Friday, February 23, 2018

Spending Time with Jean Calkins--Interview

Dear Whispers’ Friends,

It is a pleasure to share this interview of Jean Calkins.  As the editor of four publications, she has encouraged and offered an array of publications over the years, giving writers a chance to share their words.

Many of you have been published at The Jokester. Being an editor for 55 years is an accomplishment many will never come close to.  It is an unselfish road of time and personal expense to share the gift of words, especially when computers weren’t available. 

Presenting and congratulations to our friend Jean!  It has been a pleasure to share the gift of words with her. Please take time to congratulate her too!

Blessings,

Karen O’Leary
Whispers’ Editor


1. Where are you from?

I was born Alpha Jean Wyant in Dansville, NY. My parents always called me Jean. The Calkins was added in 1951.

2. I understand that you were the editor of four publications. Could you share them with our readers, along with a few lines about each?

Jean’s Journal, a quarterly, began in 1961. By the time it ended, I had published 25 years and subscribers had grown to nearly 500. I did it all myself on an electric typewriter, printed on a mimeograph. It grew quickly to 100 pages. Its demise, in 1988, was mostly due to failing health.

Haiku was just hitting its stride when I started Haiku Highlights about 2 years later than Jean’s Journal. This was bi-monthly. Lorraine Harr of Portland, Oregon, took it over 5-6 years later, renaming it Dragonfly.

My 3rd effort, Humoresque, was published from 1998-2006.

The Jokester ran from 2006, after we had been in Waynesville, NC for five years. My illness grew much worse and publishing costs were so high (despite many generous contributions) I was forced to shut it down in 2016.

3. What motivates you to write?

Poetry was always a part of me. As a young teenager, I used to take long walks along a creek that ran through our farm, making up poetry never writing down my verse. My first published poem was in the school paper.  One editor told me I was a versifier and would never be a poet. Knock me down, and I come back fighting to prove them wrong. I hope I have succeeded.  I never had any trouble finding something to write about.

4.  Have you any preferred style of poetry that you like to write in?

Originally, everything I wrote was rhymed, but then I got into short forms like haiku and senryu. Later, I let the poem decide.

5. If you could make a wish and have it come true, what would it be?

To have my best poems printed in a handback book and sold in bookstores!

6. Are there any words of advice you would like to share with other writers?

Don’t scream at editors who make suggestions for changes. Listen, decide for yourself if you should make changes or try a different editor. Most won’t take time to make suggestions. If they do, don’t ‘reward’ them with negative feedback (often nasty). Read the work of prize-winning writers and keep trying to improve your poems. There is always more to learn.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here is one of Jean’s award willing poems for your pleasure—

  Somebody Used to Live Here

It crowns a desolate, shaggy hill.
A jewel of disarray,
It toasts the seasons of harsh intent,
A mottled hulk of decay.

And the wind whispers through the pine trees
In a questing, won'dring tone.
Where are those who lived here,
Who called this remnant, home?

Drooping from rusty brown hinges
Are shutters, fragmented and gray.
Smoke curls no more from a chimney
Where stone is crumbled away.

And the wind rattles through loose mortar,
Searching, forever alone,
For someone who used to live here,
Someone who called it home.

Clapboards are agéd, sagging jowls;
Shingle chips litter the sod.
Weeds, thigh-high, choked by brambles,
Hide a pathway once well trod.

And the wind rustles through the grasses
With now and then a groan:
"Oh, somebody used to live here.
Somebody called it home."

Rain whispers now on the hard-packed earth
Devoid of a plow long years.
It gossips aloud on the tin-roofed shed,
And cracked panes shed its tears.

And the wind moans a dirge under sagging eaves —
Oh, a somber, mourning tone —
About those who used to live here
When I called this shadow, home.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you, Jean, for sharing your words with us.

26 comments:

  1. Oh, how lovely to wander through Jean's interview. What an accomplished person although we seldom reach a high satisfaction place within the self; it's others who see us with clarity. Jean's poem "Somebody used to live here"
    speaks of heavy nostalgia for a place that was and now is not. So beautifully expressed, brings tears to the eyes. Such depth of feeling with a near perfect description of this long ago home. Much credit and thank you to Jean.

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    1. Dear Isha,

      Thank you for your perspective and wonderful thoughts on Jean's interview. Celebrating the gifts of others is honor.

      Thus we find joy in this tribute! Congratulations, Jean!

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  2. Congratulations, Jean! It was always my great pleasure to read or to contribute to The Jockester. You have a long and inspiring pedigree.

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    1. Dear Ndaba,

      Thank you for sharing this lovely view on Jean's Interview. Yes, the Jokester was a way for us to connect, smile and chuckle, a treat to the challenges of modern day life.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  3. Aha, so I find out that name at last! Loved this insightful interview, my dear friend, & what a lovely poem. I remember Jokester well. Much love, always xx

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    1. Dear Jack,

      Thank you for your uplifting view of Jean and all that she has contributed to the writing community. I hope both of you keep in touch--especially if it is shared verse for Whispers. Smiling here in North Dakota. Best wishes to both of you.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  4. Loved this interview. Jean was one of the first to publish my poetry waaay back in the '60's. I've treasured this connection--and am so happy we're both in Whispers where I can keep up with this beautiful lady. Thank you Jean for giving me the inspirations I needed--way back when.

