Arkansas-based poets Sandy Longhorn and Angie Macri shared their work with a room full of Harding students and faculty on April 4 in Cone Chapel.
Dr. Nick Boone, a professor in the English department, said he invited the two poets to speak at Harding because they both recently published new books.
“These are two very gracious, intelligent, energetic women,” Boone said. “I am grateful they were willing, on short notice, to bring their insights to our students. They met with about eight English majors for about 90 minutes before their presentation that evening. They are people who are willing to share.”
Longhorn and Macri work together for the English department at Pulaski Technical College in North Little Rock and attended the same MFA program at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. They have each been published for more than 20 years.
Longhorn has won several awards, including the Jacar Press Full-Length Poetry Book Contest and the Anhinga Prize for Poetry. She read two poems from “Blood Almanac,” her first book, and the rest from “The Girlhood Book of Prairie Myths.” She offered advice not only to students interested in writing but also to those interested in general learning.
“Don’t be afraid to embrace doing what you love, but be realistic about the type of life you want to live,” Longhorn said. “There aren’t always monetary rewards for teaching or for writing, but the personal rewards can be stunning. Specifically, for students interested in writing, my number one piece of advice is to read, read, read and then read some more. The more exposure to language and syntax that you have, the more tools you will have when you are ready to write.”
Macri has been published in several journals including “32 Poems,” “Connotation Press” and “The New Orleans Review.” She read, for the first time, from her book “Fear Nothing of the Future or the Past.” She enjoyed her time as a visitor on campus.
Boone said he knows the power of understanding poetry and believes that students can learn from its many aspects.
“I hope students caught the whiff of fresh air that comes from the fresh language of poetry,” Boone said. “I hope they learned something of the work it takes to write good poems. I hope they saw how poets could make use of the place they live in, how they can dig beneath the surface of any town, any location, to find meaning that connects all of us together.”
Both speakers expressed gratitude toward Harding for letting them read their poetry to a room full of busy college students.
“Professor Boone was a great host, and he helped us feel at home on campus,” Macri said. “Cone Chapel was a beautiful setting
