Castleton Professor of English, Joyce Thomas, recently released her latest book of poetry, Washing Birds. Describing her book as interesting, moving, and at times beautiful, Thomas’ inspiration for the piece was to mix in slight touches of her personal experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
“I wanted to discover more about the writing process and myself,” she said.
As a professor, Thomas teaches classes at Castleton in world and children’s literature, including Lyric Poetry, Folk Tales, Art of Children’s Book Illustration, Epic Poetry, and Native Literature. She is the author of one non-fiction work, Inside the Wolf’s Belly: Aspects of the Fairy Tale, and one collection of poetry, Skins.
Thomas’ work has been published in various small press magazines, journals and anthologies, including The Blueline Press, Story Line Press, and University Press of New England. Her poetry awards include the 2005 James Hearst Poetry Prize.
“I want readers to get what I hope they get out of any good poetry, to feel and see more deeply than if they hadn’t read the poem,” said Thomas of her new work, “And to experience the magic of words well joined.”
As for the future, Thomas sees herself writing a chapbook of new poems as soon as she has enough content.
“The mixed genre book seems rather popular these days,” explained Thomas. “For a writer, the appeal lies partly in the variety of approaches one can take when treating a single topic.”