Poetry Connection: Boost Your Creativity with a Collaboration

Last month, I wrote about my twenty year journey at the Santa Barbara Writers Conference. What I didn’t talk about was the team-teaching I do with mystery writer Lida Sideris. A few years before the pandemic, Lida and I started offering a workshop titled, “Writing through the Fear.” This year, we did a workshop on how to be your own best publicist. In our workshop, we talked about how to promote your writing and books without hiring an expensive publicist. Our styles are very different, but we work well together and have great energy as a team.

When a friend and local artist, Colleen Kelly asked me to write a poem for her solo exhibition, The Dichotomy of Laundry, I was reluctant because I’ve been so busy and the request meant having to write a poem within two weeks, but I am happy I agreed.

This wasn’t the first time I had written a poem in response to Colleen’s work. Her artistry is often playful while addressing serious and important issues, especially with regard to feminism and the environment.