Richard Jeffrey Newman
@richardjnewman.bsky.social
"Men denounce the negro for his prominence in this discussion; but it is no fault of his that in...conquering Rebel armies as in reconstructing the rebellious States, the right of the negro is the true solution of our national troubles." —from Frederick Douglass' "Reconstruction," in The Atlantic
Four by Four #50
Four Things To Read, Four Things To See, For Things To Listen To, and Four Things About Me
www.richardjnewman.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:26 AM
"Men denounce the negro for his prominence in this discussion; but it is no fault of his that in...conquering Rebel armies as in reconstructing the rebellious States, the right of the negro is the true solution of our national troubles." —from Frederick Douglass' "Reconstruction," in The Atlantic
Personally, I have no use for the kind of binary set up by the idea of “the true poet”—what, then, is a false poet?—and I would prefer to call “the first person impersonal” an invitation rather than permission, but everything else Hamill says in that quote rings true for me...
#writing #poetry
#writing #poetry
The Kind Of Courage These Times Call For
All men and women are to each other the limbs of a single body, each of us drawn from life’s shimmering essence, God’s perfect pearl; and when this life we share wounds one of us,&nb…
www.fernwoodpress.com
November 7, 2025 at 2:44 AM
[T]his was in large measure why I didn’t get very far in The Screwtape Letter: I found it hard to take the Christianness of the material very seriously. I had a similar issue with the The Lord of The Rings, in which Frodo "suffers for the sake of us all.”
Four by Four #49
Four Things To Read, Four Things To See, For Things To Listen To, and Four Things About Me
www.richardjnewman.com
October 28, 2025 at 8:02 PM
[T]his was in large measure why I didn’t get very far in The Screwtape Letter: I found it hard to take the Christianness of the material very seriously. I had a similar issue with the The Lord of The Rings, in which Frodo "suffers for the sake of us all.”
From my Scrapbook:
Four Flowers
I'm a poet and essayist. I write about poetry, writing, and translation; gender and sexuality; Jewish identity and culture; and the politics of higher education.
www.richardjnewman.com
October 19, 2025 at 5:53 PM
From my Scrapbook:
For me, the spiritual practice of writing poetry locates itself in the moment that the language in which I am immersed opens up into possibilities I neither predicted nor consciously desired and the decision I have to make about whether to trust where that language will lead me.
#writing #poetry
#writing #poetry
Poetry Versus Propaganda: When a Poem Devolves Into Rhetoric
The difference between poetry and rhetoric
is being ready to kill
yourself
instead of your children.
—Audre Lorde, “Power”
Back in 2019, I was asked to review a book of poems by Steven Sher called C...
www.richardjnewman.com
October 12, 2025 at 7:05 PM
"I live in New York, where abortion is legal and where...it can be all too easy not to pay attention to what abortion bans around the country are doing to women, their families, and their doctors. To say that the right is waging a war on women is not to indulge in metaphor."
Four by Four #48
Four Things To Read, Four Things To See, For Things To Listen To, and Four Things About Me
www.richardjnewman.com
October 3, 2025 at 7:22 PM
"I live in New York, where abortion is legal and where...it can be all too easy not to pay attention to what abortion bans around the country are doing to women, their families, and their doctors. To say that the right is waging a war on women is not to indulge in metaphor."
No comment.
October 2, 2025 at 2:18 PM
No comment.
At the Brooklyn Book Festival on September 21, I had the opportunity to record this video for Sagging Meniscus press. I'm looking forward to reading the book, Wings, by Amir Or, translated from the Hebrew by Seth Michelson:
@saggingmeniscus.bsky.social #writing
@saggingmeniscus.bsky.social #writing
2025 Brooklyn Book Festival Booth Reading: Richard Reads Amir Or's WINGS
YouTube video by Sagging Meniscus
youtube.com
September 26, 2025 at 1:19 PM
At the Brooklyn Book Festival on September 21, I had the opportunity to record this video for Sagging Meniscus press. I'm looking forward to reading the book, Wings, by Amir Or, translated from the Hebrew by Seth Michelson:
@saggingmeniscus.bsky.social #writing
@saggingmeniscus.bsky.social #writing
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #3
You know you are expected to respond, that rules establish how to choose your words.
Instead, you lead her out beyond the edge and watch her iron shackles become birds. Surrender to this failure. Shave your head. Embrace her like the resurrected dead.
#poetry
You know you are expected to respond, that rules establish how to choose your words.
Instead, you lead her out beyond the edge and watch her iron shackles become birds. Surrender to this failure. Shave your head. Embrace her like the resurrected dead.
#poetry
My Scrapbook
This, that, and the other thing...
www.richardjnewman.com
August 28, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #3
You know you are expected to respond, that rules establish how to choose your words.
Instead, you lead her out beyond the edge and watch her iron shackles become birds. Surrender to this failure. Shave your head. Embrace her like the resurrected dead.
#poetry
You know you are expected to respond, that rules establish how to choose your words.