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    1. Dear Barbara,

      Jean has worked hard at providing quality publications for writers to share their gift of words. Although, she is no longer publishing, maybe we will continue to share her words at Whispers. Thank you for your lovely words.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  5. Wow. I was published a couple of times in Jean's Journal way back then. It was a wonderful little magazine in an era of incredible little mags. It was a time that all writers were encouraged and supported by publications such as Jean's Journal. So nice to meet up with her these very many decades later!

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    1. Dear Judy,

      It is so much fun to reconnect with our writing friends. Your comment seems like a WOW moment that doesn't happen very often. I hope you share the gift of writing years later but most important is the friendship born of the writing experience. Thank you for these lovely words, Judy.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  6. Karen and Jean,
    Thanks for sharing this interview with Jean spotlighting her publications, accomplishments and her poems. I was part of her journals Humoresque and the Jokester. Jean, you ae an excellent poet. Keep on writing!
    Yours truly,
    David Fox

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    1. Dear David,

      I agree with you that Jean is a gifted poet. She sacrificed a lot over the years to provide writers an opportunity to share the gift of years. Thank you for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  7. The best interviewing the best, two of my most favorite people.

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    1. Dear Carl,

      Thanks for your kind words for Jean and I. You have this North Dakota gal smiling.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  8. Dear Jean, your poem speaks to me. The way you describe it, I feel like I've been there. The ones who can write such poetry are wonderful writers. Very interesting interview with a lady who dedicated her life to the love of words, even when you started without the help of a computer. I dislike typewriters, one mistake and you can start all over again.
    I like your advice to be polite when an editor makes a suggestion about a poem. You are right, you can take or leave it without being rude.
    Thank you, Jean, to share some more about yourself in this interview.

    Best wishes,
    Inge

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    1. Dear Inge,

      Jean is a giving editor and poet, providing free copies of her latest publication to shut-ins. The world keeps getting smaller when you can't physically leave one's home. What a bright spot in life for those individuals that have no computers to know that someone cares enough to share the gift of words with them. I second your thanks to Jean. Wishing both of you the best.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  9. Thanks for this interview Karen, very interesting. Thank you Jean for all you have done over the years and sharing this lovely poem.

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    1. Dear Peggy,

      Thanks for your kind words on Jean's interview and poem. She has work hard to publish 55 years--which is a huge feat by itself. As a contributor of the Jokester, I know the quality of that publication funded by contributors and she picked up the tab for costs that weren't donated. Her talents range in a wide array of writing gifts. It is so good to celebrate her.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  10. Thank you for the great interview Karen. Most assuredly Jean is very accomplished. The interview, along with her added poem, makes me want to read more of her works. I absolutely loved the magnificant poem. It takes me home to desert dwellings of old, once visited. My nostalgic feeling is so well enhanced by her descriptive words. Thank you for sharing this Karen. I can see why you admire her.
    Love, Charlene

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    1. Dear Charlene,

      Thank you for the heartfelt comments on Jean't interview. I can't imaging all the sacrifices that she has made to allow writers a chance to share their words. Thank you for joining in this celebration of her.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  11. Creative and expressive work poem. It brought back memories of my childhood home. Wonderful that Jean shared this one with us. Sara

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    1. Dear Sara,

      Thank you so much for sharing your kind words in celebrating Jean and her 55 years of editing. Kudos Jean! Best wishes to both of you.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  12. Yes indeed, a most informative interview about a dedicated poet who in her words says "knock me down, and I come back fighting to prove them wrong" and allowing the poem to decide what form it will present self in ...I love that! With an added bonus of a truly remarkable finely written poem that makes us yearn for more of the beauty of nostalgia I thank my lucky stars I saw this post and read it. Thank you Karen for introducing this well seasoned wordsmith to us and Jean, may your wish come true. Bless you and your wondrous gift and of course a huge thank you from all for your selflessness in all hours spent as editor....all for the love of word and heart.

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    1. Dear Leslie,

      What a joy to read your lovely comments in the celebration of Jean. Getting a magazine ready for print before the computer era, took hours and hours. I'm grateful that she provided so many avenues for writers to being their own journeys, encouraged by Jean. Thank you so much for your thoughts.

      Blessings,
      Karen

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  13. Beautiful interview. Continued blessings to you both!

    -MJ
    www.creativeinspirationspp.blogspot.com

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  14. It was such a pleasure reading the above interview! I admire Jean for her many years of dedicated work in the field of poetry and publication. The sample poem posted here is beautiful...the semi repeated refrain being very effective. Blessings // paul

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