;  “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening”!

Janet Frame is the author of over ten novels, several short stories including autobiographical works and two incredible volumes of poetry. There is just far too much biographical information for us to reprint here… she lived a full and unusual life. The film An Angel at my Table is based on the life of Ms. Frame. And we highly recommend her autobiography, published in 1989. 

We will say, that her unique experiences in the mental health system and the various tragedies suffered in her youth, certainly have a place in her writing. Owls Do Cry  was her first novel, published in 1957, was written over the course of four years, following her release from Seacliff Lunatic Asylum where she was being treated for schizophrenia. It would later be revealed that she did not suffer from schizophrenia at all.

While all of Frame’s novels are incredible reads not to be missed, we must recommend a volume of poetry published in 1967 called The Pocket Mirror… You will discover senses you never knew you had. The imagery Frame uses to evoke the tumultuous nature of the agony within the human mind is spine tingling and sometimes… a little sinister.

Today, keep these three poets in mind… while vastly different in style, all three explored similar themes… love, loss and sometimes a little lunacy. Read a poem by each poet and then add one of your own to the mix! Host a reading tonight with some friends… read a poem a piece. 

Write on in peace, Ms. Teasdale, Mr. Frost and Ms. Frame!

Happy Deathday Mr. Auden!

On September 29th in 1973, Pulitzer Prize winning poet W.H. Auden died of heart failure at the age of 66.

Our favorite work by Auden is undoubtedly his most popular, The Age of Anxiety, for which he won the Pulitzer in 1948. What truly makes this six part poem so stirring is the actual anxiety it provokes when reading it! Read it… you’ll see what we mean.

In addition, we can pull a few other favorites from his plethora of poems. The following collections are constantly referenced by all of us here at Dead Writers Club on a nearly daily basis! The Dog Beneath the Skin, Look, Stranger!, The Sea and the Mirror, Thank You, Fog and The Dance of Death.

Auden was clearly influenced by Blake, Yeats and Dickinson. His work stands out to us as some of the most evocative poetry of our time. He had a gift for writing poetry in virtually every verse form and often alluded to Classic Literature as well as popular culture.

During his lifetime, Auden wrote approximately four hundred poems and was the author of more than four hundred essays and reviews in many subject areas… If that is not awe-inspiring, we do not know what is! Our humble request of our readers today is simple… start writing… stop reading this blog and go write!

Write on in peace, Mr. Auden!

Happy Deathday Ms. Welty!

On this day in 2001, 6-time winner of the O. Henry Award for Short Stories, National Medal for Literature and A1969 Pulitzer Prize winner Eudora Welty died in her Mississippi home at the age of 92.

Welty is often called the First Lady of Southern Literature and it’s not hard to see why. Though she only wrote 5 novels and numerous volumes of short stories, with Welty it is purely a matter of quality vs. quantity. Like Flannery O’Connor and William Faulkner, her work reflects the seedy underbelly of small town America and uses deeply flawed and grotesque characters to strengthen her often bizarre plots. Welty is certainly one of the strongest voices in Southern Gothic lit.

Our favorite works include her 1984 memoir “One Writer’s Beginnings”, “The Optimist’s Daughter” and her first collection of short stories “A Curtain of Green”  which was published in 1941.

If you are interested in Eudora Welty’s full biography and works, we recommend a visit to  the Eudora Welty Foundation, our resource for all things Eudora!

Today, we encourage our readers to reflect on why they love to read and/or write. What first drew your attention to the words on the pages in front you… Ms. Welty often reflected on things like this and drew on her personal experiences to craft her marvelous stories. So… write about your origins as a writer!

Write on in peace, Ms. Welty!