Instead, you lead her out beyond the edge and watch her iron shackles become birds. Surrender to this failure. Shave your head. Embrace her like the resurrected dead.
#poetry
I write a blog for my publisher, Fernwood Press. Called Learning To Love The Questions, it's focus is the relationship(s) between and among poetry, politics, and spirituality (broadly defined). Check out this month's post: What Poems Do We Need Right Now?
#poetry #writing
#poetry #writing
What Poems Do We Need Right Now?
That’s the question Tricia Knoll’s poetry group responded to just before she read my introductory post from last month. She thought it was a pretty cool segue from her group’s que…
www.fernwoodpress.com
August 27, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #4
You did not create
the arrogance
that lies in wait.
Wilted in the sun,
surrendered generosity
is not an accident.
Facts matter.
So does silence.
#writingcommunity
You did not create
the arrogance
that lies in wait.
Wilted in the sun,
surrendered generosity
is not an accident.
Facts matter.
So does silence.
#writingcommunity
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #4
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #4
You did not create
the arrogance
that lies in wait.
Wilted in the sun,
surrendered generosity
is not an accident.
Facts matter.
So does silence.
www.richardjnewman.com
August 27, 2025 at 12:44 PM
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #4
You did not create
the arrogance
that lies in wait.
Wilted in the sun,
surrendered generosity
is not an accident.
Facts matter.
So does silence.
#writingcommunity
You did not create
the arrogance
that lies in wait.
Wilted in the sun,
surrendered generosity
is not an accident.
Facts matter.
So does silence.
#writingcommunity
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #1
They can’t be less inhuman than they are.
The line of people leaving, a living scar
across the flesh that was our home, stretched far
beyond where I, at six years old, could see.
Even now, that child breathes in me,
riding his father's shoulders...
They can’t be less inhuman than they are.
The line of people leaving, a living scar
across the flesh that was our home, stretched far
beyond where I, at six years old, could see.
Even now, that child breathes in me,
riding his father's shoulders...
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #1
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #1
They can’t be less inhuman than they are.
The line of people leaving, a living scar
across the flesh that was our home, stretched far
beyond where I, at six years...
www.richardjnewman.com
August 26, 2025 at 4:57 PM
Lines That Didn’t Make The Cut #1
They can’t be less inhuman than they are.
The line of people leaving, a living scar
across the flesh that was our home, stretched far
beyond where I, at six years old, could see.
Even now, that child breathes in me,
riding his father's shoulders...
They can’t be less inhuman than they are.
The line of people leaving, a living scar
across the flesh that was our home, stretched far
beyond where I, at six years old, could see.
Even now, that child breathes in me,
riding his father's shoulders...
Reposted by Richard Jeffrey Newman
This week in the poetry blogs w/ @kent-nj.bsky.social @matriches.bsky.social @shawnalemay.bsky.social @robmclennan.bsky.social @mcrucefix.bsky.social @emmalee1.bsky.social @richardjnewman.bsky.social @matthewepaul.bsky.social @salenagodden.bsky.social 1/3
www.vianegativa.us/2025/08/poet...
www.vianegativa.us/2025/08/poet...
Poetry Blog Digest 2025, Week 34
A personal selection of posts from the Poetry Blogging Network and beyond.
www.vianegativa.us
August 26, 2025 at 12:51 AM
And there I saw the seed upon the mountain
but it was not a seed it was a star
but it was not a star in was a world
but it was not a world it was a god
but it was not a god it was a laughter
—from “Time in the Rock or Prelude to Definition,” by Conrad Aiken
www.richardjnewman.com/microblog/
but it was not a seed it was a star
but it was not a star in was a world
but it was not a world it was a god
but it was not a god it was a laughter
—from “Time in the Rock or Prelude to Definition,” by Conrad Aiken
www.richardjnewman.com/microblog/
My Scrapbook
This, that, and the other thing...
www.richardjnewman.com
August 25, 2025 at 11:31 AM
And there I saw the seed upon the mountain
but it was not a seed it was a star
but it was not a star in was a world
but it was not a world it was a god
but it was not a god it was a laughter
—from “Time in the Rock or Prelude to Definition,” by Conrad Aiken
www.richardjnewman.com/microblog/
but it was not a seed it was a star
but it was not a star in was a world
but it was not a world it was a god
but it was not a god it was a laughter
—from “Time in the Rock or Prelude to Definition,” by Conrad Aiken
www.richardjnewman.com/microblog/
This is just appalling: www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/w...
Israel Is in Talks to Send Gazans to South Sudan, Officials Say
www.nytimes.com
August 18, 2025 at 10:44 PM
This is just appalling: www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/w...
This made me smile.
July 20, 2025 at 3:58 PM
This made me smile.
Writing style according to Virginia Woolf
Rhythm & Style
Style is a very simple matter; it is all rhythm. Once you get that you can’t use the wrong words. But on the other hand, here I am sitting after half the morning, crammed with ideas, with visions, and...
www.richardjnewman.com
July 5, 2025 at 3:22 AM
Writing style according to Virginia Woolf
