About Me

My photo
Jim Croteau lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan with his partner of 31 years, Darryl, and their two Labrador retrievers. He grew up gay and Catholic and white in the southern United States in the 1960’s and 70’s and has spent his adult life in small non-coastal cities, mostly in the Midwest. He loved his mother very much. He began writing poetry in May 2012 at first to cope with life in times of aging and then, well, he sorta caught the poetry bug. He is still working as a professor in Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology at Western Michigan University.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

My first published poem---Evan in Hoot: a Postcard review of {mini} poetry and prose, November 2012

My first published poem appeared in Hoot: a Postcard review of {mini} poetry and prose late 2012.  Amanda and Dorian are the editors of that journal and they have the bi-weekly Wednesday night chat workshop that I wrote a little about in an earlier post.  I have learned much from them and the workshop participants---so I really thought it was amazing and appropriate that I was first published there.

The poem was their postcard print for November 2012 and is entitled Evan.  I write a lot about the gay experience and see the poem as exploring the possibility of self-discovery for youth of today, where discovering who you are can come with more ease for some than in my days. Nevertheless, the backdrop of moral condemnation floats in the background and still needs rejection, albeit with a lighter hand.  Sure wish I was in Evan's shoes as a boy.

Here is the link to the poem: Evan in Hoot: a Postcard review of {mini} poetry and prose

2 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Check out the Hoot workshops that happen every other Wednesday, are free, and open to anyone at any level. I have learned a lot from them.

      Delete